A Short Introduction

This post is just the start of a long journey, as I hope. If you’ve somehow come across this blog, liked it, and want to find out more about its origin, you can read this post where I explain my motivation behind it all. I also intend to use it as a reminder for myself if I ever feel the longing to give up.

Who I am

When I read other people’s “About” pages in their blogs, I often see a lot of achievements that I consider impossible for me to acquire even years later. Head of development, founder of a successful company, creator of a popular open-source project, and so on — none of this is about me at this point. I don’t even have my own app published in the App Store, which, as an iOS developer, I am deeply ashamed of.

Sometimes I think I have achieved nothing. But at the same time, everything is relative. My journey may not be as steep and bright as someone else’s, but when I compare myself to my past self, I see growth. And I value it.

So… My name is Andrei Iakovlev, or, as I usually present myself to people from other countries, just Andy.

I was born in the last month of 1999 and spent my entire childhood in a small town in Siberia. I studied well, always receiving good grades and participating in many contests, including English and programming, but never really had exceptional results.

When I finished school, I moved to Moscow, the largest and most modern city in Russia, to study software engineering and, not less importantly, to make contacts and find opportunities to work as a real developer. I had my first programming job as early as 2019. A few years later, in 2022, I had already changed companies and even became a team lead at Ozon, one of the companies considered Russian big tech. I like what I do at my work, and people around me seem to like my work too.

I won’t lay out all the features and tasks I worked on here; you can see them in my résumé if you want to. I’ll wrap up by stating that I see many opportunities for further growth in my career and, importantly, in my ability to stay afloat in this unsteady ocean of life.

Why I Write

Self-Expression

So, let’s get to the point. First of all, I consider writing a form of self-expression. I love to write: I always jot down notes during work and leisure time, and I keep a diary where my writing ranges from topics on how my day has passed to my ruminations on existence itself. I enjoy this symphony of words and sentences wittily put one after another just as much as I enjoy coding. Thus, a little blog is just the perfect opportunity to blend both worlds.

My Own Precious Space

So why a blog in the form of a separate website and not on LinkedIn, Medium, Facebook, or another platform? Partly because I really want it to become my own space. I want to write as if I’m writing solely for myself, not being judged and not swayed by the number of likes, comments, and views.

My Learning Path

The best way to learn something is to explain it to others. I’ve taken many notes on different topics of development and management, and I feel the need to brush up on my knowledge. Maybe even systematize it by carefully gathering scattered pieces of information.

Some of my articles will be purely technical. I plan to consult them as a reference to quickly remember things and thus be more productive. Some will be a summary of my experience and evolving views on particular topics. Thoughts like these never stay the same throughout the years, so it will be interesting for me to see my evolution.

Giving Back To The Community

Though I intend it as a personal space, it doesn’t mean I would mind someone else reading it. On the contrary, I’d love to receive a message from someone one day with a nice word about my writings. I would also be the happiest person if I ever found out some of my posts helped others learn or inspired them to take action. However, I regard this as a by-product of what I do and not the goal in itself. It just makes me feel calmer that way.

To not leave it unmentioned, I acknowledge that one’s achievements stand on the shoulders of others who have already paved the way. Every piece of text that I’ve read, be it a book, a blog, or a Stack Overflow answer, has gradually made me who I am. And now I’m just one of many, humbly hoping to pay it forward.