How I'd Get Into Software in 2026

If I were starting from scratch in software engineering today, here are the two skills I'd work on right now (systems design and communicating intent), how I'd practice them, and the durable skill that stays valuable no matter how good agents get. (00:00) - Is coding over? (00:28) - Skill 1: understand and design systems (01:26) - Skill 2: communicate intent (03:16) - I can't promise these skills will last (05:30) - The adjacent possible (06:04) - The printing press and the iPhone (06:52) - Nobody planned DoorDash (07:30) - Git, GitHub, and agents as our printing press (08:07) - Antifragile (08:51) - No skill makes you antifragile (09:30) - Get close to real problems (10:35) - Skin in the game and trust (11:40) - Don't chase every shiny thing (12:20) - The durable skill (12:53) - What I'd do if I started today (14:00) - Terminator or Star Trek, this still works Better with Kent - durable skills for people who ship software. Thank you to WarpBuild for sponsoring this episode: https://kcd.link/warpbuild A lot of people are scared. Is it over? Are we just moving on from coding? Frankly, yes, coding is over. But I don't think that means we can just give up. If I were getting into software engineering today, I'd work on two skills right now. First, understanding and designing systems: what the pieces are, what each one is responsible for, and how they talk to each other. I'd practice by sketching out the apps I already use with an agent. Second, communicating intent: the what and the why, the constraints, and a way for the agent to verify its work, so it doesn't fill the gaps with guesses. But I can't promise those skills will still matter in three or six months. So the back half is about the skill that does: noticing the adjacent possible. That's Stuart Kauffman's idea (I learned it from Steven Johnson's Where Good Ideas Come From). The printing press, the iPhone, and Git all opened doors nobody planned for. Agents are our printing press, and the doors are flying open. Then I pair it with Nassim Nicholas Taleb's antifragile. No skill is going to make you antifragile. What does is getting close to real problems felt by real people, owning outcomes (skin in the game), building trust, and being intentional about which shiny things you chase. What would you do if you were starting from scratch today? Tell me in the comments. Links WarpBuild (sponsor) Where Good Ideas Come From by Steven Johnson Stuart Kauffman (the adjacent possible) Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb Better with Kent