How much time do you spend coding each day?
What are your other time commitments (work, children, etc)?
Are you studying coding in hopes of getting a job in the field?
I’m currently working a full time job, coding an hour each day with few other commitments. I do hope to eventually land a job in the field. I suppose I’m curious because I hear these stories of people working these madman schedules where they work full time and then code for like 30-40 hours per week and I don’t understand how they have the energy to do this. Don’t get me wrong, I like coding, but working basically 2 full time jobs at once would probably burn me out. How close to the norm is this? Just curious what everyone else’s coding routine is.
About 20+ years ago, I would work 40hrs/week, come home at night and maybe study from 8/9pm to 12midnight/1am… then wake up at 6am, go to work again… did that for about 2 years.
Kind of, but not exactly… I was learning web design (html, photoshop, etc) so I can do web design as a side business and make some extra income.
After 2 years, we were able to buy our own house and move out of the apartment. A few months after, I finally quit my day job to work full-time in my own web design/hosting business because I’m making significantly far more for less hours. That way 18yrs ago, and I’m currently still doing this, working from home all this time.
I’m counting the 2 yrs from when I started my web design biz and also learning at the same time. But I was already dabbling in FrontPage websites (WYSIWYG) the year before, doing it after work. So I guess you can say 2+ years of “working two jobs”… my day job and web design at night.
Currently having a temporary Full-time contract job, I teach a few dance classes a day and have breaks in between.
I’m able to squeeze in at least 2 hours each day - just barely enough for the projects i’m doing and the courses i’m following. I do a full-day on the weekends if I have nothing on - I guess that’s where the 30-40 hours come from.
It’s after some time of trying that this habit gets pretty consistent - I’d rather be consistent than feel burn-out. It’s no longer fun if I’m not looking forward to learn or create for the day.
I code about 2-3 hours at night after work and dinner.
I get up and code about 2-3 hours before work. It depends on how tired I feel but I can push myself out of bed.
I work a demanding full-time job but want a career change so I think that is fueling the desire. Coding is like solving puzzles so its fun to me. And by coding I mean reading then testing then reading some more then testing until something finally works. I have a lovely wife but no kids.
I also try to make time for friends and exercise, even if its only an hour or so. I’m mid 30s so most of my friends and family are busy with their own lives and that helps.
I want to be you when I grow up . Or when I’ve learned enough through FCC. But seriously that is awesome, it sounds like you’re living a life that I’d like to…
I code a max of 4 hrs per day unless I’m really trying to bang out something ASAP. But I’m constantly thinking of efficient ways to solve the problems I am working on. Once that’s done, I code.
I try to squeeze in 2-3 hours a day. I did not understand how people can code so much a day like 4h+. I used to beat myself up over it. Then it hit me. It depends on what the rest of your life looks like. If you go regularly to the gym, if you take your time to regularly prepare healthy food instead of doing quick unhealthy meals with unhealthy snacks, If you have a lovely relationship in which you spend time with your partner, If you actually meet your family and friends once a week at least, If you keep your house clean, do laundry, if you have any other interests like learning another language or reading at least 10-20 minutes a day, you can’t, you simply can’t be coding these monstreos hours every day if you have a full time job on top of that. I’m not saying theres a right way or wrong way. Don’t get me wrong. It’s just that people have different priorities. Once I understood that, i stopped feeling like shit, after hearing all the rock-star, hardcore coders programming so much a day. Whenever I hear someone saying that they code so much a day, I just think “good for you”, but it wouldn’t work for me and that’s fine. I actually found myself enjoying it much more when I let it go more and stopped worrying, which funnily enough, led to actually getting more done, very often in less hours than usual.
With Age coding time decreases. I was coding 8 to 10 hours daily some 8 years back now I do just 1 hour of coding daily.Life has changed so much for me.
I typically spend 3-4 hours a day, max. I know some people can really crunch it and do double that, but imo, I think you reach a point of diminishing returns after the 4 hour mark. That’s just for me though. When I was in school for music I attended a few seminars on ‘productive practice’ and over practicing. It was more effective for me to get a solid 3-4 hour chunk in of highly focused practice versus putting in 8-10 hours a day. I got way more efficient and had better results. I try and use the same approach with coding.
I used to be in a band that toured, but I made the decision to leave because I really want a career change. I won’t be able to get where I need to be if I’m on a volatile schedule. It was fun, but the music world isn’t exactly ‘stable’ in terms of job security. It was a difficult decision since music has been my identity for the better part of 15 years, but I’m excited for the change (and also not being broke).
I read about stories of people learning coding and getting a job while also having a full-time job + family and I tip my hat to them. I’m planning on doing the family thing after I get my career in order.
I like this answer. I’ve been in the “beat yourself up” phase for a few days. As I’ve mentioned, I want to break into this field, but when I see that others are coding 4x as much as I am, I wonder how can I compete? I like coding, but I don’t think I’m up for working a schedule of sleep, work, code, sleep, work, code, day in day out to the exclusion of everything else. I suppose I could try squeezing another hour in each day and hope that’s enough to remain competitive with other candidates. I definitely don’t want to compromise on sleep or exercise and I’d like to continue learning arduino as a hobby (recent endeavor).
I think it’s tough to compare to other people. It’s best to look at yourself and say “when and how am I most productive.” Someone can learn in 2 hours that someone else can learn in 8, so just because someone codes for longer, doesn’t necessarily mean that they are “better.”
Too that end, I have read about multiple bootcamps that are 10-12 week courses. High employment rate after you done, and within these curriculum, they only devote 2-3 hours a day to new concepts. I think the key is understanding and repetition. Just remember everyone is different.
Definitely take a break if you’re feeling beat up. In the end its about how you can make it work and fit into your life. If you’re coding at a pace that’s not sustainable it’s not worth it. You’ll get sick of it and just stop altogether.
I think a more appropriate question here is How much learning do you do per day?
Learning is not just coding activity. (though it’s the most important)
You can be reading about topics/reference manual, learning how to use a particular software/tool, watching video.
If I have a problem to solve, sometimes I’ll just let it simmer in my brain and solve it unconsciously while I do other things… or write pseudo-code on paper, or draw on paper the architecture… when I get the solution or plan of attack, only then do I start to code.
Coding is just writing the solution in a chosen computer language. If you don’t have the algorithmic solution, no amount of coding/banging on the keyboard will get you to the right outcome. That would just be lots of frustration and doing trial and error.
I’m not like most of these guys, how much I code depends on a lot of factors. When I first started FCC I would spend up to 6 hours a day after work coding. After getting all the way through all three certs, I decided that I still really didn’t feel confident enough to land a job. Mostly for two reasons, 1. I live in a remote area and would have to relocate. 2. The more I learned, the more I realized how little I actually know. There are so many “rabbit holes” out there, that I never knew if what I was learning actually had any value. Anyways long story short, I now just code personal projects. When I’m working on a project I can easily spend 3-4 hours a day coding. When I’m in between projects, I can go weeks without writing a single line of code. I have found that this is the pattern that works best for me and my schedule. I do have a decent paying full time job and I’m not in any hurry to land a coding job. So I guess my point is that you just have to find what works for you and your goals.
For me, it’s all about forming a habit. On weekdays, I try to get in an hour or two in before work. On weekends, I shoot for 3 - 4 hrs. I’ve found sticking to a schedule is helpful so I code first thing in the morning. It took a while to get into the routine, but now that it’s a habit, I actually look forward to waking up early and creating things in the digital world with a fresh cup of coffee by my side.
Usually 2-4+ hours per day if I’m not distracted by video games. I don’t work, so sometimes I study from the time I wake up till I sleep, with short breaks spread across the day.
I was never able to get any higher education after high school nor find work and I’m 24. So I’m learning in hopes of getting a job and a better future.
Also noting something, more time coding does not = better or makes a person better than others, that’s incorrect. It just depends on your situation and how much time you can spare.
Overall we’re all going in the same direction.
Yeah. I’ve found that if I stress too much about it, and focus on all the other people coding a billion hours a day, then I feel like crap about what I do. And If I feel like crap about what I do, then it just takes the joy out of it for me. It becomes a chore. At that point it’s just agony. After changing my mindset about it and letting go a bit, I just started loving it again. I feel like the quality of time put into it is much improved this way.
I’ve just accepted that i’m not someone who is super, super passionate about coding and can do it all day and night. Nope, that’s not me. At least not now. I just really like it, I enjoy it and would very much like a job doing it. I like solving problems and practising logic. I just cannot see myself being obsessed with coding. It was very freeing to just accept it.
. Or when I’ve learned enough through FCC. But seriously that is awesome, it sounds like you’re living a life that I’d like to…