Discovering My Path: An Interview with Norbert one of his Boomerangs (r) (r)

There are many paths to follow in our careers which makes it extremely difficult to pick the best one from the start.

During our interview, Norbert Szabo, Technical Director at the company, told us how he came to understand exactly what he wanted out of his professional career. He talked to us about the winding road that led him to , off the path, only to come back here again.

Through his experiences, Norbert has gained invaluable insights into his needs as well as expectations. He'll definitely encourage you to think about the same questions he did his self: "What makes me happy?"

Who Is Norbert Szabo?

"My name is Norbert But everyone uses the name Norby."

Don't be fooled by my picture on my profile My real identity is the dog lover."

Norbert Szabo, Technical Lead at  the company, is from Kazincbarcika the city of the Hungarian countryside, but he's lived in Budapest since the year 2013.

His professional career began at the Hungarian chemical firm, where he worked as a programer. There he worked for four years. He then moved to Budapest for the sake of being close to his family and friends.

In 2020, Norbert started looking for the next opportunity with an entrepreneur-owned company because his desire was to take on the challenges that only an environment that is dynamic can bring. Norbert wanted to be nimble and agile.

When Norbert Met

It was on Stack Overflow that he came across an advertisement for a tech company founded in Hungary which he'd not known about until that point. Something clicked inside of him, and he drafted a quick resume and sent it out.

Prior to him even knowing it the conversation was taking place with Kristof Dombi, currently Director of Development Operations, Daniel Pataki, CTO, as well as Andras Gerencser director of Development.

Two days after their chat, Andras called Norbert, telling him that was very keen on his profile. It was a meeting!

Norbert was impressed with everyone's cheerful and positive attitude starting from the Tech team to the person he met to, Zsofia Hidas. "I chatted with the girl for a few minutes, and I was sold!"

The technical aspects of the work was important for me, too. However, it was the right company culture that convinced me to join. And let me be honest, my instincts were right Everyone is lovely! This is definitely not your typical firm!"

After a couple of weeks having started his internship , Norbert was approached over Slack to see whether he would be interested in being the leader of his team on the APM project. Norbert had no prior managerial prior experience but his exceptional capabilities in the soft area made his talents be seen.

A few months in, Norbert was invited to an internal interview to discuss another opportunity: he was then offered the Head of Developer Experience job. In the meantime, Norbert had been in the organization for only one year. It was an massive move.

A New Meaningful Chapter

Norbert was thrilled to put on this new hat and to test his capabilities as a people manager, and was ecstatic to get the prestigious designation of Director of Developer Experience so he went for it. When he took the role as Head of Developer Experience, he managed 30 developers. The main goal was to hire 40 more within the course of a quarter. The task was difficult yet Norbert delivered.

However, that didn't suggest that this was his ideal job.

With time, Norbert noticed he found less and less time to write code, an activity that provided many hours of enjoyment. Never had he thought that it was so important for him to individually contribute to projects.

He was a lover ofpeople, but managing them wasn't his cup of tea.

"Management isn't for everyone" and that's fine. At the time I was struggling to find my path forward due to being blinded by this expectation that someone who's skilled should have the ability to lead people. However, a portion of me wanted me to look within," Norbert says.

"What does it make me feel happy?" He asked himself over and over.

Norbert went on a break from his job and returned to a fully-technical role within the consultancy firm.

In the space of a half-year, He was satisfied in his choice to not take on managerial roles anymore but go against the grain and continue to be a technical contributor. He felt grounded.

But it was as if something had gone not right. Norbert was nostalgic about his ex-teammates, and he thought about whether he could revisit . The feeling that he'd left a unique environment which could not be duplicated in other places.

Then Andras reached out to him. "Do you miss us yet? Return as a technical Lead," the man said "You'll have the opportunity to do the things you enjoy. You won't have direct reporting - only the development process and management of projects."

Coming Back to

While away from  home, Norbert realized he sought an exciting and fast-paced world. He is a fan of seeing the things through to their completion, and work with a flat hierarchy.

"I was aware that I needed take a break to return with a renewed sense of self-worth and clearer vision for my future. I'm not a fan of management. coffee, and there's no other company I'd rather be employed at that more than ."

I've always loved how it changes are welcomed and how swift the pace is. It's amazing the amount you can do this in only a couple of weeks!"

Norbert recalls that his coworker Elod Kuthy completed a database engine change within just a few weeks, an endeavor that would be unthinkable at many other companies. "There's no red tape in this area, which makes it easier to master heaps and truly make an impact," adds Norbert.

"Developers are attracted to be working with high-tech equipment This is a great way of keeping people fulfilled here at , but I believe that the company culture and team members have a bigger impact to ensure that they will not want to leave."

Norbert's Learnings

"The greatest lessons I've gained result from my experiences in maintaining and dealing with a product impacting a major user base. There were issues with it, it would be affecting a lot of people. You become accustomed to the stress of it, though, and it's always thrilling and revitalizing."

"It took a minute for me to get adjusted to being back in the role of an independent contributor because that's sort like a plot twist for a professional," says Norbert, "but being an individual contributor makes me smile. It makes me feel happy here."

Norbert is responsible now for the timely and successful introduction of the program he works on and for making sure the product is built to the highest standards. code. This level of responsibility leaves him feeling fulfilled, and it allows him to "get his hands dirty" each day.

Conclusion

Norbert's path wasn't linear. This in turn allowed him to rethink his work so that it was a satisfying experience for his needs. This is a great reminder that the only measure of success that matters is our own. the experience of others is a powerful tool in our pursuit of fulfillment.

Norbert enjoys coding and enjoys the degree of responsibility that a strategic post entails. But despite being a people person He discovered that he's not fulfilled in people management. What about you? Did you find your way?

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