What was your experience climbing the career ladder in tech?

onlinepersona@programming.dev to Programming@programming.dev – 95 points –

I've seen people call themselves "senior" after 3 years on the job, other become CTOs in the same time, and others still have a senior title after 20(!) years in the industry yet have a fuckton of technical experience.

I've heard that they are all just titles and opinions from "if you don't have the technical skill you can't call yourself a senior", to "senior and staff are just a feeling, principal is the actual senior" and "staff? above senior? we call that manager".

What's your story? Is there a ladder? Do you feel like you belong on it? Where are you on it? Does it make sense? Did you see major bumps in salary? Did titles count at all?

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In my short time in an actual tech company, I was baffled at the amount of cockiness. It was a startup though.

I was easily the most senior person outside of management, yet others got positions in management from the start. I did have management experience and significant success but I lack the ability to sell it.

When I complained that this isn’t what I signed up for, they pretty much told me to suck it up.

I‘m rather exceptional at what I do, yet my neural configuration makes me unable to play social games so I decided to not go on and play them. Currently helping my wife in her small company.

I was baffled at the amount of cockiness

I was easily the most senior person I’m rather exceptional at what I do

Your “neural configuration” is the reason you weren’t promoted?

I think you fit right in.

I find pulling things out of context rather rude to be honest.

Maybe ask questions if something strikes you as inaccurate or unprobable.