Engineers, Stop Getting Promoted — It’s a Trap

The more skilled you become, the harder others try to pull you away from the very craft work that made you valuable in the first place.

A follow-up to Show Me Your Faith and I Will Show You My Work: Don't Neglect Your Technical Foundation

The Paradox of Professional Advancement

In the technical world, there exists a curious paradox. The more skilled you become, the harder others try to pull you away from the very craft work that made you valuable in the first place. This is particularly true for engineers who have mastered their craft i.e. the Alphas of their domain.

Many engineers are lured by the prestige and compensation of executive titles, only to find themselves trapped in a cycle of meetings, politics, and administrative work that erodes the technical edge they once possessed. This isn't advancement, it ...