From Dismantling Mysteries to Crafting AI Magic
The Journey Begins: From Breaking to Building
At ten years old, I did what any curious kid would do when faced with mysterious technology: I took it apart. My father's computer became my first victim, dismantled piece by piece as I tried to understand the magic happening inside that beige box.
That moment of destructive curiosity sparked something profound: a lifelong quest to understand how powerful technology really works, and more importantly, how to use it to create magic through structured practices.
The Through Line
From breaking computers to building systems to partnering with AI: the thread connecting every phase has been the same:
Understanding the assistant
Developing structured practices
Unlocking advancement potential
This relentless curiosity now drives my mission: helping teams reclaim the craft of programming through established AI-assisted development.
Career Building Blocks
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Valuable Lessons
Each role reinforced a lesson: powerful assistants demand structured practices, not random application. This insight became invaluable when AI assistants emerged.
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Architecture Progression: From Developer to Advocate
- OTTO (2009-2017): Full-Stack Engineer → Software Architecture - Learning foundations
- Breuninger (2017-2020): Software Architect → Engineering Leadership - Building systems at scale
- BLUME 2000 (2020-2022): CIO → Strategic Technology Leadership - Digital progression
- TalentFormation (2022-Present): Consultant → Rediscovering joy through coding with AI
- hackers&wizards (2025-Present): Agentic Software Engineering Advocate - Promoting established AI engineering practices
Key Life-Changing Moment
Rediscovery of Joy
The transition from Eclipse to IntelliJ taught me that the right tool not only enhance productivity but restore joy in coding. Similarly, AI assistants recreate that initial wonder of creation. Yet, it's not the assistants but practices that determine success: treating AI as structured AI-assisted development, like a colleague to mentor, not a mere fancy autocomplete.
Discovering Agentic Engineering
The AI-Assisted Development Discovery
Through thousands of hours of experimentation, I discovered advanced context engineering techniques and realized why AI succeeds or fails:
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The Problem: Random Prompts
Most developers treat AI like autocomplete, throwing random prompts and hoping for magic. This leads to frustration, inconsistent results, and eventual abandonment.
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The Solution: Structured Framework
I learned to treat AI as a colleague to develop. Clear practices, rich context, and iterative improvement unlock AI's true potential through tested mentoring principles.
The Breakthrough
Agentic Engineering doesn't just boost productivity; it revitalizes the craft of programming by restoring the joy of collaborative creation. I know this because I lived it.
Eclipse to IntelliJ: Advancing Development Experience
The Parallel Discovery: Just as switching from Eclipse to IntelliJ advanced my development experience, using AI with structured practices advances AI-assisted development.
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Before: Assistant Fighting
- Struggling with random AI outputs
- Frustrated by inconsistent results
- Debugging AI-generated code more than writing
- Team members disabling AI assistants
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After: Assistant Immersion
- AI understands project context
- Consistent, high-quality outputs
- Faster development cycles
- Team enthusiasm for AI-assisted development
Speaking and Knowledge Sharing
From Stage to Team
"40+ conference talks have taught me that the best insights come from real-world application, not theoretical frameworks."
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Progression of Message
From Technical to Human-Centered to AI Relationships:
2016-2019 - Technical deep-dives (Microservices, Reactive Programming)
2020-2023 - Human-centered architecture and team dynamics
2024-Present - Structured AI-assisted development and Agentic Engineering
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Speaking Highlights
40+ Talks Across Multiple Contexts:
International conferences across Europe
Corporate advancement workshops
Developer community events
AI adoption strategy sessions
Championing Structured AI Relationships
The Bigger Picture
Mission: Ensure AI isn't just another assistant upgrade but a fundamental shift in AI-assisted creation.
Vision: Make structured AI-assisted development the standard, not the exception.
Whether speaking at conferences, mentoring teams, or developing new frameworks, I advocate for structured AI-assisted development that preserves the joy of programming.
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Amplify Human Creativity
AI should amplify human creativity, not replace it.
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Structured Practices Win
Structured practices beat random experimentation.
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Teaching Mindset Matters
Teaching mindset is the key to AI success.
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Quality Drives Speed
Quality enables speed in AI-assisted development.
The Ultimate Goal Agentic Engineering makes programming excellence accessible for everyone.
This isn't just about productivity, it's about restoring the wonder and joy that drew us to programming in the first place.
Ready to Improve Your Team's Journey?
From My Journey to Yours
You've seen the progression from curious kid to structured AI-assisted development pioneer. Now let's write the next chapter together: advancing your team's AI experience from frustration to reliable productivity.
Whether your developers are struggling with inconsistent AI results, avoiding AI assistants, or drowning in AI-generated technical debt, these established practices can restore the magic of programming for your entire team.
The journey from frustration to structured excellence starts with a single conversation.
Empower Your Team See the Practices
Continue the Journey
Next Steps
Ready to apply this journey to your team? My personal progression from curious kid to structured AI-assisted development pioneer offers practical insights for engineering advancement:
See How It Works: Structured AI-Assisted Development - The frameworks behind developer advancement
Advance Your Team: Transform Your Team - Apply these established practices to your developers
Speaking & Learning: Conference Talks - See the frameworks in action
Educational Foundation: Mentoring DNA - How teaching skills translate to AI-assisted development success
Connect & Share: Join the Community - Discover shared insights on AI-assisted development
The quest for better assistants continues...