Part 3 of 3: Reflections on 30 Years in Technology
Part 1: The Short Bus and the Fairway | Part 2: The Fear of Being Included
I actually resisted early on in this AI revolution. I need to be honest about that before I say anything else.
Part of my resistance was philosophical — I don’t love the consolidation of power and data that AI requires. Part of it was existential — the possibility that it’ll cause real harm to real people, maybe even to mankind broadly. Those concerns haven’t gone away. But then something else started happening that I couldn’t ignore. I started to realize I could use it.
I could let something happen to me, or I could use it to make something happen because of me.
That reframe changed everything.
The job has never been about coding. I need people to hear that. The job has always been about solving problems. The keyboard was my way of communicating with the computer to implement how I wanted to solve something. The syntax, the language, the framework — those were the medium, not the message. And now I have at my disposal the thinking, reasoning, and typing capabilities of a full software development team whenever I want.
That’s either terrifying or liberating, and I’ve decided it’s both.
I think about John Henry a lot these days. The folk hero who raced the steam drill and won, then died with his hammer in his hand. I’m this century’s version of John Henry. So are you, if you write software for a living. The steam drill is here. It’s faster than us. And the question isn’t whether we can beat it — it’s whether we’re wise enough to not die trying.
We can argue over the way things used to be or we can evolve. It might not matter either way. But the truth is I was never going to be the one to change this history. Neither are you. What we can do is decide how we move through it.
I want to provide some context here because I think the AI conversation often gets stripped of it.
The technology industry grew too much. I believe that. And I say that as someone who has written extensively about what actually drives value in this work. There is literally no barrier to entry. The pay-to-labor ratio has always been very good. The worst that might happen to me physically is poor posture, carpal tunnel, or the erosion of my vision from hours of intense, hyper-focused screen time. Pair that with higher-than-average salaries and lengthy careers, and there’s no mystery as to why the industry exploded.
I write this not to dismiss anyone’s experience but to name the reality. When an industry grows that fast with that few barriers, correction is inevitable. AI isn’t the only force reshaping the landscape, but it’s the most visible. And the division around this topic has been heartbreaking to witness.
I’m a capitalist at heart. Humans should be able to provide for themselves and go as far as they want to go. As an American, things aren’t always fair, but I believe in my heart that if I want something, I can go out and do it. I also believe that systems should be in place to regulate where needed. It’s a balance. And when it comes to AI and the workforce adjustments happening right now, I don’t think they’re always misplaced.
That’s a hard sentence to write. But 30 years has taught me that hard truths age better than comfortable lies.
If you’ve made it this far across three pieces, first — thank you. Second, here is what I’m projecting back to you through reflecting on my career. These aren’t platitudes. These are things I learned by getting them wrong first.
Time is currency. Giving of one’s time for the sake of something or someone else is worth more than swag and credits. If that’s where you measure your experience, your time, your “you-ness” — aim higher. Find your worth, know your worth, and spend your time wisely. You only get so many ticks on the old clock. I personally got pulled into a few activities that didn’t yield the value I was expecting. It happens. If you aren’t making mistakes and learning from them, you aren’t doing it right.
No one is coming to save you. You are responsible for your own career. Your happiness. Your path. Yes, there will be people along the way who invest in you and help shape the next part of your story, but it’s up to you to engage and be willing to listen. That should scare you and also liberate you. Go do something great. Or don’t. End of the day you’ve got you to blame or thank.
There’s always noise. Whether it’s AI, new runtimes, the latest frameworks, Docker, Kubernetes, Serverless, Virtual Machines, or even the internet itself — change is constant in this business. You need to build a career that isn’t measured by a ladder. Find things you can anchor to and bounce everything against to see if it holds true. If I was starting over, I’d build my brand, my north star, on day one. Then everything I did, I’d measure against that standard. How does this fit my goal and my trajectory? I’d be far more intentional than I was at 25. Good news is, even if you’re 55, it’s not too late.
Not everyone out there is above board. Some are out for clicks. Some are out for dollars. Some are out for reasons that don’t make any sense. You have to be constantly evaluating influencers — their why, their content — to see if it’s helpful to you or hurtful. And content that’s hurtful to you might be helpful to someone else. Nothing in this world is black and white. But find people who speak from a place of genuinely wanting to help. People who haven’t bought too heavily into their own success or fame and who are still willing to connect. And most importantly — don’t let yourself fall into the trap that because a person has been on live streams or has more followers than you, they have more worth than you. You don’t have to tolerate or absorb any behavior that violates you because of a mismatched balance of power.
The world is changing. Rapidly. And what’s different about this period of time is more than likely absolutely nothing. The change is the same. The reasons might be different, but as the world continues to turn, change will remain the only constant.
I encourage you to lean into your uniqueness, lean into your network, and make the most of the humanity and real-life experiences that we share. I’m going to keep building. Keep creating. Keep stepping out from behind the keyboard when it matters, and stepping back behind it when the work calls.
And as they say, the rest will take care of itself.
This is the final part of a 3-part series. Start from the beginning: The Short Bus and the Fairway →