More than a decade ago, I started the earliest version of this site, as nothing more than a scrappy personal blog. It changed names a few times, but the spirit stayed the same: share what I learn, as I learn it. Over the years that became tutorials and books—mostly around Ruby on Rails—aimed at helping other developers level up.
Then life happened. Work got intense, the site stayed quiet, and a lot changed. Here’s what I’ve been up to, what’s coming back, and where Devmystify is headed next.
What I’ve been up to in the past decade
2016-2017
I lived the digital-nomad life—traveling around SEA and Europe as I tackled Upwork gigs. It taught me how to sell my skills, manage clients, and ship value quickly. I reached Top Rated and made a few essential connections.
2017-2020
Something funny happened during the summer of 2017: one of my friends posted something about Ethereum. I had just begun getting back into crypto and the blockchain world, so it piqued my interest and I got in touch with him. That friend was the CTO of Omise, a payment processing company in Thailand, and they were creating OmiseGO, a new company focused on blockchain and its uses in the payment world.
A couple of weeks later, I was officially hired and joined as a Team Lead. With the blockchain bubble in full swing, this was too good of an opportunity to pass up, and I don’t regret it at all!
Over the following years, I built a team of great engineers. We created an open-source blockchain-connected eWallet using Elixir. Three wild years. It was exhilarating, exhausting, and it pulled my focus away from this site.
I was promoted to Director of Engineering, which was great, as our engineering team was around 25 people at the time. But good things don’t last.
The company was sold and nearly everyone was let go.
2020 - 2024
I landed at a small web agency in Bangkok and hustled to bring in clients and projects to help the team succeed.
Meanwhile in life
I got married and became a dad to a little boy. Busy is an understatement.
2024 - 2025
After that, I took what I’d learned and started a company with my partner, working with clients in the U.S. from Phuket. We’re growing carefully, but also diversifying. Consulting pays the bills, but I want to build lasting value: books and courses that distill 15 years of software engineering and technical leadership—and finally some SaaS products I’ve been itching to launch. I’m also leaning into content creation, especially YouTube, to demystify how developers can learn better and earn more.
Why Freelancing Still Matters
Even as I diversify into products and teaching, freelancing is still at the core. Right now, selling software services is our company’s primary source of revenue.
Setting your own schedule and working from anywhere (hello from Phuket 👋) is a freedom many developers want. Sure, freelancing has its own challenges, but it turns you into a business. You set your hours, choose your clients, and earn what you’re worth. That creates room to reinvest into side projects and bigger ventures.
About the Books: Modular Rails & Master Ruby Web APIs
Some of you may be wondering: Where did the books go? I made both free to read online for a long time, but I couldn’t keep them current—they were stuck around Rails 5. Outdated books help no one.
So I took them down… to rewrite and re-release them properly with my team. They’re coming back fully refreshed for modern Rails.
Rails, AI, and the Future of Developer Work
Interesting twist: after years of mostly doing JavaScript, I’m now back in the trenches working on a 15-year-old Rails monolith. It gave me some white hairs, but it also made me realize that Rails isn’t dead. Far from it, apparently. Maybe in a few decades, the Rails Cowboys will be a thing (see Cobol Cowboys, a team who maintain COBOL applications, a language created in 1959).
That said, Devmystify won’t be Rails-only. React is everywhere, and I use a lot of Next.js these days (heck, this website was written with Next.js!).
And of course, I have to mention AI, as it is changing how we work. My focus is practical: how to use AI to ship faster, communicate better, and be more productive, without chasing every shiny demo.
No vibe coding allowed though.
What I’m working on now (and Next)
- 📚 Book relaunches – Modular Rails and Master Ruby Web APIs, fully updated (Rails 7 & 8).
- 🎓 A complete course on freelancing
- 🎥 The Devmystify YouTube channel – real talk about developer income streams: freelancing, consulting, products, content, and how to pick what fits you.
- 🛠️ SaaS projects – long-standing ideas I can now staff and execute.
- 🌱 And plenty more as the community grows.
What Devmystify Stands For
Devmystify’s mission is simple: help developers learn smarter and earn more, by demystifying the roadblocks holding you back. That means practical tutorials, honest career advice, and real business case studies. If you’re a developer who wants more control over your time, income, and career direction, you’re in the right place.
If this resonates with you, you should join the newsletter — I’ll share updates, practical dev tips, and behind-the-scenes lessons you won’t find anywhere else.
Finally, if you’ve been here since the early blog days, thank you. If you’re new, welcome. I’m excited to ship useful things again and to build this next chapter with you.