My first introduction to software development was at university, around 2013. This was during an Introduction to Programming module that lasted for a single semester and was intended to teach the necessity of computer programming and the logical patterns behind it. I loved it from the onset and knew that this was the career journey I would embark on. I eventually enrolled onto a Software Engineering course over the subsequent holiday period where I was introduced to HTML, CSS, MS Office Suite and Notepad++ as the editor. I probably still have a copy of my first project sitting on a drive somewhere!

As years went by, I worked my way up and was blessed with my first job in software engineering. The reality of working on commercial code within a team setting was a dream come true. I was privileged to learn and be mentored by some phenomenal engineers. The standards were right and high. A junior engineer was expected to learn their trade and be comfortable with the core technologies that the business relied on: ASP.NET Core, C#, WinForms and MS SQL. It wasn't a 'nine-to-five' thing for me, the grind continued after working hours. Which was a mindset shared by most engineers I worked with.

The reality today is different from what it used to be. The sad reality is a lack of commitment and engineering brilliance in most teams. The emphasis on learning to code by hand is no longer enforced. People now expect near to instant results, which can largely be attributed to AI assisted workflows. Forgetting there's a huge difference between being efficient and being reckless, good engineering takes time. The fundamental principles have just gone out the window! We forget that one doesn't just solve problems by coding, but also gains important skills like logical thinking, efficient resource management, system design, networking and sound security strategies.

Junior engineers on the other hand aren’t properly mentored any more, some are busy mastering work-politics rather than learning good problem solving skills. Others, unfortunately have no one to look up to, because many of today’s ‘senior’ engineers are simply juniors with a few extra years of experience, and not true mentors. Some other engineers simply don't care, and see the career as nothing more than a golden ticket to a financially stable lifestyle. How have we allowed this? The standards have dropped far below the belt and sadly this isn't being recognised or being called out.

I don't dispute that there's never been a better time to be a developer. However the principles remain the same in spite of the rapid evolution of our tools and workflows. If you don't know these principles, then there's a good chance you've been surrounded by the wrong influences for a little too long.

Thank you.