Am i too old to become good at coding/programming?

Hello guys new here, while i already know a little bit of html and css i am new too this stuff, just made a free account and i am starting to learn html, css, javascript here on this website as i heard lots of good things about it.
I recently lost my job and felt like i wasted many years doing what i was not enjoying at all. So my plan right now is try to get good at something i enjoy doing which is programming. But i cant stop overthinking that at 26 years old i am maybe too old to become good at it ? Is there anyone here that started programming later in life and became successful at it ? Also i was wondering if anyone has any recommendations of any good websites or material where i could start learning Python too ?

I have seen posts here from 30 and 40+ year olds asking the same question … and I am 54 myself, so not too old :smile: go for it!

Of course I can only find one link now.

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No.

You are not too old.

As for Python resources…why Python? I love Python, but if you are already starting with HTML, CSS and JavaScript, I’d nail those down before picking up a fourth thing. Pretty much anything you wanna do in Python in the short term, you can do in JavaScript.

That said: The Ultimate List of Python Programming Resources for Learning to Code

I really liked Program Arcade Games With Python And Pygame when I was getting started with Python :slight_smile:

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The human brain makes a person.
If Your brain works well (no matter the person’s age) there is no difference between people.
Especially when You work remotely
(no one can find out Your real age if You don’t want it Yourself ).
Maybe Free Code Camp will be too hard for You as a start point
(I don’t know your knowledge and skills levels ).
I recommend You this:


ABSOLUTELY FREE AND THEY GIVE ELECTRONIC CERTIFICATES.
There are Web-based, Android and iOS versions of this resource.
Feel free to ask me anytime. I suppose that I know the way.

I’m hard pressed to come up with many things 26 is too old for, besides playing in the ball pit at mcdonalds. One could speculate 26 is a great time to learn anything, since supposedly the human brain isn’t even fully formed until 25. Now you’ll be working with the full deck, in a manner of speaking.

If you live in the US, you might wanna check out the Udacity grow with Google scholarships, applications end in a few days. Basically you sign up and take the beginner front end track or beginner android track and based on performance in a free course and community involvement you might get selected to move on to a Udacity 6 month nanodegree program for free.

Good Luck!
I’m 28 and just started learning this year by the way.

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For 199$ per one month and 1200$ per six months when there are lots of free resources and Free Code Camp?

right, that would be the course that 1500 people get for free based on their application and evaluation for previously mentioned scholarship. (…I’m uncomfortable calling it a scholarship but thats what Udacity and Google are calling it)

to be clear I’m not affiliated in any way, I never advocated anyone pay anything, and I would never suggest taking such an expensive course to learn front end development, if you actually had to pay for it.

there are 4 tracks in this promotion, each with a phase 1 free course. If you are chosen, you move on to the corresponding phase 2 nanodegree program. It’s explained in further detail in the link I posted earlier. I read about it from the message on chrome’s default new tab page today. which lead here,


and from there lead to the link I posted earlier.

Hope that clears things up

As a society, we should be focusing on this rather than fetishizing youth. The younger we start learning something, the better off we are, but adulthood can also be a great time to tackle really difficult problems. The prefrontal cortex is more developed, and a wealth of prior knowledge means more material to make connections with difficult topics. Not two decades ago, the belief was that the adult brain lacked plasticity (the ability to change and form new neural pathways), which justified the popular adage that “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”. This was a bad leap to make even then, but new research shows that even adult brains are capable of create new neurons and making connections. That said, no one is even sure that it’s necessary for brains to create new cells in order to learn, and there’s absolutely no evidence that adults brains can’t strengthen or form new connections with the neurons we already have, so the point of brain formation may be entirely moot. The point is, age is just a number and “Am I too old?” is a nonsense question. There are more important considerations to make:

  • Are you in an environment that’s conducive to your learning?
  • Do you enjoy the challenge of learning new skills?
  • Do you want to be a programmer?
  • Do you have any significant brain injuries or illness?

@Leox9, and anyone else who’s wondering, there are a few ways you can give yourself the best opportunity to learn with the brain you have.

  1. Exercise. Regular, vigorous aerobic exercise has been observed to stimulate neurogenesis in adults. This also helps keep you healthy, reduces stress, and prevents the repetitive stress injury that can accompany long bouts at the computer.
  2. Get enough sleep. This is crucial to memory formation.
  3. Reduce stressors in your life. Be honest with yourself about what stresses you out. This could be a person, or group of people, who you need to excise from your life (I’ve done this myself and it helped me out a lot), or it could be a simple as cleaning your living area. For a lot of us, reducing stress means taking a deep breath and being understanding with ourselves when we’re not learning as quickly as we think we should. Cortisol is a hormone that results from a stressed brain and one of its many undesirable side effects is impaired memory formation.
  4. Depressed? Get help. Clinical depression is a disease. It doesn’t mean you’ve done something wrong, it means your thinking meat doesn’t make enough mood juice. Professionals can help with that. Exercise, reducing stressors, and even your diet can help control the symptoms as well. This is important because a depressed brain doesn’t learn as well. I don’t have any data on this, but I’d guess that depression is a much bigger detriment to learning than age ever could be.
  5. Practice regularly. 15-30 minutes every day is better than 8 hours on the weekends.
  6. Practice smart. Use mnemonics when learning. It’s so cheesy, but it works. Embrace the kitsch.

I understand and sympathize with everyone who’s worried they may be too old, but I wish this thought would never cross our minds. For many people, the concern is more about ageism in the industry rather than their own brains. I can’t be as reassuring about the job experience, but I can say that your success at learning how to program does not depend on how long you’ve been alive.

No, 26 is not too old, nor is 36, 46, 56, or 96.

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ouch

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26?!? Dude…the only thing you’re too old for is Boy Scouts. :laughing:

As far as the job market goes, there’s going to a be a lot of demand at least through 2020. Companies are whining about a lack of qualified candidates (which they are largely responsible for, in conjunction with politicians relaxing H1-B Visa requirements, but that’s a lengthy diatribe for another time). Check this article, and if you enjoy coding and programming then don’t let anything stop you from putting in the time to learn and master it.

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26 too old? You have to be kidding me.

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LOL, I sure hope not! I am 58 and I have never enjoyed doing anything as much as I like learning to code!
My only wish is that I would have had the chance earlier in life(known of this resource or others). Life brings you to things at the right time, I truly believe this. I am having more fun with this challenge and I feel once I learn the basics there will be no stopping me! My answer is you are only as old as you feel. Catch up, you are wasting time thinking about the wrong things! Do enjoy and let me know if you need any help as I am only about one month into it but moving fast with a goal of 6 months tops!

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Last week I saw a video in youtube… it was philosophy class at the USP (Brazil)… The teacher was Clovis de Barros Filho and he said something that give me a burst!

"My brain have a normal size, I have an normal number of neurons, my mother fed me during my childhood. So, if someone tell me that something is to hard to me, that I can’t understand it… I’m get pissed off! It’s a challange, the first thing I will do once I arrive at my home is try to do it!

You know… I only need to understand! The guy who create it, did it from nothing!!!
An example… Pythagorean theorem, Pythagoras lived between 569–475 BC and proved the triangle theorem… you only need to apply the formula!!!

As my father said: backward, neither to get impulse!!!"

I mean, you are able to do everything any other can do! You can struggle with it… but “YES, YOU CAN!”!!! ^^

Lol 26 old? Hahaha it’s ok kid you be alright.

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That’s what I was thinking when I read that…LOL

No one is ever too old to learn something new, despite all of the ‘ageism’ going on in the tech world (geared primarily toward folks over 40, possibly even as young as 30-35).

Honestly it’s sad that someone who is 26 wonders whether they are too old to learn something new, it says quite a lot about what the business culture (that ageism thing again) is doing to the learners out there, no matter their age.

The clothes are old.

Things you might be too old to learn and get really good at now:

  • ballet
  • gymnastics

Things that are easier to master when you’re a child (but you can still master them now; it just takes more effort):

  • spoken languages (English, Spanish, Chinese, etc.)
  • reading

Nothing else. Programming requires reasoning and problem solving. Both of these skills improve with age.

I am 41 year old and I start learning software developing ) :grinning:

Is 26 too old? I hope not! I am 75, 76 next month.

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Your answer is valid even today Is it still right to start at 42?