My personal strategy has been that of becoming T-shaped, a term I learned from Valve's employee handbook[0]: People who are both generalists (highly skille

My personal strategy has been that of becoming T-shaped, a term I learned from Valve's employee handbook[0]: People who are both generalists (highly skilled at a broad set of valuable things - the top of the T) and also experts (among the best in their field within a narrow discipline - the vertical leg of the T). I think you need have a broad understanding of many tools, languages, and fields, but you should also aim for expertise in one field. [0]: http://www.valvesoftware.com/company/Valve_Handbook_LowRes.pdf http://www.valvesoftware.com/company/Valve_Handbook_LowRes.p...