The biggest mistake that you can make is to believe that you are working for somebody else. Job security is gone. The driving force of a career must come from the individual. Remember: Jobs are owned by the company, you own your career!
Earl Nightingale
Having a business mindset.switch your mindset from that of an indentured servant
to a business person who is running their own business.
The service you provide is to create software.
Every step you take without a clear direction is a wasted step.
Your big goal should be something not too specific, but clear enough that you can know if you’re steering toward it or not.
For me, my goal was always to eventually be able to get out on my own and work for myself.
Don’t be a ship floating aimlessly in the ocean. Chart a course before you set sail.
The fact is that a majority of our time in the software development field is spent dealing with people, not with computers.
If you want to be a good software developer, you have to learn to deal effectively with people (even if writing code is the part of
your job you enjoy the most).