1. Focus on the fundamentals
Think you don’t need to go over the basics? Think again. Like in any field, getting a good grasp of the fundamentals is critically important to achieving long-term success. The information you learn at the beginning of your programming education or coding bootcamp will allow you to grasp the logic of more complicated topics further along. If you don’t learn basic computer programming, you could fall behind in the future. So, even if the fundamentals seem boring or unimportant at first, you need to recognize how essential it is to learn them.
2. Learn How to Code by Hand
It might seem old school, but if you really want to succeed in computer programming, especially if you are seeking a coding career, learning to code by hand is one of the most important skills you can learn. First of all, it will make you a better coder because you’ll have to be more intentional — you won’t be able to run your code halfway through to see if it works. This results in an increased level of precision. But learning to code by hand doesn’t just improve your skills; it can also help you get a job and jumpstart your coding career. Employers looking to hire computer programmers often require applicants to take a coding test that involves coding by hand. Therefore, it’s essential that you acquire this skill.
3. Practice, practice, practice
Programming is about the theory and lots of practice. When you learn something new form the theoretical resource, create a project. Learning by doing will give you the best experience and much understanding. Reading the theory or the code is not enough to understand programming. Your job is going to be about creating the code, so you have to do it to learn.
Also, remember to increase the complexity of your projects when you are learning new things. From simple HTML login form, you can create the whole application, implementing other things you’ve learned. You can also improve your existing code using best practices.
Every practical task is a new challenge, and with new challenges, you won’t be bored easily, and learning will become a nice, daily routine.
Remember, the more lines of code you will create, the more you will learn.