Robert C. Martin, the author, has been a programming expert for over 40 years and has had various experiences. His life lessons taught him key tips that can help novice programmers become professionals in their field. Robert has programming experience in various programming languages, including Cobol, Fortran, BAL, PDP-11, C++, Java, Ruby, and Smalltalk. However, his career has had its ups and downs.

Martin’s programming journey began in 1969 when he was 17. His father persuaded the local ASC company to hire his son as a part-time employee. So, while still in school, he learned how to develop programs and software. However, after school, Martin had no desire to go to university like most of his peers. He wanted to get a job as soon as possible and become financially independent.

Robert got his first full-time job at the same company. He enjoyed working with his friends Richard and Tim, but the position required a lot of effort. Martin worked hard to develop file systems, dedicating 70-80 hours a week to the task, earning $7,200 annually. Ultimately, ASC rewarded his efforts by raising his salary by 2%, which angered Martin and his friend, and they decided to quit. But they didn’t do it peacefully; they burst into the boss’s office and almost screamed their dissatisfaction.

At first, this decision seemed very fitting to Martin, but the next day, when his emotions passed, he realized he had made a big mistake. Martin was an unemployed 19-year-old with no job offers and no higher education. He tried to apply to those companies but failed time and time again. As a result, he started working for his brother-in-law in a lawn mower store.

As the months passed, Martin became increasingly discouraged and did not know what to do next. Eventually, his mother, who saw that her son’s life was in complete chaos, advised him to swallow his pride and call his former boss. Martin listened to his mother and contacted his boss, apologizing and explaining the situation. ASC was happy to hire him back, albeit at a lower rate than before. Nevertheless, Martin was glad to have taken this step and worked for the company for eighteen more months, leaving peacefully with a job offer in his pocket.