{ Code: Impossible }

I'm relatively new to the world of professional software development. I got my start hacking away in Visual Basic back in 1995 and didn't do any sort of development for money until 2004. Yeah I've only been a software developer for 4 years now. It's sort of scary being a noob in real life. There is a lot to learn: the culture, what to say, what to do and most importantly what not to say and what not to do. The hardest lesson I've had to learn is to not be afraid of the words "I don't know". I used to assume I knew the answer to everything or that I was expected to know the answer. I was wrong. Nobody has all the answers and those people that seem to either A) are being asked the right questions or B) are making it up. It's hard looking your boss in the face and saying that you don't know the answer to whatever he/she is asking you but it's even harder to say it later or worse: when he/she finds out on their own. Another thing I've learned that you never say "yes" under pressure. Ever. If someone comes to you to ask you for something and you are occupied or in a rush then simply say so. Say "I'm really busy right now, give me some time to come up with an accurate assessment". If the person needed the estimate 5 minutes ago then qualify your response: "I'll need more time to get you an accurate assessment but my best guess right now would be...". This can really save you some stress further down the line. Also, Read. Read everything. Read blogs, MSDN Articles, newsgroups, magazines ("Code" is pretty good) and most importantly books. Programming books have almost fallen off the list of a programmers best learning tools but not entirely. I've learned almost as much from books as I have from actually writing code. If you are unsure about exactly where to start Jeff Atwood has a really good reading list.