Reading code is a skill. Writing code is...

Reading code is a skill. Writing code is a skill. They are not the same, and reading is arguably harder! A great time to practice reading code is through reviews, as it’s your chance to verify things are written according to your team’s style guidelines and function as expected. This context helps you read, as skimming through some random code samples you have no vested interest in won’t be nearly as effective at fully understanding what you are reading." "" "The faster you can read code, the better, too! Speedy reviews are always appreciated, but balance speed with thoroughness. Striking that balance well is an invaluable skill for a software engineer, and the more you do it, the better you’ll get at it! Don’t shy away from code reviews; embrace the fear of missing issues. When you discover you missed something, learn from the miss. Make it a point not to miss that same issue again. Keep doing this, and you will develop a strong sense of what to look for in reviews, problems you naturally are good at finding and issues you need extra focus to find. Always be asking yourself when creating review comments, though: “does this matter?”. #bendevtip

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Original post on LinkedIn