15+ Tools I Use to Self-Improve as a Developer.

Introduction

The Software Industry is very dynamic and fast. There are a lot of innovations going on. New tools, technologies, and frameworks are being released every couple of months.

So, to stay competent and relevant to the industry, you need to keep upskilling yourself and be aware of what is evolving in this space.

In this article, I will guide you with the tools I use to improve myself and stay competitive in this fast-moving environment.

I have divided these tools into 3 different categories to make them more organized and readable.

1. Learn and Grow Your Technical Skills.

The first and foremost thing is to keep learning. There is a famous phrase - Software Engineers are students forever. This phrase is literally true.

So here is the list of platforms I use to upskill myself.

1. Youtube - You can learn literally anything on this platform. I generally prefer learning from video courses. Here is a list of channels I recommend learning from -

   • FreeCodeCamp
   • Traversy Media
   • The Net Ninja
   • Programming with Mosh
   • Floring Pop
   • Akshay Saini
   • Codevolution
   • Corey Schafer
   • A lot more....

2. Online Web-based platforms

   • Freecodecamp. Get free certifications in various courses.
   • Udemy. It has both paid and free courses.
   • W3Schools. Learn and Practice at the same time.
   • MDN. Learn web development and security in depth.
   • Algorithms Visualizer. Algorithms are made easy with visualization.
   • Don't forget to learn from the official documentation. Documentations are a great resource to learn any technology.

3. Blogging platforms - I prefer 3 blogging platforms in the order they are mentioned below.

   • Hashnode - Yeah, the platform on which you're learning this article.
   • Medium - This one I like for reading in-depth articles.
   • Dev To. Been using this one as well.

4. Practice a Lot - Just learning from the above resources can not make you better developer.

You should try building Side-Projects, get involved & contribute to Open Source Projects.

These two are the best ways to practice and master the art of developing software.

DO THIS A LOT.

2. Keep Yourself Updated with Emerging Techs.

Keeping yourself aware of what is evolving in this space is crucial. Knowing merging techs gives you the option to choose among various tools and technologies that are best suited for the problem you're trying to solve.

To keep up with the pace, here is the list of things I do.

1. Join Conferences and Meetups - Yeah, meetups and conferences are the places where people get together and talk about what is changing in this space. I have never joined in-person meetups but I have attended online conferences and meetups. I have learned many valuable topics from conference talks. React Fiber, Event Loop, React Rendering Process, and numerous other issues I have gotten to know by watching online meetups.

2. Follow Tech People on Social Media - On social media, you can connect with great developers from across the world. They share whatever they are working on. This gives you an idea of what direction things are thriving. I do recommend you with 10-15 minutes every day on Twitter and LinkedIn.

3. Install daily.dev Chrome Extension - I use Daily.Dev Chrome Extension and I highly recommend you install it. This extension recommends articles from the whole internet based on your interest. You can further customize it to get personalized developer news.

4. Join Hashnode

Yes, You should join this platform and follow the right set of people according to the technologies you work with. And, not only you should join but you should also use this platform to write articles and share your knowledge with the world.

3. Increase Your Productivity

What if You know everything you need to do but you're not able to? Why? Most probably because you have not organized your days and tasks. This might turn out to be THE BIGGEST MISTAKE as a developer.

So, try to plan your days beforehand, organize your tasks, and track your progress. This will increase your ability to finish tasks 10x faster, I promise. Here is a list of tools I use to increase productivity.

• Clickup Extension - This is all-one-tool to cover literally every use case.

• Use Pomodoro Technique - Yes, this technique helps you do more in less time. Check this.

• ScribeHow Chrome Extension

Check Top 15 Frontend interview questions with best answers

Conclusion

There are a whole lot more ways to learn, practice, and improve but I have shared what worked for me and could potentially work for you as well.

Always a pleasure to read your feedback. Please do share.

Thank you for reading, mate. Meet you soon with the next article. ❤️