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How to Progress Rapidly as a Developer
Every craft has a set of foundational skills. Here’s what’s needed to speed up learning to code
You can learn the basics of programming in no time. Countless resources will get you going. The hard part is to take a step from simple conditionals and loops to real-life applications. Fortunately, you can develop a few simple skills to help you along the way.
Become a Google Master
You’ll spend lots of time searching for information, and you need to do it effectively. Googling is a transferrable skill, so if you researched in depth any subject, you’d be fine. But make sure you put on quotes to search for the whole phrase, know how to set a date range, and use a hyphen to exclude words from search results.
You also need to master programming-specific Google skills. Not all information sources are created equal. Pay attention to websites and people that helped you solve a problem. Over time you’ll build a robust database of reliable resources.
Technical terms matter
Remember relevant technical terms. It will prove a lot more beneficial than you think. Programmers have a particular language to communicate fast and accurately. To find the information, you need to understand that language. For example, it’s a lot easier to discover why you don’t have access to the variable if you know the term scope. Note every technical name and define it, if possible, using your own words.
Besides, when you know proper terms, you don’t need to read so much. Skim the internet. Search for the keywords in the text instead of reading everything.
Focus When You Make a Mistake
When coding, most of the time, you’re on autopilot. But to progress as a developer, you need to be mindful of the code. Use errors as reminders to focus.
Mistakes are the perfect opportunities to learn new things. A new error or unexpected bug may vastly deepen your code understanding. When encountered, take a deep breath and analyze what happened. After you solve the issue — take notes. You’ll stumble on this same error again. Without the notes, it’s almost sure you’ll forget…
