So I´m 4 months and a half in since I started to learn programming, with a goal of from that time to a year/or a year and a couple months, be able to know how to build a full real app, and also have enough skill to apply to junior developer jobs.
I calculated I would do about 4-5 hours a day, taking some days off and vacations etc…
So far until march/mid march I was more or less being loyal to the schedule, but since several weeks ago I started to build projects (Front End Developer certification) I feel “burn out”.
The thing that worries me, and why I open the this thread, is because I don´t think is because I´m tired but rather that now is not as easy as the previous months, where all was guided, step after step, challenge after challenge, algorithm after algorithm.
Now I put myself in front of a white canvas of the editor and I “burn out” in maximum 2 hours. Still this even this 2 hours are pretty frustrating but I keep on going…
I´m not sure if cutting my dedication time in half I am going to be able to make it to next year… I mean its not that I am in that of a hurry, but, now that things aren´t so easy, I wonder if the dev job is really like this.
Think of it like exercising. 2 hours a day is better than 5 hours once a week. 2 hours a day for several months is better than 4 hours a day for a couple weeks before burnout.
Yeah I think is better than force me to do 4-5 hours if those addictional hours im going to be anxious and mega-tired that i will end up doing only dumb tutorials
I can totally relate to this. I am an out of college graduate who started coding as a later to be hobby and interest of mine in my 20’s. I think what you are going through is natural and normal. I have been experiencing this with job searching mostly in the tech field to look for a temporary job and decided to take a mental health break to refind my passion for programming and my interests and work on learning and side projects as goals I made.
What I would remind is to make sure you take small breaks after at least an hour or 45 mins of working (15 mins min to walk around, take your mind off using your brains problem solving skills). Its super hard for me to track time so i set a timer on my sports gshock watch. anything to track time.
Also make sure to take care of yourself. I have had really bad burnouts that made it hard to talk to people. I feel your pain.
TLDR:
It is natural for this to happen to anyone. Self care and happiness is important. With a dev job you will be working with other people. I would say a dev job depends on the deadline or factors in your position.
Listen to yourself and don’t push too hard when frustrated.
There is a fine line between pushing through a challenge, and forcing something that isn’t working. Take a break from that code and work something else for a while.
I work FCC stuff while “at work” and my more pleasurable projects when I’m off. I know that not everyone can code from their non coding job… but stagger your days between different projects to help reduce frustration.
If you’re so stuck that you’re frustrated, ask for help! The folks here are usually super nice and helpful.
Can I also ask how I can keep motivated, its been over a month since I started to learn programming and sometimes I feel stuck because I just keep on learning from youtube tutorials and I am just alone studying, maybe I kinna need a support… i just wonder whether I’ve really absorbed everything, any advice and thoughts??
thanks and hope for your support
Hey @nikki97 i would suggest to build more projects and see if you can put the stuff you learned to good use. Also, don’t feel lonely this forum is full of people studying along just like you.
Remember that learning to code is a marathon, not a sprint, so the only thing that matters the most is to put one feet in front of the other every day,and two hours of study are more than enough, you may want to avoid burnout at all costs so if those are the amounts of hours you feel like putting in right now don’t worry, just listen to your mind and don’t overdo yourself, you’ll be a great programmer regardless of the amounts of studying hours you do as long as you’re consistent
Yeah, and definetely taking a break this week off coding. Been working on FCC stuff and similar daily since for about 5 months, I think I have to take a break or else I won´t be able to get unstuck.
Yes, of course! Recruiters love to see projects you’ve developed on your own, because it shows them thay you are able to make a project from start to finish! Another great idea is to contribute to open source projects or volunteering for a charity or a church group and help them build a website!
I feel your pain Nikki. When you first start out its tough and the real challenge is staying consistent. sometimes we need the support from people in person. I would suggest just keep reaching out especially on the forum.
I agree with Horv, try to build more projects that fancy your interest and once you get the more advanced concepts down, you can put the stuff you learned to good use. For example, I am trying to work on my making more bigger projects or frameworks at my own pace. it never hurts to review programming concepts in a video and take a little notes for you to refer to. Whatever works for you should be the path to take.
Sometimes you need a break and to try to write a plan and break it down into smaller tasks. I eventually met some people who understood programming a little bit and one of them was a math major who learned Python and saw my book on python.
Hi, maybe you are bored in 2h because you are just doing exercises without knowing exacly for what real life projects you could apply it.
I just recommend you start your project and read the documentation when you get minimum coding knowledge (variables +array + object manipulation)
You can get inspired by my repo: https://github.com/NielsDom/ecommerce-react
We should try to do our best, but not exhaust ourselves to death 
Good luck!