While 2020 was a challenging year in many ways, it was also very rewarded. A good friend of mine started a book club and this last month, we read The Art Of Learning by Josh Waitkin. The learning process he outlines helped Josh master chess and Tai Chi Chuan, two very different disciplines.
Many of his concepts can be applied to growth as a software engineer. Two of them in particular will become my focus in 2021.
Plunge into the detailed mystery of the micro in order to understand what makes the macro tick.
When I first started at Xactware, my learning goals were so clear. Feeling a heavy amount of imposter syndrome, I consistently worried about job security. Fight or flight ran it's course and I found myself studying for an hour each night.
In my first year, I went through the entire Angular documentation twice. I learned Typescript. I started contributing to our TeamCity builds. I built a number of mini-projects focused around my weak points. Absolutely anything I could do to keep my job.
Fast forward to my situation today, and the path of growth is less clear. It's increasingly difficult to identify the most important topics to study.
Like most engineers, I felt like I knew it all when I started. Or better said, I wasn't aware of all there was to learn so I felt like I had grasped a large piece of the knowledge pie. I'm certainly more skilled now than I was then but I now realize the pie is much bigger than I could have ever imagined.
So what do I do next?
What if I study machine learning? It's a super hot topic and it's only growing. The salaries are wild.
How about data science? I like the business side of software and this would be a good balance. I'd love to interpret data and provide business insights from that.
Maybe I need to do more full stack development? I've done it before but maybe that looks good on a resume.
These are the types of thoughts that have been floating around in my head over this past year. But having read this book, I think they're all a little off base. For one, I try to cut myself off at a certain hour threshold each week for career-related activities. I have a tendency to work too much, putting off more important activities.
But the more powerful concept here is that I can continue becoming an expert in my niche by honing in on the micro. I'm going to choose one narrow topic at a time and dive deep into that topic for as long as it feels right. The horizontal, superficial learning initiatives just don't motivate my anymore. They feel more like busy work than actual progress.
The physiologists at LGE had discovered that in virtually every discipline, one of the most telling features of a dominant performer is the routine use of recovery periods. Players who are able to relax in brief moments of inactivity are almost always the ones who end up coming through when the game is on the line.
Working from home has made me a Pomodoro time management evangelist. It's worked wonders to increase my productivity as well as decrease my stress level. Still, I think I'm leaving some production on the table.
During my break periods, I find myself scrolling LinkedIn or checking off my daily to-do list. While it does provide some benefit being away from a given work task, I think I'd be far better off if I could find something relaxing to do during those 15 minutes.
At the very least, I need to let my mind relax during those sessions. I'd be better off doing things that take no thought (cleaning the house, doing laundry, making food) or things that I find relaxing (hot shower, meditation, watching TV).
Making these changes in 2021 will get me back on track from a growth perspective. I think I'll start seeing the exponential growth I saw in 2017 and 2018. I'm definitely looking forward to the new year.