Are you at the top? If not you should really put in your time to reach there.
The software industry in the last couple of years has been brutal in terms of layoffs. It’s real, not a hoax.
On top of that, we have Copilot/AI, which can write code. I don’t think AI writing code can replace software engineers (at least those who are really good at what they do), but it can improve productivity to a great extent. That means people working 10x as effectively as you can now work 15x without really improving their skills.
This what scares me.
If you are not an engineer having skills which can’t be replaced by AI you are going to be laid off.
If your team of 10 mid-level engineers is working on something that can be done with the help of AI by a team of 2 senior-level engineers, you are going to be laid off.
This is a new era.
Now, being a software developer doesn’t just mean writing code and chilling. It means what you are doing outside of code.
It means building solutions.
It means inventing solutions.
It means being the best version of yourself that you can be.
It doesn’t matter how sad; that’s the reality.
So Are you the cream? at the top.