Feeling stuck after learning a lot of full-stack — revise or move forward?

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Hi everyone,

I’m an early full-stack developer and I feel a bit stuck mentally right now. Over the past months I’ve learned and actually used a lot of things, but now I’m not sure what the next move should be.

What I’ve worked with so far:

  • Frontend: React, TypeScript, Vite, CSS/Tailwind, Next.js

  • Backend: basic APIs, auth, data fetching, working with a headless CMS (Payload CMS)

  • Databases & concepts: relationships, schemas, pagination, CRUD - worked a lot with MongoDB

  • I’ve built real features (orders, carts, auth guards, etc.), not just tutorials

The problem is:
I feel like I know a lot, but not in a “clean, structured” way yet. Sometimes I catch myself making basic mistakes and then fixing them — which makes me wonder whether I should:

  • stop and revise / solidify fundamentals, or

  • keep moving forward and building more complex things

I don’t feel like a complete beginner anymore, but I also don’t feel “confident enough” to say I’m solid. Kind of a weird in-between stage.

Has anyone been in this phase?
How did you decide when to revise vs. when to push forward?

Any advice from people who’ve gone from this stage to junior-level confidence would really help :slight_smile:

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Haven’t been on this page for a year and its amazing how things change as time goes

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Welcome back to the forum @artemkirpotenko

What you are describing sounds like imposter syndrome. Everyone at some point feels this way. If you can code what you say plus debug to there, then you are a programmer.

  • To check it, regularly look at your list of accomplishments.
  • In programming, there is always a next step, as the field constantly changes and new fields / languages emerge.
  • Pick a path you want to pursue, then review once a year to see if it is still a good fit.
  • Design templates and boilerplates to speed up projects.
  • Write down and draw what you want your project to achieve.

Happy coding

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