Staying competitive
Yaroslav Shmarov
I l-o-v-e sharing my learnings in order to empower others in their journey.
I’ve published 5 best-selling top-rated Udemy courses, with over 5000 student enrolments so far. My courses are beginner-friendly code-alongs, where you get to build a complete app from ZERO.
I created the SupeRails youtube channel about Ruby on Rails with 150+ screencasts. In my videos I try to explain concepts in minutes, that otherwise would have taken days or weeks to learn. The goal is for you to learn 10x faster than it took me!
I write a “dev log” blog, where I document the most interesting, most challenging daily programming challenges I overcome at work. I think that writing a “dev log” and documenting learnings helps with structuring knowledge. It helped me become 10x dev vs who I was.
About
As a developer
Embrace AI coding tools. Buy a Cursor subscription. Your most productive peers use it. Business cares about delivering results, not your artisanship.
As a job applicant
Remote work = much more competition for a job. Last month I posted on Linkedin that I am looking for a Ruby dev. I had over 500 applications. How can I choose?! Stand out. Write a "Today I learned", "notes to self" blog. Create a few youtube videos. Hundreds of Ruby devs have created videos. Are you a Web developer? Do you have at least one web app running on your own? (Not client work?) You must have a portfolio. Visit conferences. Make connections. I found all my best jobs over the last 4 years via connections.
As a content creator
Most of my old videos can be answered by ChatGPT. But do you know what question you want to ask? Inform about the general concepts, and the learner can use AI to dive into details. Focus on value, not technical details. Before: "How to use gem Friendly ID"? After: "Use friendly urls for better SEO".
Cohorts have unique value over self-paced learning.
Create videos about multi-tool integrations, that require to click through multiple screens (example: apple oauth setup)
Sponsors
By sponsoring Balkan Ruby, you are helping us make a great event while promoting your brand to the passionate Ruby developers in Bulgaria, the Balkans, and beyond!
Tickets
Support Balkan Ruby 2025 by purchasing a ticket. ❤️