Mistakes in Software Engineering

☁️ Ümit Eroğlu 🌍🛰
4 min readMay 7, 2024

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1. Obsessing Over Patterns from Books
2. Ignoring the Benefits of Mentorship
3. Not Keeping it Simple
4. Choosing Comfort Over Challenging Projects
5. Trying to Make Abstractions From the Beginning
6. Sticking To Only One Programming Language Or Stack
7. Skipping the Planning Phase
8. Overcomplicating Solutions
9. Neglecting Code Reviews
10. Not Testing Enough
11. Falling for the Latest Tech Too Quickly
12. Underestimating Documentation
13. Forgetting About Scalability
14. Ignoring Legacy Code
15. Not Asking for Help
16. Failing to Version Control from the Start
17. Getting Stuck in Your Comfort Zone
18. Not Being Aware of Performance From the Start
19. Underappreciating the Maintenance Phase
20. Disregarding Accessibility (Web)
21. Rushing to Meet Unreasonable Deadlines
22. Neglecting the Power of Networking
23. Overlooking the Importance of Soft Skills
24. Failing to Set Clear Goals
25. Not Embracing Change
26. Skipping the Refactoring Process
27. Not Learning from Failures
28. Over-relying on Frameworks and Libraries
29. Overlooking Non-Functional Requirements
30. Neglecting Project Post-Mortems
31. Balance in Life and Work
32. Not Utilizing Debugging Tools Effectively
33. Fearing to Delete Legacy Code
34. Failing to Recognize the Importance of Continuous Learning
35. Dismissing the Significance of Data Privacy
36. Underestimating the Impact of Technical Debt
37. Letting Ego Get in the Way of Progress
38. Disregarding Code Simplicity
39. Not Establishing Coding Standards
40. Skipping System Backup Procedures
41. Not Balancing Features with Performance
42. Skipping Out on Testing in the Real World
43. Ignoring the Importance of Feedback Loops
44. Ignoring the Users’ Feedback
45. Failing to Prioritize Security Updates
46. Not Encouraging Team Learning and Sharing
47. Overconfidence in Manual Processes
48. Not Personalizing User Experiences
49. Mistaking Activity for Productivity
50. Misapplying Patterns and Practices
51. Not Securing APIs Properly
52. Underestimating Remote Work Challenges
53. Not Considering the Business Context
54. Forgetting About Compliance and Regulations
55. Not Using a Code Formatter
56. Not Tailoring Solutions to the Problem
57. Forgetting the Fundamentals in the Chase of Trends
58. Not Utilizing Performance Profiling
59. Losing Sight of the End Goal
60. Avoiding Learning Basic Command Line Tools
61. Not Having a Disaster Recovery Plan
62. Prioritizing Aesthetic Code Over Functional Code
63. Not Valuing Consistency Within Codebases
64. Relying too heavily on pre-made solutions without understanding underlying mechanisms
65. Not Being Proactive With Your Career
66. Writing Too Much Code Comments
67. Not Logging Anything At All
68. One Letter Variable Names
69. Committing Code Without Testing Locally First
70. Underutilizing Keyboard Shortcuts and Efficiency Tools
71. Bypassing Unit Testing for Speed
72. Assuming All Feedback Is Negative Instead of Constructive
73. Ignoring the Significance of Domain Knowledge in Tech Projects
74. Not Engaging in Continuous Learning Outside Your Speciality
75. Forgetting that Physical Well-being Impacts Mental Sharpness
76. Transferring Bad Habits from Old Jobs into New Positions
77. Not Having a Clear List of Things to Do
78. Staying Silent During Meetings When Having Valid Points
79. Leaving Unused Code In The Codebase “Just In Case”
80. Feeling That Asking Questions Shows Weakness
81. Missing The Chance To Mentor Others
82. Failing To Leverage Analytics In Decision-Making
83. Relying Solely On Online Tutorials Without Practical Application
84. Avoiding Writing Technical Blogs Or Papers
85. Ignoring The Potential Of Side Projects For Learning
86. Dismissing Non-Technical Feedback on Technical Projects
87. Assuming That Quantity Trumps Quality In Portfolio Projects
88. Viewing Meetings as Unproductive By Default
89. Using Complexity As A Measure Of Success
90. Focusing More on Defending Ideas than Improving Them
91. Underestimating the Power of Small Teams
92. Using Magic Numbers Instead of Named Constants
93. Hardcoding Values That Will Change Later
94. Bypassing Database Indexes and Their Impact on Speed
95. Not Knowing How to Properly Use Data Structures
96. Assuming Your First Solution Is The Best Solution
97. Thinking Only About The Happy Path While Coding
98. Believing Monolithic Architectures Are Always Bad
99. Going Straight to Coding Without Fully Understanding the Problem
100. Not Reconsidering the Big Picture When Making Small Changes
101. Overusing Object-Oriented Principles Can Complicate Things
102. Overlooking the Power of Saying, I Don’t Know
103. Relying Too Much on Tools and Automation Without Understanding Them
104. Saying Yes to Everything Without Considering the Workload
105. Being Unwilling to Negotiate on Requirements
106. Thinking You Can Remember Everything Without Notes
107. Believing That Software Development Is Only About Writing Code
108. Avoiding Hard Conversations About Project Issues May Worsen Them
109. Always Trying to Solve Problems When You Can Eliminate Them
110. Not Understanding the Business Side of The Project
111. Thinking that Perfect Code Exists
112. Thinking in Re-Inventing New User Experiences
113. Writing Vague Descriptions on Tickets and PRs
114. Choosing a Job Only For the Money

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