[tutufan]

The horrible truth is that regularly writing crap code that bursts into flames and then making flashy, heroic efforts to put those fires out is the fast track to the top. Taking the time to produce quality artifacts feels really good, but it is a rare company indeed that can recognize the value in this.

I'll echo other commenters and say that if you have this stink on you and/or you're company isn't appreciating your work, it's probably time to move on (esp after four years). You can't fix companies--all you can do is find a better match.

As for myself, I'm a slow engineer. In my decades, if anything I've gotten somewhat slower. At the same time, my quality has risen dramatically. I write bugs rarely enough these days that I've gotten quite rusty on debuggers; usually a few judicious print statements (at most) will point out the problem.

The key is that I design and write code that has a "shallow" bug surface. When bugs happen, they're almost never those deep-dive kind that lead to a week-long bug hunts.

Don't sweat it too much. Keep sharpening your axe, and if you go six to twelve months without feeling your work is appreciated, run.