The Authentic Journey of Your Average React Developer

Useful insights whether you are an average or an enthusiastic developer

Today’s journey takes us deep into the engaging world of programming, the lifeblood of the technology that shapes our lives — and specifically, how we can bridge the gap between enthusiasts and the average developer in React.

React touches almost every piece of the digital ecosystem. Even those who are not developers might find something valuable, since understanding how people work — especially those who build our digital world — is intrinsically fascinating.

Let me lay down an interesting thought that might have you raising your eyebrows — the average React developer isn’t an enthusiast.

As a software engineer, I personally fit into that group. I’m far from the React-obsessed, tech-adoring stereotype one tends to envision when picturing the stereotypical developer.

Yet here I am, walking this path and sharing my experiences along the way.

There’s a quote that stuck with me from an early age :

Imagine an average person, with perfectly average intelligence. Now remember, half the people are less intelligent than that person.

It’s a slightly harsh view, yet it reinforces the concept of averages and why they’re so critical to understand.

The concept is, the average isn’t meant to measure the majority. It’s meant to measure the middle, and the gap between the extremes and the middle can sometimes be quite vast. This rings true as we explore the realm of the average React developer.

Statistically speaking, if you’re reading this, you’re probably not the average React developer. You’re part of a community of people that surround themselves with insightful discourse, interesting concepts, and constantly strive to better themselves. In short, you’re here because this sparks joy in you. And that’s great.

However, our focus today is the average developer — those who aren’t sitting in the front row chalk-talk about the latest surge in technology, not out of apathy, but necessity.

“Wait a minute,” you might say, “shouldn’t every React developer understand how to initiate a new project, or understand every layer of the language?”.

In a perfect world, yes.

However, the realities of life, work, and the ever-evolving tech landscape mean that the majority aren’t building projects from scratch, they’re often maintaining and contributing to existing code bases.

Think about this scenario, and I’m sure many of you can relate :

Alice, an ‘average’ React developer, spends her day maintaining and contributing to an existing project brought in by an enthusiastic early adopter in her company. She’s not that interested in the inside-outs of React but works with it because it’s a part of her job.

This doesn’t mean Alice is any less capable or doesn’t excel at her work.

Alice is skilled at closing tickets and is perfect at finding solutions quickly.

She’s not a programming enthusiast, but she’s an effective, efficient problem solver who can deliver working, practical solutions — and that’s equally vital.

Now, a huge part of why React is often at the receiving end of pushbacks is because it’s become the default. The tool that’s just there, which the dev didn’t pick. It’s important to remember that every change isn’t for the techno-wizards to have fun, but for the average developers to produce work efficiently.

Interestingly, even in this context, those who are passionate about other frameworks like Svelte, Astro, or Solid tend to be the ones who love them.

Why? 🤔 Primarily because they’re often the ones who took the initiative to use these less common frameworks. For these frameworks to succeed, they’ll need to reach a point where even their average developer doesn’t necessarily have to be their biggest fan.

The average person working with React doesn’t have to know every detail of the framework. That’s okay. The ones that are successful are the ones that work best for the most people. Regardless of whether we all share the same passion for it, it’s been received well enough to have made it here — a tool for getting the job done.

As enthusiasts, it’s important to remember that, during our conversations, we need to consider the experience of the average developer. Remember that, in the end, we’re on the same journey — just looking at it from different viewpoints.

After all, the world isn’t made only of enthusiasts — it’s made of ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

Let’s journey together, learn together, and above all, code together.