Top Reasons Developers Are Taken Advantage Of

• They Get Higher Salaries:  Developers get paid higher than most professions. Companies see this as a reason to take advantage of there employees. Developers are often expected to do the following things: Work uncompensated over time, do several times the amount of work in a day (compared to a normal week) and expect everything to be perfect and  fix things at the last minute with practically no notice.

• There Geeks:  Developers are antisocial geeks and should have no life but there jobs. This is  something that really drives me crazy. Unlike my coworkers my job to me will always just be my job. If something is absolutely crucial I have no problem working later to finish it but don’t expect me to work late every day.  Companies sometimes do not respect a person’s personal life.

• Workaholics In The Company: Everybody wants to get work done and some people take this to a extreme. There are people who will work 10-12 hours a day and expect to remain productive. They may not understand the philosophy of others that do not work the same amount of hours they do. They believe just because they are working more they are being more productive. It has been my experience the more hours you work above 40 hours the less productive you become.

These are the top reasons why developers are taken advantage of.

• Developer Conventions & User Groups: Keeping up date with the latest programming trends are great but there are offline ways to to keep updated. Attending technology groups and going to developer conventions are other great ways to learn about the latest programming trends. Meetup.com  is one site that you can find groups related to interests of your choosing.  Another advantage to attending these is that you can’t a chance to network with like minded professionals.

• Read: I highly recommend reading anything and everything you can about the latest programming trends This includes even if you never use the technology. Reading by far is the best ways to learn about technologies.  Reading multiple types of web sites including forums, blogs, and niche site are great ways to keep updated with technology. Reading books are good too if your interest in learning a technology. If you read industry magazines that’s another good thing to do. (although I prefer anything online since it’s usually more up to date).

• Watch Videos: Watching videos is another great way to learn about the latest programming trends.  There are many sites that contain videos about technology of all kinds. You can find videos discussing everything from new technologies to actual tutorials teaching you the technology.

Time is valuable and it takes time and effort to keep up.  Any time you spend keeping updated with the latest programming trends is well worth it.  Even if you just watch a short video or visit a blog regularly it helps  substantially. You become more knowledgeable about the industry than those that never do anything more than go to work and go home. There’s are just some of the ways that you can keep updated with the latest programming tends.

If you think companies truly care about protecting there own employees interests your wrong. It all comes down to protecting the needs and interests of the company. You can easily be let go at any time and without cause.  When coming up with a backup plan you should ask yourself these questions:

• What would happen if you lost your job today?
• Would you be able to pay your bills?
• Would you have enough contacts to start looking for a new job immediately?

These are just some of the questions you should ask yourself when coming up with a backup plan.

• 2 Java Programmers Have 5 Years Experience: One of the developers is mid level developer working for a financial firm. The 2nd end developer is a senior developer working for a gaming company. They both have 5 years experience so they both should be at the same level right? This is not  quite true. Let’s say  the 2nd developer attended a better college or just had a better understanding of key skills used in his company.  Many factors besides years experience go into what makes someones experience.

• A C++ Programmer With 20+ Years experience Gets A PHP Job and has a coworker with 7 years Of PHP Experience: Does this make the C++ developer any less smart then the PHP developer with more PHP experience? Probably not. I’m guessing that C++ developer would be performing like a mid level PHP developer within a short amount of time and be a senior within a few years at the most.

As you can see from the 2 examples above there are many things that go into a persons experience than just the # of years experience that they have. Factors such as education, if they have had professional experience in the same field or just the industry they worked in.  Never assume that there is something wrong with another developer just because they have had different experiences than you have.

How To Remove Negative Influences

1.  Whenever you hear a negative thought or comment simply don’t give much thought to it.
2. Think of a positive thought when you hear something negative. Positivity always beats negativity and one positive thought will cancel out lots of negative energy.
3. If you deal with negative people remove as much contact with them as possible if you can’t remove them completely from your life.
4. Removing negative places is just as important as removing negative people. If you go to businesses that give your bad service every now and then or treat you bad avoid them. Negative places/people should be avoided as much as possible.

Just remember this. You are what you think. If you’re a positive happy person you will attract positive people and experiences. People also tend to be negative because they have problems or had experiences that made them negative. If you remove as many of these negative influences as possible you will succeed and prosper more.

I also suspect  this was a simple test to see how the team would operate without key members present. This may have also been a test to see just how much I could take without loosing my mind. I suspect other more senior management people didn’t think I would be able to handle this. I know at least one supervisor thought I handled it pretty well.

If I’m the only person on the team in the office I’m going to do my best since people are counting on me. During a normal week I would normally just work regular hours. I don’t believe in working extra hours regularly unless it is needed to complete something important. Working extra hours to just make a presence is just  stupid and a waste of time.

Happy 2012!

• Starting my 1st permanent non contract job in 3 years
• Learning about the complex business of my employer
• Surviving my job 1 year while getting good performance evaluations (which calmed my nerves)
• Getting my 1st raise ever  (No complaints there everything helps)

I’ve always found without pain there is no gain. A programmer who always breezes through a job never learns and grows . If you have a positive outlook and know you can improve you will grow.

2012 looks to be a great year and I’m sure I will continue to grow in my personal and professional career.

I truly believe though nobody should be forced to live in a bad location. The best tip I can give everyone out there is to try to network with others in your field in your preferred locations to live. You may not be able to get your desired city but you should be able to get a network in your desired region which is almost good enough to satisfy your location preference.

Persistence prevails and a good attitude guarantees your success. My philosophy has proven true time again and again.