As the year comes to a close, I find it valuable to reflect on the journey I’ve been on—the progress I’ve made, the mistakes I’ve learned from, and how I plan to move forward. This blog post serves as a message to my future self, a reminder of where I was and the lessons I aimed to carry forward. This year has been a mix of technical and personal growth, challenges that tested my resilience, and opportunities to excel both individually and as part of a team.
Highlights of My Technical Journey
Growing in Functional Programming and Cloud Architecture
This year, I delved deeper into functional programming, particularly with fp-ts, which has transformed how I approach code quality and maintainability. It’s been a game-changer for designing predictable and composable systems. Additionally, I expanded my expertise in cloud architecture, leveraging technologies like Pub/Sub, Cloud Functions, Cloud Queues, Google CLoud Big Query, and Cloud’s error logging tools to build scalable and reliable solutions.
Managing Expectations and Estimations
I’ve made significant strides in better estimating the time and effort required for features and tasks, which has greatly helped in managing stakeholder expectations. Tackling difficult technical challenges this year and solving them with great success has been incredibly rewarding.
Strengthening My Soft Skills
Teamwork and Communication
Leading multiple features successfully has highlighted the importance of teamwork and communication. For example, during a high-stakes product release, coordinating closely with cross-functional teams ensured we identified and resolved critical issues ahead of launch. This collaboration not only strengthened the final output but also fostered trust and alignment within the team.
Adaptability
This year brought several changes, including team restructuring and shifts in leadership. These changes tested my adaptability, pushing me to remain focused and proactive despite uncertainties.
Problem Solving in High-Pressure Situations
Problem-solving has always been a core strength, but this year’s challenges reinforced its importance. Finding creative solutions under tight deadlines while keeping the team’s morale high was a recurring theme, and I’m proud of how we navigated those scenarios.
Lessons from Challenges
Avoiding Burnout
Despite the successes, burnout was a significant challenge. Taking on multiple responsibilities and navigating leadership changes stretched me thin at times. To address this, I began setting clearer priorities and carving out time for self-care to maintain balance. This has been a wake-up call to prioritize mental health and set clearer boundaries to ensure long-term sustainability in my work.
Navigating Team Changes
Adapting to team and leadership transitions presented both challenges and opportunities. One key adjustment was aligning priorities during a leadership transition, which initially introduced some uncertainty. By fostering open communication and organizing structured team meetings, we quickly regained alignment and momentum. These transitions, while requiring recalibration, also provided valuable opportunities to strengthen team cohesion and build resilience.
Goals for 2024
Technical Goals
- Deepen Expertise in Functional Programming: Build a stronger foundation in fp-ts while exploring additional functional programming paradigms and tools to expand problem-solving approaches.
- Advance Cloud Architecture Skills: Design and implement more complex and scalable cloud solutions using the latest technologies and best practices.
- Enhance Automation and Reliability: Innovate in CI/CD workflows, focusing on automation, testing frameworks, and ensuring system reliability during deployments.
- Explore Emerging Technologies: Stay ahead by experimenting with AI/ML integrations, serverless computing, and new frameworks that align with future trends in software development.
Personal Development Goals
- Prioritize Well-Being: Develop strategies to prevent burnout by maintaining a healthier work-life balance and advocating for realistic workloads.
- Foster Collaboration: Continue improving teamwork and communication within cross-functional teams, to facilitate better collaboration and knowledge-sharing.
- Mentorship: Invest more time in mentoring junior engineers and fostering a culture of growth and learning within the team, while also seeking opportunities to learn from experienced mentors and gain fresh perspectives.
Closing Thoughts
Reflecting on this year has been both humbling and motivating. While I’m proud of the progress made, the challenges have highlighted areas where there’s room for growth. As I step into 2025, I’m excited to continue learning, growing, and contributing to meaningful projects alongside talented colleagues. Here’s to a year of new opportunities and continued success!