As a seasoned software engineer with 15 years of experience, my career is quite a bumpy ride in which I honed my technical expertise to a reasonable level not forgetting about the soft skills as well.
This article is not just outlining what I do, it's also about understanding who I am, the person I became in my career journey due to the challenges I faced.
Since childhood, I got passionate about computers after having my own 486 with some ancient games installed. It really brought me to another realm full of new things to explore with enjoyment levels rising and rising. It was during the internet cafe era when my curiosity sparked as to how computer games are made.
Therefore this passion pushed me to study at the Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania where I got my Bachelor in 2010 and Masters degree in 2012. During these studies, I focused a lot on Microsoft .NET technologies with C# and WPF.
My first 3-4 years in the workforce were formative, as they often differ significantly from initial expectations. During this period, I focused on developing desktop applications with an emphasis on crafting user-friendly interfaces that are both visually appealing and intuitive to use. My attention to detail and creativity allowed me to excel in this area, and it's a testament to the importance of having a self-explanatory UI that effectively communicates its purpose.
To achieve such a seamless performance, one must also possess soft skills like handling criticism constructively. This early exposure taught me valuable lessons about adaptability, resilience, and effective communication - essential qualities for any software engineer looking to build strong relationships with colleagues and stakeholders.
It was a time around the year 2014 when I felt stuck in an under-qualified position as a Software Automation Test Engineer, feeling like it wasn't benefiting me for the long run. The IT industry seemed to be shifting towards web development, leaving me with a gap that needed to be filled.
Day by day, my dissatisfaction grew, and I knew something had to change. So, I decided to take matters into my own hands and embark on a self-learning journey. Initially, I started exploring ASP.NET MVC, gaining a solid foundation in the world of .NET development. To complement this knowledge, I also dabbled with React for UI, laying the groundwork for even more interesting projects.
I landed my first freelance consulting position as a .NET Software Migration Engineer around the year 2015, which was a pretty good move, but not exactly what I hoped for. It was filled with legacy code making me yearn for a role with more up to date technologies.
As I continued to learn and grow, my expertise gradually extended to Full Stack Web Application Development. This new path allowed me to combine my knowledge of .NET with front-end skills in NodeJS, React, Angular, and VueJS. The experience was exhilarating, as I found myself tackling complex projects that pushed the boundaries of what I thought possible.
As I reflect on my journey, I realize that there was a phase when I required more stability and security. After gaining experience as a freelance consultant, I decided it was time to settle into a permanent full-time position. With the necessary skills and abilities under my belt, I started a new role around 2017 in Brasov.
This change brought with it many exciting projects and great colleagues who shared similar passions and values. The stability that came with being part of a team allowed me to focus on personal aspects as well such as applying for an apartment mortgage and making many new acquaintances.
As I reflect on my journey, I realize that perhaps ambition with a strong dose of stubbornness pushed me through the latest years, which can be called the Purgatory period. Driven by the wish to pay off my mortgage in advance, I made the bold decision to move to Switzerland in 2021 and take up a new role as Software Engineer for a Swiss bank.
While from a technical perspective, the role itself may not have been particularly challenging, it rapidly became clear that soft skills were an essential foundation to succeed in this dynamic and bureaucratic environment. The need to adapt quickly to a new culture and way of working added another layer of complexity to my experience.
My experience during this Purgatory period has been transformative, forcing me to confront my own strengths, weaknesses, and limitations. As I look back on the challenges I faced, I am reminded that even in the most difficult times, there are opportunities for personal and professional growth.
As of today, at the time of writing, I still work full time for the Swiss bank with prospects for an interesting project for the year 2025. I am excited to see what 2025 will bring related to new career opportunities after the current recession. My commitment to writing articles on this platform is strong even though I don't have the best tooling yet since I took the decision to move away from Wordpress. My previous blog at afivan.com will still run for some time. Since I will not be using Wordpress, I will have to develop some interesting features with the advantage that I can tailor them for my specific needs.
So these being said, I wanted to thank you for reading and I encourage you to subscribe to my newsletter here to get monthly updates!