97. Debugging Your Brain: A Software Engineer's Framework for Design Career Success with Dagna Bieda
Description
What if you could refactor your brain like software to unlock your full potential?
I sit down with Dagna Bieda, a software engineer turned career coach and author of “Brain Refactor: Optimize Your Internal Code to Thrive in Tech & Engineering.” Dagna shares her journey from experiencing burnout to discovering the power of “brain refactoring” – a concept that applies software engineering principles to personal growth and career development.
We dig into the four main obstacles tech professionals face: imposter syndrome, burnout, interpersonal challenges, and self-marketing struggles. Dagna offers insights on debugging our mental “code,” emphasizing the importance of psychological distancing, openness to feedback, and developing strong interpersonal skills. We also discuss the often-overlooked value of soft skills in tech careers and how bootcamp graduates often progress faster due to their balanced skill set.
Whether you’re a UX designer, software engineer, or tech professional, you’ll find actionable advice on optimizing your mindset for success. Don’t miss this conversation that goes beyond technical skills to explore the human side of thriving in the tech industry.
Topics:
• 05:08 – Where did Brain Refactoring come from?
• 08:40 – About the book
• 12:06 – How do we debug our brain?
• 12:22 – Psychological distancing
• 13:20 – Be open to feedback
• 14:48 – Are you trying to DIY everything?
• 21:37 – Internal vs external dependencies
• 25:02 – How do we get feedback from colleagues
• 32:10 – Four obstacles that we generally run into
• 43:51 – When it comes to self-promotion, our mental model may be off
Helpful Links:
• Connect with Dagna on LinkedIn
• themindfuldev.com
• Get your copy of Brain Refactor
Engineer turned Coach for ambitious Tech professionals & Author of Brain Refactor
About Dagna
Dagna is an Engineer turned Coach for Engineers and ambitious professionals in tech. With 10+ years of coding experience and coaching since 2019, she’s the tough love, “been in your shoes” kinda Coach. Her clients’ backgrounds include a spectrum ranging from ICs to CTOs, from small startups to FAANG+ companies, from 2 to 20+ years of experience, and from self-taught devs through career-changing Bootcamp grads to college grads and PhDs. She helps her clients reach their potential and exciting career opportunities by refactoring their brains.
Have you been putting off building your portfolio?
Wix Studio can help get you there faster!
If you’ve been sitting on building your new website, Wix Studio can help get you there faster. Wix Studio is a powerful platform that lets you create and manage websites easily. With Wix Studio, you can quickly adapt designs for every device, reuse assets, my favorite, export from Figma and much more. Check out beyonduxdesign.com/wix to start creating today!
Let your passions lead your learning journey
Get $200 off Mento Design Academy’s course that’s as unique as you are!
It’s not just about learning UX design; it’s about discovering your unique path in it. Their approach is different – it’s personal, it’s tailored to you. They don’t just teach; they inspire students to use their passions as a driving force in their learning. And that is something I’ve experienced firsthand as a mentor.
I’ve been fortunate enough to guide students who are exploring concepts they’re truly passionate about. It’s not just about following a curriculum; it’s about shaping that curriculum around what excites each student. This approach emphasizes not just knowledge, but a deep love for the discipline. Seeing my mentees grow, apply their passions, and craft portfolios that are genuinely ‘them’ has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career.
So, if you’re looking for a UX course that’s as unique as you are, check out Mento Design Academy. head on over to beyonduxdesign.com/mento and Just for my listeners, use the promo code BEYONDUX200 to get $200 off the course.
Join Mento and let your passions lead your learning journey.
—
Thanks for listening! We hope you dug today’s episode. If you liked what you heard, be sure to like and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts! And if you really enjoyed today’s episode, why don’t you leave a five-star review? Or tell some friends! It will help us out a ton.
If you haven’t already, sign up for our email list. We won’t spam you. Pinky swear.
• Get a FREE audiobook AND support the show
• Support the show on Patreon
• Check out show transcripts
• Check out our website
• Subscribe on Apple Podcasts
• Subscribe on Spotify
• Subscribe on YouTube
• Subscribe on Stitcher
The post <a href="https://www.