Top 5 reasons to pursue a career in software development

I always get asked by people, "Should I be a software developer, is a career in software developer for me?". I get this question asked a lot, so I decided to write this post for all the people considering a career in software development. Even with the advent of Artificial Intelligence, software development is still a very viable career.

A lot of people just think of the money (and the glamour!) when considering to pursue a career in software development. But is money the only thing that matters?, will you really be happy and fulfilled if the only thing you care about is the potential money to be earned?

What if you don't enjoy it? This of course applies to any career, so it's important to reflect on your motivations and interests before diving into any career path, including software development. While the potential for financial success is often associated with this field, there are other crucial factors to consider to ensure long-term satisfaction and fulfillment.

For me, the most important factors to consider are the following:

1. You like creating and tinkering with stuff

As with any other engineering career, you need enjoy working with things instead of people.

If you enjoy working with machines, logic, and systems more than interacting with people, software development can be an excellent fit for you. It offers the opportunity to build and shape applications, software solutions, and digital experiences.

You will be able to impact the world with your creations and have a positive effect in the life of millions of people, which is why software development is very fulfilling and rewarding

2. You love technology

Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that if you like using Facebook, or use your iPad to watch videos or play videogames you're necessarily going to enjoy software development. A lot of people get into software development just because they like playing videogames.

Developing videogames is a whole different monster than playing games, people won't have the patience to write, debug and test games, which are very time consuming activities that most people find boring.

To truly enjoy this career, you should have a deep fascination with technology and a desire to understand how computers work at a fundamental level. This curiosity fuels the motivation to learn programming languages, explore algorithms, and stay up-to-date with emerging trends and innovations.

Get into software development if you have a genuine passion for technology

3. You like solving problems

If you are the kind of person that avoids problems like the plague, please don't get into software development. Software development is, at its core, problem-solving, especially when having to fix bugs in production, some people just don't have the nerve for that.

Whether it's building a new feature, optimizing performance, or fixing bugs, developers constantly encounter challenges that require analytical thinking and creative solutions. If you naturally enjoy tackling problems, finding logical solutions and you have the perseverance to work through complex issues, software development can provide a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment.

You should be ok having to fix bugs in production, not all people have the nerve for that

4. You enjoy learning

Software development is in constant evolution, new frameworks, technologies and ways to architecture applications are constantly popping up, so you will never stop learning, You should be ready and accept the fact that what you learned last year won't be relevant anymore.

The field of software development is constantly evolving, with new frameworks, tools, and best practices emerging regularly. Successful software developers embrace continuous learning as a core part of their career. If you enjoy the process of acquiring new knowledge, staying abreast of technological advancements, and constantly honing your skills, you'll thrive in the dynamic environment of software development.

If you don't like learning and keeping up with the latest trends in the industry, look elsewhere, software development won't be for you

5. You are lazy

Yes you read that right, you will enjoy being a software developer if you are lazy.

This is my favorite reason, because it may seem like I'm joking. But it's true, if you are lazy you'll try to automate all of those menial, tedious and repetitive tasks, improving even further your programming skills. Almost everything can be automated with scripts, even

games, so if you get bored of playing a game, it can play by itself!.

Surprisingly, being lazy can be advantageous in software development. Skilled developers often find innovative ways to automate repetitive tasks and improve efficiency. By leveraging scripting, tools, and frameworks, you can streamline processes and focus on more intellectually challenging aspects of development. Embracing laziness in this context means seeking clever shortcuts and automations to optimize workflows.

Some time ago, during the pandemic a very popular game called Wordle was released. I really enjoyed playing it but then I wondered, how can I automate this so that it plays on its own?. That's when I decided to automate it and you can see the result here: https://github.com/raulbojalil/wordle-robot.

You can of course apply this same technique with any repetitive task that you may face, all thanks to the power of automation. And now with all these new advanced AI tools and Artificial Intelligence APIs at our disposal, you can make your automation scripts more intelligent and powerful than ever before. The possibilities are endless!

If you are lazy, you will try to automate any tedious task you may encounter during your software development career

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So there you have it, do you have any other reasons to consider pursuing a software development career? Please let us know in the comments below.