from apathy to ambition

Ever felt like your dreams are bigger than you are?

I did.

I was just another developer in a team of 5.

Which was part of a bigger team of 50. Which was part of an even bigger team of 500.

In a world of 8 billion people, with 25 million software developers, what could I bring to the table that no one has done before?

Not much.

At least, that’s what I told myself.

In the end, every tool and framework I was using had been created by someone else. A much smarter developer that, if I am lucky enough, will see talking on stage.

This mindset kept me stuck for years.

If you believe you don’t matter, you won’t do much to change your situation.

Why even bother, right?

Sure, some average developers accomplish great things.

And I am not talking about big stuff like creating your own programming language or software company (like Brendan Eich created JavaScript in 10 days).

But even smaller ones.

Like getting promoted to the next level or finding a better-paying job. Things you know are possible. But not for you. At least not right now.

Right now, you don’t have the time.

Or the money.

Or the energy.

You have bills to pay. You have responsibilities and a hundred different things you need to take care of before you go out there and chase your dreams. You better stick to what you know and don’t bother too much.

And so you stroll through the day.

Days become weeks. Weeks become months.

One day you wake up, and you don’t like what you see. Your skills are out of date. Your tech lead gave you yet another excuse about why you won’t get that promotion. And your bank account is the same as last year.

Not only that…

But the passion that made you become a developer in the first place is quietly fading away.

Boring, tedious work, endless discussions about edge cases, and a myriad of things you’ve built that never saw the light of day. The next sprint feels like another pointless software release.

But hey, maybe you are the problem.

Look at the developers around you; they also are doing the same.

Maybe you are expecting too much. Just start a new hobby and get your head off work.

That will solve it.

Five years ago, I was thinking the same. And I did so. I lied to myself that my ambition was greed and not passion—insecurity and not hunger. I went through my day the best I could, putting my dreams in second place.

Until one day, everything changed.

To spare you the details, I went to a tech meetup and bumped into a developer who was everything I used to dream of.

He worked for a top company, was well paid, was in top shape, and was giving tech talks. On top of that, he was consulting companies on the side as a freelancer and about to build his own project.

But more importantly, he was passionate. Yes, after years of writing code, he still had that spark in his eyes. The spark I lost.

Long story short, he became my mentor and one of the most influential people in my life up until today.

So what did he do to me? Sure, he shared secrets of the trade. Stuff you don’t find in books because it is either too specific or not politically correct. Stuff that works.

But on top of that, he made me remember one thing I forgot:

That I had everything - and I mean everything - I needed to succeed.

Right freaking now.

And now I want to pass that into you. Whatever your goal is in your developer career, you probably have the ability to get there.

You might not have the skills, the knowledge, or the wisdom. But all those things can be acquired.

So I give you permission not to quit and to keep dreaming big!

Now, back to work!

Take care, Dragos

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