Stop Caring So Much About Technical Stuff

Subtitle: Knowing what people want is your job. You may not want it to be, but it is.

Subtitle: You want to get promoted on the basis of "technical achievements", yeah, well, good luck with that. No one's ever gotten paid for writing a Malbolge interpreter, huge achievement though it may be.

Subtitle: You think it's your boss's job? It's your job to make your boss's job easier.

It doesn't matter if you're a developer. If you're participating in the economy, part of your job is to know what you can get paid for. The better you are at this, the more you get paid, regardless of your other skills.

As a bonus, most startups know this. They want developers who are motivated by product, not technology. Why does this make sense? If you're motivated by technology, you're going to build stuff because you feel like it, not because it helps people. As a rule, if it helps people, they'll be willing to pay for it.¹

Care less about the latest technology, and more about what your coworkers and customers need.


¹Yada yada, capitalism isn't perfect, watch out for industries where people pay to screw over other people or use up common goods.