Introduction

Learning to code? Great! It will prove to be one of the best decisions of your life. However, there are some things that you need to keep in mind to learn coding efficiently. You surely wouldn’t want your learning history to be like this:

• Learned coding for 3 months

• Took a 12-month break from coding because of some obstacles

You are likely to expect a consistent learning approach from yourself. To achieve this, you need to take care of some things that will help you become a better coder. Here are the things that you need to be careful about:

Basics First!

The word “basic” sounds so basic, but it’s not! You are probably thinking, “What on earth is this guy talking about?” So let’s look into this!

When you start learning a new programming language, framework or library, you will generally notice that the tutorial or documentation you are referencing is divided into two parts: basic and advanced. Most of us (most likely all of us) know that the basic part is the foundation on which the advanced stuff is built. That’s a simple notion, right?

But magically, a lot of people seem to move on to the advanced section after completing only 50%-60% of the basics. This behaviour not only prevents them from having a firm grasp on the fundamentals, but it also limits their understanding of more advanced concepts.

Hence, the better (actually the best) way to learn a new thing is to thoroughly understand the basics before moving on to the advanced sections. Mastering the basics really helps you implement the foundational concepts properly in order to learn the next-tier stuff.

That’s why, the meaning of “basic” is not as basic as it sounds. It represents the very foundation upon which your beautiful structure will be built (advanced skills)!

Learn One Language at a Time

Developers: “I can learn multiple things at once! Just keep those things separated! That’s it!”

Well… it’s not that easy. We work in a better way when we focus on a single thing. It’s our nature. Whenever we try to multitask, our concentration gets divided among the tasks we have taken on. When we learn two things at the same time, we can only give them 50% of our attention. This is not at all a good thing, at least according to me! So, what should you do?

Simple! Put 100% focus on a single thing! Try to put all your concentration into learning those important Python concepts. Don’t try to code in Java at the same time! It’s not ideal. It divides your focus and minimizes your learning.

We talked about learning in an efficient manner. But there’s one more principle you should absolutely follow in order to be a good learner. What is it? The following point!

Practice, Practice, Practice!

Practicing is a skill that you should practice!

Okay, let’s not make it complex! One of the most essential things in your learning journey is to practice writing code. Take a specific amount of time each day to practice coding. If you do it consistently, you are bound to become a better coder as you become more comfortable with the syntax. It will also help you get into the habit of consistent coding, which is very much a requirement nowadays to work in large tech companies.

A thing to remember here is that you should take breaks. Consistent coding is good! Writing code for 2 hours is good! But it’s only good when you take breaks. If you don’t, your learning efficiency will slowly start to decrease over time. As a result, the amount of stuff you learn in that time will prove to be a lot less than what you would have learned had you taken breaks in the middle.

That’s why, you should take care of yourself and break your 2-hour long coding session into small, 30-minute sessions! It will eventually improve your focus and learning efficiency.

Understand and Apply

Googling is considered a skill nowadays. From my perspective, it’s a habit that you should build. Don’t feel guilty for not remembering the syntax. Your brain is designed for action, not memorization. Whenever you have a doubt, go to Google and type it out! Google will instantly find you the answer you are looking for.

After you get the answers to your doubts, implement them. It will help you understand many more concepts that seemed vague to you earlier. Understand and apply. Make this process a habit. It will drastically improve your problem-solving skills, which is another thing that tech companies look for.

Watch Less, Build More!

When you watch tutorials, it is normal to get carried away and binge-watch them. However, if you don’t put your knowledge into practice, it will be difficult for you to advance. Putting your knowledge into practice allows you to gain a thorough understanding of the concepts. It also improves your logical thinking skills.

Now, it is fine to watch tutorials! You don’t watch them, you don’t learn them. Hence, watching tutorials is completely fine! But don’t get stuck in tutorial hell! Tutorial hell refers to the situation where you just binge-watch tutorials without applying any of your learnings in real life. That’s not a good thing to do.

Instead, watch a tutorial and build something. The more you build, the more you learn. When you build something, you put your learning into practice in a logical way, which is one of the best ways to learn something. So, build stuff and have fun!

Conclusion

That’s all! These lessons are surely going to improve your coding skills. So, keep these things in mind and dive into the coding world!

Source: https://dev.to/sriparno08/5-tips-to-elevate-your-coding-skills-5db2