Monday to Friday, I learn the rules. On the weekend, I build the infrastructure.

I am currently in the middle of a retraining program (Umschulung) to become a System Integration Specialist. The syllabus is important. It builds the necessary foundation in networking, OS, and general IT logic. I take it seriously, and my current 95% grade average reflects that discipline.

But let’s be honest:
Cloud technology moves faster than any government-approved curriculum can be updated.

If I only relied on what I learn in the classroom, I would graduate in 2027 with knowledge from 2023. In the cloud era, that is a lifetime.

That is why my "real" work often starts on Friday evening.

The Weekend Shift

While the weekdays are for absorbing theory and passing exams, the weekend is reserved for the AWS console. This is where I transition from "Student" to "Builder".

Here is my agenda for this weekend and why these specific topics matter:

1. Preparing for the AWS BeSA Program

I recently registered for the "Become a Solutions Architect" (BeSA) program starting on Feb 21st. I am not just joining to listen
I am preparing for the Agentic AI track. I want to understand how AI agents can autonomously execute complex workflows on AWS. To get the most out of the mentorship, I need to bring a solid baseline of knowledge to the table. I am using the weekend to brush up on the prerequisites so I can ask better questions when the sessions start.

2. Deep Dive into IAM Policies

It is easy to get something working by attaching an "Administrator Access" policy. It works, but it is lazy engineering. This weekend, I am forcing myself to write custom JSON policies.

The Goal: Least Privilege.

The Challenge:
Figuring out exactly which s3:PutObject or dynamodb:Query permission is missing without breaking the app. It is tedious work, but "Allow *" is not a strategy—it is a security risk waiting to happen.

3. Breaking Things (Safely)

The beauty of a personal sandbox environment is the freedom to fail.
I intentionally try configurations that I am unsure about. What happens if I misconfigure the VPC peering?
What happens if the Lambda timeout is too short? I would rather crash my function here on a Sunday night than in a client's production environment on a Monday morning.

Conclusion

There is a difference between passing a test and understanding a system.

Certificates get you the interview. Curiosity and being able to talk about the projects you built in your free time,is what gets you the job.

So, while I value my education, I know that my career is being built right now, one commit at a time, long after the school bell rings.

What are you building this weekend?

Why My Real Work Starts on Friday Evening: From Classroom Theory to AWS Sandbox

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Dnyaneshwar Shekade