Personal

Getting Over Imposter Syndrome and Writing Again

I used to write about technology quite a bit. In fact, in my early career a lot of my success was the direct result of writing for various tech sites and speaking at BarCamps and conferences. Over the past decade, I’ve been writing less frequently. For years, I was really convinced I didn’t have anything new to say or ideas worth sharing.

That changed a bit over the past few months. I had a conversation with a coworker about shifting from the technical side of engineering to engineering management. My primary reasoning was similar to my reasons for not writing much, I didn’t feel like I had much to offer from a technical perspective. She talked through it with me and didn’t say much. Right after the meeting, she sent me a link to an article about imposter syndrome. I joked with my wife about it, and she pointed out that I start off tons of conversations with other engineers by pointing out that I was an art major, even though I’ve been in software engineering for 15+ years. 

After reflecting on it, I’ve reluctantly accepted that I might be ok at this software thing. Some days, it’s tough to sit at a large company with some excellent engineers and view myself as a peer. Some days, it’s tough to see candidates come in with CS degrees from prestigious colleges and not be a bit self conscious about having an art degree from a public college. Some days, it’s tough to realize that maybe I’m here because I worked hard for it, not because I’ve somehow tricked people into not firing me.

I may not always feel like I belong 100%, but hopefully I can provide a bit of valuable guidance and knowledge for others. I’m starting the blog back up to share somethings that I find useful, highlight some fantastic people in the software industry, and maybe give a bit of advice to others who also feel like they don’t quite measure up.

woogychuck

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