I mastered my role. Now I have no idea what comes next.

I didn't end up where I planned. The tech enthusiast initially aimed for a developer role, self-taught JavaScript, and built small projects. However, they found themselves in integration engineering, configuring enterprise platforms and building workflows. A shift occurred in their third year when the challenging work stopped scaring them, and familiar work became manageable.

While this was good, it also indicated they had reached a ceiling. This wasn't burnout or resentment, but a desire for more depth, ownership, challenge, and higher pay. They knew what they wanted next but weren't sure what form it would take. DevRel, senior integration engineering, solutions architecture, or something else entirely were possibilities.

They decided to pay attention to what pulls their attention, such as explaining things, writing posts, and helping others understand complex systems. They also reached out to people in adjacent roles and asked questions they hadn't before. This phase of their career was about writing their own next chapter, even without a clear map.