Develop Yourself

After 11 years helping hundreds of career changers switch into software development, I've found the hardest part isn't teaching technical skills but rewiring brains from misleading online advice that hurts new developers.  Much of this advice is well-intentioned, but some is designed purely for clicks and engagement. • "Don't chase titles!" • "Don't build CRUD ap...

Let's tackle three of the most common struggles career changers face:  1. Breaking into tech from another field 2. Networking without feeling fake 3. Staying motivated when the job search drags on.  If you’re wondering how to make the leap, keep connections warm, or simply not burn out—this one’s for you. Got a question of your own? 👉 Drop it here 👈 Send us a text Shameless Plugs 🧑‍💻 Free...

Have you ever wondered why some developers keep getting promoted while others stay stuck at the same level despite their technical skills?  The answer might surprise you. Through practical, actionable steps, I break down exactly how developers at any level can strategically increase their influence and advance their careers.  You'll learn how to gain credibility before speaking up, frame conc...

Breaking into software development isn’t about finishing another tutorial—it’s about building something that matters. In this episode, I’ll show you how to choose a side project that proves your skills, keeps you motivated, and actually impresses employers. You’ll learn: Why great data makes or breaks your app How to apply the 80/20 rule —stick with tech you know, sprinkle in something new Picking...

The tech job market is sending seriously mixed signals in 2025. While social media overflows with doom and gloom about hiring freezes and impossible entry barriers, actual data tells a surprisingly different story.  Job openings are trending upward, with big tech companies like Meta, Google, and Apple actively expanding their engineering teams. What's really happening is a massive shift in wh...

Remember when coding bootcamps promised you could learn to code and land a job in just three months?  That golden era of easy entry into tech has fundamentally changed, yet the marketing hasn't caught up with reality. In this eye-opening conversation, ex-Google engineer Zubin and host Brian cut through the hype to deliver a reality check about what it actually takes to transition into softwar...

AI is changing coding faster than anyone expected.  Two years ago, autocomplete felt wild—now people with zero dev experience are shipping apps over a weekend.  The question isn’t “is AI replacing developers?” It’s “how do you actually use it without wrecking your codebase?”  In this episode, I’ll break down when to use AI (and when not to), why Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) is the real gam...

It’s Labor Day weekend and, honestly? I’m burned out. Maybe this isn’t the best business move, but I’d rather keep it real with you than fake the whole “everything is great in tech” narrative. I’ve been plenty vocal about why AI isn’t about to replace us all tomorrow, much to the dismay of to all the AI bros out there. But here’s the other side: being a developer is nothing like those “day in the...

What happens when you give an AI agent full control over a small business? I mean, what could go wrong? Things started off rough and then got down right creepy near the end of this experiment. You can read the original article here: https://www.anthropic.com/research/project-vend-1 Send us a text Shameless Plugs 🧑‍💻 Free 5 day email course to go from HTML to AI 🤔 Got a question you want answere...

What does it actually mean to be an “AI Engineer”?  Honestly—not much. The title is overloaded and vague.  But what is meaningful right now is knowing how to build real projects with AI that go beyond toy chatbots and portfolio fluff. In this episode, I walk you through the exact project I’ve been building at two different AI startups: a Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) app . You’ll learn how...

In this episode of Develop Yourself , I sit down with Gabe Rucker, CEO of Founding Titans , to discuss everything from entrepreneurship and building startups to the practical side of networking and getting money from thin air. We also dive into how Parsity students gained valuable, hands-on experience through an internship with Founding Titans , working alongside a real AI startup team. Topics we...

When I first tried to learn JavaScript, I hated it so much I told myself I’d just be an HTML and CSS developer and never touch it again.  Of course, my first job threw me straight into Angular, C#, SQL, and a mountain of JavaScript I wasn’t ready for. In this episode, I share what made JavaScript so brutal for me (and for almost every student I’ve worked with), the mistakes that keep people stuck,...

When your only tool is a hammer - everything looks like a nail. 2 of these database I'm sure you've heard and 2 might be completely new to you. Let's go past MongoDB and SQL to learn what tool is best for what job and what's the database choice for AI in 2025. If you're interested in learning SQL, check out this episode: https://open.spotify.com/show/69BHCbRAl6rHT9LlNhFWUy...

Every year, Stack Overflow surveys nearly a 100,000 developers to learn what technologies, languages and tools are trending. The answers here might surprise you, especially when it comes to AI tools. You can check out the survey here: https://survey.stackoverflow.co/2025/developers/ Send us a text Shameless Plugs 🧑‍💻 Free 5 day email course to go from HTML to AI 🤔 Got a question you want answer...

Maybe I'm just coping. Maybe. I’ve been pretty vocal about the over-hype of AI coding tools and I always get the same responses from AI bros: “YoU gOtta PrOmpt bEtteR!” “This iz a skillz issue dawg”“I’m using [x] and it works perfectly” “I’m a super duper senior architect and I’ve replaced my entire team with AI agents. You’re coping.” I’d be lying if I said I didn’t doubt myself. Maybe they’...

If I lost everything today—no job, no network, no portfolio—and had to start over in 2025 as a software developer, I wouldn’t be looking for a 3-month miracle.  I’d be planning for 12 months.  That’s how long it really takes now. We cover: what tech stack you should learn networking as a developer using BFS a capstone project that is actually impressive an interviewing strategy 3 books I'd re...

Five years ago, during an interview for a senior dev role, I had a panic attack. It was one of my worst interview experiences. It also taught me a lot about what I was doing wrong. In this episode, I'll break down the process that took me from under-paid developer to passing interviews and 4x'ing my salary. Here's your worksheet to help you create a solid story for an interview: wor...

Harish, former lead engineer at MongoDB and current co-founder of Flaire, takes us on a journey through his unusual career path—one that didn’t involve grinding LeetCode or chasing FAANG. Instead, he got deep into cybersecurity, built large-scale systems, and eventually started his own company that’s redefining how small businesses use software. We talk about: What it’s actually like to work on da...

Are junior devs cooked? How can I scaffold a solid MERN stack app? What's the best way to stick with a tutorial? We got some great questions this episode and my answers might surprise you. Got a question you want answered? Drop it here: https://form.typeform.com/to/Q499M9kl Send us a text Shameless Plugs 🧑‍💻 Free 5 day email course to go from HTML to AI 🤔 Got a question you want answered o...

Learning JS is tough. And you're probably making some of the same mistakes I did in the past. In this episode you'll get a path and a small project to make to teach you the minimum effective dose of JavaScript necessary to move forward in your learning journey. Here's the challenge I mentioned which includes some short videos:  Your Form Challenge Send us a text Shameless Plugs 🧑‍...

A junior developer who got hired at a startup used AI non-stop to keep up. It worked for weeks until he crashed and burned. He'd built a house of cards that he couldn't keep up. The AI tools went in doom loops or just added more sloppy code that his team wouldn't accept. Turns out they hired a prompt engineer instead of a coder. We're in uncharted territory my friends. You can&...

3 traps to avoid in your career, that I nearly fell for: 1. The Framework Developer Trap 2. The Developer in a Hoodie Trap ( might be the most surprising revelation for many aspiring programmers) 3. The Hype-Driven Development Trap Got a question you want answered on the pod? Drop it here: https://form.typeform.com/to/Q499M9kl Send us a text Shameless Plugs 🧑‍💻 Free 5 day email course to go from...

Matt Watson, who scaled VIN Solutions to a $150 million exit, shares his journey from coding to building products that make a real impact in the business world. We talk about: Why most developers fail at launching products What it means to be a product-minded engineer How AI is exposing weak developers The importance of sales, customer empathy, and learning in public “Your code isn’t the product....

This episode introduces a weekend project that will give you authentic experience working with existing code—a crucial skill that most tutorials and coding platforms simply don't teach.  Using Kyle Simpson's YouPeriod GitHub repository , you'll learn to navigate a codebase written by someone else, which is exactly what you'll do in your first development job. This particular pr...

Have you ever wondered what data scientists and engineers actually do all day? Forget what you've seen in movies – it's not all neural networks and fancy algorithms. Ryan Varley, Engineering Fellow at Magnite and experienced data leader, pulls back the curtain on the rapidly evolving world of data science and engineering.  The real work often involves what he colorfully describes as &quo...