To hell with talent

Believe me, learning to code is pretty darn hard

Learning to code is very difficult. Functions, percentages. Indentation and margins. You need to cover a lot, and even more to understand how to write it. I have been working in this field for 10 years, and only now I felt like a kind of “expert” in what I teach people.

So listen to what I understand. At the moment, I have taught programming to more than 300 people. I know this is a difficult road with obstacles. But you know what is still difficult? To walk.

You are not born with the ability to walk, you had to learn and practice. Then why do you think that you can become a master in coding in one moment? Why are you sure that you will never be as good as the “experts” in this field? Do you think they did not have to practice, and this is all pure talent? You know, they too were once worthless coders.

No one is born talented

I believe that there is no such thing as giftedness. No one is born with a predetermined path in life in which he will succeed as a musician or writer. People are a product of their environment. Having the opportunity to develop their interest, they will do it as often as possible. Only thanks to a lot of practice we become what society calls “talent”.

The same goes for programming. No one leaves the womb as the “leader of functional programming” or the “adherent of the subject structure”. If my father had not bought an HP computer from Sears in 1993, I probably would never have thought of computers.

To be “good” in something, we first need to get to know this, and then learn this. Mozart was not immediately given the piano and he did not immediately become a genius, most likely, he was shown this, he became interested and he began to practice. It is unlikely that he could immediately play, knowing all the frets and tones needed to write his symphonies.

This idea of ​​dating, learning, and applying is how we create “talent.” We need to be introduced to the concept first, and if we are interested in this concept, we will study it. And after that we will apply it in life, and let it define us as it becomes our “skill”.

Programming is a skill that anyone can learn.

Once I HATED JavaScript. The concept of variable and conditional constructions pissed me off. I knew that I needed to learn JavaScript in order to move up the career ladder.

Initially, I became interested in this for a financial and professional purpose, and not for pleasure. I forced myself to learn this, I forced myself to understand this. I practiced, practiced and practiced again.

Now I love him. Now I teach him. I learned JavaScript and turned it into something useful to me. I defeated what once seemed so unattainable and annoying.

I am not an expert in JavaScript, but I can proudly say that I have overcome the annoyance and confusion of writing code.

And this did not happen in one night. It took me 5 years.

Time

As a child, I loved music. I wanted to be a rock star.

Besides the fact that we had an HP computer when I was 9 years old, we had an old acoustic guitar. Computers were interesting, but the music was something real.

I got acquainted with music very early, and was imbued with passionate love for it. I played the guitar terribly, but still did it with pleasure. I did not even know what the meaning of the setting was, I twisted the pegs so that they looked like the pegs in the clips. This passion has grown into something more. I learned how to tune my guitar. I gathered a group and studied music at school. I got into a jazz band in high school and participated in competitions. I was on my way to my goal.

It all started 10 years before with that same acoustic guitar. If I had not received this guitar 10 years earlier, I would never have been carried away by the game. Passion for music, which has become the goal of my career. Therefore, I often hear "You are so talented," although this is not so, I just practiced a lot.

Ten years. This did not happen overnight. It took me 10 years. It took me so many years to develop these skills, this passion and this so-called “talent”.

Talent is just passion

Talent exists, but only as a sum of interest and hard work.

Learning to code is like everything else in this world. This requires practice and interest. All these "talented" developers also studied. They were not born with a “talent” for programming; they simply developed these skills.

I still google different things every day. I am still studying. When something in my code does not work, I go back and re-read it. I put commas in strange places and can't put the logic in my head.

I still love to teach. All these things, on the understanding of which I worked very hard, because I have a passion for them.

Just cool

No one expects you to become cool coders right away. If you were good at it right away, you would not want to make it the goal of life. We are looking for difficulties in our daily lives.

As a teacher, I meet people who learn to code in an attempt to change their professional life. These people are often bored with their work, and they are looking for a new challenge and additional skills. They are not looking for change.

Coding is not difficult; coding is just a challenge. No one will understand the logic of floats at the very beginning. But you will understand everything with time.

Treat this as a challenge that you will understand if you want to learn it. You can become “talented” in coding and develop your skill. You just need to want this.

We change our attitude

Our field is expanding every day. This is not an exclusive area, intended only for those who are able to achieve something newest and greatest.

In each area, there are people who look down on those whose skills are not as good as theirs. Let them be the goats. Note that at some point they suffered the same way. Believe me, I taught students who now taunt newcomers and call them "noobs." Everyone once was at this place. They were also "noobs."

This area is developing rapidly and often defines our culture. What will happen if we scare off the next revolutionary developer by the fact that we behave like goats. Instead of such a person developing his passion, he can completely ignore it.

Instead, let's teach and engage those who want to learn. Give them motivation and tools to explore their passion. Who are we to take away their passion and ability to develop “talent”?