Developer tips - some non tech learnings...

I thought to myself recently, apart from all the constant motivational copy paste posts I see on the platform, what can I add that holds some value....

I remembered a post I saw a long time ago from Riaan that struck home for me and decided to add some things I wish I knew when starting on the hamster wheel called IT.

Some of the general topics:

• Ask the question. Do not ever be afraid to ask for help, ask for tips or open a so called can of worms and pop the "WHY?" question. A perfect example, a colleague of mine explained that he joined a business unit and was introduced to a process with a funny name, eventually he asked why it was called that and what was the purpose, it was then discovered that years ago someone implemented a process and the filename was the same as the person's, they left the company but the process stuck around and context was lost. 
• Asking for help. Whenever you need help, remember to ask yourself if you have at least tried to some extent. People are more inclined to assist you if you show that you tried. This one hits hard for me as I have seen first hand that people underestimate their capabilities and are demotivated when faced with complex problems. Yes proof reading your code might just expose a pesky bug that has eluded you.
• Debugging. Often you will find yourself struggling with a bug that you just cannot solve. Before flying off to the internet, try proof reading your code and perhaps read the logic outload (if you have someone to read it too, even better.), for me this changes the perspective of how you look at the code and might just help. Utilize the debugging tools at your disposal, the IDE will assist :)
• Take a break. When you are so focused on a solution you might not want to take a break because of the fear of losing your train of thought. It can become a bad habit, there is a reason why corporate's call it "death by meetings". You need to take a breather to reset your senses and perspective, I normally make a note so I can pick up where i left off and then spend some time getting fresh air while watching the nature around, it is nice and calming.
• Mentoring. Be the mentor you wanted when you started out. Find your own unique way of sharing knowledge, if you are like me and love to see people grow and excel, this is a must! I am a firm believer in documentation, KT sessions and demo's (have a recording ready, it can get bad when presenting to a forum with 100's of participants and then the demo does not work....) I have been very fortunate to have some awesome mentors over the years and they have thought me so many valuable lessons, shoutout to them, you know who you are...
• Make notes. When starting out or if you are already a seasoned developer, things can get a bit overwhelming, it happens to all of us, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. My recommendation is make notes, find what works for you, whiteboard, sticky notes, virtual notes etc... just jot things down you need to attend to or things you should not forget, it is so much easier catching up on things when you have a reference.
• Stay curious. Try to keep up with trends, yes it might sound like a lot since you will always feel like you are 2 steps behind. However sooner than later you will realize how willing others are to help and how fast you actually catch up to these things. I would even go as far as saying you will start to see the bigger picture of IT, how things overlap and integrate. Remember to keep focus and not fall for the saying "jack of all trades and master of none".

Credit to Riaan and please check out his original post:

Hope this is of some help to juniors and golden oldies alike!

Feel free to add things you have learnt over time.