At the end of day, we are all developing CRUD applications But always act like we’re building the next big thing
Hemant Pandey
@hemant-pandey.bsky.social
Helping you grow in Tech and become Financial Independent | Author of ‘The Hustling Engineer’ newsletter thehustlingengineer.com
Work1 -> Money -> Investments -> Wealth -> Freedom -> Work2 But, there is a huge difference between Work1 and Work2 Work1 pays your bills, builds assets which will make you financially sound Work2 is for your soul, things you love and are passionate about
This question should be banned No one cares whether you use Python or Java or C++ Problem solving and your ability to communicate is what matters #interviews
I have given interviews at 30+ companies, and here’s my conclusion: Interviews are 60% luck and 40% preparation. A thread 🧵👇
Are you actually productive? Or do you just look productive? 🧵👇
Being No. 2 might just be the best job ever. I recently heard a podcast with GaryVee where he shared something fascinating. The No. 2 role in any business can be more rewarding than being the founder. Here’s why: 🧵👇
I was freelancing in 2015 And then started working full-time in 2018 I have seen the industry taking some huge turns and sharing the major turns in this newsletter open.substack.com/pub/thehustl...
Tech Industry in 2015 vs 2025
How the Tech Industry has evolved in last 10 years
open.substack.com
25% off for first 20 Buyers Use Coupon : NEWYEAR If you are a student looking to do Master’s in USA, this will save you a lot of time and money Get Here: topmate.io/hemant/1103431
Just Build Something That Works As engineers, we often aim for perfection but that’s even worse Just build something that works. - Solve the core problem - Ship it - Learn from real users You can always iterate and improve later Don’t let perfection stop you Build, ship, learn, repeat
A lot of folks are too focussed on building a side hustle before building a main one
Engineering estimates is one thing you can never be perfect at But as tech leads, we can definitely improve with time and experience I made multiple bad estimates and compiled all my learnings in the newsletter open.substack.com/pub/thehustl...
How to Estimate like a Superstar Tech Lead ?
Actionable tips to help you make better engineering estimates
open.substack.com
Whatever I share on LinkedIN is very BASIC Almost everything I write about is something most Senior Engineers already know They’ve been there, done that But only 1% of them actually share it
Why you should always keep interviewing every 2 years ? I got this advice from one of my managers : “Keep interviewing every 2 years even if you don’t want to switch”
Don’t care about your weakness Rather, Double Down on Your Strengths You can’t do everything, and you don’t need to Focus on what you’re already good at and get even better That’s how most folks achieve growth - Leverage your strengths - Stand out - Stay focused Find your edge. Double down
I took 6 complete weeks off in 2024 That’s a record all time high Super proud of myself for not feeling guilty about it. How many days you took off in 2024 ?
- 16,000+ subscribers in 12 months - Published 50 articles - 250K+ views across all posts - Read across 141 countries and 49 US states This is the 2024 recap for ‘The Hustling Engineer’ I shared some highlights, top articles and future plans in the newsletter open.substack.com/pub/thehustl...
The Hustling Engineer : Our Amazing Journey in 2024
A Year of Growth, Lessons, and Gratitude
open.substack.com
What You Build Also Builds You Every project you take on isn’t just about the outcome It’s about the process Whether you’re building a product or a habit, it’s shaping who you are The effort you put into creating molds you into a stronger version of yourself Keep building
I mentored over 50 incredible individuals through Topmate this year Each session was an opportunity to share my knowledge, but more importantly, it became a two-way street of learning and growth. topmate.io/hemant
Are you also struggling to manage side projects ? Balancing a full-time job as a software engineer and doing side projects can be a real challenge Here’s what works for me:
149,000 employees laid off across more than 330 companies in 2024 Is 2025 going to be better ?
Consistency changes everything Just show up, even on tough days You don’t need to do everything Just take one small step every day Over time, those small steps add up to big results That’s what I want to adopt in 2025 in all my habits - career, health, hobbies etc etc Let’s see how it goes
Tech careers are weird In 2024, I worked as a Senior SWE at Meta building scalable systems while somehow growing into a tech career content creator with 55,000+ followers and a newsletter read by 15,000+ engineers. The biggest learning? Impact > Effort, always
My reading list for this week 👇🏻 🟢 How Nginx Was Able to Support 1 Million Concurrent Connections on a Single Server ✨ 👉🏼 newsletter.systemdesign.one/p/how-does-n... by @systemdesign.one 🟢 Using GenAI as a Senior Software Engineer 👉🏼 open.substack.com/pub/thehustl... by @hemant-pandey.bsky.social