[danwee]

I usually don't like the trainings companies provide to engineers to make them grow. The trainings are focused 100% on the tools the company is using (makes sense), but I may not want to learn the hype tools my company is using at the moment, but instead focus on more long-term useful knowledge. For instance:

- my company is using DataDog and they offer us training on that. Well I don't care much about DataDog; I care more about how metrics work and what's behind the curtains (e.g., time-series dbs). Chances are that DataDog will be gone soon or, most probably, it won't be used when I switch companies. So, I prefer to focus on non-hype stuff

- same for specific frameworks we use at work. In one of my past companies we were using Laravel. They offered us training on Laravel... but I just couldn't care less. I don't use Laravel anymore (not even PHP). I would have preferred trainings on more agnostic stuff like architecture/design/algorithms

And like this, tons of similar examples. So, the way I become a better engineer is by studying by myself mostly during working hours but also a bit during my own free time. I read "the classics" (i.e., books every software engineer should read), I keep myself updated with releveant technologies and work on personal projects to solidify my knowledge. It's a win-win for both myself and my current company (even if my company doesn't realize).

[OJFord]

I agree; I think we can use others but we're 'recommended' to use Udemy, which seems to me like a cross between the worst of Youtube scream faces et al. and some kind of visa/language/entrance exam cram school. And yes, it's all really specific Here's how to point and click in the AWS (or whatever) console sort of stuff.