I think your situation is atypical, actually. Certainly there are domains where the problem complexity necessitates learning more complex algorithms. But the va

I think your situation is atypical, actually. Certainly there are domains where the problem complexity necessitates learning more complex algorithms. But the vast majority of people coding for businesses, that's not true. Most of that type of work is fundamentally CRUD work. The relevant skills in this type of job are writing clean, maintainable code; designing good data flows; working with stakeholders; building resilient systems. In short, about building stable information systems that are easy to modify. At some point, there are diminishing returns to increasing technical knowledge. As a former coder and now hiring manager, I value people who are good communicators and problem solvers (not just coding problems). If you want to remain an individual contributor, then sure, by all means keep focused on technical skills. But at some point, so-called "soft" skills actually become more important to advancing your career, and your career will plateau if you don't actively develop them. So maybe what you are seeing as complacency is really about people around you applying themselves in ways other than improving technical capabilities.