Why I'm Preparing a Plan B After 7 Years as a Developer

Overview

The speaker reflects on 7 years of career change in the Netherlands alongside major shifts in the tech industry, culminating in a “Plan B” for the future.

Technological / Career Analysis & Key Takeaways

AI changes what developers are judged on

The speaker argues that “nobody cares about clean code anymore” because AI can generate code automatically. As a result, higher-value skills become:

• Idea quality
• Architecture
• Product delivery (building something that works)

They also note that portfolio-first approaches may weaken if a candidate can’t demonstrate real product impact. Overall implication: developers may transition toward architects of AI systems rather than pure coders.

Adaptation is the core competency

Their advice emphasizes learning how to adapt, not merely how to use a specific library or tool. They expect the tech world to be “unrecognizable” again in roughly 7 years.

Career milestone tied to “transformation”

While not purely technical, the speaker ties personal milestones to broader technical evolution, including:

• Moving from React class components to Hooks
• Migrating from JavaScript to TypeScript

These shifts are framed as part of staying adaptable amid industry change.

Product / Learning Guidance

• Don’t focus solely on coding style or libraries.
• Prioritize systems-level thinking (especially architecture) and shipping a working product.
• Consider expanding toward physical/embedded domains as a potential future path (e.g., smart homes, cars, or hardware).

Plan B: Future Direction

The speaker’s “Plan B” is rooted in a return to electronics/hardware. Since AI makes more things digital, they wonder if the future may tilt toward physical tech, such as:

• Smart home devices
• Smart vehicles
• Hardware-focused products

Plans for 2026

The speaker mentions a major project planned for 2026 with high risk—something that could “crash or change” their life—but details are not shared yet.

Main Speaker / Source

• Single main speaker / first-person narrator (a developer/content creator sharing their experience and advice).