From a Confused Person to a Senior Developer in 7 Years - My Actual Path

Seven years ago, I was a mechanical engineering graduate working in game testing for ₹20,000 a month.

Today, I'm a senior software engineer with good salary growth. But more importantly, I've built skills and confidence I never imagined possible.

This isn't a story about luck or overnight success. It's about making smart decisions when you're confused, learning when you're scared, and taking ownership when no one's watching.

Starting With the Wrong Degree

In college, I wanted aeronautical engineering but ended up in mechanical. I hated it from day one.

I dragged myself through four years, knowing I'd never build a career in that field. By graduation, I was lost.

My First Job: Game Testing at ₹20,000/Month

My first job was game testing at Pole To Win in Bangalore. It was a contract role with basic pay, but honestly? For a fresh start, it wasn't bad.

Good people. Decent early income. For the first time, I felt like an adult earning my own money.

Then I Got Too Comfortable

I stopped learning. Stopped improving. I assumed things would just keep moving forward.

They didn't.

November-December rolled around. No projects. I was let go.

I was 23, still dependent on my parents. That moment hit harder than anything before. It woke something up in me.

My First Attempt: Android Development (It Failed)

Before game testing, a gym friend and I experimented with Android development.

But my setup was terrible. An old i5 laptop with 8 GB RAM trying to run Android Studio. It took nearly an hour just to open a project.

When you only have one hour a day to learn before a long commute, that's not a setup. That's a wall.

Switching to Web Development Changed Everything

Web development had smaller tools. Faster feedback. I could actually see progress.

Every morning from 6-7 AM, I'd squeeze in an hour of learning before traveling 20+ kilometers to work.

It wasn't glamorous. But it was a start.

Taking the Leap (and Immediately Panicking)

After six months of early morning learning, I moved out of my uncle's place and rented a room with a teammate.

One and a half years went by. I saved a little. Learned a little. Finally felt ready to quit and try something else.

So I quit.

And immediately panicked.

The Reality of My "Savings"

My total savings? ₹40,000. Mostly from TDS returns.

That was barely two months of living expenses. The fear hit me fast.

Moving Back Home Was the Best Decision

I swallowed my pride and moved back home. My only expense was ₹5,000/month for my education loan.

That breathing room changed everything. It gave me time to actually learn without the pressure of rent.

The Learning Phase That Actually Worked

With rent out of the picture, I studied full-time.

My resources:

• FreeCodeCamp
• YouTube tutorials
• Colt Steele courses
• Brad Traversy videos

All free. No bootcamps. No expensive courses.

The Advice That Changed Everything

A friend told me something brutally simple:

"Stop trying to learn everything. Build projects and start applying."

That one sentence changed my entire approach.

I stopped chasing perfection. Started chasing progress.

Building Real Projects (Not Tutorial Clones)

I built projects that showed real-world thinking. Not copy-paste tutorials.

Projects that solved actual problems. Projects I could talk about in interviews.

Those projects opened doors.

The Breakthrough

In November 2019, I got an internship at a small bootstrapped startup called Brand Exponents. I walked in as an intern. I'm still in the same company today—now as a senior software engineer working on SaaS products called Swipe Pages and Swipe One.

In seven years, I achieved good salary growth.

My confidence grew even more.

Working in a small startup was the biggest accelerator of my career. With no huge team to hide behind, I had to do everything—frontend, backend, DevOps, infra, firefighting, customer issues, taking ownership, fixing things in production. It wasn't theory; it was survival. And that's exactly what transformed me.

What I Wish Someone Told Me When I Started

There are a few lessons I picked up along the way—none fancy, all practical:

• Your first salary doesn't define your trajectory. Your skills do.
• Don't obsess over knowing everything. You never will.
• Build real projects. They're worth more than 100 certificates.
• Small bootstrapped startups are underrated. They actually train you.
• Extreme ownership is a cheat code. When you think like the owner, you grow like one.
• Money comes, but only after value.

Looking Back

I started as a confused mechanical-engineering graduate who accidentally ended up in game testing. I rebooted my career with a one-hour learning window, an old laptop, and the fear of running out of savings.

Seven years later, I'm a senior developer who has worked across the stack, handled production issues at scale, learned how to think clearly under pressure, and built a mindset I'm proud of.

If this story helps even one person who's stuck where I once was, that's enough for me.