A blast from the past

I recently found this celebratory email that I sent to my friends about a year ago.

I finished the Rails section!!!

 

Sure I had to take short cuts and skip a couple of parts.

But eh, after exactly 3 months, it is done!

Now I can move onto the easier design section (HTML/CSS) and the more interactive Javascript…

 

But more importantly, what does this all mean?

I started the Odin Project on 12/12/15.

I blasted through and started Rails on 1/12/15.

I hit rock bottom on 2/14/15 or so. I couldn’t even start the project even after looking at others’ code, even looking at the instructions and each step done by others.

I really felt horrible, hopeless, lost, and confused. It was definitely a coding depth of despair.

 

That weekend I learned the Pomodoro Technique and the idea of doing the tutorial 2-3 times in a row from The Odin Project Facebook group. So that helped me slowly climb my way up from rock bottom.

I did the introductory Rails tutorial, which was at the beginning of the Odin Project, I did that 3 times in a row and for the first time ever I understood Rails.

 

Before there were 100 puzzle pieces and I could put 4 or 5 of the pieces in the right places.

After doing the tutorial 3 times, I could put a lot of edge puzzle pieces in place.

Then after going through all of MacKenzie Child’s 12 in 12 videos, I could see 30, 40, maybe 50 pieces of the puzzle.

 

So what lessons did I learn?

The most important thing is that my Google abilities are steadily increasing. This growing skill will be enough to keep me growing and growing.

I learned that it is important to ask for help, i.e. from Meetup, message boards, but only as a last resort.

 

Also take small steps, don’t try to reinvent Facebook.
If I do want to build Facebook, just start by building the sign up page.
Then a welcome page.
Just focus on small and consistent steps.

Make sure to give back, help others, do presentations, give whenever I can.

 

Most importantly, ask myself what do I really want? I asked myself a few times, do I really want to program and to become a web developer.
And my answer is, why am I up all of these late hours?
There’s no external pressure.
Of course I want to be paid, and be paid very well.
But I think every hobby, every job, is about problem solving.
I guess I am addicted to the problem solving.

 

It puts me in the zone, and that is the best part so far, getting in the flow where hours go by like minutes. It’s fun and interesting and I love it so far 🙂

 

It’ll be 3 years of coding in June, and so far so good. I hope this is a marriage made in heaven, I hope the honeymoon stays this way =)

Reading this makes me feel proud and grateful about much I have learned and improved, but also a little anxious and excited about the journey even further ahead 🙂

Advertisement