I was admiring the people who help me get things done. Especially in the topics that I am incapable. But as software professionals, we need to question ourselves when we feel incapable. Of course, we can’t learn everything. On the other hand, if we are bothered by the absence of that knowledge, then it’s something we need to learn.

I had the feeling I’ve described above for continuous integration. We had a great build system which I wanted to contribute, but I’d never had enough time to learn or contribute. Then, I became an apprentice with the all the time in the world to learn. That feel of incapability slowly turned into confidence. I’ve learnt how to create a pipeline, how store credentials in a secure way, how to connect web hooks with the continuous integration server. I also blogged about them.

While I’m learning, it was hard to achieve everything I’ve listed above. But it was only hard for the first time. With the knowledge I had, I’ve successfully setup a new system for my new project within hours. Even though I know how to do it today, I blame my laziness. I could’ve learn it earlier. If it’s something we need to learn, then time should not be the excuse. We must learn what bothers us in our time. We need to invest ourselves, at the end, we own our careers.