Elena Creanga

Full-Stack Software Engineer • Sharing 13+ years of clear-cut insights on software design concepts

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

2023 was the year I almost died.

In January 2023, en route to a snowboarding session with friends, I had a car accident.
Like all major life events, it happened in an instant. One moment the car was steady, waiting for the vehicle ahead to turn right; the next, it was zig-zagging between lanes after a loud crash.
Another car had hit us from behind, causing us to spin off the road.
Fortunately, no oncoming traffic was involved and my partner managed to avoid a rollover.
The car was a totaled. But miraculously, we all walked away with only shock but no major injury.

This incident marked a turning point for me in 2023.

After processing the event, I realized my greatest fear wasn't death itself, but dying with dreams unfulfilled.
I could live with the consequences of my choices.
But not with the regret of inaction.

So, 2023 became a year of breaking boundaries. I started new projects, embraced fresh hobbies, and found my voice.

It was the year I began my social media journey, sharing my experiences and learnings beyond my 9-5 job, the side projects, the internships I coordinate and the fantastic team I'm proud to have.

2023 is the year I went from no ideas to too many, to finding my “voice”. This didn’t come all of a sudden, but by posting on a regular basis ever since April.

Along this new path I got to know some incredible and inspiring individuals who became my friends. And this journey lead to me coaching people outside my day job, a genuinely fulfilling and enriching endeavor.
You all know who you are and I am grateful that we are connected.

2023 saw me embracing hobbies outside my comfort zone.
I started sewing, progressing from a complete noob, afraid to power the machine and accidentally sew my own fingers, to actually tailoring my own clothes and getting lost enjoying the process.
I also returned to painting after a long hiatus, overcoming my fear of bold colors and embracing the full rainbow.

This year, I also taught my first in-person language course. Although I had done this online before, I was really anxious to do it in-person.
But in discomfort we grow. I had a blast teaching and I already have students enrolled for 2024.

2023 was also the year I found my ground. The year I cherished my inner child’s dreams. And one of them dreams was to see live a concert of one of the most powerful and empowering women in music: Beyoncé.
The experience was everything I hoped for and more.

Due to that pivotal accident, I also realized that I like my limbs where they are now, the way they are now.
So 2023 was the year I sold my motorcycle. Although fun and adrenaline inducing, I was reluctant to drive it again after the car accident. The thrill isn’t worth the danger for now.
Lastly, 2023 was the year I decided to plant roots and find a place to call my own, which I did.

Reflecting on the year, I'm humbled by how much was packed into it.
It's true: people overestimate what they can do in a week but underestimate what they can achieve in a year.

Stepping out of my comfort zone has been where I've thrived the most.

Looking ahead, 2024 is about maintaining this momentum, facing new challenges and setting ambitious plans.

[Neo Kim @systemdesignone]

Here are 14 lies you've been told about the programming career.

🧵👇

[Fernando @Franc0Fernand0]

If you are a senior engineer and think that teaching a junior on your team is not your job, you are wrong.

What makes you a senior engineer is how much you can teach, more than how much you can code.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

Sometimes you need a bit of nature to disconnect from the world and reconnect with yourself.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

Software development is about solving problems for the business, by following an approach that's maintainable for the foreseeable future.

Software development is not about design patterns.

These are just ways to do stuff for specific situations.
They’re tools.

Don’t confuse knowing a pattern with having to use it.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@Franc0Fernand0 Everyone can get the technical skills.
It’s the attitude and behavior that make all the difference.

It’s the willingness to stay humble and curious while guiding and sharing your knowledge.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

Well articulated, David.

It is true that being a software engineer is “soft” on the physical part…
But it compensates by being taxing on the mental one.

Besides, the biggest challenge with these kinds of jobs is de allocating your mental space on a problem once the “work day” is over.
You cannot just lock the door and move on.

And that physical bit is also double edged… if you’re not careful, it can quickly degrade your health.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

One thing that limits our learning is our belief that we already know something.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

One thing that limits our learning is our belief that we already know something.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@ProgressiveCod2 “Your system evolves.”
That one line is a lesson many have yet to learn.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@ProgressiveCod2 @Franc0Fernand0 The worst argument there is.
Convoluted code is a sign you don’t understand the problem at hand. 🤣🤣🤣

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@Franc0Fernand0 Simple code is actually the hardest to write.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

Cannot stress this enough.

Pair programming challenges your ideas and assumptions.
Pair programming makes you both the teacher and the pupil.
Pair programming leads to better results.

In the end, pair programming is all about building in public.

[Riccardo Causo @rixlabs]

Substantial refactors should be done in pair

If you work with other people you should co sider pair programming for big refactors.

You will have the possibility to challenge your idea in real time and you will spread the knowledge about what you are doing.

I know some people cannot stand pair programming but our job is to deliver and maintain software not to be always happy.

Some hours of pair programming will not kill you

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@GaborPfalzer So beautiful! ☀️

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@rixlabs There’s a short book I’ve read a while ago that made a really compelling case for the idea.
The benefits of sharing your work as you go, far outweigh the “fears”.

The book is intuitively titled “Show your work” by Austin Kleon.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@ProgressiveCod2 For most scenarios, a distributed session store is the way to go.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@Franc0Fernand0 And from a point onwards, you get to deliver more and more value precisely by not writing code yourself all day.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@Franc0Fernand0 🤣🤣 surveillance mode: on.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

The best way to keep growing is to always see room for improvement.

When you can’t see the flaws in your own work, you can’t improve.

The moment you think you’re great, you’ve hit plateau.

So yes, imposter syndrome is actually beneficial.
It helps you shape the best version of yourself.

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

Coldplay, you’ve been incredible. 🫶

[Elena Creanga @Sunshine_Layer]

@MStrehovsky 🥲 beautifully named variables otherwise.