A journey and reflection of a non-CS liberal arts graduate transitioning to a software engineer for three years, talking about my imposter syndrome and how to affirm myself.

Retrospective on My First Three Years as a Software Engineer

2021 → 2022

My life in Japan has moved one step forward. It does not feel like reaching the destination in one go, but more like entering the next stage, so calling it an updated save point feels more accurate.

Save Point Updated

Taipei, Brisbane, Kusatsu, and the fleeting thoughts in between. If I could give a faint smile the moment I step out the door, perhaps that would be my ideal life.

Thoughts on an Ideal Life

My 2025 annual review and 2026 expectations.

2025 → 2026

Documenting my life working at Kusatsu Onsen Ski Resort, the feelings of the past month and a half, and the process of slowly getting better.

Life in Kusatsu

I didn't live that well, but I was afraid of living well. When I received a message from my mother at Christmas, I finally figured out why I was so afraid.

I'm Afraid of Living Well

The Australian working holiday ended in just four months. After going around in a circle, I returned to the original starting point. About why I left early, the change in thinking in between, and a review of this trip.

Body in Australia, Heart in Japan: Graduated from Australian Working Holiday in Four Months

Having worked in an Australian vegetable and fruit factory for almost two months, labor work, which is at the opposite end of the scale from brain-using software engineers, unexpectedly gave me a lot of insights. This article will share the aspects I hope to pursue in work in the future, such as identity that can be stayed, money that can be saved, easy-to-get-along partners, peace of mind, and accumulating influence, etc.

What I Want to Pursue in Work

Being in a foreign land makes the idea of "home" particularly strong, but actually I don't have a "home" to return to in Taiwan either. I might still be able to stay at relatives' or friends' houses, but those won't be my home. In this article, I will share my current imagination of home through self-questioning and answering, and how I hope to pursue my "home" in the future.

Written After Homelessness

I have been in Australia for a full month! I have also been working on the factory assembly line for a week. Turning from a software engineer who could work from home or sit in the office typing on the keyboard, to cutting pumpkins on the factory assembly line until my hands hurt. In this article, I will share the difficulties of finding the first job for a working holiday in Australia, Australia's treasure libraries and pumpkin cutting assembly line work, and question again why I am here.

From Coding to Cutting Pumpkins: Official Start of Australian Working Holiday

In the first week on the Gold Coast, Australia, recording the mood after saying goodbye to friends and Taiwan, reflecting on software engineer career burnout, progress of job hunting, and miscellaneous thoughts on arriving in Australia.

My First Week in Australia

A software engineer pressed the career pause button and decided to leave Taiwan temporarily. From career bottlenecks, housing justice to struggles with the original family, this is my true journey of leaving for Australia and Japan to find a different way of life.

Leaving Taiwan for Two Years: Heading to Australia and Japan

A three-day trip to Tokyo chasing stars that I didn't want to go initially, allowed me to detach from daily life, rediscover the vastness and relaxation of the world. Also chatting about Tsubame-yu, Kawazu Sakura and Aimer's concert.

Three Days in Tokyo

2024 Year in Review, a year where the spring loosened, briefly mentioned what I completed and what I didn't, and my pain. Discussed my expectations for 2025 from life, career, finance, and interpersonal relationships, and decided to take good care of myself before exerting influence.

2024 → 2025

My Facebook account was suspended without warning, losing all past posts, photos, chat history, and groups. I recorded the incident, lost connections and memories, reflections on social media, and future plans here: ensuring data autonomy, actively managing information sources, formulating social media usage guidelines, and focusing on building small and close communities.

After Losing My Facebook Account Used for Twelve Years

Discussing in detail "Draw Your Own Map" mentioned in the 2023->2024 Annual Review, how the map helped me, how to draw it, and my map version records and current status.

Draw Your Own Map

One year after building my personal website, I only wrote six articles. Why didn't I write more? This article records some thoughts during this period and before, including difficulties encountered in writing, mindset adjustments afterwards, and current goals.

Some Self-inflicted Troubles and Thoughts on Writing

2023 Year in Review, discussed my views on annual reviews, last year's insights, decisions, things completed, expectations for next year, and why we should exert influence.

2023 → 2024

Methodology and mindset about how I build my workout habits as an office workers

How to Build a Fitness Habit

About "Why set up a personal website", "why write" and "how to choose the tech stack"

💭 Life

Retrospective on My First Three Years as a Software Engineer

2021 → 2022