If you just started a new job role or are new in the software world, there is one piece of advice: embrace the suck.

The feeling of not knowing anything sucks, but embrace it. Learn as much as you can every day, and don’t settle for a day without learning something. There are no shortcuts; it is the only way to become better and more efficient in the future.

Today marks 9 months into my new job, and I’m constantly reminded of how much I do not know. Dealing with technologies that I am not familiar with, and especially being on-call to resolve user production issues. It feels like being thrown into the ocean and being asked to learn how to swim. But there is no other way to become better than to embrace the suck and learn as much as I can.

If you are inexperienced, there is no such thing as working smart; there is only working hard. Even if you are experienced, it is about working smart and hard.

So, learn to embrace the suck.