581
What its like starting my career as a programmer...
(cdn.discordapp.com)
i just made this right now, after trembling at my first professional correspondence with an old highschool friend.
I have 20 years experience, just cracked a project I've been working on for almost three years, and I still hesitate to consider myself an expert.
Now, I'll tell any lay person who will listen that I'm an expert, but man, some days I just feel clueless.
I find the biggest issue I run into is lack of a peer group. I work in a large IS department, but other than one guy at my last company who works with a different language, I have no one to talk shop with.
Once one gets to a high level of expertise, it seems there are fewer peers around - people who can teach something new, or give a perspective not already explored.
It all depends on where you work, and whether there are any user groups frequented by veterans.