It is what it is, and I can’t change that: every year, right on schedule, another version of me ships.
The calendar doesn’t ask for my approval. It just rolls forward, drops a birthday in my lap, and quietly asks, “So… what’s new in this release?”
Some people treat birthdays as a reminder that time is running out. I’ve started treating mine as a release date. Once a year, on the same day, I pause, reflect, and consciously decide what I’m going to deprecate, which bugs I’m going to fix, and which new features I want in the next version of myself.
Version bumps for humans, basically.
Over the last ten years, this has become less of a cute metaphor and more of a survival strategy. So much has changed that I sometimes look back and barely recognize the professional I used to be.
I have worked as a network engineer for exactly 31 years, but only in the last ten years have I started implementing the ideas discussed in this article.
I’ve been lucky and tested. I’ve been through wild projects across different environments, industries, and technologies. I’ve planned, designed, engineered, implemented, and supported the kind of infrastructure that most network engineers daydream about when they imagine “big, complex, important work.” Like we say: been there, done that.
On top of that, I’ve taught so many courses as an accredited instructor that I genuinely lost count. Hundreds of students, maybe thousands. Whiteboards, CLI, labs, airplanes, bad coffee. Years of pouring energy into helping other people grow.
And yet, here I am, on another birthday, realizing that the story I want to tell about myself going forward is changing.
On my birthday, my wishes hold a special significance. They’re not just “I hope things get better.” They’re version-change decisions:
I’m going to take better care of myself in ways I haven’t before, aiming to live longer, healthier, and happier.
I’m going to step away from any work or job that goes against my core personal values, because those are now non-negotiable.
I’m done putting in 99% of the hard work and getting less than 1% of the credit.
That was my release note for this year. But this isn’t just about me. This is about you, too, especially if you’re a few chapters into your career and starting to suspect that simply grinding harder is not a long-term plan.
Let’s talk about what it means to intentionally “version” yourself.