How to Share Your Software Engineering Insights, Get Noticed and Get Paid 📣

Use these 3 simple steps to attract opportunities and stand out in the tech world.

Jan 02, 2025

I made my comeback to Substack in August last year. Five months later, I’m earning $1000/month from my online writing. If you want to build your personal brand and start earning from your writing in 2025, let’s do it together. 🚀

The world rewards those who stand out.

As a software engineer, you’ve got unique skills and experiences that others can learn from.

But if no one knows about them, you’re missing out on career-defining opportunities.

Here’s how you can start building an online personal brand with just LinkedIn and Substack.

1. LinkedIn + Substack Notes for Short-form Content

LinkedIn is the best platform for software engineers to get noticed.

It’s where recruiters, hiring managers, and other engineers hang out.

Start by sharing bite-sized, value-packed posts:

Career insights: Share lessons from your journey. For example, "3 things I learned from failing my first coding interview."
Technical tips: Break down concepts like "Why you should always write tests" or "A simple explanation of REST APIs."
Engaging questions: Spark conversations with posts like "What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve received as a developer?"

Substack Notes complements this by letting you share quick, Twitter-style updates directly with your audience.

Use it to:

Post bite-sized career tips.
Share highlights from your main Substack newsletter.
Redirect readers to your LinkedIn profile or newsletter sign-up.

Consistency builds visibility.

You can start by writing one LinkedIn post and one Substack Note per week.

This is what I did starting on the 1st of August last year and I have been able to go from that to a routine that allows me to write:

1 LinkedIn Post per day on average.
2-3 Substack Notes per day on average.

And it doesn’t take me more than 10 minutes per day.

2. Substack Newsletter for Long-form Content

A newsletter is your long-term relationship builder.

It’s where you can go deeper on topics and establish trust with your audience.

Your Substack newsletter can include:

Deep dives: Share how you solved a tough coding problem or your process for preparing for interviews.
Curated content: Highlight valuable articles, tools, or frameworks engineers should know about.
Personal stories: Talk about challenges you’ve faced—and how you overcame them.

The key? Provide actionable value in every issue.

Readers should finish your newsletter thinking, “That was worth my time.”

If you want to start today, you can outline 3-5 topics you’re passionate about (e.g., algorithms, remote work, AI tools) and start drafting your first newsletter issue.

3. Monetizing Your Brand

Once you’ve built trust with your audience, you can explore monetization options.

These are the only ones I’ve tried:

Paid Subscriptions: Offer exclusive content—like advanced tutorials, career guides, or Q&A sessions.
Digital Products: Create and sell e-books, templates, or video courses. For example, "A Developer’s Guide to System Design."
1-to-1 Coaching: Help others solve specific problems, like passing technical interviews or leveling up their coding skills.

Start small.

Test one monetization method and iterate based on feedback.

Pro Tip: Coaching is the best bang for the buck of these options—as long as you can keep it manageable and scalable.

Let’s Make It Happen

Your expertise is valuable—don’t let it stay hidden.

Start building your personal brand today.

I’ve been doing it consistently for the past 5 months, and it has been paying off.

The best part?

I haven’t sacrificed any of the other activities I do regularly:

I work my 9-to-5 job normally.
I work out five times a week.
I spend quality time with my family and friends.

The secret is to find your rhythm and make the task sustainable in the long run.

Stay consistent!

—Alberto

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