Juniors Don’t Waste Time, Being Left Alone Does

At one of my first dev jobs, I was told: “Don’t bother the seniors. Figure it out yourself.” So I did. I stayed quiet. I searched the web. I guessed. And I made mistakes that could’ve been avoided in five minutes if someone had just looked over my shoulder. At some point I considered quitting frontend completely after being told that I was "not cut out for it" and I needed to be more like "that other developer". It left quite a deep scar. But once I was finally given the space to ask for help, everything changed. Juniors aren’t dangerous. Unguided ones are. It’s easy to blame juniors when things go wrong: “They’re too slow.” “They need too much hand-holding.” "They introduce bugs.” But most juniors don’t fail because they’re inexperienced. They fail because no one is guiding them. This is exactly what happened to me as well. What helped me grow wasn’t more time alone with Stack Overflow. It was mentorship. Here’s what made the difference: Seniors who explained why, not just what to fix Review feedback that felt like a conversation, not a test A safe space to say: “I don’t know how to do this” Mentoring isn’t a time sink, it’s an investment I’ve heard devs say: “I don’t have time to teach someone else.” But here’s the truth: A supported junior becomes a productive team member faster They make fewer mistakes They grow into your future teammates and tech leads Yes, it takes time upfront. But it saves you much more down the road. And honestly? Some of the best developers I’ve worked with were juniors who just needed someone to believe in them. If you’re a junior, read this You’re not a burden. You’re not wasting anyone’s time. You just need the right environment to grow. If you’re not getting that yet, keep asking. Keep learning. You deserve better than silence. Final thoughts Everyone started as a junior. The difference is: some had guidance. Some had to fight for it. If you’re in a place to support someone less experienced: do it. Not because it’s your job, but because someone probably once did it for you too.

May 6, 2025 - 13:19

Juniors Don’t Waste Time, Being Left Alone Does

At one of my first dev jobs, I was told:

“Don’t bother the seniors. Figure it out yourself.”

So I did.

I stayed quiet. I searched the web. I guessed. And I made mistakes that could’ve been avoided in five minutes if someone had just looked over my shoulder.

At some point I considered quitting frontend completely after being told that I was "not cut out for it" and I needed to be more like "that other developer". It left quite a deep scar.

But once I was finally given the space to ask for help, everything changed.

Juniors aren’t dangerous. Unguided ones are.

It’s easy to blame juniors when things go wrong:

“They’re too slow.”
“They need too much hand-holding.”
"They introduce bugs.”

But most juniors don’t fail because they’re inexperienced. They fail because no one is guiding them. This is exactly what happened to me as well.

What helped me grow wasn’t more time alone with Stack Overflow. It was mentorship.

Here’s what made the difference:

Seniors who explained why, not just what to fix
Review feedback that felt like a conversation, not a test
A safe space to say: “I don’t know how to do this”

Mentoring isn’t a time sink, it’s an investment

I’ve heard devs say:

“I don’t have time to teach someone else.”

But here’s the truth:

A supported junior becomes a productive team member faster
They make fewer mistakes
They grow into your future teammates and tech leads

Yes, it takes time upfront. But it saves you much more down the road.

And honestly? Some of the best developers I’ve worked with were juniors who just needed someone to believe in them.

If you’re a junior, read this

You’re not a burden. You’re not wasting anyone’s time.

You just need the right environment to grow. If you’re not getting that yet, keep asking. Keep learning. You deserve better than silence.

Final thoughts

Everyone started as a junior. The difference is: some had guidance. Some had to fight for it.

If you’re in a place to support someone less experienced: do it. Not because it’s your job, but because someone probably once did it for you too.