Automate boring tasks
If you find yourself doing the same manual steps over and over - building, testing, deploying, or data manipulation - it’s time to automate. Automation isn’t just about convenience, it’s about reducing human error and freeing your brain for real problem solving. Every time you make a repetitive change, ask yourself: can this be scripted, parameterized, or moved into a tool?
In Java, practical automation often means writing small utilities, scripts or leveraging frameworks and build tools like Maven or Gradle. For example, if you constantly transform input files to a domain object, wrap that logic in a reusable method or script:
public class FileProcessor {
public void processFiles(Path directory) throws IOException {
try (Stream<Path> files = Files.list(directory)) {
files.filter(Files::isRegularFile)
.forEach(this::processFile);
}
}
private void processFile(Path file) {
// handle parsing and transformation
System.out.println("Processed " + file.getFileName());
}
}Pair this with a scheduled job, command line interface or CI/CD pipeline and suddenly tasks that took hours happen in seconds. Automation also includes tests. Writing a unit or integration test to verify behavior automatically is far better than manually clicking through scenarios.
The key mindset: invest a little time now to save a lot later. If a change is worth doing manually more than twice, it deserves automation. Experienced engineers make this part of their workflow: before committing, they ask, “Is there a way to make this repeatable, reliable, and automatic?” If yes, automate it. You’ll produce safer, faster, and more maintainable code while keeping your sanity intact.