TL;DR: * Your manager is incentivized to promote you. Your success makes them look good. * Be a top performer who is visibly operating at the next level. * Make your manager’s job easier by solving their problems, adapting to their style, and never making them feel threatened. * Treat the relationship
TL;DR: * The secret sauce of Principal Engineers is Systems Thinking. * It's a skill that you can’t learn at school. * It's built from four ingredients: The Grind (hard work), The Arena (right job), The Compass (curiosity), and The Accelerant (mentors). * To grow, balance the short-term
TL;DR: The Strategic Edge Instead of trying to be the fastest coder, focus on becoming indispensable. Here's how: * Tackle the "Ugly" Problems: Volunteer for the complex, legacy work others avoid. * Become a System Archaeologist: Master the boring, critical systems that make the money. * Translate Chaos