How to Tell If You’re Actually Growing as a Developer
One of the most complex parts of an early or mid-career developer role is knowing whether you are actually growing.
You are busy.
You are learning.
You are shipping work.
And yet, the question lingers.
Am I progressing, or just staying afloat?
Growth in tech rarely announces itself. It shows up quietly, often long after the effort that created it.
Here is how to tell if it is happening.
1. You Handle Ambiguity Better Than You Used To
Early in your career, unclear tasks feel paralyzing.
You want precise requirements. Clear steps. Exact answers.
As you grow, ambiguity becomes less threatening. You may still dislike it, but you can move forward anyway. You ask better questions. You make reasonable assumptions. You unblock yourself.
That is not confidence.
That is experience taking root.
2. You Solve Problems Beyond the Immediate Ticket
Early growth looks like completing tasks.
Later growth looks like preventing problems.
You start noticing:
- Patterns that cause repeat issues
- Decisions that will create maintenance pain
- Edge cases others miss
- You are no longer just responding to work. You are shaping it.
That shift is subtle, but it is one of the clearest signals of progress.
3. You Need Less Direction, Not Because You Know More, But Because You Think Better
Growth is not memorizing more syntax.
It is understanding how systems behave.
If you:
- Ask fewer “what should I do?” questions
- Ask more “Does this approach make sense?” questions
- Can explain tradeoffs instead of just solutions
You are growing in judgment. That matters far more than raw knowledge.
4. Your Work Is Easier for Others to Build On
Early work often works.
Growing work lasts.
As you progress, your code becomes:
- Clearer to read
- Easier to extend
- Less surprising
- Better documented by structure alone
If teammates trust your work even when you are not around, that trust was earned through growth.
5. You Are More Aware of What You Do Not Know
This one feels backward, but it is crucial.
Early confidence is loud. Growing confidence is quieter.
If you are more cautious with certainty, more curious about context, and quicker to say “I need to think about that,” you are not regressing.
You are seeing the field more clearly.
6. Your Feedback Has Changed
Pay attention to feedback patterns.
Early feedback focuses on:
- Syntax
- Style
- Basic correctness
Later feedback focuses on:
- Approach
- Tradeoffs
- Impact
- Communication
When feedback shifts upward, so does your level.
7. You Feel Uncomfortable for Better Reasons
Growth does not eliminate discomfort. It changes its source.
Instead of feeling lost, you feel stretched.
Instead of feeling confused, you feel challenged.
Instead of fearing failure, you fear stagnation.
That discomfort is a sign you are operating at the edge of your ability, not behind it.
The Hard Truth
You will rarely feel like you are growing while it is happening.
Growth usually feels like uncertainty, slower decisions, and questions without clean answers.
In hindsight, it looks obvious.
If you are thinking more deeply, asking better questions, and taking responsibility more seriously, you are not stuck.
You are growing in ways that compound quietly.
If this helped you assess your own progress, I’ve written a few short, practical guides for developers navigating growth, burnout, and career plateaus.
They are designed to support intentional progress, not just motivation.
You can find them here:
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