7 Warning Signs You’re an Undervalued Engineer

And Why It’s Not Just You — It’s the System

Have you ever worked twice as hard only to feel like your efforts vanish into thin air?

You’re not imagining things. According to Dr. PK, nearly 60% of engineers feel undervalued in their current roles — even when they meet or exceed expectations.

In this episode of Molo Molo African Tech Stories, Dr. PK breaks down the seven subtle signs that you might be quietly overperforming while being overlooked.

Below is a breakdown of those signs — and why recognizing them is the first step toward reclaiming your worth.

Sign 1: You Solve Complex Problems… But No One Notices

You debug legacy systems. You optimize workflows. You ship clean, functioning code — yet your name never shows up in the credits. When recognition is scarce and your wins are invisible, it’s not just demoralizing. It’s a red flag.

Sign 2: You Speak Up… and It Feels Like Silence

You contribute ideas in meetings, only to have them ignored or repeated later by someone else who gets the credit. Being routinely overlooked in conversations chips away at your confidence, even if your insights are solid.

Sign 3: Blank Stares Meet Brilliant Ideas

You know your stuff — degrees, experience, technical mastery. But when you explain your ideas to non-technical stakeholders, you get polite nods, confused looks, or worse — someone “translating” your idea and taking over.

Sign 4: Others Rise While You Stay Stuck

You mentor junior engineers, lead projects, and deliver results. But the promotions go to louder, more visible coworkers. It’s not always about competence — it’s often about perception.

Sign 5: You Stay Quiet Because You Doubt Yourself

Imposter syndrome whispers that your ideas don’t matter — or that they’re “above your pay grade.” Eventually, you start filtering yourself before others do it for you.

Sign 6: Your Documentation Disappears into a Void

You write 20-page reports. You explain dependencies. You document simulations. And still, you get no responses, no feedback, and no action. It’s not you — it’s the system not designed to hear you.

Sign 7: You’ve Tried Everything… and Burned Out

You’ve spoken louder, written clearer, coded faster, stayed later. You’ve tried to bridge every gap. But all that effort without support? That leads to burnout, not breakthrough.

So… What Now?

If even one of these signs hit home, Dr. PK urges you to reflect deeply. You’re not broken. You’re misaligned — and that’s something that can be fixed.

To help engineers articulate their value more clearly, Dr. PK introduces the Technical Proficiency Checklist — a tool designed to help you document your contributions in ways that resonate with both engineers and decision-makers.

Because here’s the truth:

Final Takeaway:

Start telling your story more often, be visible, not just capable.Don’t shrink yourself to fit dysfunctional systems.