Crucial skills for a Node.js developer

Becoming a developer is a hard and thorny path for most people. It requires strong discipline, a token of stubbornness, great patience, and a titanic self-belief. And we all do this to obtain so precious experience and skills and get out dream job. If learning the front end is hard, then it is difficult to imagine how to deal with back end development. To make you a little bit comfortable and dispel your fears if you have chosen to learn back end and Node.js in particular we will tell you about some crucial skills for any Node.js developer.

Tech skills

First of all, let’s turn our attention to the main or technical skills. These are the skills that will be evaluated and tested at first because they define what kind of Node.js developer you are. Strong tech skills mean a lot and in most cases, they are the key factor for taking you to a job.

Web apps development

Web apps development

In order to become a good Node.js developer, you have to understand how to build things. You will be working with different apps most of the time and creating them is a must. You have to be able to develop at least a custom app module and explain how it works to show your knowledge and skills. Learn and practice everything related to the point for this is in high demand in the market. Moreover, knowing that will allow you to accomplish the test task (which is often the development of a small app) and get a job. 

Front end knowledge

If you think that you will deal only with back end development as a Node.js developer, you’re totally wrong. In order to create a great product, you have to communicate and understand how front end development works. That will give you a more clear picture of what you exactly have to do and help you to find better ideas and solutions. In addition, the understanding of the front end will make you a more valuable specialist and expand your opportunities as a developer.

Recommendation: “Outlining the key elements of successful ERP development projects

Integration of database and API communication

Integration of database and API communication

The code base of Node.js won’t be enough to run your app. You’ll also need to understand how to save metadata using the layer of durability, like a blog, for example. There are other network options to include below, but an Object-Relational Routing (ORM) tool is typically the simplest method for dealing with them when using Node.js.

Sequelize is a suitable option since it gives a consistent API to work with regardless of the database server to which you are connected. This enables you to not only easily construct your table layout and alter information, but also to replace the present database architecture if needed.

Appropriate coding

A critical talent to acquire is the ability to create or design readable and accessible scripts so that everything is in sync and there are no unexpected risks. All in all, get used to keeping your code clean, comprehensive, and without unnecessary components. Making that will show your expertise and help other programmers in the future a lot.

Asynchronous programming

Asynchronous programming

The concept of asynchronous programming refers to the possibility that many functions can run at the same time. So it differs from synchronous programming where each line of code executes one after another. Despite its complexity, this is a rather useful concept that is used now in a lot of projects. Moreover, when a developer uses the async functions and programming he will be able to reduce the amount of working time because there will be no need to wait for each code snippet to execute. 

Error-Handling Skills

Regardless of what developer you are, front end and back end developers must have debugging skills. Bugs occur constantly during development and you should know how to deal with them using troubleshooting, and syntax manipulations. In case you have no need to debug your code that means two things: either you’re a wizard or you just stole the code from StackOverflow. But remember, you will have to debug something sooner or later, so learn how to debug the code.

Read also: “Common Challenges When Developing with ReactJS

Advanced knowledge of basic programming

Advanced knowledge of basic programming

Having a strong basis will help you a lot in the future and more than one time. As for Node.js, you have to know all its ins and outs because it will save you time and help you to find some simple but effective decisions. Learn Node.js core and understand how it operates so it will give you a clear sight of how everything works, where some problems may arise, and how o deal with them. 

There are such Node.js API areas that show up frequently in building web applications: HTTP, file manipulation, and buffers. Additionally, the Node.js API is constantly growing, so you should stay current on new Node.js capabilities such as async/await.

Learning them will make you feel more comfortable as a developer and that will show your deep expertise and professionalism.

Cloud services

Such technologies as AWS, Google Cloud, and AZURE are becoming more and more popular these days, and learning at least one of them will give you a strong advantage as a specialist. Most of the Node.js developers don’t deal with them and the skill is not so crucial but still learning them is worth your attention. 

Non-tech skills

Non-tech skills

Usually, developers don’t pay attention to soft or non-tech skills and stay more focused on technical development. But now lots of IT companies evaluate both types of skills because they want to create strong teams with values and a good atmosphere and communication, so soft skills play a huge role in it. 

That’s why let’s consider some of them.

Put your customer's shoes

You will achieve more and increase client loyalty if you try to think like your client and treat them in the way you would like to be treated. Pay attention to your customers, consider whatever they’re saying, put yourself in their shoes, and follow their best interests. 

If you seek to build a robust, long-living company, you should never stop thinking about the surroundings with the eyes of your clients. Numerous successful companies have gone off the rails because of concentrating on something other than their customers.

Effective communication

Effective communication

Employees who know when to talk and, more importantly, when to listen are more productive. In order to demonstrate that you care, ask about your employees’ opinions, ideas, and remarks. Successful managers are more concerned with what they heard than with what they speak. They can’t control a discussion or a protest. Effective communicators are always asking questions to invite others to offer their knowledge and express their opinions. They learn to establish a healthy proportion between writing and speaking.

Business and product understanding

In order to be successful at your work, it is crucial to understand how your company works and what its purposes are. That will allow you to discard the excess and focus on those things that will be beneficial to your company and, in turn, to you. Also, you should be able to understand the product you create, its philosophy, idea, and purpose. Having all that in mind you can provide great solutions and deliver a truly great product to the customers.

Time management

Time management

In the constant workflow and high speed of work, you have to complete the tasks on time. Your productivity and time of task fulfillment directly affect the work of other so monitoring and right time management is a must-have skill nowadays. 

Having strong time management skills allows you to stick to the deadlines, do your job correctly, and have no stress that you will not meet the deadlines and fail a task.  

Categories and prioritizing for tasks

To do your process of work smooth and clear the best thing you can do is to sort your tasks according to some categories and order them by prioritizing. That will bring order to your work and a clear understanding of what you have to do. Prioritize your task according to their importance, deadlines, and capabilities, so that way, you can manage the workload more efficiently and be much more productive. 

In addition, that will give your colleagues a clear comprehension of your plans, load, and activities, so you won’t have some additional or annoying questions as well.

Concluding

Becoming a good dev takes a lot of effort and if several years ago you needed just nice tech skills, now you should have a real set of both: tech and soft skills to be productive and become a great developer with time. 

In our company, we look for people who will be ready to share our values and purposes, and the sure thing we check is if our potential Node, React, Vue or any other developer has well-developed soft and hard skills. 

We create custom software and CRM, so communication, time management, and prioritizing of tasks are at the core of our work. Customers expect professionalism from us and we are eager to give it. 

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