Here’s something I don’t think enough people talk about:
Coding alone is not a strategy.
I got my first job at Amazon in network automation. You might not even know what that is. Network automation is simply making software to manage (and automate the management of) physical network infrastructure (routers, firewalls, switches, etc).
Because of that I get inbound from recruiters at Oracle, SpaceX, Meta, and others specifically for network automation roles. And every single coworker I had in that space? When they left Amazon, they stayed in networking. Different companies (usually Oracle or Meta), same niche. Any when I interviewed people for my team at Amazon? I was looking for networking skills and knowledge OVER excellent coding skills. Most people are good enough at coding. Few people had the domain expertise to build the right systems we needed.
My fiancée is a licensed pilot. Her first job as a software engineer was at ForeFlight - a flight software company. Most of her coworkers are pilots, aviation nerds, or deeply into that world.
They’re not just “software engineers.”
They’re aviation software engineers.
Most people are still trying to compete in the most crowded market possible: “software engineer.” Millions of people on the market with similar resumes, projects, LeetCode ability, frameworks, tech stacks, etc.
Niche engineers don’t compete with everyone. They compete with almost no one.
If you know:
Code + finance → fintech.
Code + biology → biotech.
Code + security → cyber.
Code + networking → infra.
Code + education → edtech.
Code + gaming → game engines.
Code + video → creator tools.
Code + ops → devops.
Code + AI → ai eng.
The smaller and more specialized the domain, the less competition you have. In fact, I probably don’t even know the best domains to be in right now (just like you may have not known network automation).
So if you’re early in your career, here’s my advice:
Instead of only focusing on:
“How do I get good at coding?”
Focus on that AND:
“What domain do I actually care about enough to go deep in?”
That is how you will stand out and make a great career.
See you next week.
Arjay.