Introduction
As a frontend developer, you are constantly learning new things. You might think that it is crucial to stay up to date with the latest trends and technologies to be able to build the best possible products. And staying up to date is a great thing to do. But if you want to level up as a frontend developer, it is much more important to get really good at the fundamentals.
And with fundamentals I mean you need to understand the core concepts of frontend development and how to apply them in practice. This includes understanding the core principles of the web platform, the browser, the DOM, the JavaScript engine and the HTTP protocol.
Get really good at the fundamentals
Being a frontend expert means much more than just using the latest frameworks and libraries, or being an expert in HTML, CSS and Javascript. Sure, it is important to have a deep understanding of the tech you are using, but there are so many problems to solve at the core level outside of the scope of the frameworks and libraries.
- How would you be able to solve performance issues, if you have no clue about the HTTP protocol and what exactly happens until the request is received by the browser?
- How would you be able to set rendering strategies, if you have no clue about SSR, CSR and SSG and the pros and cons of each?
- How would you try to optimize the caching of ressources, if you have no clue about cache control headers and how to make sure that the browser and/or a cdn is caching the ressources correctly?
- How would you be able to deploy your application, if you have no clue about the CI/CD pipeline and how to make sure that the deployment is done correctly?
- How would you try to optimize bundling and minification, if you have no clue how bundlers work?
- How would you try to solve dependency issues, if you don't know about package managers and semantic versioning?
Of course the answer is "You can't" - if you don't have a solid understanding of the fundamentals. That's why you should focus on how to build, maintain and deploy your application. This will make you a much better engineer in the long run.
Learn to think and communicate like a software architect
In the beginning of your career, you might have focused on building features and getting things done. But as you grow, you need to start thinking about the bigger picture.
Your first question when presented with a new project or requirement should be:
What is at the core of this problem? What is the best way to solve this problem?
And the best way to solve it might even be to not solve it in a technical way at all.
You should get from
I think I know how to (technically) solve this
to
What's at the core of this problem? What does this mean for the application as a whole and the long run?
And learning to think as an architect also means learning to think like a product owner. You need to understand the business goals and the user needs and how to align them with the technical constraints. Your number one priority should be to deliver value to the business and the users.
Your users don't care about your framework, your libraries, your tools, your codebase. They care about the experience they have using your product. Your business counterparts don't care about your technical decisions. They care about the impact your decisions have on their business and the users.
And you need to be able to communicate your decisions and the trade-offs you made to your business counterparts. Architecture and tech decisions itself don't matter if they are not aligned with the business goals and the user needs.
Conclusion
Of course it is important to stay up to date with the latest trends and technologies. Of course it is important to learn new frontend frameworks and libraries.
But if you want to level up as a frontend developer, you need to get really good at the fundamentals. You need to understand the core concepts of frontend development and how to apply them in practice. You need to learn to think and communicate like a software architect. You need to build a lot and learn from your mistakes. You need to be able to work in a team and collaborate with other developers.
In a nutshell it is more about core concepts and communication, than about frameworks and libraries.