The Worst Thing You Can Do For Your Career

[@Pbertrand_dev]

bold of you to assume i have a career

[@nnjqerjk]

Lol

[@not_zafarali]

Teej Terry Davis Arc becoming reality.

[@teej_dv]

Hahahaha

[@cryptonative]

@teej_dv looking forward to VimC and VimOS

[@Excalibaard]

Teejjy Devis is in an alternate universe and cannot hurt you

[@A--_--M]

Just hoping he is not homophobic and tolerant to other communities 🙏. Feels like it’s becoming rare these days. One important lesson I’ve learned recently is to never look up your hero’s background. I am a from a third world country and Notch was my hero. Sadly, he is not the hero I was looking for. The reason why I mentioned third world, is because you Americans are lucky to have people like Teej, Notch and Casey to look up to. Unfortunately my country doesn’t. Edit: Grammar

[@thesenamesaretaken]

​@@A--_--MI thought Notch was Swedish

[@omsrswt]

bro, i really needed this graduated at the top of my class last May, worked as a freelance webdev for 4 years prior to returning to college for CS, spent 3 months sending out ~300 applications to all kinds of companies, with handcrafted cover letters and a resume that 5 people vetted NOT. ONE. INTERVIEW. i did give up. i've lately been toying with the idea of trying again, because the emotional damage has started to dull slightly. you gave me the push that i think i needed. thank mr teej

[@teej_dv]

Lets goooooo!

[@omsrswt]

@@teej_dv ❤🔥

[@xSBridge]

Finding an job is work in and of itself. You will find one, you just need to narrow your search and lean more on networking. Blasting resumes and cover letters is not going to make you stand out.

[@boombeet678]

I will say, right now I don't believe that the job market in general, across plenty of fields in the United States, is supposed to be what it is now when despite a bunch of people claiming that others don't want to work nowadays, we nonetheless have a large amount of people actively trying to find just about anything that aligns with what they actually went to school for, but certain things such as the amount of degrees being pushed out in comparison to actual listings and available positions within the field of choice both annually (which is sort of the case for some fields at least) alongside listings nowadays being incredibly roulette heavy as I see you mention here, all get in the way of that obviously. It is, in fact, why some people go other ways, and leave those degrees/certifications especially unused, all of that, and even if they are able to pivot later down on the road (all of them can kind of), many of them don't attempt it. The system, from that alone, at least in the current day, actively dissuades at least some part or group of people from preparing to that extent I assume, and that's why a bunch of people would "give up" to whatever extent like you did, whether it's from the feeling of hopelessness or actually, to some extent, situational hopelessness, in which even though they had chances, the chances were not enough to justify the time investment of doing nothing but spinning a slot machine and adjusting your strategy to any slight feedback you receive, especially when there's simply no telling when you'll get anything back (breaking even is subjective here). It's not inherently wrong, it's understandable, but even then, that's different in comparison to saying there's no chances at all firstly, there's chances that just "aren't worth it" subjectively for one reason or another. Building off of that then, even at that point it's debatable, since these decisions are based off the context of personal experience, but it's not like everyone is necessarily going outside of their own bubble to determine why things are the way that they are. There may not be a usage of statistics or real world data for example in order to inform these viewpoints besides what they've seen, and even then may not have noted down completely, and generally in order to make an inference upon these trends you have to solidify that information first in my opinion before you say anything for certain. With these numbers too, there's always some degree of causation obviously, which is why there's fine tuning to the resume and CV alongside other things in the process to begin with, even though you can't always tell what will work 100% of the time. That causation, for each and every little factor of the process which us job applicants somehow must take into account, is still some semblance of meaning and explanation despite the process a heck ton of the time seeming completely randomized, with no order to it whatsoever. It's not, thankfully, or at least it's only random to a degree. Intrinsically I think due to that there's control to all the circumstances that may be thrown your way when it comes to any sort of job search in this current day, to some extent. It may not be the largest but there's a difference between not being able to steer the boat at all and being able to steer the boat somewhat, and the latter for a bunch of people has also proven to be just enough. It's not a case of actual hopelessness like I've mentioned before most of the time, but rather a case of simply feeling hopeless, which is quite different, but I'd guess that be obvious since actual hopelessness nonetheless would not include "chances" of any sort. The question, once again, is whether it's worth it to put yourself through a wringer that I, also once again, do not think is the most orderly or even rational (since some of these postings both online and in person can OBVIOUSLY be ridiculous), and it's up to the person, but it's obviously still... not so great, yeah.

[@PhillipDressen]

Hiring has been slower for about two years. When that happens "getting your foot in the door" is always harder. When this happens companies "hire at a discount" (i.e. try to underpay for experience) over people that are new. Right now it isn't caused by AI, it's likely economic... so it'll flow back to hiring... but unpredictable "when". There isn't a magic formula that solves everyone's problems in your situation, so maintaining motivation over the long haul is important... Keep building your skills to remember why you enjoy doing this, be sure to "feel productive" through another avenue/job and keep plugging away at finding any job that builds experience. The advice on networking is good, but mainly if that network has reference to you being someone they enjoy working with AND produces results. So you might have classmates that think of you this way... But if you don't already have this network, it's harder to build that reputation+network outside of a job/school. Something worth fixing as your coworkers might become this network over time. TJ's advice is good: always be learning and be nice, it helps. Good luck!!

[@betim667]

"You are just an LLM with some extra steps" My man just hit 50% of the market right now

[@mrboy5283]

On behalf of the business, thank you! Literally outsourcing themselves

[@sarutobi1954]

You mean 80%

[@クールなビデオ]

😮 teej Marxist leninist arc continue Dropping another banger ....this time he's basically describing alienation under capitalism... At this pace he's 3 videos away from Workers of the world unite ...

[@RobertFletcherOBE]

"luck is when preparation meets opportunity" really fits here. Really great points TJ

[@TrachealShyBu]

Best advice given on the internet yet. "Keep learning all the things" This is a lesson I learned in econ in high school, the wealth of a nation, is NOT the land mass, not the access to mineral resources, not the size of its army, navy or air force. The wealth of a nation is directly tied to the wisdom of its people. So your future if you are always learning is bright no matter how dark the world around you may become.

[@typecraft_dev]

holy shit we are on the same wavelength!! Great stuff I completely agree. You gotta keep learning, keep getting better, and earn your worth

[@ingenarelitems]

nice to see you here

[@ronaldflint681]

Yep. They got you on the grinding wheel they want you on.

[@typecraft_dev]

@@ingenarelitems I love teej I'm always watching his stuff

[@ChrisGVE]

I like Teej the philosopher. All good points and, you made me realize that the reason I sometimes like, sometimes don’t, LLMs is because of my experience or my inexperience depending on the topic. I’m 57 and have coded since I was 15, I’m not a CS but I’ve made a career in multiple roles, some of them seniors, in a bank, and my experience is what makes my use of LLMs effective. Thanks Teej, that was an eye opening.

[@AntoninKral]

Constant learning, and continuous lookout for good explanations, is what makes us human. The moment we abandon it, we reduce ourselves to an amoeba -- just reacting to the outside stimulation, instead of being driven by internal motivation and curiosity. Also, I am 100% behind "be nice advice". I would just love to extend it -- don't let "be nice" to prevent us to search for facts and understanding.

[@mrboy5283]

@@AntoninKral be right, remain nice

[@cprn.]

There's another side to this coin. You try hard, you're curious, you learn a lot, and then you witness your projects getting shut down, even though you always pour everything you've got into whatever you do. Because most of the work in companies big enough to call them "career" never sees production. And the harder you try, the more soul-crushing it is. Until you burn out after 5-10 years, and can't work in software development any more, because you start experiencing physical symptoms, like migraines and nausea. Real life example. Mine.

[@IQof2]

Have you found the channel called Thriving Technologist? You might really feel better watching some of his videos.

[@doktoracula7017]

The value of your work is not in it seeing production, the value is in working on it itself. The journey is what is important, not the result. Forget results, they will come when they should come. If your projects got shut down then maybe that is the lesson you were supposed to learn from them, that you sometimes work on things, learn while working and then there is no production version of it. I'm sorry to hear you got burned out, I found out that when burnout happens it's a message you gave too much of yourself to others. You have to focus on yourself, on your health, your body and your mind. One day you might go back to software development if you feel like it, and maybe on your own terms instead of as a cog that is taken advantage of. Or maybe it's a message you shouldn't work so heavily, that there are other things in life that are much more important? Either way I wish you get better and I hope your life is the best it can be!

[@olehdevua]

You just need ride you bike more and harder to have more fun in your life ;)

[@cprn.]

I wish 😆it's winter - snow on the roads... @

[@rightq3111]

This is already a legendary take and will age pretty nicely over the years 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

[@redbrick808]

Doggo is a good doggo.

[@teej_dv]

She's very good pupper

[@jmarcelomb]

She is so cute!!!!

[@joost7397]

When I started my CS studies back in 2000, a professor told us: “look at the past 40 years. Look at how many techniques, platforms, systems, tools and languages came up and died. Now look ahead for the next 40 years. Take a guess how many languages and systems, tools and frameworks will come and go. Studying computer science is about learning how to think about computing. Learn to abstract, separate concerns and how to ask the right questions.”. This stuck by me and now with LLMs, I see them as one of the tools, but I need to ask the right questions. Great talk Teej!

[@ronaldflint681]

Hiring managers and interviewers didn't get the memo from your professor.

[@physis6333]

And this one will stick with me too, thanks for sharing!

[@StevenAkinyemi]

if u think llm will stop at being a tool, you are in for one shocking awakening.

[@qizott6442]

So people will still be writing C in 2060? :O

[@aravindpallippara1577]

@@qizott6442 I can guarantee, there will at least be a few people writing C getting paid insane amounts of money (most likely banks lol), provided the world continues to exist in a shape that is still recognisable.

[@choff-]

This is a fantastic video, and some of the most cogent and grounded-in-reality thoughts I've heard on the topics so far. The part where you say "if you only accept that which the LLM gives you, you're just an LLM with extra steps" hits especially hard. Never a bad time to keep learning...

[@steffanomartinez1446]

I still remember being a kid in a Internet Cafe that I paid by the hour "copying and pasting" the videogame shortcuts into my USB to then go home and play, to later find out pain and suffering. As I began to use google the questions that I had where very broad, but after spending weeks after school & reading blogs about how videogames are installed, software, installation guides, etc I ended up "fine tuning" my questions to a specific game and getting a "demo" of each game installed. This at the age of 7 was a superpower, the ability to ask the right questions which can only come naturally and with a degree of quality based on experience and knowledge. So if you know have a fancy prompt machine that may or may not give you the right answer, now its the time to perfect your depth on topics people are telling you not to worry about so that you can ask questions in a prompt chain that can seem easy, but bring much needed value. Keep learning, that for me is the fun part of SW/HW.

[@PottiSkantz]

Watching this while Prime keep dying in battletoads. Also, great video TJ! You've produced banger after banger, don't ever stop my man

[@Anonymous-q5i3j]

this is the format i like the most

[@IQof2]

I’m sick of channels talking about frameworks and languages all the time. I love the more philosophical stuff whether it is career coaching, life advice, mental health content for technologists, or etc. Feels cathartic.

[@jojotrujillo_o]

Priceless advice ❤ Never stop learning and have hope

[@MithicSpirit]

the worst thing i can do is definitely starting an extremely niche coffee shop that most people can't even access

[@teej_dv]

.......

[@TylerHillery]

Love the phrase "the curse of knowledge". This was the exact point I was trying to make with my comment on your last video.

[@usernr546]

Came for TJ dad jokes, liked for awesome choice of setup, loved the doggo, got awesome life advice! No for real thanks for this talk. I agree with it and will teach my juniors this too. Keep up this awesome work!

[@mlwarner632]

Thanks for the great video TJ! It's a good reminder to what I was taught in schools: software engineering is a lifelong learning journey. I have found that kindness, empathy, and patience are qualities of the most influential engineers I have worked with in my career - characteristics that will have value whether all code is written by LLMs or not.

[@F.a797]

Watching this on 5 am really gets makes me feel I'm there with you. Thanks

[@JayMartMedia]

Great intro and great content. I will remember the parable of the boat. Your points are spot on. Don't give up, and don't stagnate.

[@marcwinner567]

Thank you TJ! This was a beautiful upload. I am hoping for more of this kind of uploads. Have a wonderful evening!

[@LoLazo262]

Thank you so much for this video man everything you said was a fact but people think that you should just give up, why not try harder instead of stopping

[@dealbert0420]

as a current cs student, this video is a great source of motivation in an era where the closer i get to graduating, the farther i get to find a job. Thanks for videos like this.

[@Whiterqbbit]

Going to apply these concepts as a career changer into cyber; I just got my first SOC job, but I want to be more than a cog. Always Forward.

[@hart-zr6mx]

Thank you for this. Every other video seems to pedal either "AI will take all jobs" or "AI isn't useful and never will be", and this is a nice way to speak to people on either side about their real choices. However I think it's not that black and white to "use" LLMs, I don't think just using LLMs to build commodifies your own knowledge. It's a very slippery slope for sure, but you can always step back and walk through what parts are innate to the LLM and what "edge" you have with your own ability to write and design software, and pivot to keep LLMs doing busywork whilst learning specifically to enhance your competitive edge.

[@heitoranjos6947]

TJ thank you so much, you just not helped with my career but my life too. Thanks for sharing this.

[@TheRykung]

Thanks for sharing your wisdom TJ! and good luck brothers don't give up and keep on learning!

[@aumbhatt5339]

Thanks Teej, your wise words have helped me a lot.

[@Anonymous-q5i3j]

you changed my world. thank you.

[@offday3523]

really appreciate the message you're sharing, plus the quality is top notch! keep it up :)

[@makesushi]

i love hearing your thoughts, philosophies and just general advice, even if unrelated to cs ! tj, keep making videos like this, please. God Bless

[@Cyb3rstorm]

Love the video. I like the point you made about the base knowledge we have. Reminds me of my parents and normie acquaintances whose get immediately lost when I mention anything related to programming or linux.

[@eba-pachi]

optimism is good sometimes, thanks tj

[@easydoesitismist]

Be a helpful dude that people like to he around. Create joy from despair and become necessary to those around you. 😊

[@NicholasBuckeridge]

I like LLMs but I like being very good at what I do. I like to take LLM free periods and I really find my most impactful work is there.

[@scottiedoesno]

Wow, this was an incredible video. Even from someone who already kind of does this, it's just really great to hear. Thanks teej!

[@wcrb15]

Love this. You inspired me to actually write a new blog post. I'm at the gym and had to write notes so I didn't lose them while on the treadmill!

[@victor23k]

Great reflection and really encouraging, thanks. Love the format too.

[@chibby0ne]

This content is gold for newcomers and even experienced devs that have pessimistic tendencies. Love it! 🎉❤ Let's fracking go!

[@qwarlockz8017]

Thanks dude… I really needed to hear this right now

[@giorgos-4515]

Teej you might not have changed the entire world but you changed my opinions on neovim which is now my favorite editor. Your work on neovim is inspiring.

[@NanerBag]

Teej, you have really good ideas. Probably one of the best people ive ever seen in this field when it comes to coming up with them and explaining them. These ideas are far more general than you think. Self-fullfilling defeatist prophecies are rampant in modern thinking as a way to justify and assure a comfortable but apathetic life both now and in the future. I unfortunately am familiar with them, but only from losing passions in different hobbies and crafts. I think you might be the first person i have ever heard who said these things in a way i can deeply relate to them. Just, this format is cool, but if possible try doing a real boomer in the woods talk rawdogged. No script, no mic even (if the sound quality is still acceptable). Hope things are going well there

[@teej_dv]

Dang, that's really really nice. I appreciate that so much!

[@faisalabdulkadir9439]

started learning neovim coz of u & Prime, u are the 🐐

[@rawper23]

I watched you for a year through prime and this video just popped up. Finally subscribed. Had no idea you were chill like this.

[@Guilherme-qk9so]

TJ is the chillest

[@callmetarzi]

What an awesome way to present your thoughts teej, thank you for this

[@marcusshep]

"You might even consider trying hard" - Love that hahah

[@digitulized459]

Needed to hear this as a 2024 new grad with no job still. Thanks a lot man

[@wilfredomatute7697]

Not gonna lie TJ, I'm only 2nd year CS and i needed this! Thank you!

[@MattRobinsonDev]

What a good boy...& the dog seems chill too

[@leopickard7090]

Thanks mate I really needed this pep talk

[@DemonNeno]

Beautiful. Thank you!

[@Dominik-K]

I really like what you are pointing out there. Thanks for the video

[@_PulpoPaul]

Great message. Thank you.

[@sudhirchaudhary6512]

I don't usually take motivational advice seriously, but this was engaging and very practical teej

[@thisbridgehascables]

love the change of scenery and hey a dog!

[@felipeporto4396]

thx a lot for this. Pure gold. needed this

[@salledelavage3984]

Sean Powers was right all along... Learn everything, do what you love and be kind

[@simracing_evolve]

I really appreciate your work, thank you TJ!

[@Mirvelik]

Thank you for that!

[@mSykeCodes]

The only thing we're missing here is a nice crackling fire. I fully agree. Giving up doesn't make sense. It's not a lost cause and if it is, life will be so fundamentally different for everyone it won't matter. If (and this is a huge if) we reach a world where AI does everything for us and we're all on UBI and everything is great.... I think I'd still want to take on the challenge of building things. It's just what I'm supposed to do. Thanks for the great video. Looking forward to more philosophy chats in the future!

[@RishuKumar-zo2hc]

Changed how i look at things

[@TayTayChan]

great video, both aesthetically and content-wise

[@adambickford8720]

So true about knowing what to prompt. Once you know your problem is called 'head of line blocking' there's tons of info on it, but until you learn that magical term, you're failing.

[@mohitkumar-jv2bx]

“Be nice, it helps”. Tj needs to remember this when he is with Prime. Man trolls Prime every chance he gets 🤣🤣 But honestly, this video is a gold. I don’t really like watching “motivational” kind of videos, but this video just hits home. Software devs, specifically the ones who are in college/early in their career needs to know that “being competent is good”. It will help you beyond being a software dev. Everytime you spend time learning instead of relying on LLM, you are betting on yourself. Again Teej, thanks Man( An arch User, BTW)

[@ancxanas]

Teej slowly becoming a philosopher isn't what i expected.

[@eleanore5807]

fantastic take. thanks

[@Alex-official2323]

Thanks, TJ! This is a very lovely video! It really helps with my anxiety about AI/LLMs and the future of programming. I can relate to your opinion. I love programming, and I'll continue to grow in this field. If, at some point, AI can make software for me... great! I've been an entrepreneur my whole life, so now I can ship tons of products, especially with my expertise in the field! :D I hope to see more videos on your channel outside the realm of programming tutorials. I’d love to see more relaxing content like this video - something more casual about programming. Content that helps us relax and unwind rather than focus hard on learning. I like your positive personality! Keep up the great work!

[@brownie2006]

The blurr between using an LLM to learn and using an LLM to do the work for you is very ambiguous, and I think it would be helpful if you spent more time clarifying the differences. Thanks for the video

[@MrHmmburger]

TJ, you're the best 😭

[@nagkanya]

Love you teej

[@boybambino1203]

I like the video, very thought provoking. keep it coming!

[@hbobenicio]

Totally agreed. Good video!

[@lickflames]

This is some next level TJ, I love it

[@Nonsense116]

Love these types of videos!

[@lpanebr]

Very good points.

[@centripetal6157]

I just watched 10+ videos before this on "prompt engineering" and how people are mass spamming AI generated apps and websites without even knowing how to code a single line of hello world, just prompting and letting Ai take control of everything else... It's a nightmare for people trying to create portfolios or become hireable in software development. Glad i watched this video, AI is a blessing but also a curse. When AI does everything for you, it takes away learning opportunities, as a result you don't improve at all as a programmer. I also agree, giving up is not the correct answer.

[@aarjeetjoshi9228]

a therapy from hectic day is to watch ur content

[@rohiitq]

Completely agree. The idea that an LLM could generate an entire app with just a few prompts and no human intelligence involved seems like a very distant future. Even if that happens, it would allow people to ship quickly, try out a bunch of ideas, and make money.

[@mr.unforgettable]

Man I am not even getting any job interview in my country. I have not even got any chance for a job interview to know my strengths and weakness forget about job itself. I am not getting any chance in the first place. I am alone, hopeless, lost completely. I don't know what to do. Griding so far has cost my health and it doesn't not work another risk.

[@josevargas686]

This video might not change the world, but you changed my world uwu

[@josevargas686]

(as a neovim user)

[@cristianecheverria3995]

Preach Teej! 🙌🏻

[@BrayanRuiz-m3w]

god bless you man

[@kshitijjande8512]

Great video, thanks

[@scrambled_greg]

Thanks for this.

[@codygibbs7288]

Im not an engineer, but Ive been coding both MERN stack and lately have moved to GOTTH. Dont have a job yet, but I got sucked into the AI trend a while ago and then had to relearn all of the basics once my code was too spaghetti to understand. Side not, thats a beautiful pup!

[@daze8410]

You get vastly different responses when you say "I want to connect my computer to my phone at work" vs "I want to route traffic through a stun server that's redirected to my home turn server"

[@mr.sloth.]

Hey, I just wanted to say Thank you for being an amazing person sharing your opinion and being a light in the middle of all doomers

[@cnb_kevin]

I clicked on this video because you talked about making it yesterday in Randy's stream

[@puneetdhiman5194]

Amazing perspective

[@th4tAlbinoGuy]

DOGGO. And teej outside whoa

[@m47h4r]

The argument that if we can all make perfect apps with AI then none of those apps will be worth anything, is absolutely solid and genius.

[@no_name4796]

Gotta sprinkle bug- ehm i meant features in your app!

[@ricardomariano794]

You are awesome, thanks for this :)

[@Excalibaard]

The opposite of 'tab development' is also problematic. E.g. not knowing what/when/where to concede I find it increasingly frustrating to deal with my 'knowledge addiction'. Instead of developing an actual skill or solving the task at hand, I'm getting stuck in tutorial hell or rabbit holes, just for the sake of 'knowing more'. Despite being a professional for several years now. This has a big negative impact on my self-esteem and 'productivity' in business environments. Find a balance between being knowledgeable and pragmatic. And being nice is also important :D

[@neniugrava]

Yeah, it took me the better part of a decade of working to start meeting productivity expectations, but I was top of my class and went to uni on a full ride. I was always passed over when they were looking for someone to deliver on an important-but-routine project, but I really excel at digging into deep/hard problems. That blend of curiosity and perfectionism is great for these oddball bug investigations, but terrible for delivering on routine tasks. I feel like a true jack of all trades, but master of none. In my current job it's a strength, but it has its downsides. I really don't want to join the diagnose-people-on-the-internet club, but my life and relationship to work have changed dramatically for the better since I learned I have ADHD. It helped explain a lot of that inability to stop going down rabbit holes, over-engineering things, over-thinking everything, and working on everything else *except* for what you're supposed to be working on. I'm half-convinced that the only reason I didn't get fired from my previous job was because my "procrasti-projects" built up over the years and people realized that they improved the productivity of the whole team. My desire to avoid doing boring things led to a lot of nice tools and automations. With meds I can finally sit down and do the work to ship projects without burying myself in a bunch of unnecessary work.

[@gediminasrepecka8304]

i only have one thing to say after this video - i love your dog

[@tobias-edwards]

Great advice. Feels like there's a lot of snake oil salesmen in especially high positions right now giving general advice behind hidden agendas e.g. NVIDIA CEO encouraging kids not to learn to code, Mark Zuckerberg expecting AI to replace mid-level developers this year. All this "advice" is really demotivating for programmers, especially for those new to the field. I for one love to code for the sake of coding. I enjoy the implementation details - understanding deeply how things work. Semantics, babbyyyy. And I see value in coding beyond just the code: it's applied problem-solving. Maybe I'm just exchanging my agenda for another, but I strongly disagree with people who discourage pursuing something that is more than just a career. It's like me telling people to stop knitting because we have sewing machines. Very short-sighted

[@artech4910]

I'm going to throw something else on here as someone who did give up software engineering in his career early on: Also focus on the learning and curiosity that lights you up. If you are just doing CS to make money or get a stable career, why waste your time? Hard work doesn't mean suffering your whole career. You can enjoy the struggle, but only when it's something that lights you up. AI is a great enabler of this kind of work!