28 Year Old Staff Eng @ Google Reveals His Promotions

Ricky(@findingricky) went from Junior (IC3) to Staff (IC6) at Google by 28. He doesn’t consider himself the best engineer, instead crediting his blend of technical and soft skills for his ability to land promotions quickly. In our conversation, we discuss:

• Managing your manager
• Finding good projects (and rejecting bad ones)
• Imposter syndrome
• Switching from IC to engineering management
• Work-life balance
—

Where to find Ricky:
• YouTube:    / @findingricky  
• Instagram: instagram.com/@findingricky

Where to find Ryan:
• Newsletter: www.developing.dev/
• X: x.com/ryanlpeterman
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ryanlpeterman
• Threads: www.threads.net/@ryanlpeterman
• Instagram: instagram.com/@ryanlpeterman

In this episode, we cover:
00:00 – Intro
01:08 – Promotion timeline
02:34 – Junior to Mid-level
04:24 – Finding independence
10:39 – Mid-level to Senior
11:20 – Learning how to say no
17:26 – Senior to Staff
20:18 – Finding next-level work
23:42 – Transitioning to management
33:46 – Reflections