Wow, ten years in testing. It feels both correct and surreal. A lot of things have happened over the last decade, and reading back over the old X Years in Testing posts is really interesting. So what do I have to report now? A part of me wants to go through old headings and give updates on them individually; another part wants to be more flexible. A lot of things have changed, and some topics are somehow still a thing.
Mental Health
I think the most important topic for me, overall, has been mental health. Whilst not directly related to testing, a lot of it was related to work. I talked about doing too much in the past, and that leading to burn-out. I also had some really bad work-related things going on, which meant that I couldn’t properly focus on my health until that was dealt with. At the same time, I had several medically necessary jaw surgeries, all of which added to the difficulties and challenged my resilience.
I’m pleased to report that things have improved a lot for me in recent years. I was finally able to find a strong medical team to provide the impactful support that I had long needed. Challenges will always remain, but things are much better than they were. I also find it much easier to be kind to myself, am less critical of myself, and am slowly, but steadily, improving things around trauma triggers, especially those related to work.
Community Engagement
While my mental health was at its worst, I took a very necessary break from extra-curricular community engagement. I stopped all blogs, articles, talks; even forum contributions. As my mental health has improved, I’ve been able to return to the community which has been so good to me, and am contributing content to certifications, giving talks, and generally being part of things again. I’ve been very careful and selective with what I returned to and how, which I think has been wise. Luckily, there are a lot of safe spaces and paths in the community for me to pursue.
It was kind of weird reading an old post about how “testers hang out on Twitter”. I still kind of miss those days, as they were so full of engagement and community spirit. Those things still exist, but they’re more dispersed across platforms, as the community has struggled to collectively find a single space to interact in the same ways. Nevertheless, the testing community still very much exists, and is as wonderful and supportive as ever.
Quality Engineering Skills
There’s so much that goes into quality engineering. While I still do exploratory testing and work on test strategies and so on, I’ve had the opportunity to write a lot more automation and manage CI/CD pipelines. This has happened in a context where it makes sense, so it’s felt very natural and appropriate. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how much I’ve been able to learn and achieve in these areas, in a relatively short space of time.
I’ve written a bit about AI and vibe coding; topics which are certainly very “hot” at the moment. I see these as areas which need to be explored and used for their advantages, but I look at them with what I believe to be a healthy dose of caution and critical thinking. I do believe that prompt engineering and leveraging AI are skills in their own right, and I must say that I have directly benefited from the use of AI. That being said, I don’t have any extreme stance on it from either side of the fence. Like many hot topics of days past, I think we need to be smart and deliberate in our approaches, whatever they may be.
Remote Working
I had to chuckle at a previous instalment, in which I expressed a slight discomfort with remote working, and a preference to be co-located. I don’t even remember feeling that way, as my preference is now the complete opposite. Like many people, I’ve been working fully remotely since the COVID-19 pandemic, and that’s definitely how I’d like to continue. It does have some downsides, like not being able to catch up with colleagues spontaneously in the kitchen, but there are a lot more upsides, like having my own ergonomic set up and not having to leave the house 🙂
Imposter Syndrome
I’m not sure whether imposter syndrome ever really goes away, but while I was experiencing it quite strongly earlier on in my career, as is perfectly natural, I now feel a lot more able to look at myself and my achievements factually, rather than insecurely. I will admit that, just last week, my colleague teasingly asked whether I ever get imposter syndrome, so I guess it’s still there a little, but I definitely feel more confident in my abilities than I did before. There are definitely situations where I feel it more than others, but I’m also able to identify that better than I could before. And I think that improvement always starts with some awareness, so I see this as progress.
The Future
I honestly don’t know what the future holds. I generally like to have some direction and rough goals to work towards; some mild predictions to act on. But this year, my tenth in testing, I feel more serene than perhaps ever before. I still have my passion for testing and quality; a drive to learn and discover, but I feel more calm about it all. I think that’s a good thing, as I’ve had a habit of steam-rolling into things without realising that I’d bashed my head in the process, only to have to deal with the wounds later. Whether because of age, experience, or something else, I feel a lot less internal pressure now, and am more comfortable strolling into whatever lies ahead.
What milestone(s) have you reached in your testing career, and how have things changed over time for you? I’d love to read about your experiences, so please share them in the comments below.
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