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For a variety of reasons, I learned early in life that I couldn't really count on anyone, and I had to learn/do everything for myself. Not sure I'd choose that

For a variety of reasons, I learned early in life that I couldn't really count on anyone, and I had to learn/do everything for myself. Not sure I'd choose that for someone else, but it has indeed been an extremely useful work skill. In pretty much every job I've ever had, I've ended up being the final go-to person for the hardest problems. Especially with respect to computers, there's essentially no problem I can't solve/mitigate/triage at this point in my career. That said, this skill doesn't seem to be very useful for getting hired. Maybe I'm not marketing myself correctly. Once I'm in, though, I'm generally gold after a few months. Once had a manager burst into tears when I gave notice. It does feel like this is rarer these days. In my current org of about 5000 people, I'm not aware of a single tech person on par with me in this respect. That might sound like a boast, but it's very much a lament.

hugey010 7y ago
I struggle with this too. I think it's people applying the "jack of all trades, master of none" saying too far or too literally. To be a truly successful (backend, frontend, web, mobile, crypto, etc...) developer, it is a requirement to have firm grasp of nearly all technologies, methodologies, and practices at play in the ecosystem.
AQuantized 7y ago
Not that this is exactly a massive disadvantage for you, but I routinely see guys such as yourself, not being exploited as such, but essentially never having their compensation match their productivity. I believe the original poster in that they could be much more productive than their coworkers. However, in my experience, that has only a loose correlation with wealth, and playing the game right / nepotism take precedence for real earning.