Career Coaching for Software Engineers

Routine
Beats
Luck.

Start training for the career you actually want.

Book a Free Intro Call

About

Dan Johnson

20 years in tech.
One lesson that matters.

I've been a Netflix engineer, a founding engineer, a director of engineering, and a programming instructor. Through all of it, the best engineers I've worked with didn't just have talent. They had a routine.

My focus on routines started before tech. I attended the country's top ski academy in high school, trained alongside Olympic athletes, and later coached racing myself. Sports taught me what consistent training does for performance. The same applies to careers.

I'm Dan Johnson. I work with engineers who are ready to stop reacting to change and start building real career momentum.

20+
Years in tech across startups and big tech
Netflix
Consumer and Ads Platform Engineering
90+
Engineers coached

The Program

The Search

Most engineers are good at their job but improvise in a job search. The Search changes that.

I interviewed engineers at Netflix for 5 years, trained other interviewers, and designed interview loops. I've been a hiring manager at startups and consulting firms. Using all of my experience we'll create a routine around your career story and goal, focused on conversations, targeted applications, online presence, and interview prep for the AI age.

Borrowing proven approaches from fitness training, the best results come from consistency over time, not one intense or fragmented effort. Running a successful job search works the same way, and starts with a strong foundation.

What's Included

  • 01Build Your Foundation

    Career Fitness, why routine beats motivation, building your target company list, optimizing your resume & LinkedIn, and your parallel goal.

  • 02Gain Momentum

    Defining your weekly scorecard, sourcing opportunities with AI, networking that actually works, and creating content to build visibility.

  • 03Win Interviews

    Going from surviving to winning interviews, technical and behavioral interview strategy, mock interviews, and the best tools and services for interview prep.

  • 04Beyond the Sprint

    Maintaining the routine, learning from rejection, knowing when to change your approach, avoiding burnout, building your support system, and working effectively with recruiters.

How It Works

1:1 coaching throughout your search from exploration to offer (6 month package, extendable if needed)

A 90 minute kickoff to build the foundation and routine.

Weekly 30-minute sessions to work through sourcing, interview prep, negotiation strategy, social media presence, and more, plus open access to my calendar whenever you need extra time.

Slack access to ask questions and get support anytime.

I've spent 20 years on both sides of the table, as an engineer and a manager. I know what separates the ones who move forward from the ones who stay stuck. If you're ready start a search or are feeling stuck, let's talk.

Start with a Free Intro

Effective job searches run on daily routines.
Don't run the marathon alone.

This program turns your search into a focused routine, with a coach in your corner for every application, conversation, and interview along the way.

"Dan got me into a routine where I was applying regularly and interviewing consistently, and helped me negotiate the offers I received. The result was an accepted offer with a 25% increase in salary and 35% increase in total comp." Senior Software Engineer - Booz Allen

Success Stories

I've been working with Dan for tech interview coaching, and it's honestly been one of the most helpful parts of my interview prep process. What stood out most was how practical and personalized the guidance was, not just generic LeetCode advice, but real feedback tailored to my strengths, weaknesses, communication style, and goals. He helped me build a much more structured approach to interviews, from problem solving and behavioral responses to confidence and consistency. The sessions felt collaborative and encouraging, and I always left with actionable improvements instead of vague advice. He's especially good at identifying patterns in how you think and communicate, then helping you refine them in a way that actually translates well in interviews. What I appreciated most is that he genuinely cares about helping engineers move forward in their careers, not just "pass interviews." If you're feeling stuck, overwhelmed, rusty, or just need accountability and direction, I'd definitely recommend working with him.

Frontend Engineer - Spotify

Dan is a great coach! I worked with him to come up with a plan to go from mid-level to a senior level software engineer. He was able to share a wide variety of experiences being both a manager and software engineer, working in big tech and startups. We came up with a plan checking in weekly and I'm now on track to becoming a senior software engineer at my current company.

Software Engineer - GitHub

Dan has been an exceptional mentor throughout my interview preparation. He brings a thoughtful and original approach to each session, tailoring questions that go beyond standard practice problems. When I struggled with certain topics or didn't perform well in mock interviews, Daniel offered clear, constructive feedback without ever being discouraging. His guidance is both insightful and empathetic, making it easier to identify areas for growth and improve with confidence. I highly recommend him to anyone seeking serious, effective mentorship in technical interviewing.

Software Engineer - Apple

Dan's unique strength framework helped me realize I was not emphasizing what was unique about me as a candidate. I believe developing this skill helped me land my most recent role where I got strong positive feedback on being not just a great technical fit, but also a great culture fit.

Senior iOS Engineer

I wasn't hearing back from any of my applications, and updating my resume over and over wasn't helping. Daniel showed me how to change my approach so my search took less time and got more traction. His approach to interview prep was less generic than online platforms and focused on the areas I struggled with in past interviews. Learning how to use AI in interviews was also valuable as I haven't seen that sort of prep offered before, but had an interview that was AI based. Overall I'd do it again if I find myself in a job search in the future.

Senior Backend Engineer - Series B Startup

This is the worst job market of my career. Like most I was just sending applications and ignoring LinkedIn. Working with Dan I changed my approach and became more intentional with where I was spending time. I didn't have time for a job search and yet after a month I was able to spend 20 minutes on it each day and feel the same progress as hours of cold applications. I'd recommend this program to anybody who has limited time, but wants to look for something new.

Senior Software Engineer - Meta