This is what I learned after ten years working in the IT industry

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It's about to be a decade since this journey of becoming a software engineer began. I started out throwing myself into it. Like a lot of us (IT guys) in the beginning, I was far from having a proper education. Rather, I barely knew how to make a piece of code actually run.

Now I can say this job has molded me into the person I am today in many different ways. I've had the chance to work on a wide variety of companies, roles, and projects. I've worked with folks from different places and cultures, seeing way too many different approaches to running a business and people, constantly finding myself in front of a new challenge.

Here are some of the most valuable lessons I've learned.

Culture is company's most valuable asset

I'm seeing more and more companies coming to the realization that keeping their people happy and motivated is the best they can do for themselves and the business. However, there are still a few old-fashioned organizations that rely on micromanagement to compensate for their upper management's lack of self-confidence.

The latter I happened to stumble upon more than once; I had one boss who would call me late at night asking for "urgent" bug fixes and was more than once part of these blamestorming meetings, where the main goal is to find a culprit rather than coming up with a solution.

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Even the closest to you will think you're crazy for leaving that job that allows you to afford five lattes per day. I mean, I used to think that way too.

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Leaving a toxic environment is not always as easy as just stepping away. It requires you to find that inner strength to stay sane for an uncertain period, while you're coming apart at the seams. It involves actively looking for a new job while the stress is taking up all your energy.

In these kinds of situations, the best you can do is look for a place to work where you will be appreciated and prepare a gracious departure, without burning the path behind you on the way out.

Titles are often misleading

It's easy to associate expertise and experience with the level of fanciness of the role or LinkedIn headline.

Job titles don't speak about someone's passion or work ethic, they often just represent the hierarchy in an organization rather than how good is that person at their job, let alone speaking about their soft skills. Most of the smartest, passionate and empathetic people I've worked with had no "leader" nor acronyms as part of their role description.

Being a leader is something you choose, it's not inherent to any particular title. I've learned to see way beyond roles and look closer to how people treat others, the effort they put into listening rather than showing off their skills, and the time they take to be kind instead of being arrogant.

Challenges are blessings

The only way to widen your skillset is to say yes to challenges, even those that are not strictly related to your area of domain.

Whenever there's a new opportunity in your company, take the time to evaluate how it aligns with your career goals; it might not involve using the latest technology or coding on that language you love, but it might involve putting your communication skills and other facets to tests.

Even when those periods of self defiance resulted in days of feeling like I was getting nowhere, I'm now glad I decided to avoid falling into the trap of looking for that "perfect opportunity" and made the best to shape every opportunity into the best for me.

Getting better at setting expectations should be the top priority

Being aware of others' expectations and how we meet them requires a big effort. It demands cristal clear communication and self-awareness. It requires you to be ahead of potential roadblocks and take accountability when things go south.

It's a skill that entails constant improvement and checking upon but can save you time, loads of stress and can be a big player when building trust with coworkers and clients.

After many, many bad decisions, after overpromising and hitting my head against the wall more than a few times, I started to become obsessed with improving this particular skill. I started to force myself to be transparent and communicative no matter how stressful the situation might be.

Both co-workers and clients will value authenticity when you show that you care enough to keep them in the loop, even if there's not always good news to share.