I think one of the problems with "How to improve as a software developer?" is that it represents many different skills. So the first thing to become a better

I think one of the problems with "How to improve as a software developer?" is that it represents many different skills. So the first thing to become a better developer, before you read any books, or write any code is to figure out what it means to be a better developer. Specifically where you want your career to take you and how can you make progress on that path. What makes a good compiler developer for Microsoft is going to be very different from what makes a good developer at a start up. If you plan on working at start ups, particular early stage start ups, it would be very beneficial to see where you are lacking any experience to increase your breadth. For instance are you familiar with source control, unit testing, scripting, database optimization, communication skills, trouble shooting, etc... Find any skill where you are behind some of your pears and improve it. Obviously a combination of reading and practice will help you get there.(With the proportions of each depending on the skill) If for instance you are a developer for the Microsoft compiler it might be beneficial to go really deep. Find as many papers as possible on language design, compiler design, etc... Maybe work on a couple of different open source compilers to get introduced to more ideas, or implement some new language ideas from papers into an open source compiler, while trying to minimize any types of breaking changes. But these skills and how you improve upon them are probably very different from what makes a good start up developer. *Warning I do not actually know what skills are needed to be a Microsoft compiler writer, or a good start up developer, these were just examples to illustrate a point. My experience has been primarily enterprise, and I probably should have used that as an example but now its too late because the compiler is finishing up.