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Developer Job Description

What do you tell people when they as what you do for a living? Do you say that you are a programmer or developer? What if they follow that up by asking what that means, or what your daily activity means?

I have an answer that I think describes what I do best.

Problem Solver

I am first a problem solver. I generally use technology as the tool to solve problems, but there are also times when a non-technical answer is really the best solution. Being able to break down the problem at hand and see it from different angles always me to provide numerous different solutions, then talking or thinking through those options should lead to the best possible solution. This works very well in a team environment because everyone has different ideas. Someone else will think up other ideas than I will, by sharing our ideas together we can build new ideas together.

Code Author

When a technical solution is chosen and I start writing code, I shift into a different role, Code Author. Here I am focused on writing the clearest, easiest to read, code that I can. Most of the time the code that I am writing is not unique. There are patterns to use or examples to follow. The most important thing I can do is make sure that the next developer can understand what my code is doing. Much like a author, I want to focus on my reader and not on myself.

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