As the VP of Software Engineering at a small agency, I don’t get to code as much as I used to. However, I still enjoy writing code and learning new programming languages. Recently, I’ve been pondering whether I should invest time in learning a new language or focus on mastering those I’m already proficient in.

In our day-to-day work, our team primarily uses Go for backend api and service development, and Vue for frontend development. I am more than proficient in these languages, and if I were to jump in and help, it makes sense to stick with Go and Vue and get to know them inside out. While this is obviously the smart choice, I often find myself curious about other languages and their ecosystems.

I have been looking at a couple of systems languages as of late, Rust and Zig. While I am interested in both, I am not sure if I should invest time in learning them. Rust seems to be more popular but have a steep learning curve, while Zig looks simpler but is much younger and the ecosystem is not as mature. I think the biggest deciding factor would be just how much control I need, or want, from a new language. I don’t currently have any projects where the types of performance these languages offer would be necessary, I think having something in mind while learning is a big benefit and useful as a testing ground. I may need to just try both and see which one resonates with me more. Also, the idea of learning something new as a way to keep my mind sharp and stay up-to-date with the latest trends is appealing, but I’m not sure at this point in my career if it’s worth the time investment.

I’m not sure which way to go, or if I even will go either way. I need to weigh the pros and cons and decide but for now, I think I will just give each a try and see which one I like more. I can always come back to this post and update it with my findings.