Hello! OK, so I’m new here. So this week I was told to join a online developer community and I have a question for you all. What advice do you have for a rookie like me who’s just diving into the world of programming. Looking forward to your replies.
1 Like
Hello!
Be humble. Be ready to make mistakes. Frustration is your enemy, not your fuel, be ready to take rests.
Don’t feel ashamed of asking what you don’t know. Steer clear of emotionally abusive people even if they know an awful lot more than you, you are bound to find people with a better attitude.
Stay for as long as you feel comfortable. Other people will always have their own answers to a certain problem, try to understand how each one works and be ready to weigh the pros and cons. Remember that just because you are learning that doesn’t discredit your solutions, what’s important is improving and gaining a deeper knowledge of how things work.
Whenever tackling a new problem or aspect of programming don’t forget to search online and read whatever help is available! I’ve found that a playful attitude and “what-if” always helped me to understand how my code works better. If you meet someone learning like you they might be inclined to discuss and share the journey.
4 Likes
I completely agree with @Undigon’s answer and I would like to add my personal experience: try to learn as much as you can from more experienced people and avoid proprietary software (I am stuck right now with IBM products and I want to go back to Open source), always try to learn Open Source tools or languages.
2 Likes
Software built by private companies such as IBM, Oracle etc … and which you have to pay in order to use them commercially. For example I currently work with a product called Datapower from IBM which uses a Javascript-like language called Gatewayscript. This language is based on ES6 but it is exclusively used and interpreted by Datapower. Dont get me wrong probably someone can argue that work with proprietary software is better but from my personal experience I prefer Open source for two reasons: Community and Freedom to use it.
If you don’t already have any, or if you do, brainstorm and write down some goals you have. What do you really want to achieve. Setting goals will allow you to push through challenges and roadblocks. Do you just want a job or do you want to build something? Set some goals and expectations of yourself.
Focus on solving problems on your own; what I mean is don’t seek the easy route just because it works. Always be willing to learn and grow and challenge yourself, but settling on some tried practices is a good idea as well. No need to re-think everything in circles.
1 Like
This is some good advice, I’m a student by the way. 
Accept that this is HARD. You will struggle. You will get frustrated. You will get angry at yourself, your computer, Free Code Camp, and people who are trying to help you. For as long as you choose to do this you will repeat the experience of cruising along happily and then suddenly hitting a brick wall. With time those get further apart and, more importantly, you get better at climbing over walls.
2 Likes
Don’t half ass it. If you’re going to learn to code put as much time into it as you possibly can.
1 Like