I feel like my technical skills like system design have not progressed. I also lack the math background to understand the AI models deeper than input/outputs. And lastly, my full-stack programming skills are great for creating fast MVP's. But I am not perceived as creating high-quality, readable, maintainable code.
I'm seeking to understand how other people navigate the path of picking new skills to learn. Any resources or advice would definitely be appreciated!
I think that is an essential skill. I'm pointing this out because it will become relevant in the next sentence.
> I feel like my technical skills like system design have not progressed
System architecture is about mediating between different levels of abstraction: translating business requirements into technical requirements and getting business stakeholders to talk to technical stakeholders.
An architect's personal competencies matter less than what they can motivate others to accomplish. Can you get business to formulate (and prioritise) the correct requirements, formulate processes properly, understand implementation limitations and manage risks? Can you motivate developers to integrate their workflow into architecture governance, align work according to business priorities, embed their output into the organisation's operational framework and cooperate with you?
Peering with architects will help if you have access to some, otherwise reading up on IT architecture eg [1] or [2].