Every junior dev I've ever mentored asks the same question: "What framework/language should I learn next?"

Wrong question.

The gap between junior and senior isn't syntax, frameworks, or even LeetCode grind. It's these three habits:

1. Juniors solve the problem in front of them. Seniors solve the problem behind the problem.

A junior gets a bug ticket and fixes the bug. A senior asks "why did this bug exist in the first place, and what other bugs does that same root cause create?" Then fixes the class of bug, not the instance.

2. Juniors optimize for "does it work." Seniors optimize for "can someone else understand this in 6 months."

Code is read 10x more than it's written. Senior engineers write for the next person (often future-them), not just the compiler.

3. Juniors ask "how do I build this." Seniors ask "should we build this at all."

The most valuable senior engineering skill is pushing back on scope, proposing simpler solutions, and knowing when NOT to write code. This is 90% communication, 10% technical.

None of this shows up in a bootcamp curriculum. You mostly learn it by reading real production code and watching how senior engineers actually think through tradeoffs — which is exactly the gap we're trying to close over at Devcore with weekly code breakdowns and system design walkthroughs, if that's useful to you.

What's a habit that changed how you think about engineering? Curious what others have noticed.