chore: add draft blog post on standing out as a developer

Author: nirjan-dev

src/content/blog/how-to-stand-out-as-a-developer/index.mdx

@@ -0,0 +1,88 @@
+---
+title: "More Than Vibe: The Developer's Guide to Being Actually Valuable"
+excerpt: With fewer tech jobs and AI changing how we code, developers need more than technical skills to thrive. Learn how to build meaningful projects, solve real business problems, and use AI as a tool rather than a replacement. Discover proven strategies to become truly invaluable to any team. Read the full post now to future-proof your development career.
+publishDate: "2025-04-03"
+tags: ["career", "learning"]
+ogImage: "./og-image.png"
+isDraft: true
+---
+
+When I started as a developer eight years ago, It felt like a very stable and in-demand job. It was an employee's market, companies were struggling to hire enough developers. Today, the tech world looks a bit different.
+
+Companies don't have the same level of funding. There are more developers but fewer jobs and only knowing how to code is not enough anymore. AI is changing how we write code. The rise of AI tools has led to "vibe coders" who can create entire apps without learning to code.
+
+To stand out, you need more than just technical skills—you need a strategic approach that makes you truly valuable to your team and your company. In this guide, I'll share the key lessons I've learned about becoming an indispensable developer in these uncertain times.
+
+## Build things that you are passionate about
+
+You can take lots of courses, read hundreds of blogs or use the latest LLM models, but the most important thing you can do to improve is to build stuff. You need to be a great problem solver and the more problems you solve, the better you're going to be.
+
+You're also way more likely to finish your projects if you build something that is genuinely helpful to you. I like to focus on building things that I can actually use in my daily life and things that let me explore new problems . There is no shortcut for experience but you can choose to make it more fun and make your life easier in the process.
+
+## Iterations over perfection
+
+I'm a bit of a control freak and I want to ship quality software as much as possible. But, I've come to peace with the fact that no software is ever "perfect". But, you can make it better more quickly if you ship early and often and get actual real world feedback.
+
+Actual working software will always be better than software specifications you can't use. Shipping early will also tell you if it's actually practical or not before investing more time on it. Learning to split a complex problem into smaller ones that you can ship quickly can be a great skill to have.
+
+## Do less but do it well
+
+Multitasking is a myth. For a long time I believed that I only needed a better productivity system that would let me get more things done. But I learned the hard way that it just isn't that simple. You can either choose to do a lot of things poorly or do a few things well.
+
+Context switching is one of the most dangerous things to your productivity. If you keep having to switch between different projects then you're just going to get overwhelmed at some point. I'm also not saying that you have to settle for doing the bare minimum. Instead, you can try to stack up related tasks and then also focus on one project completely at a time. Be absolutely ruthless when it comes to prioritizing. Once you're completely done with a project you can always switch to a new one and focus on it.
+
+## Right tool for the right job at the right time
+
+As developers our job is not to code, it's to find solutions to problems. So, you need to be learn how to be a good problem solver first. Most good problem solvers know that you need to use the right tool for the right job at the right time. Try to solve simple problems with simple solutions as much as possible.
+
+Sometimes a basic solution that gets the job done now is much better than a robust solution that gets the job done two months later. So, think once again before building out that custom dashboard, would a simple script to export data to a google sheet be good enough for now?
+
+## Always pick the option that is the easiest to change later
+
+There will be times when you will have a lot of different options to pick from and picking the wrong thing might seem like a major mistake that you can't bounce back from (which is hardly the case). In those situations, always go for the solution that will let you pivot more easily later down the line. All solutions will have their own pros and cons so the thing that matters most is just taking action and if you pick the option that is the easiest to change later then you can do that when you get more feedback and iterate on it.
+
+## Understand your business model
+
+This can be a big boost when it comes to moving up in your company. Developers who actually take the time to learn the business model can be a lot more useful than those who don't. If you understand your company's finances, you'll have a lot more context when working with your daily tasks. You can also suggest changes to improve profitability as well. This will let you be much more proactive and can increase your chances of making a bigger impact.
+
+## Prove your worth
+
+A reliable developer who does all the work assigned to him well is great but someone who can do that but also be more proactive can be even more valuable. Don't wait for people to tell you how to grow, find problems in your business and figure out how you can solve them. Be proactive. Be known as "the problem-solver" in your company. It can be anything from a small thing that your co-worker is dealing with or a big improvement to the business operations.
+
+## Learn to use AI properly
+
+AI has a great potential to make you more productive but it can also make your skills worse. It can be a great tool in your toolbox if you can find the right balance. It can make a lot of boilerplate work a lot faster so you can focus on solving the more complex problems.
+
+You also need to make sure you have proper guardrails in place when working with AI tools. They are rarely 101% correct so never use them for your core business logic and if possible always have some sort of way to verify the output from the AI. It can be useful to have proper tests, checking the compiler messages, using a parser or validator or using some sort of static analysis tool.
+
+AI can also be pretty useful as a thinking partner where you can ask it to ask you relevant questions. Then, based on that Q&A session and the knowledge you already have, you can make the final decisions.
+
+## Collaboration and empathy can go a long way
+
+Just because you can code doesn't mean you are worth more than your non-coding team members. Try to have empathy for their roles and how you can help them and how they can help you. Always respect other people's role. Each person you meet can teach you things you never knew before.
+
+You can get a lot of useful context by knowing the different duties of your non-technical team members and their common problems. Having them involved in problem solving sessions can also lead to useful ideas that typical developers don't think of.
+
+## Empower your team
+
+As much as I enjoy helping people, I've figured out that it will be much more sustainable if I find out how I can let people help themselves instead.
+
+So, the next time someone asks for help, think about how you can empower them to solve their own problem. This tip can be a big improvement especially for remote teams. A culture of self-empowerment and good documentation can make people less dependent on their team members always being online.
+
+## Everybody makes mistakes, don't freeze, move on
+
+You will make mistakes, there is no exception, you just have to learn from them, admit your mistakes, take responsibility and put the past behind you. Nobody can change the past but how you react will determine the impact on the future.
+
+You will make mistakes sooner or later, there is no exception. You just have to learn from them, admit your mistakes, take responsibility and put the past behind you. Nobody can change the past but how you react will determine your future.
+
+Even when someone else makes a mistake, it's always better to focus on the fix and preventing it in the future. Blaming people achieves nothing but putting proper safeguards to prevent mistakes is very useful.
+
+## Standouts during the hiring process
+
+During my last job, I got involved in the hiring process and make decisions on who to hire and who to reject. I'm really glad that most of the hires during my time ended up being fantastic developers and great people in general.
+
+People who were intrinsically motivated, curious and had good communication skills were the best hires. Of course, having the right technical skills is important but if you have the right mindset, most skills can be learnt on the job. It is much more difficult to work with a person that has a bad mindset but great technical skills. So, during the hiring process try to make your personality stand out as well as highlighting your tech skills and experience.
+
+## Conclusions
+
+As you grow in your software development career, remember that technical skills are just the beginning. Being a problem-solver, a life long learner and having good communication skills will truly set you apart. Embrace shipping fast and iterating, understand the broader business context, and take care of yourself along the way.

src/content/blog/how-to-stand-out-as-a-developer/og-image.png

@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ const blogCollection = defineCollection({
           "capacitor",
           "mobile-development",
           "html",
+          "career",
         ])
       ),
       image: z