Mistakes That Prevent Self-taught Developers From Landing A Job

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Жыл бұрын

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If you are struggling as a self-taught developer or just want to increase the chances that you'll land a developer job with this path, this podcast episode is for you. Unfortunately, most self-taught developers give up before ever landing their first position. In this episode, I'm going to dive into some of the main mistakes people make while going down this path and how to avoid them. By the end of this, you'll have strategies that'll greatly increase your chances of success as a self-taught developer.

Пікірлер: 628

@DigitalNomadOnFIRE Жыл бұрын

As a 20 year dev a big piece of advice, if you get stuck for ages on one tutorial, find 5 others on the same subject, either blog posts, videos, sample apps - all of the above and keep approaching the subject from multiple angles. One of them will click.

@z00lus Жыл бұрын

Good advice. In adding to this I suggest sometimes to go back to topics you do not understand now. Maybe after 1y or even 5years after.

@ruslan_yefimov Жыл бұрын

Been stuck with fixing some f**ed up quaternion math at work for nearly a month and only managed to fix it after digging into books for a couple days💀 Patience and confidence are main parts of success!

@seeibe Жыл бұрын

@@ruslan_yefimov Yeah, this is so true. The devs on my team lose so much time because they want the quick and easy solution, when it would be much quicker to do a deep dive into the issue and get a good understanding before attempting a solution. The worst is when someone on my team tried to trial and error a solution for 2 weeks, I take the task over from them, and find the solution after 30 minutes of reading the documentation with patience.

@thecoolnewsguy Жыл бұрын

Agree. I was trying to implement minimax but I just couldn't understand the code. So, I read more about it and I could finally manage to understand how it works and hence, I implemented it myself without understanding their code.

@Kraska93 Жыл бұрын

ChatGPT is also quite useful nowadays. Helped me a lot with my Django learning.

@ozankaya7718 Жыл бұрын

As a person who is at 6 month mark, I can approve that learning programming is frustrating. No endaviour ever in my life made me doubt myself this much. Despite all the frustration I just embrace the chaos and keep pushing.

@turolretar Жыл бұрын

At this point I just don’t care, I do any entry task, take any test, just anything. Still nothing. Even if I don’t get any programming job in 1-2 years, I still won’t stop programming. Maybe this career is not for me. I thought maybe it was, but reality disagrees. Sometimes circumstances are just not right. But I’m done with beating myself up over this. I’ll just keep trying whatever I can, until I go insane. I can feel the need to do this

@Macheako Жыл бұрын

You studying by yourself or taking classes? I ended up doing both and honestly, I can say I learned a great deal in both paths 🤔 so if one’s not working out, definitely consider the other 😊

@LordmkKING67 Жыл бұрын

@@turolretar when programming gets into your blood, its impossible to stop :D

@vfryhn2 Жыл бұрын

I've been learning for almost 4 years, and it has been a long journey and I don't think it will ever finish, I got my first programming job like at a year and a half after I started learning but unfortunately my boss was abusive so I decided to take the freelance route, I really love to have all the time I want to learn new and more advanced topics, and also to have the entire freedom to apply my knowledge in the projects I want

@codeintherough 4 ай бұрын

Update?

@OrionRox Жыл бұрын

My biggest advice for anyone who is taking any sort of coding course (it doesn't matter if you are taking courses from Udemy or Coursera or BootCamp): build something on your own. For example, if you are taking React course, after learning how to build a reusable button component, pause the course and start building a button component on your own, you will realize that you might not be able to make it even though you just learned it, if you can make one, try to make 10 of them differently, repetition is the key. While you are progressing through the course, pause again, and make everything that has been covered on your own again. Do this over and over you will remember and learn the patterns, therefore by the time you are making your own project, you could apply those patterns.

@michaelmagill5466 Жыл бұрын

I think it's better to blast through the courses, learn only the basics, but get a big picture idea of what a language is capable of. Then, using that knowledge, think of something you're interested in, and then build it, using the course contents as a reference manual. If you made something, destroy it, and then rebuild it, but this time make it faster, concise, and more readable. Redo the course, thinking of the things you did not use in the course, and think about something interesting that those things you didn't use could be used for. Then repeat the process. If you're a creative individual, this won't be difficult, and the lessons learned will be much more satisfying. You'll also retain the information for a greater length of time because the lessons this way are more emotionally gratifying, which is the key to learning and enjoying anything. Repetition for the sake of hammering information into your memory stores is boring, at least for me. And for that reason, I think you're much more likely to become burnt out before you even complete your first project.

@digibrett Жыл бұрын

I think this is great advice. I'll add that I think what is a good approach to this is to think about what things you'd like to be different, whether that be organization of the code presented or application/UI behavior. Ask "what can I remove from this example, or how can I simplify this?". Ask "can I make this code more portable/re-usable?" Mutating code and refactoring are essential exercises to understanding. And a lot of professional work is mutating and refactoring code anyway, so put reps into doing that!

@DamianSzajnowski 11 ай бұрын

That is the gruelingly difficult part for me - do the actualn unguied work, when your mind is blank and blanketless of the cosy validation of code-monkeying the tutorial cose and reapplying it to similar concepts, now irl.

@dauntoldrnodgroot3437 7 ай бұрын

Thank you for this. Do you use memory palaces?

@bladelazoe 6 ай бұрын

This is something I started doing recently, I take something programming related and start experimenting with it unti I got it down. Right now as funny as it is, I hardly incorporate Boolean values in my code so I'm searching up different scenarios to use them and coming up with my own versions to practice with them.

@HighSpeedRaam Жыл бұрын

dude, I'm not new on this developer journey. I have been working as a developer for 7 years, and let me tell you something, I wish I have heard all of this since the beginning! Thanks for your comments, this is a hard to swallow pill of reality, but, we all need it.

@Macheako Жыл бұрын

I’m a professional developer now, bout 10 years, and if there’s one piece of advice I could give…skip those goofy book exercises and take the jump into writing an actual program that uses an actively used API or framework. But in all honesty, being a good developer really is kind of a “journey”. I’ve been a system administrator, got my A+, and it wasn’t till after getting my computer science degree, a few years, EVERYTHING I learned started coming together ❤❤❤ It takes time! so long as you’re moving upwards with each new week/month…I wouldn’t worry 😂❤ 💻

@bivensrk Жыл бұрын

Definitely mirror your experience! Also, these videos of also highlighted that TikTok is presenting a weird way of looking at the whole profession. In the 90s, when I started, it was all about just wanting to be good enough to work at Microsoft, as a system level developer. Nowadays, it’s all web. Don’t have to worry about memory management as much now.

@oleggold Жыл бұрын

It's a good advice, and a bad one. Even after a few weeks (depending on the time invested) some people cannot write one line of code that makes any point in a big picture of a project. Without basic things, people just write stuff without understanding or, even worse, copying code. Depending on the project, you sometimes need 3-4 different subjects from different languages or frameworks. So it is not as easy as you described.

@daan3298 Жыл бұрын

I'm self-taught. Bought PHP for Dummies in 2002. Read for cover to cover and made the examples, took me 3 months. Then I created my own CMS and started a company in 2003. Very quickly I started to make serious money. But it's not all roses. Staying motivated - self-motivated - is extremely hard. Focus is also very hard. Create environment where you will not get distracted. Have kids? Better get an office out of the house. One weird thing: I used to smoke. The I stopped smoking and my focus was gone. Turns out many years later some research was done on micro-pauzes. The smoking was giving my brain micro-pauzes all the time. Micro-pauzes let your brain catch up to what you are doing. It is extremely important in coding and staying in the flow. I still have nto found a good alternative to get those micro-pauzes back (but also still don't smoke so that's good I guess). 20 years later, it's a good career BUT with AI and AGI around the corner you might think twice about being a developer in certain areas. AI is already doing part of my work for me. It's going fast.

@DamianSzajnowski 11 ай бұрын

Maybe take deliberate short breaks to stretch your feet, walk, brainstorm, even chill or play a game for a planned time frame. If you're into less-unhealthy habits that are still unresearched and probably not healthy for you, vaping is probably better than smoking and provides that short break but I'd never recommend that to someone who managed to ditch smoking. Interesting point btw, I'll find that research.

@ossysongs 11 ай бұрын

I'm not oblivious to how hard the self-taught path is....but as a blue-collar worker, I'm miserable and I've realized that this isn't the life for me.... and I lack the money for college, so I'm going the self-taught way... and as hard as it can be, I'd still rather struggle through learning to be a software developer rather then to stay at this dead-end job being unhappy. I started learning by self teaching just a month ago, but learning it and dedicating at least 3 hours a day to studying and working on my skills has really distracted me from the negative thoughts. So I'm honestly just trying to discipline myself to keep at it . I'm hoping I can make this a career even 2+ years down the line.

@syrus1233 8 ай бұрын

Why don’t you do a skilled trade like electrician

@div4374 7 ай бұрын

Hey man, I saw your comment yesterday, didn't replied to it... I took my first IT job after 2 years of preparation, Main reason was I made a lot of mistake when I was starting, Some advice I'll give you that, read almost all the major topics of the framework/programming language you are reading, Create your own software program cause it'll give you actual knowledge in the thing you are reading, and after that revise and Try to take as many interviews as possible, it'll give you idea where you are lacking and also gradually you'll get a job.... It's been 3 months, I don't know if you quit reading/preparing but if you did quit, start again, it won't matter much

@KILLCHRISU Жыл бұрын

So many aspiring devs are afraid to struggle on their own and that's the biggest issue from what I've seen

@Macheako Жыл бұрын

Heh….struggling alone is almost part of the job description 😂 but some of the best times I had was on a team of 5+ other developers, so I definitely believe in finding a good team IF you can. Cuz yea, it’s not always gonna happen not to mention some teams will even hold you back 😢

@enzoflp Жыл бұрын

Man this video really came at a perfect time for me. Been teaching myself to code since November last year and started applying to job since late April. Yesterday I received yet another rejection after my third interview and I started questioning myself a lot. As you said it is a number game, I have probably sent close to 150-200 applications and yet only had 3 interviews. When you put things like this it feels like nothing but I am trying to look at it in a way that I am still getting some interviews, which means that it is doable and now it is just about getting better at selling myself and my skills during the interview. Not many people talk about how finding a job is probably the hardest part in becoming a dev and how long it actually takes so I appreciate you making this video to talk about it, brought my spirit back up !

@stacisoutherland3388 Жыл бұрын

Interview rejections are the worst I understand keep going you got this!

@varuntyagi6116 Жыл бұрын

Sorry about the interview rejections, but reaching to the interview stage after 6 month of self study is no small feat either. I'm sure one of these days you'll clear an interview. You're much closer to getting a job than most of us are. Goodluck 👍

@89kylestyle Жыл бұрын

Do you have a CS degree? You can get one online now also and it's affordable.

@smallstar88 Жыл бұрын

A reputable coding bootcamp is the way to go. Save you time. So in a long run. You could easily make up that tuition cost.

@dannylaza1326 Жыл бұрын

@@smallstar88 As someone who did both a bootcamp and a CS degree. I would say that even though college is a scam because they make you take so many pointless classes including the CS classes, they give you structure and time to absorb the stuff. The bootcamp was literally a waste of time and I've never met someone who went to a bootcamp who was actually a good developer. If you believe you can learn everything you need to know in 3 months, starting from scratch, you're delusional. It's a bigger scam than college. They prey on people who are desperate and teach them all the same BS in 3 months or less and say good luck. If I could do it over I would be fully self taught or go to college as I planned for a couple of a years and after getting that foundation, drop out and become self taught. I am working as a dev now and coding in my free time for the last 6 months and have learned infinitely more on my own than anything college/bootcamp taught me.

@opbsx Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for this video bro. I've just been on the grind for almost a year, built my first "acceptable" project and got into that pit of desperation, heavy impostor syndrome and lots of self-doubt, but after watching this video i felt that it wasn't all in vain and I got a surge of new motivation. If you're reading this, you can do it! let's go!

@andrews8733 Жыл бұрын

There's a bit of a personal identity sacrifice if you pursue it full time. When you get to the age of people associating you with your career (25+), it's awkward to explain. You could say you're learning to code, but you're unemployed. Something I never heard talk about

@salami4855 Жыл бұрын

just say you're learning software engineering. sounds fancy enough to me ;)

@KILLCHRISU Жыл бұрын

as a 25 year old self learning full time I just tell people I'm a software developer lol they (usually) don't ask any questions after

@Chuckichanly Жыл бұрын

Identity sacrifice? It's called shame of being unemployed at 25 and it's ok if you are really working to get a job😅

@AM-cs8yi Жыл бұрын

@@Chuckichanly I am older than that and have no shame in being unemployed while learning to code, and yes I do tell people I 'work in tech' as freelancer no further questions after that 😂😂its your life and do what you want with it

@michi40 Жыл бұрын

I used 3+ years with heldp from: My second son on it's way, that I took care while my wife went back to work after maternity. I started a "soloprenur" startup that failed big time, from that time. You know what happened when I took the plan down after almost a year trying to sell my SAAS project? 0 money, but and interesting CV with real experience. After I closed operations I got an interview at 45yo 2 months later. Month later I had a junior web dev job. That was 4 months ago. I can't explain how many of the things I learned trying to start up my SAAS helped me survive and hold my job till today. I can say I am doing great at job and got a promotion 2 months into the job. It's weird breing a 45yo jr. But I don't care. I love this job, and it shows.

@Razvanh29 Жыл бұрын

I have been a software developer for more than 15 years and I still do "personal", open-source projects. It is _fun_ and it gives me a lot of professional satisfaction. (The job is to make a living). I have a CS degree, but I never stopped teaching myself, I advise everyone to do the same.

@prettyboishah2898 6 ай бұрын

Do you think it's worth even getting a degree?

@Razvanh29 6 ай бұрын

@prettyboishah2898 In Romania, where I live, one degree is paid for by the Government (by the tax-payers, in reality, of course), so YES is the answer in my country.

@syedmuzzammil13 Жыл бұрын

Liked and Subscribed! I am a Frontend Developer going through job search phase and I could not agree more with all the things you mentioned, especially about removing emotions from this whole experience. I literally realised this 2 days ago and wrote it in my journal to remind me of this daily. Thanks for making this video. Back to my search...

@TheRealBrockRoberts Жыл бұрын

The software industry would be much better off if more people in it, were more like you. Great humanity and compassion. Well done!!

@Mars-oc2gq Жыл бұрын

Absolutely. I completely agree with this comment.

@MnemonicCarrier Жыл бұрын

Hmmmmm.... I know what you're saying, but it's not necessarily true. In the early days, when the software industry was just starting off and had very few people in it, the money was flowing! There's so many people in the software industry today - it's heeeeeeeuge!!! Today, it's very common for companies to simply find software developers in markets where wages are peanuts.

@BillClinton228 Жыл бұрын

@@MnemonicCarrier I know business owners who did that and regretted it, there were time differences and huge communication difficulties. He ended up paying for something he couldnt use and had to start from scatch with local developers. If you're a massive business and have the money to hire project managers who would manage these projects it's still challenging but you might pull it off, but again you will need to make that big initial investment in local people who will push the people overseas and make things happen. The phrase "you get what you pay for" didn't come out of nowhere.

@MnemonicCarrier Жыл бұрын

@@BillClinton228 I recall those days. Many moons ago, I worked for a bank that outsourced a project to an offshore company for an overnight batch-processing system. It took over a year and cost a small fortune, and in the end, it couldn't be used because it took longer than 24 hours to process a single business day's worth of transactions.However, things have come a long way since then - those days are long gone. Of course you can still find stories about offshore software projects that spectacularly belly-flop, just like you can find horror stories about ludicrously expensive local projects that fail. My point was more about the "supply-and-demand" equation - something the software industry is not immune to. I started my career in software development in the late 1970s - back then I got paid obscene amounts of money for doing very little. Towards the end of my career, I had to work like a dog for much less money (inflation/CPI adjusted). Thankfully, I managed to strike it lucky with a couple of startups, so I exited the software industry and did my own thing 😄

@danielmbirch Жыл бұрын

This has to be the best coding advice I've ever heard. Thanks for posting. I started with the fundamentals and now I'm doing my own projects and it's such a big win when I write code that works and when I can troubleshoot an issue and solve it. I still do some tutorials, but then I'll follow up with a project of my own to really understand and remember it.

@davidmora2583 Жыл бұрын

Your channel is very underrated! I'm definitely following your advice! Keep up the good work

@sparklitd Жыл бұрын

I keep watching this video, over and over. . . You don’t know how valuable this message truly is, Don. Thank you

@DJAlax909 Жыл бұрын

Back in 2017 I did this exact thing after graduating with a degree in software development... I quit my customer service job that I hated; took out a loan to get by for three months... And I ended up landing 0 programming/ developer jobs. 😂 Financially it was a horrible choice but mentally it was the break I needed. I ended up going into IT/ entry cybersecurity after everything. I'm back to being a self taught developer to become a cybersecurity engineer. Thanks for the advice. 👌🏻

@prettyboishah2898 6 ай бұрын

Did you got college for Cyber-Security?

@digestedvalue3369 Жыл бұрын

Love your videos man. Thanks

@JoeMama-ui6yh Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much don! Your advice always help, honestly I was a bit discouraged but this will give me that extra push!! Can’t thank you enough!

@magixbeats2214 Жыл бұрын

On point. Thanks!

@stevebob240 Жыл бұрын

Thanks man, I needed to hear this. Been working hard but feeling discouraged some days. Great talk!

@micaiahowoeye Жыл бұрын

I really appreciate how honest you were. Thank you. 💪🏿

@nonfungible_kid Жыл бұрын

i really needed this. thank you 🙏🏻

@rudolphvonstroheim3551 Жыл бұрын

This is just phenomenal advice for ANY beginners in ANY field. You have just laid out the proper strategic outlook that is applicable basically in any endeavour that requires producing or engineering. You've got yourself a new subscriber

@marcreaume8689 Жыл бұрын

I think you spoke to everyone of my insecurities as a self taught developer in this video. Sincerely thank you for making this.

@narudesigns Жыл бұрын

Awesome, thanks for sharing!

@Ahmed-cy4jp Жыл бұрын

Thanks man! ❤

@ianpropst-campbell6028 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for this helpful tutorial. I have been feeling pretty discouraged about my journey. This was very encouraging!

@xXTheSalvationXx Жыл бұрын

Wow thanks man...even with a Bachelor in IT i am having trouble finding a job right now...makes me feel like it's worth nothing. But you just gotta keep on going and having faith in yourself. Best advice

@sapphirestarlight7341 Жыл бұрын

Love this! I'm at the beginning and was honest with my husband and said "It won't happen in 6 months, more like 2 years to be a reasonably decent web dev". Thank you for being honest, I'm doing a bootcamp on Udemy and there's so much that I'm not learning from the platform. I will continue the deep dive but, I have no illusions about how long it will take to be average.

@reggietheroman Жыл бұрын

so glad the yt algo recommended your video to me. your videos are nice to listen to while coding

@nati.g 10 ай бұрын

This is so great! Thank you Don 👍

@ihateyourusernames Жыл бұрын

Thanks man, I really needed to hear this. Tutorial hell is real, and when you're budgeting hours, some of these 10-40 hour long 'FULL' courses are intimidating because I didn't think I could build anything until I was on the other side of it. Now I'm putting tutorials aside and will get familiar with code by doing things that need to be done. I'll learn along the way. I'm trying to make the switch from operational IT support to development. I've fiddled with a ton of languages, but C# seems to be the one I'm getting traction with, so I'm going to follow that trend.

@williamEcubed Жыл бұрын

Needed to hear this, thanks

@codervince4957 Жыл бұрын

I’m an aspiring front end developer. I’ve been teaching myself for just over a year and I just want to thank you for this video. I’ve definitely watched all the videos where people say they landed a junior role in 3 months, 6 months , 9 months and here I am at the 1 year mark. However I do look over my progress and am impressed with the projects I’m able to make on my own now compared to the beginning. I know I need to keep learning and building better projects

@zorro8375 Жыл бұрын

Yooo that's literally me rn I been doing it for a year and I feel like I'm going in circles but I can see my progress, would you be interested in doing some stuff together talking about web designs and layouts? I been looking for people to talk to about front end topics I've been solo throughout my journey

@ifeellikedirt Жыл бұрын

@@zorro8375 I'm also interested in this

@zorro8375 Жыл бұрын

@@ifeellikedirt do you have discord?

@TheSoulCrisis Жыл бұрын

For frontend development you flat out need a solid portfolio of projects to demonstrate, schooling and even beginning resume tech work don't seem to cut it in this hyper competitive era with all the frontend frameworks popping out!

@LordmkKING67 Жыл бұрын

@@zorro8375 i am also about a year in, and just like you, got no one to talk about this topic with. Would be happy to

@user-ik8pk5ll5f 10 ай бұрын

I'm struggling with learning for more than a year now and often doubting myself. Thank you so much for this video! You gave me hope ❤️

@maad1670 Жыл бұрын

needed this so much. thanks Don

@barbaratess6103 Жыл бұрын

I enjoyed the realness in this video. Thank you for putting it together. It's very refreshing and it's helped put some things in a different perspective for me as someone who's self-learning how to program. Is it weird that one of the things I'm enjoying the most is all the different keyboard shortcuts that are available to use? Learning and using them as I go motivates me. Just a random weird quirk I guess.

@sabuein Жыл бұрын

Thank you, Don, much appreciated.

@aww2historian Жыл бұрын

thanks for the solid advice Chief! Sending you good energy, you got a strong Spirit!

@thewalrusdragon9579 2 ай бұрын

Man. I just found you today and this is the vid I needed. You’re awesome bro

@korionterivers9995 Жыл бұрын

I smiled the whole time listening to this. Great advice. I’ve learned early on I have to apply what I’ve learned almost immediately. Those time staring at a black page not knowing where to start will begin to disappear after a while

@alzanders Жыл бұрын

Thank you, I needed that

@charlietripi Жыл бұрын

This is one of the most encouraging videos ive seen. Thank you

@varuntyagi6116 Жыл бұрын

Thanks, man. Really needed to hear this. Your first point really helped me. I quit my god awful job 6 months ago hoping that I'll land a developer job in 5-6 months of self learning, but honestly, I'm nowhere close and now it's taking a toll on my mental health. Sure, I've made a lot of progress and learned a ton of things, but I still don't feel confident enough. I'll go with your suggestion and adjust my expectations accordingly. Thanks once again.

@stevealbert9054 Жыл бұрын

In your case, you not feeling confident means you are competent. Don't give up. J.Cole said "follow your heart and you'll make that [money/peace of mind/wealth] fast."

@Words-of-encouragement.-. Жыл бұрын

How is it going at this point? Have you landed a job?

@copsarebastards Жыл бұрын

i'm in the same boat basically. I quit my job at the beginning of this month- i'm coming up on a year of self teaching, but really losing some steam. haven't applied to jobs yet because I don't feel ready still. I have a gig still as a contractor making wordpress sites for a computer repair shop near me, but that just demotivates me more. I hate using wordpress and i hate the drag and drop site builder. the job is essentially a design job, but extremely constrained since the company only uses one wordpress theme. I'm not a designer, and so far I don't think the shop is happy with my work (there are also issues with their management and whatnot- no adherence to the timeline I'm given in my contract, boss going in and doing large amounts of work or changing work I've done, etc) I would be happier making the sites using wordpress with react as a headless cms, but I don't have enough experience with react yet. I'm grateful to still be living with my family so my bills aren't going to destroy me, but I am running out of time on my goals. I wanted to get a job in germany this year, before the summer. I need to in order to make my relationship work (ldr german gf of 10 years not willing to do ld any longer)

@SIRLAWRENCE79 Жыл бұрын

half year? seriously? i'm learning evry day after work for two yerars now(python, javascript, css, html) and i think i need like one year more :)

@crazydude69 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for the heads-up i was thinking about quitting my current job to start self learning and hopefully get into development.

@ahmedschhaider4762 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for these words, very inspiring !!

@Jose_T131 Жыл бұрын

4:27 on point bro, this learning path is a roller coaster not as school that if you remember some shit you get a star on the head(the path is linear and very limit). By using different technologies or been on different teams when working as a SW "whatever_role" or for personal projects we start at 0 again sometimes even when we "already know"

@dlizard04 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for this information.

@beckyb9215 Жыл бұрын

This is wholesome, thank you!

@erickcedillo6470 Жыл бұрын

Seariously, thank you for this video, I haven't even started to look for a job I'm almost done learning the things I want to learn before searching for a job, but I was extremely worried and losing faith in myself, where I'm from everybody thinks I'm going nowhere because you need a college degree to have a job such as web developer, I went through day one to today from sheer faith in myself and my self expecations were starting to get in the way of it, I was very frustrated and burning out from desperation to know if the people around me was right, even thought I know inspite all my effort may be I won't be able to get a job as a developer I know I have the time and energy to keep trying and I'm not doing as bad as I thought... So really thank you

@allmightfan Жыл бұрын

thank you man i really needed this

@demolazer Жыл бұрын

Great stuff. In my own journey, ive found that making programs I actually want to use myself is very powerful.

@Ambr1942BR Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for your advice.

@graytonw5238 Жыл бұрын

Man, this is definitely going into my list of go-to videos! I'm no doubt in the minority here, since I'm retired and have no plans to get hired for anything anymore. But I do a lot of data extractions and custom reporting for different companies as a solo freelancer, and I've been trying to learn C# for the longest time. Always something that gets in the way though, but I'm going to have another go at it and apply these suggestions. Subbed!

@tanzimat2039 Жыл бұрын

Very contributive. Thank you.

@Bair994 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for giving it straight, no one really gives you a simple answer about this when you first start out, they all say "do a boot camp" "Become full stack" etc. Setting the expectation and example right at the start of the video was nice. Some days suck, some days are great, but everyday no matter what i say "I have to code".

@dylanm7638 Жыл бұрын

this helps Don, thank you so much

@tizahn5262 Жыл бұрын

This video is gold for me. I am currently going through this self-taught process as well. I do not believe that there are shortcuts like 3-6 months to a full-time junior dev job especially when the preparation of portfolio and (technical) interviews AND finally getting hired is gonna take a few months for some of us, much less to say the time required to pick up the different coding languages and skills. Yes, there will be a few talented individuals that can make that possible but not the path is not going to be as straightforward for most of us. I totally agree that staying disciplined is so important because there are really just days that you feel stuck, dumb, and unproductive but the whole idea is just to show up every day.

@lancen6805 Жыл бұрын

Sooooo right on!!!

@AverusMuto Жыл бұрын

Thanks for this. I have been learning for 2 years and always felt like I was going back to the fundamentals.

@Gary4DLC Жыл бұрын

I can't tell you how much I needed this video. Thanks man.

@jovyflagg 10 ай бұрын

I have an interview in 30 mins, and I found this video very comforting and super helpful. The "introduce yourself part" and "talk about your role" as a Senior Software Engineer gave me confidence. Also, it feels so much better knowing that not all Sr. SWE are have 10+ years of experience and debunks the myth that interviews have to be so stiff. Please make more of this kind of videos! Thanks! just joined your discord group!

@PassiveLearner 7 ай бұрын

Was just wondering, did you manage to land that job? 😊

@abdebig Жыл бұрын

What a great podcast, Don. Keep up the good work.

@kirwan1414 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for such an honest, heartfelt advice.

@pouyaabb Жыл бұрын

Your honesty, made me subscribe.❤

@uuuppz Жыл бұрын

very inspiring. subbed!

@HikingFeral Жыл бұрын

I have just found your channel and can already tell how useful it will be. One thing I find useful is to copy paste something like a calculator, then open a tab next to it and hand type it in, googling what it means, then when I run it and it works, I delete it and do it again, relying on the copied version less and less until I find it boring and can advance.

@aaronkirchhoff1658 Жыл бұрын

Super helpful and motivating video, thank you for posting! I'm going on 2 years of job searching and coding on the side while working full-time job, I wanna give up All The Time, lol!! But I believe in myself and will keep going! Thank you!!

@andyackon2743 Жыл бұрын

Man this is one of the realest videos on KZfaq…you awesome bro

@mwwaldro1 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for making this video, for us newbies starting out it’s awesome to have this resource to push through the self doubt.

@hanasschoolwork4564 Жыл бұрын

'Get your hands dirty' is a good advice. I started college with almost zero coding knowledge and our first language was c++. As soon as the basics of OOP course was over we had to build a project with c++. It was very confusing at first but building stuff (and suffering) really makes you learn. Learning the basics of the new language and then building something with it has been a very useful model. "wtf is happening" is a VERY effective way to learn coding and debugging lmao.

@TheSoulCrisis Жыл бұрын

'"wtf is happening" is a VERY effective way to learn coding and debugging lmao.' This line is life looool xD

@LordmkKING67 Жыл бұрын

@@TheSoulCrisis true, i at this point i am suprised if a code works right away. Even if i follow tutorials! lmao. Them typing mistakes sigh..

@moniquenavarro4131 Жыл бұрын

Great tips for sure.

@Griffin519x 11 ай бұрын

Building right away makes you learn so much more and solidify the stuff you already learned. My JavaScript teacher let us make up some of our own projects and I decided to make a short text based game. I ran into so many problems along the way and I learned so much from it. It helps you break away from just following tutorials (even if you have to look up solutions or you copy and paste someone else’s code you’re still learning).

@chrislukkayembe Жыл бұрын

Best video on dev on KZfaq 👌🏾 great advice 👊🏽

@barcalona55 Жыл бұрын

Thanks for keeping it 💯

@sventripikal3032 11 ай бұрын

hands down, best 100% honest video by far. you hit all valid & necessary points in this video.

@atbmts6 Жыл бұрын

This is the best video I’ve ever watched on this subject. Thank you man. Sincerely.

@mr.xharlie Жыл бұрын

Been learning for about a year now, and it's been a mix of everything. One minute I feel on top of the world because my quiz app is working, next minute I don't think I'm going to ever get a job. But I'm not stopping. It's not a linear path, it's not up or down, it's everything.

@FHangya 7 ай бұрын

great insight, thank you so much for this video!

@igorgoncalves5691 Жыл бұрын

Thank you Don this's what I was need! Hugs from Brazil!

@Hanslee1z 11 ай бұрын

Thanks Don.

@paypalmymoneydfs Жыл бұрын

That "Fuck your motivation" speech is why I'm now subbed. We need reminders about how fickle motivation can be sometimes.

@MatiasBaldanza Жыл бұрын

Thank you for this video.

@miketeskey2916 9 ай бұрын

I appreciate your transparency and honest genuine take. "you fucking do it. fuck your motivation." I love it.

@azy3929 Жыл бұрын

This was way better then I expected at first and that neat English accent, wonderful ! Thanks for guidance

@danielcardone8622 Жыл бұрын

Thanks man. Good video. It help settle me a bit.

@eck1997rock Жыл бұрын

Already-in-the-market developer here. Love what I'm hearing so far, definitely take his advice. Don't expect motivation to fall down from a tree, and don't rely on it to stick to your plans - as he says. _Nothing_ worthwhile is going to be easy to do, you won't find any "free passes" like that. But stick with it, programming is really kind of "objectively" a good choice; getting into tech will make you understand more about how our current world actually works, and know that we're just falling deeper and deeper into digitalization.

@jimba6486 Жыл бұрын

As someone who is almost done with my CS degree. I found this helpful and useful information. I also find myself having to relearn the basics. Also, the life lesson really help clicked for me, he kept it real. You gotta commit to blocking out time. I run away from that because I always want to be motivated to do tasks, but that is not how the world works. Which is why I fail to be consistent with my health choices and career goals. Thank you.

@Macheako Жыл бұрын

Keep at it bro. Last year or so for me was almost like getting water boarded 😂 but I’m GLAD I finished ❤

@mistymu8154 Жыл бұрын

I have been a software developer for over 10 years now. I think tutorials can be helpful, but like you say, nothing can replace just creating stuff, making mistakes along the way. I am not the sort of person who is able to just read a book or watch a KZfaq video and fully understand the concepts straight away, it takes iteration until you finally understand. Even as an experienced software developer who moves to another job, you will go back to feeling a bit like a beginner again, but stick at it, most employers won't expect you to hit the ground running on day 1 and will expect a bit of onboarding time. Don't be afraid to ask questions of senior developers, a lot of people are happy to help.

@Michael-tj1dq Жыл бұрын

I took 30 minutes of free time to watch this, and I needed it. I am going down the self taught path right now. It has been very taxing with work and family, but I take a look back every time I get frustrated to where I started or where I was a week ago. Thanks for the "fuck your motivation" bit I got a good laugh and it's true.

@TheSoulCrisis Жыл бұрын

Yeah I gotta remember dedication > motivation. xD

@siriusplayz5871 Жыл бұрын

Thanks a ton for the advice bro! I started learning web development 3 months ago and this helps a loootttt. Again thanks ❤

@coiso8879 Жыл бұрын

thank you!

@MCKornbred 7 ай бұрын

This is one video I’m going to need to come back to again and again. Thanks man.

@pfg222 Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for this. Really helped me get back on track on myself. Im about to graduate as a CS major in may and i have not passed any internship interviews or even gotten calls back for sooo many jobs ive applied. A bit nervous to because most of the sruff they aks for i wasnt taught in school so i have been self teaching myself on the side. I almozt gave up but thank yku this video ready just slapped me in the face to tell myself its all in my head. 🙏

@scifyry Жыл бұрын

I started doing the self-taught route, but decided on doing an Associates degree that combines programming with a business systems approach. I can learn a lot while doing my own projects as I go along. Degree is still in progress but having a taste of everything has helped me figure out I want to go the mobile application pathway.

@Macheako Жыл бұрын

While I’m ashamed to admit it, some a the coolest lessons I’ve learned in programming actually came from my university’s courses 😂😂 As much as I detest school lol 🏫

@austinbaker5665 Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much. You are the man

@FELPS56 Жыл бұрын

After 2 years of constant studying I got my first job and current job as a developer in may 2022. Motivation isn't really there everyday as stated in the video. You just have to put in the work even if 1 hour a day. Just do it.