When you're learning to code, your focus is entirely on the technical stuff. You worry about clean code, component reusability, state management, and picking the coolest looking UI libraries. You live in a perfect bubble where the user always inputs the right data and the requirements never change.
Then, you get your first real-world freelance client.
And suddenly, that perfect bubble bursts.
A while ago, I took on a project to build a travel agency and rental website for Srikandi Trans Purwokerto and Sandita Rent Car. Up until that point, I had been working on structured school applications like an LMS. But stepping into the SME (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises) sector taught me that in the real world, coding is only half the battle.
Here is what building production websites for real businesses taught me about what it actually means to be a software engineer.
