Decoding Complexity: How a Background in Education Built a Better Engineer

•

3 min read

At 23, my career path might look like a sharp pivot, but to me, it’s a logical progression of high-intensity learning and problem-solving.

I’ve spent the last five years - from the moment I turned 18 - deconstructing complex STEM concepts. Whether it was pushed by my own drive for academic excellence (landing top A-Level marks in Maths, Physics and Chemistry) or the challenge of managing a full classroom at 22, I’ve always been obsessed with one thing: how systems work and how to explain them.

Here is why I moved from the front of the classroom to the terminal screen, and how that background makes me a better engineer.

The Academic Foundation

I’ve always been a high achiever. That drive didn’t stay in my A-Level exams; it translated into how I build software. Before I narrowed my focus to the Cloud, I spent hundreds of hours building end-to-end web-apps. I didn't just want to "code"; I wanted to understand the entire stack.

  • Breadth: I’ve built across the stack - designing responsive frontends, architecting RESTful APIs, and obsessing over system design.
  • Depth: I eventually found my "vertical" in DevOps and Cloud. I realised that while I enjoy writing features, I’m more interested in the environment they live in and the pipelines that get them there.

Why Engineering?

People ask why I left teaching after being fast-tracked into a school setting so young. The answer is simple: I wanted to build the systems, not just describe them.

Teaching is the ultimate test of understanding. If you can’t explain a networking fundamental - like how a router determines the shortest path or how data encapsulates as it moves through the OSI model - to a skeptical student, you don't actually know it.

I brought that "explain it like I'm five" clarity to my engineering work. It makes my documentation sharper, my PR reviews more constructive, and my architectural decisions more transparent.

The T-Shaped Advantage

In the market, "T-Shaped" usually refers to skills, but I see it as a mindset.

  1. The Horizontal (Range): Because I’ve taught ICT and Computing across various levels, I have a holistic view of the internet. I understand the "why" behind networking protocols and data travel. I know how a frontend failure can actually be a misconfigured gateway.
  2. The Vertical (Specialisation): My focus is on Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and Cloud Automation. I thrive in the logic of CI/CD and the high-stakes environment of cloud architecture.

The Human Element (The Soft Skills)

Managing a classroom of 30 students at 22 taught me more about stakeholder management, patience, and "uptime" than any textbook could. In DevOps, you are often the bridge between development and operations. My background means I’m comfortable being that bridge - translating technical debt into business value and keeping a cool head when a production environment mimics a rowdy classroom.

I’m not just a developer who knows some Cloud; I’m a systems thinker who has spent years perfecting the art of clarity and precision.