I’m a senior SWE with 6-7 YOE on paper but in reality am junior level skill wise, how to survive in new role?
Posted by Wild-Yogurtcloset921@reddit | ExperiencedDevs | View on Reddit | 49 comments
So I have 7 years of experience at 5 small companies doing full stack development but in every single role except one I was at for a year before getting hired I did basically no real work and didn’t progress pass junior tasks much. Basically the definition of 1 year of experience X7.
I lied in an interview and got a job at a decent company but it is on site. What are the top skills needed to survive in the new role as a Full stack Typescript dev long as possible in this era where coding seems to have become much easier due to new tools. I asked AI and it said API design and consumption and contracts, testing, git, SQL basics, state management, debugging,async/data flow
Curucuchi@reddit
They didn’t put you through the wringer for your interviews to see if you can do the job? Just took your word? 😂
Wild-Yogurtcloset921@reddit (OP)
Well I had some AI assistance and I’m a good liar. You would be surprised how easy some companies interviews can be
podcast_frog3817@reddit
the fact that your that resourceful in the first place and know/care to even better yourself on this forum probably puts you above the 50th percentile of all devs.
floghdraki@reddit
Are you American? I've recently come to realize how much Americans value success. The fact that someone has made it is a proof of their value. Even here with OP literally saying that their skills are shit you'd rather subscribe to your prosperity gospel.
I see a lot less of that in Europe. Instead I assume OP is just lucky. Maybe good looking too, checks all the marks recruiters look for. It's not an exact science. Recruiters seem to be kind of shitty at their jobs.
podcast_frog3817@reddit
Matthew 25:29 (Parable of the Talents), which states: "For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away".
floghdraki@reddit
You are using that parable to praise manipulation and outcome which is the exact opposite of what that verse is saying about being responsible. The point is that what you do with what you’re given matters. It's not a commendation for lying.
sfspectator@reddit
Care to share what did you use for ai assistance during the interviews? I'm interested!
ExperiencedDevs-ModTeam@reddit
Rule 1: Do not participate unless experienced
If you have less than 3 years of experience as a developer, do not make a post, nor participate in comments threads except for the weekly “Ask Experienced Devs” auto-thread.
Ryuugyo@reddit
What I'm more interested is how:
- you lie at interview and can pass it
- you manage to avoid complex work
You must have some crazy "managing up" skill.
Not a sarcastic comment. I genuinely want to learn.
Mundane-Mechanic-547@reddit
Dudes got management written all over him
DurianDiscriminat3r@reddit
He probably used AI during the interview. You can't really lie your ass out during a technical interview unless AI is giving you the answers. It'd just sound like you're dodging the question.
Aflyingoat@reddit
Yes you can, after 6 or 7 interview pipelines with 3-6 interviews a piece + discord groups that share Intel on places people Interview + refresh of what you learned in school, you can get a solid shallow depth of knowledge. Effectively you just memorize a script and making sure you're friendly.
Interviews aren't that original. They all essentially ask the same pool of questions.
Landed a mid -> staff level position like that with 4 yoe. I'm a terrible coder.
redditrum@reddit
How do you survive in a job like that and be shit at it?
TitanTowel@reddit
Unless he lied on his resume they probably weren't looking for what many consider "staff" level.
Unhappy-Ladder-4594@reddit
That is true. Tech interviews are a skillset in and of itself. And it has little to do with working a job.
sfspectator@reddit
Any discord groups to share?
Hog_enthusiast@reddit
He’s hopping jobs faster than they can fire him it isn’t that impressive
kevinossia@reddit
Prepare to put in a _lot_ of overtime.
And this time around hopefully your skills will grow.
Saki-Sun@reddit
This is an unpopular opinion on Reddit but...
I've been programming for 3 decades... I had to get up to speed on a new tech a few months ago and spent 8 weekends learning...
Thats how you don't stay a junior... And how your technical ability doesn't fester and die.
kevinossia@reddit
Well, it’s more so that you’re supposed to work on challenging stuff _on the job_. Becoming more senior isn’t about learning new tech; anyone can do that. It’s about growing your projects in scope, complexity, and ambiguity, as well as the ability to work independently and without guidance.
If you don’t work on complex stuff that pushes you outside your comfort zone you will remain junior forever regardless of how much new tech you pick up.
Saki-Sun@reddit
Learning new technologies does expand your horizons and depth of knowledge. It's a great place to start to become a senior dev. Tempered with some good mentoring.
When I think about it, almost all of the good developers I've known worked on home projects and didn't just learn on the job. To be good at something you need to have a passion for it. If you have a passion you're going to tinker.
amartincolby@reddit
100%
This is a danger that I specifically try to avoid with my team. Companies will often not put engineers in a growth context. You need to prevent that by actively seeking growth opportunities and proactively solving problems. Watch at least one, good tech presentation per day. Hackerank, Leetcode, and Codingamelike your life depends on it. Take the responsibility for growth (at least partially) out of your employer's hands, because they often suck at it.
anengineerandacat@reddit
This, my last 7 years myself has generally been spent building out CRUD and ETL services; nothing sexy, just connecting systems together and moving data around in a not-fast-not-slow manner.
I think the most "complex" thing I have built was a data synchronization solution for shore-to-ship DBs on satellite connections.
The most complex element is just ensuring my team can deliver and feed them with new work (estimations and fast research on new business problems and desired integrations).
I worry in this AI enabled world that my days are basically numbered.
tuser-reddit@reddit
I concure, man I wish I knew that, I wouldn't waste some years stagnanting on the same level that I came in.
Remote-Pen-8276@reddit
Quit while you're ahead
Dmoh34@reddit
I’m going to be blunt. If you’re truly junior skill wise (and how are you even gauging that? You’ve provided no detail) and you were able to lie your way through the interview, congratulations you will have some time before they find out you are a fraud because that company is obviously not on it. The only way to close the gap is to put in the effort to learn and grow , maybe it’s not good enough and you get fired in 6 months or maybe you can meet their expectations, it really just depends on what they need from you and what you are willing to do to close the gaps.
superkingdra@reddit
Ai rage bait post
throwaway_0x90@reddit
So you lied and got yourself into pickle and you're asking how to continue deceiving people?
ribenakifragostafylo@reddit
Fake it then you make it. Like literally everyone else
pr0cess1ng@reddit
Admins.........come on
drahgon@reddit
If your skills are really that bad and you could lie to pass the interview you're probably exactly the right level for this company.
Hog_enthusiast@reddit
You should leave this field. I’m pissed that I don’t lie in interviews, and I lose job offers to people like you because you do lie. You don’t have imposter syndrome you genuinely are an imposter. Do something else with your life and get out of the way for the rest of us.
PaleDifficulty9144@reddit
leverage AI , coding , testing debugging , even blaming AI if some mistakes happen. Take coding as a hobby 😂. All the best,.you got this.
Wild-Yogurtcloset921@reddit (OP)
I’m going to learn AI well and say my last company forced all employees to only use AI no manual coding so I’m a little rusty lol
PaleDifficulty9144@reddit
It's tough out there friend, people maybe down voting you but you got this. Win or loss please update us after 6 months. am rooting for you 💪.
Tiktoktoker@reddit
Yeah continue to lie, that will work out well 🙄
Wild-Yogurtcloset921@reddit (OP)
Worked well last 6 years , don’t see why the greatest cheating tool of all time being invented scraping all coding knowledge will make it harder to lie lol
iComplainAbtVal@reddit
lol if you’re asking AI how to survive a role at a small company you’re missing the point. Give up on the imposter syndrome you’ve clearly got the knack if you’ve made it this far. Be yourself instead of inventing a new image and pay attention during onboarding.
Wild-Yogurtcloset921@reddit (OP)
You overestimate my technical skills but i will try lol.
iComplainAbtVal@reddit
I believe in you.
Just be prepared to have an answer and provide sound reasoning during planning and don’t be afraid to say “I don’t know let me get back to you”.
What you need to know won’t be clear until you begin to onboard and receive tasks. As soon as you get into, do your research. You’ll be fine.
Tight-Requirement-15@reddit
Who among us isn’t
actionerror@reddit
7 years at 5 companies? Did you switch jobs almost every year?
Wild-Yogurtcloset921@reddit (OP)
Did a lot of freelance and contract work but have 2 jobs I worked 1.5 years at
skidmark_zuckerberg@reddit
Did you pass a technical? Because if you did get a technical and passed, then congrats you know more than you think. But regardless you’re gonna have to put in the overtime for the first 3-6 months to upskill of work.
arstarsta@reddit
I don't know about you but I knew as much about SQL or git my first year as my 8th. What I have learned is company politics and don't be too honest.
Flubert_Harnsworth@reddit
Yeah I hear you, I’ve been a dev for over six years and I use very basic git commands and occasionally do some cherry picking using the webstorm ui.
Careful_Ad_9077@reddit
The mini skills always change.
The mark of a senior is being able to design a full module/system and being able to meet the client,grab the requirements and transform them into code.
You can know all the frameworks and libraries comoletenqirhbthwir trivis that you want and you won't ever be a senior ( * unless exception)
pipinhotdata@reddit
I mean, as always fake it until you make it. The first 3-6 months or so are your grace period to learn as much as you can without people suspecting anything. Ask a lot of questions to understand what’s going on and get the business context.
A lot of software concepts can now be answered using LLMs but it’s still up to you too understand these concepts and use them in your daily life.
Curucuchi@reddit
They didn’t put you through the wringer for your interviews to see if you can do the job? Just took your word? 😂