Mistakes to avoid when working in a fast-paced environment.
Tags: webdev, javascript, beginners, programming
Published: 2023-01-05 20:52:58

Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@charlesdeluvio?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">charlesdeluvio</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/mistakes?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a>
  


It’s good to be passionate about what we do but unfortunately, it’s not the only thing we need in order to make it to the next day. Let’s develop resilience together with these few points.

### Not having an updated version of the codebase.
Being part of a team means expecting to be working on a codebase that constantly changes. Pulling from the changes that have been merged can help one stay up to date and discover bugs as soon as possible. What happens is that we usually have a branch called `develop` - depending on your naming convention - this is where all the code will be pushed to in order to be tested. Then we  have the almighty `main` branch which is usually the one that contains the clean code or production-ready code - an advice, leave `main` alone. Last but not least, we have the individual branches from everyone on the team. Each dev will have their code up there and raise `pull requests` against develop. And create branches from `develop` too so it’s very important to keep it up to date. The reason why you should have it up to date is to make sure to be able to do an end-to-end testing of the entire application locally as a backup. So always keep your code up-to-date.

### Not owning the project you are working on.
Having a sense of ownership is very key to the success of an application or a project. It’s important to look at it in a way that your code is going to be used by many people. Your Code. Owning a project means that you will give it your all and above all so you can proudly say you contributed. We own the project because as engineers, our biggest pride is our job and the impact it has on solving the issues that our world faces. That sense of ownership got people sleeping in garages for years and then coming out with the biggest brands we know today. If we keep that attitude, we may be able to face any bug and fix it and go to bed with a great sense of satisfaction. A sense of ownership makes us good programmers who care about the the users, the product, and the company.

### Not curious about what others are working on.
Being part of a team means working together, not freelancing but together. Being curious about what others are working on is a bonus point because it allows us to not only network within the company but most importantly learning from each other. Let’s make what I say a bit practical. A team has everything we need from the technical skills to the non-technical ones. If you are a `frontend` developer and maybe considering moving to `backend` and eventually becoming a `fullstack`, attending meetings from the backend engineers will help you get an idea of what they are doing there. Even if you do not code, you know what is going on and can understand the communication between the two ends and therefore facilitate your transition later on. The point is, curiosity does not hurt anyone, rather, it makes everybody knowledgeable about the topic.

These are the few points I wanted to make. What about you, can you share? Leave a comment below and let's learn from each other.