You are the average of the five (programmers) around you

Yes, you are

Let's say you are a talking smart mouse and you are in a maze. And in the road to get out of the maze you will find out five other talking mice. Your best friends that you can ask them questions.

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So it is time to get out of the maze !! Now you have experience and you've learnt the basics about it. So you will to ask your friends. They are your friends right ? you trust them.

Some minutes later; you ask them: "hey friends how can i get out of this maze. You have already go there so now i have the experience to try it !!"

Mouse #1: In my 5 years of traversing the maze. I think you should just go always to the right. Eventually you will arrive to the exit.

Mouse #2: Based on the manual and the senior mouse opinion. You need to go right -> down -> left(non-stop) -> down -> right -> down -> right. And you will arrive !.

Mouse #3: I have analyzed the maze enough to know that it is better to never try to exit the maze. We don't know what dangers or cats can be there !!

Mouse #4: Sorry im not interested anymore in traversing the maze. Im happy just sitting here all day.

Mouse #5: I don't know ? Just walk ? If you walk you will eventually arrive. I guess.

You say thanks to all of five mice. And then as you are a smart mouse you analyze your options:

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So in the end you decided not to go. You are too young to be eaten by cats or walk for years. So you promise yourself that when you are older you will try again !!!

The End ?

Not really. Lets say a mad scientist took four mice that are friends of the young mouse. So they have been enhanced as robotic mice v1.0.

So the young mouse memory is erased so he will try to get out of the maze again.

Let's start over.

The young mouse has decided that is the time to traverse !! So time to ask the friends(again ;))

Enhanced Mouse #1: In my 5 years of traversing the maze. I have found there are five ways to do it !. And also i have painted some walls with different colors. You can follow any of the paths painted. But if you find a six way to do it ! Please paint the walls too !

Enhanced Mouse #2: Based on the manual and the senior mouse opinion. There is this path: go right -> down -> left(non-stop) -> down -> right -> down -> right. You can follow it. But remember is just a reference. I think you should update the manual this time ! Im sure there is a better way to do it !.

Enhanced Mouse #3: I have analyzed the maze enough to know that it is better to never try to exit the maze. Unless you travel with this sound weapon with you !. Please take these two sound weapons. So if a cat is there you just scare the cat !. Good luck !

Enhanced Mouse #4: Sorry im not interested anymore in traversing the maze. Im happy just sitting here all day teaching other people how to do it. So they cannot repeat the same mistakes as I did long time ago.

Old non-enhanced Mouse #5: I STILL don't know ? I told you : Just walk. Now Get out of here little one !!!

So young mouse sit and do the same analysis as the first time:

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So there are cons but young mouse now know that there are safe ways to get out of the maze. And also it can help other young mice to exit in a safer way !!.

Ok what is the lesson here ? One that im learning these years. And no, Im not talking about, the cliche, getting out of comfort of zone and be free!.

But just be sure who are your friends and most important who you do listen. This is very important not only in friendship but also in our daily job activities !!

It is important to listen to people who can teach better us ways to do things. Or people that enables us to be a better developer/person. Or people that push our limitations.

Software engineering is a career that you need to always learn. If you are not learning you will soon been deprecated and be a legacy person. Or worst case scenario: you will become a human automation of boring tasks.

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