My name is Sultan. Where does it all come from

I started with the simplest approach, my first code in a notepad. Then Gedit, Vim, Notepad++, all on the good old Denwer and OpenServer. IDE came much later, Docker even later. It wasn't a plan, I was just catching up with the industry, learning what others were already working on. Then job after job. Karaganda, Astana, Almaty. Public sector, edtech, e-commerce, product teams, startups. At the start, you learn to write code that works. And at this level, you can get stuck. Because externally everything seems fine: tasks are completed, money is paid. But the market evaluates something else. Even at the junior level, you are expected to understand the system, why you make decisions, what will happen to the code in six months, how it will scale. This is where most people start to get lost, I went through this myself.

It started when I found myself in an environment where coding is just part of the job. Then Astana, a faster pace, higher demands, fierce competition. I began working with juniors and interns. And at some point, it became obvious: "if you can't explain your solution, you don't control it." The guys I worked with grew and received offers. Then I moved on to a startup to build systems from scratch. Now I work at 4sell.ai on architectural solutions: how to divide the system, where the boundaries are, how it will perform under load. And here everything becomes as simple as possible: the difference between "I write code" and "I am needed by a strong team" is thinking.

My name is Sultan. I am a software architect. After several years of working with juniors, it became clear: there is no systematic training for the real market of Kazakhstan. That's why I launched Tyfoon.kz. This is not a "watched a video and became a developer" format. It's 6-12 months of working directly with me: structured materials that are updated along with the market; regular one-to-one meetings; analysis of your code, solutions, and mistakes. As close as possible to working in a strong team. Only without the risk of being kicked out if you make a mistake.

PHP I chose consciously because it is the most rational entry point. In Kazakhstan with PHP: more entry-level job openings; lower competition compared to trendy stacks; faster path to the first offer. While many go into Go or Python without a foundation and struggle for months, with PHP you can quickly fill in the gaps and get a job. Market-wise: junior ~200–300 thousand tenge, middle ~500–700+ thousand. This is the start. If you understand backend and architecture, switching to any other language is not a problem. I have done it myself. The language changes, but thinking remains.

Nowadays, many people start writing code using ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini and think that it's enough. In practice, without a foundation, this leads to degradation. I offer a different approach - AI as an enhancement tool. You learn to understand what is generated, check the code, and use AI for acceleration, not as a replacement for thinking.

This blog is about how developers who are hired into strong teams think. Only what truly impacts growth. If you want to understand your level, visit https://tyfoon.kz, and submit an application. There is free access available. Or contact me directly, and we will personally review your case.