Develop Yourself

Career Leverage For Non-Traditional Developers

22 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I want to offer you some politically incorrect career advice that the gurus on LinkedIn won't share with you.From job hopping to the #1 skill you...

5 Takeaways from Working at an AI Startup

15 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We’re in a strange moment right now.The AI bubble is showing signs of popping and the tech industry is waking up from a long night of partying.We we...

Inside the Email Infrastructure of High-Growth Companies

11 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode of the Develop Yourself Podcast, I talk with three email and growth experts about something most developers overlook: email as a serio...

The ONLY Project You Need to Build to Become a Software Developer in 2026

08 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I lay out the project with tons of resources right here 👇https://brianjenney.medium.com/your-learning-roadmap-to-become-a-software-developer-2e15e1...

#291 - Open Source + Hard Work: A CTO’s Roadmap for Junior Developers

01 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Amber argues that the biggest problem facing new developers isn’t coding ability…It’s lack of real experience, and an over-reliance on feel-good...

#290 - 4 things no one tells you about learning to code after 30

24 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Am I too old to learn how to code?If you're alive then the answer is NO.BUT, you are going to need a different game plan than your 22 year old co...

#289 - This Year Nearly Broke Me - Here’s What I’m Changing...

20 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There are some major changes coming to Parsity and this podcast. As a listener, I appreciate you sincerely for listening and I want to extend the larg...

#288 - AI Hype is Ruining Software (A Rant)

17 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

"We don't really need developers any more""In 2 years, the tools will be so good, that no one will be writing code""Lear...

#287 - From Smoothie King to AI Engineer

13 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ryan is a current student at Parsity who build an app for his employer, Smoothie King, to suggest drinks in a chat interface using a powerful and less...

#286 - How to Know When You're Ready for ReactJS

10 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

You’ll learn the six core JS skills to master before frameworks, why TC39 keeps changing the language, and how to test your skills with a challenge ...

#284 - The Junior Developer Interview Guide (From Recruiter Screen to React)

06 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Let's be honest - interviews suck.But you can't suck at them.In this episode I break down what your next interview as a junior developer wil...

#285 - Listen to This Before You Learn to Code with AI

03 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Thinking about learning to code with ChatGPT, Cursor, or Copilot?Hit pause for ten minutes.In this episode, I break down why AI isn’t replacing deve...

#284 - Are We in an AI Bubble?

30 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Original article: https://medium.com/@wlockett/you-have-no-idea-how-screwed-openai-actually-is-8358dccfca1cYour AI engineer starter project: https://p...

#283 - The Practical Guide to LinkedIn for Developers Who Hate LinkedIn

27 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Grab the templates for posting to LinkedIn here: https://www.parsity.io/learning-in-publicI’ve grown from 0 to nearly 40K followers on LinkedIn with...

#282 - From Overwhelmed To Hired: A Realistic Plan For Learning To Code on an Adult Schedule

23 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

👉 Your adult time audit worksheet 👈I get it.There is no time. You have kids, maybe adult dependents or a really good show you're binging...

#281 - Coding Bootcamp, College, Or Self-Taught? Which is Right For You and How to Decide

20 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Let's weigh college, bootcamps, and the self-taught route with blunt pros and cons, then map each path to market realities, hiring filters, and l...

#280 - The Missing Guide to AI for Web Developers

16 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I just quit my job as a senior AI developer, and while helping hire my replacement, I realized how few people actually know how AI apps work. In this...

#279 - Recruiter Exposes the Truth About Junior Developer Jobs

13 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Just give up?Everyone says no one’s hiring junior developers anymore — but is that actually true?In this episode, I sit down with recruiter David ...

#278 - AI Does NOT Replace Junior Developers, Here's Why

09 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Every headline says AI is eating developer jobs. But spend a week in production and you’ll see the opposite: brittle code, flaky tests, and tools th...

#277 - RAG: The Only AI Skill Web Devs Need to Learn in 2026

06 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I thought Ben was a troll when he slid into my DMs after a LinkedIn argument. Turns out, he’s building some of the most practical AI systems I’ve ...

#276 - Claude Code Failed: What Anthropic’s Postmortem Means for Developers

02 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ever had your AI pair programmer stop helping and start breaking everything? I did—and this time, the data proves it wasn’t just me.Claude fell of...

#275 - Terrible Advice for Software Developers (that you're hearing in 2025)

29 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

After 11 years helping hundreds of career changers switch into software development, I've found the hardest part isn't teaching technical sk...

Developer Career Change Hotline: Networking, Breaking In, and Not Giving Up

25 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Let's tackle three of the most common struggles career changers face: 1. Breaking into tech from another field2. Networking without feeling fake...

#274 - The Cost of Being Nice: Why Good Developers Don't Get Promoted

22 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever wondered why some developers keep getting promoted while others stay stuck at the same level despite their technical skills? The answer...

#273 - When You Don’t Know What to Build—Build This

15 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Breaking into software development isn’t about finishing another tutorial—it’s about building something that matters. In this episode, I’ll sh...

#272 - The State of the 2025 Tech Job Market: Is AI Helping or Hurting Us?

11 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The tech job market is sending seriously mixed signals in 2025. While social media overflows with doom and gloom about hiring freezes and impossible e...

#271 - The Physics of Career Change: How Long It Actually Takes to Become a Software Developer

08 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 fund...

#270 - Coding in the Age of AI: What No One’s Telling You

04 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

AI is changing coding faster than anyone expected. Two years ago, autocomplete felt wild—now people with zero dev experience are shipping apps over...

#269 - I'm Burnt Out! The 3 Worst Parts About Being a Software Developer (and why I still love it)

01 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 t...

#268 - An AI Agent Horror Story: What Happens When AI Runs a Business?

28 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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...

#267 - Step-by-Step: Build a Real AI Project with Next.js & RAG

25 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 k...

#266 - Startups 101: Insider Secrets for Aspiring Developers

21 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode of Develop Yourself, I sit down with Gabe Rucker, CEO of Founding Titans, to discuss everything from entrepreneurship and building sta...

#265 - Why JavaScript Feels So Hard To Learn: You're Making One of These Mistakes

18 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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,...

#265 - The 4 Databases Every Developer Should Know (Including 2 You Probably Don't)

14 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 yo...

#264 - Stack Overflow's 2025 Developer Survey: Surprising Takeaways on AI, Coding Languages and Work

11 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Every year, Stack Overflow surveys nearly a 100,000 developers to learn what technologies, languages and tools are trending.The answers here might sur...

#263 - They're Lying to You About AI Productivity: Hype vs Reality for Coders

07 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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:“Y...

#262 - 12 Months to Hired: A No-Fluff Roadmap to Becoming a Software Developer

04 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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...

#261 - I Used to Suck at Coding Interviews. Then I Started Doing These 4 Things

31 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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...

#260 - From Lead Engineer at MongoDB to Fashion Tech: On Hiring, Remote Teams, and Start-Up Life

28 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 in...

Office Hours: Answering Your Coding Questions EP 3

25 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 ep...

#259 - The Minimum Effective Dose of JavaScript You Need to Learn

24 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 pr...

#258 - Should You Use AI While Learning to Code? A Senior Developer’s Take

21 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 c...

#257 - Career Landmines: Three Developer Traps to Avoid

17 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

3 traps to avoid in your career, that I nearly fell for:1. The Framework Developer Trap2. The Developer in a Hoodie Trap (might be the most surprising...

#256 - The Rise of the Product Minded Engineer

14 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 busin...

#255 - Your First Open Source Project: A Weekend with Kyle Simpson’s Code

10 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This episode introduces a weekend project that will give you authentic experience working with existing code—a crucial skill that most tutorials and...

#254 - What Do Data Scientists Actually Do? A Candid Conversation with Ryan Varley

06 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

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 net...

#253 - The Real-World Step-by-Step Guide to Tech Interviews (Not for Google or Meta)

04 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Interviewing is arguably the highest paying skill you can have as a developer.I don't think this is fair but it is reality.I've taken part i...

#252 - 3 Coding Principles That Will Save Your Codebase (that most bootcamp grads don’t know)

30 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

These principles don't just create pretty code—they reduce bugs, simplify updates, and prevent real-world problems like the $10,000 mistake I m...

Office Hours: Answering Your Coding Questions EP 2

27 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In this Office Hours Q&A, I got some pretty interesting questions:Should you lie on your resume to trick the ATS and get more interviews?If you’...

#251 - 8 truths no one tells you about becoming a software developer in today's market

26 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The software development market didn't die, it's just unrecognizable.Let's go over 8 harsh pieces of advice that will help you as a car...

#250 - Delivery Driver to Developer: Jacob’s Journey into Tech as a New Dad

23 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Whatever you do, don’t learn to code.The market is over-saturated.AI took your job.There is no hope.But then you meet someone like Jacob, a young da...

Office Hours: Answering Your Coding Questions EP 1

20 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Got a question you want answered on the show?Drop it here: Ask Your QuestionOn today's show:"I’m currently a mid-level product manager thi...

#249 - Data Structures and Algorithms for Beginners (Replay)

19 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Learning data structures and algorithms (DSA) isn't JUST a smart interview skill, it will boost your confidence as a software engineer, give you ...

#248 - The AI Productivity Myth: Reality vs. Hype

16 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Check out this beginner project to use AI with HTML and JS 👇Grab the project hereI'm no AI hater but I am getting so tired of the dialogue onl...

#247 - I Was the Worst Developer on the Team... Again

12 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever felt like the weakest link on your development team? You're not alone.The moment you land your first developer job, you're lik...

#246 - Coding Bootcamps, Burnout, and the Hard Truth About Breaking Into Tech: An Engineering Manager's Perspective

09 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What do engineering leaders really think about bootcamp grads?Why are so many developers so stressed?Is it even worth learning to code in 2025?Michael...

#245 - What Developers Get Wrong About Interviews

05 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I spent a few years as an engineering manager, and my buddy Zubin, a former Google engineer, is currently hiring developers at his company. Between th...

#244 - From Zero to Software Engineer After 30: My Journey and What You Need to Know

02 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ever feel like you missed your chance to break into tech? That 30 marks some invisible deadline for career reinvention? I've been there—and I&a...

#243 - The 70% Problem: When AI Coding Falls Short

29 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when software engineers rely too heavily on AI-assisted coding tools? Brian and Zubin (an ex-Google engineer) dive deep into what they ca...

#242 - How Anne Got a Developer Job WITHOUT LinkedIn or LeetCode

26 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when a music educator with performance anxiety decides to become a software developer?Anne discovered coding through The Odin Project and...

#241 - The Bootcamp Era Is Dead — And That’s Great News for Developers

22 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

AI didn’t kill bootcamps — shallow learning did.So what skills actually matter now that building a CRUD app is a commodity?And can you learn them ...

#240 - Navigating the Front-End Landscape: A Senior Developer's Perspective on AI Tools, Front End interviews and What Makes You "Senior"

19 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Yasemin, a senior front-end developer with a decade of experience, shares insights on career progression in front-end development and how the transiti...

#239 - Is Learning to Code Still Worth It? A Senior Developer's Perspective

15 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Chris, a mentee at Parsity was feeling a bit down and asked me straight up what I think about the future of coding careers.I had to really think about...

#238 - My Experience in Vibe Coding Hell

12 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A rant on the myth of developer productivity with AI and my experience in vibe coding hell with a team of senior engineers.- Why Vibe Coding is great ...

#237 - Don't Learn to Code for the Money, But If You Do...

08 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

You want to learn to code because you want more money. Let's just be honest about it.First off - there are many other ways to make a desirable in...

#236 - Developer Internships: The Good, The Bad, and The “Wait, They Threw Out My Code?”

05 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What’s it really like to go from coding alone to working on a real dev team? Dean Fox shares his raw experience navigating TypeScript, Git, team dy...

#235: 2 Skills You Don't Need Anymore In the AI Era and 3 More You're Going to Need

01 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The developer landscape is shifting. Fast.AI isn’t replacing developers—it’s replacing the kind of developer that only knows how to write boiler...

#234 - Coding Isn’t Enough: 3 Weird Traits That Predict Success in Tech

28 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What separates successful tech career changers from those who struggle?After switching careers into tech at 31 following years of addiction, and mento...

#233 - How Mindi Navigated ADHD, Bootcamp Burnout, and Landed a Dev Role

24 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We cover:Why even smart, driven people need help when learning to codeWhat ADHD looks like as a software engineer—and how she manages itHow burnout ...

#232 - The Harsh Truth About Coding, AI, Bootcamps, and Breaking in to Tech

21 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Think you need a CS degree to get hired? That bootcamps are scams? That AI is making developers obsolete? In this episode, I share some very hot take...

#231 - Roasting A Listener's Resume, LinkedIn and GitHub Profile

17 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A listener, Andrew, was kind enough to send me his resume, LinkedIn and GitHub profile for me to roast.Overall - he did a good job BUT there are some ...

#230 - AI Will Replace Most Coding: What Chief Scientist Laly Bar-Ilan Says Developers Should Learn Next

14 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Laly Bar-Ilan has been working in AI and natural language processing for over two decades—long before it was trendy. She’s now the Chief Scientist...

#229 - The 2025 Tech Job Market Sucks? Here's How You Beat It

10 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

 The job market in 2025 feels broken—and you’re not imagining it. AI-generated spam is clogging recruiter inboxes, resumes are becoming less rele...

#228 - The 3 Stages of Learning Javascript: What to Build && What to Learn

07 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

No one said it would be easy.If you're having trouble learning JS, you're not alone.I nearly quit coding when I had to learn JS. I even con...

#227 - How Busy Professionals Can Learn to Code (Without Losing Their Minds): A 3 Step Process

03 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Ever feel like learning to code is impossible with your packed schedule?You're not alone. Ten years ago, I was juggling parenting two kids, work...

Special Episode: Answering Fan Mail

01 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever sent a message into the void? That's exactly what's been happening to listeners who've tried to contact me through Buzzsp...

#226 - New Coders Can't Code?

31 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The rise of AI coding tools has fundamentally changed how people learn programming, creating a concerning trend: developers who can produce impressive...

#225 - The 3-Month Coding Bootcamp Myth: 4 Things You Actually Need to Get Hired

27 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Thinking about joining a coding bootcamp to land a job in three months? Let’s get real. I’ve been coding professionally for over a decade, and w...

#224 - How Jeremy Went From Tutorial Hell to Front End Developer at Apple

24 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Jeremy spoke with a couple mentees at Parsity which led to a conversation where I learned about his unusual (and long) journey into software.If you&ap...

#224 - Should You Still Learn JavaScript in 2025?

20 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

With the rise of AI and Python’s dominance, is JavaScript still worth learning?In this episode, I break down why JavaScript remains the best startin...

#223 - AI for JavaScript Developers: What You Actually Need to Know

17 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I started off 2025 knowing jack sh*t about LLMs besides how to ask Chat-GPT questions.Since then, I've built a multi-agent app for work, learned ...

Has Cursor Cooked Junior Developers for Good?

13 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cursor is an AI-powered text editor for coders. Let me be honest - if I was a junior developer, I'd feel a little nervous looking at what it&apos...

#221 - How AWS Used AI to Save 4,500 Years of Work – with AWS’s Director of Generative AI Applications

10 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I've been using AWS Q Developer for a few months now but it turns out I've barely scratched the surface.Srini, Director of Generative AI App...

#220 - Real-World JavaScript: Why Loops and Arrays Are the Backbone of the Internet

06 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

You’re learning about JavaScript arrays all wrong.For loops, zero-indexing, blah blah blah.But WHY? What makes arrays so damn important?Let's b...

#219 - The 3-Step No-BS Guide to Getting in Shape After 30

03 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Don't worry - this won't become a fitness podcast... or I dunno, maybe it will.Seriously, I know how much exercise has changed my life and d...

#218 - The 3 Worst Developers I Ever Worked With

27 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There are enough stories out there about how to be a 10x developer, whatever the hell that means.I want to share with you the 3 worst developers I eve...

#217 - How to Get Your First Tech Job - Straight from a Recruiter

24 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Henry Ngo is a tech recruiter who wants to see you win the game of job hunting. We chat about:• The Importance of a compelling hero section in resu...

#216 - Take-Home Coding Challenges Suck. Here’s 3 ways to Beat Them...

20 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I might be in the minority on this one but I cannot stand these types of interviews.IF you must participate, you might as well give it your best shot....

#215 - Building Software with AI: Dr. Robert Toth on the Future of Coding, Cursor and True Prompt Engineering

17 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

I used to roll my eyes when someone talked about "prompt engineering."Then Dr. Toth showed me what's possible in a video where he creat...

#214 - A step by step guide to building a really good side project

12 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Let's cut to the chase.Here's the video for building a side project: Watch on YTGrab the cheat sheet for side projects here.Here's the ...

#213 - The Google Interview: Luck, LeetCode, and What Actually Matters

10 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Can you believe I never asked Zubin about his interview at Google?I failed the Google interview a couple times (so far) but Zubin crushed it.And he di...

#212 – Learn Fast(er): The Uncomfortable Method That Actually Works

06 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Your most powerful skill as a software developer isn't how many languages you know or what technology you've used.You're real power is ...

#211 - 5 Things Salespeople Know About Getting Hired (That Developers Don’t)

03 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Want to get hired faster? Start thinking like a salesperson.Developers often struggle with the job search—not because they lack skills, but because ...

#210 - Why You Keep Failing Tech Interviews (And It’s Not Your Fault)

30 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A student at Parsity recently bombed a tech interview—and it wasn’t just their fault. The hiring process in tech is broken, with endless intervie...

#209 - Zuckerberg, Rogan, and the AI Takeover: Should Engineers Be Worried?

27 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Zuckerberg went on JRE and told the world that AI will replace mid-level engineers soon.Are we talking about the same mid-level engineers here?AI fear...

#207 - From Addict to Software Developer: A Story of Habit Stacking

23 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Learning to code didn’t change my life.Getting sober and exercising did however.10 years ago I was lost in addiction and headed on a path to jail or...

#206 - You Asked, We Answered: No BS Advice for Thriving as a Developer in 2025

20 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Alex Lau has nearly 2 decades in software and even wrote a book to help developers avoid the pitfalls that nearly derailed his career.What I like abou...

#206 - Real Developers Barely Code: What Your Job Will Really Be Like

16 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Think developers spend all day writing code? Think again. A recent study from Software.com reveals that developers actively code for just 52 minutes p...

#205 - 5 Steps to Solving (nearly) Any Coding Problem

13 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode of the Develop Yourself podcast, we walk you through my 5-step process for solving coding problems. If you’ve ever found yourself st...

#204 - AI Is Coming for Your Dev Job (But Not Really): AGI, o3 and Fear Mongering

09 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

How cooked are we now that OpenAI is getting closer to AGI (artificial general intelligence)?It feels like AI is inching closer towards making softwar...