Hi, tech bro/sis, I guess you would have much of an idea of what this is about, but anyway I'm still reminding you of how we get stronger in this chunk of words that do system magic business we are all in.
So lately I noticed I haven't been doing really well with codes, even in my area of strength which is Java, it became frustrating that for every single thing I want to do, I have to refer to an online resource or look through open source codes to pick out my chunk and literally I did mostly copy and paste. As much as it's not a bad idea to do this while coding, have 80% of your code copied doesn't show progress so, I took some time to read up a few words on how to get better with coding and this is me sharing a little bit of what I learned.
How do you get better with coding?
1. You have to love coding:
I've seen lots of guys and it has happened to me personally, that when we do things we don't love, we get tired of doing them and along the line just drop them completely. Worst case scenario if it's a job we are stuck with because we need the salary to get by, we just stay frustrated most of the time, and sometimes could lead to depression.
So the first step of being a programmer is loving to code. Coding requires consistency and a proactive approach, but because you actually do not love it, you lose interest and you're back to the beginning.
2. Focus on a Stack/Language
A stack is a bundle of components for software comprising Operating systems, web servers, API, and programming framework. We can't go much into the details of what a stack is or what it really entails and how to pick one for now, but once you have one good for you and if you don't yet you can try finding out which you belong to and focus on learning more about it.
If you have a language you work with already then keep focusing on it, you may check up on other languages or stacks every once in a while to stay updated but your main focus should be on your chosen language or stack.
3. Make Quality code delivery a center of attraction
Study templates, pick up open source projects, look through them, check out the coding patterns they applied, read books, make sure that in all you do, someone else can always pick your code up and make meaning out of it. Your code delivery has to be of great quality and has to make meaning for someone else to be able to reuse them in your absence. Don't just write and write and it all looks like magic.
4. Read books
I am very guilty of not reading books, but recently I found out reading books helps programmers develop faster as you can learn methods and systems used by the writers and also avoid the mistakes they made in your own career. There's a lot of books out there that can help, I can mention a few I'm looking out for myself and we can get better together.
You can check out the blog post in the link for a list of the Top 10 Books you can look out for as a beginner. https://blog.devmountain.com/7-highly-recommended-programming-books/
5. Don't get too high on confidence
Ideally don't get too high on anything in life, especially alcohol and drugs. "Na overconfidence makes driver Overspeed go get accident wey kill am" In plain English, this means too much of confidence was what allowed the driver Overspeed to death.
Yes, you have the skills and you deliver good code, still don't get too high on your horse not to see that you could be better and are probably doing a few things the wrong way. Stay open-minded and learn.
That brings us to the end of this knowledge share lol, remember to love coding always because that is what will keep you up and going even when it gets tough. Thanks for joining me and enjoy your day.
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