5 Tips To Help You Get Started With Programming

The most important tip that I can give to you if you want to get started with programming is to just get started! If you only get one takeaway from this post, then let it be that. Just start.6 However, that still leaves a lot of questions unanswered. So in this post I would like to share 5 tips to make the start of your programming journey a little easier.

TLDR:

1. Focus on only 1 language
2. Get comfortable using your code editor and the terminal
3. Practice everything that you learn by implementing it in your own code
4. Don't give up when you encounter a difficult problem
5. Just start

Tip 1 - Focus on 1 language

Keep it simple to begin with. You can do this by focusing on only 1 programming language, and completely ignore all other languages. Learn syntax and the basics of that language, and then use it to solve a bunch of programming exercises. To choose your first programming language you can first do some research on the different options or you can just let me pick JavaScript for you.

Tip 2 - Learn to use your editor and terminal

Get familiar with your code editor and the terminal. These 2 tools are what you will use to write your code and run your code, so it is very important that you feel comfortable using them. I recommend that you use Visual Studio Code and the integrated terminal that it has.

Tip 3 - Practice everything you learn to avoid tutorial hell

Try to avoid tutorial hell. You get stuck in tutorial hell when you jump around from tutorial to tutorial, (typically on YouTube), but never actually improve or learn anything. In order to get good at programming you have to practice it yourself, and you have to spend time trying to solve problems on your own. Just like you cannot learn to ride a bike by just watching other people ride bikes, you also cannot learn to code just by watching other people code.

The way you can avoid ending up in tutorial hell is by trying out and applying everything you learn. In practice, this means that once you encounter and learn about a new topic or concept, then you try to write some code that makes use of it. If you do this and make sure to practice implementing the things you learn by yourself then you can avoid the frustration of tutorial hell.

Tip 4 - Don't give up!

Don't give up when you hit a roadblock or encounter a difficult problem. Not being able to solve a problem right away is normal and to be expected for programmers. It is a natural part of the job. It is important that you remember this and focus on not getting discouraged when you meet difficulties.

If you stay focused, keep working and studying then you will overcome the challenge, and through this experience your skill level increases. In fact, this is the only way to improve, and it will benefit you greatly if you welcome the challenges and learn to appreciate them (even though it can be frustrating. Believe me, I know).

Tip 5 - Get started

Just get started already. A lot of time can be wasted analyzing and researching and trying to come up with the perfect learning plan and career strategy. Reality is that you won't be able to foresee everything the future brings. And you cannot plan everything up front, simply because you don't yet know what you don't know. Pick a language, find a tutorial series to follow, and start coding!

Need some more help or guidance?

If you are interested in getting some help in your programming journey, then checkout this page to learn more about how I can help you!