Years of Experience vs. True Seniority of Developers

The year is coming to an end, and recently I had the chance to sit down and chat one-on-one with a few members of my team. I heard some common thoughts: "I want to learn this new tech," or "I feel like I haven't learned anything new at work lately."

I shared my thoughts with them directly, and now I want to write this down for anyone else who might be feeling the same way.

Here is the reality:

1. Growth is 100% up to you.

2. Most people are just "finishing tasks" instead of actually exploring.

Let me tell you a story about hiring. I have interviewed a lot of developers in my career, and I see two very different types of people.

Type A: The "6-Year" Junior I’ve met developers with 6 years of experience, but their skills are surprisingly basic. They basically just write APIs to load data and save it. If I ask about Databases, they only know simple "Select" or "Where" commands. If I ask about system design or heavy traffic, they have no idea. If I ask about how a framework works under the hood, they give up. They just code by reading the documentation without understanding why it works.

Type B: The "3-Year" Senior On the other hand, I’ve met developers with only 3 years of experience, but their knowledge is rock solid. They understand how a database actually runs (things like B+tree indexes). They know how to design systems for millions of users. They understand complex topics like memory leaks and distributed tracing.

Why is there such a huge gap? We all have the same 24 hours a day. 8 hours to work, 8 hours to sleep, 8 hours to live. The difference isn’t time—it’s attitude.

For the 6-year developer, work is just a checklist. They do exactly what they are told. If there is a bug, they Google it or ask AI, copy the fix, and move on. When work ends at 5 PM, the laptop shuts down, and the rest of the night is for TikTok, games, or movies.

For the 3-year developer, work is a mystery to solve. They are curious. If they use a tool, they dig deep to see how it works. When they find a bug, they don't just fix it—they search for the "root cause" to understand why it happened. Even after their tasks are done, they spend time reading and expanding their knowledge.

That is why the skill gap exists. It’s not about the number of years on your CV. It’s about whether you push yourself to be better every single day.

It is easy to find a coding job just to pay the bills. But if you want to go far, you need passion.

With the holidays coming up, I hope everyone in my team (and anyone reading this) takes a moment to slow down. Think about yourself. Think about your plans. If you realize you don't have the heart for this and just want to get through the day, honestly, driving for a ride-hailing app might be less stressful and pay just as well. :D

But if you want to grow? Start being curious.