Greetings CodeNewbies 👋🏾
Welcome back to my #100DaysOfCode weekly recap. If you've been keeping up with me, you know that it's been a long time 😅...
My weekly recap has been missing for about four weeks now. 🥴 Getting myself to the keyboard to type up this recap has been quite the challenge for me. A big part of me wants to just fade into the background and not write any more summaries, but a bigger part of me knows that picking up where I left off and continuing on is a lot more beneficial than running and hiding.
In order to catch up, I've decided to release two recaps: one for weeks 6 & 7 (this post) and another for weeks 8 & 9 (to be released on July 9th). From that point on, I will continue to release biweekly (fortnightly) recaps until I finish my 100 days.
Since I'll be releasing the next recap in a few days, I'll keep this one short and go into more detail on why I've switched from weekly to biweekly in the next one.
What I Said I Would Do
In my last recap, I had planned to slow things down a bit because I felt myself heading towards burnout. As I said in the post, May was a busy month, and I was starting to feel worn out from trying to keep up with all things life and coding. To help myself recover, I decided to ease off the gas and take my time with the Using Databases with Python course.
What I Actually Did
I followed through on my plans to slow down. For most of Week 6, I worked on coding exercises from the Exercism Python track. Switching things up from lectures and assignments to one-off coding exercises made a difference for me. I felt less overwhelmed and by the end of the week, I was ready to get back into the course.
For Week 7, I followed a similar strategy of alternating between lecture videos and assignments from the Python course and coding challenges. I also mixed in some Data Analysis coursework from the Google Data Analytics Professional certificate course Prepare Data for Exploration.
What I Plan to Do Next Week
Since, I'm currently in Week 9 (and reflecting back on weeks 6 and 7), my plan for "next week" is to publish a new post for the Weeks 8 & 9 recap.
Around the Web 🌏
Find Coding Resources That Fit You
Recently, Ray Hutch, a Project Coordinator and veteran turned fellow coder, decided to switch coding resources after noticing that he wasn't retaining what he was learning. In the latest episode of his podcast, Truth Decoded - Why I Swtiched to Treehouse, he discusses his decision to move from a really popular, low-cost course on Udemy to a pricier (by comparison) Treehouse Techdegree.
Although switching resources (or contemplating a switch) is common, it can trigger frustration and over-thinking. I've been pondering what I will do after I wrap up the Python for Everybody specialization, and there are so many choices out there that I find myself unsure of where to go next. Listening to Ray go over his thought process was helpful, and I really enjoyed his advice-by-way-of-self-reflection approach.
If you find yourself spinning your wheels as you ponder switching from your current resource or choosing your next resource, his episode might help you get unstuck.
Final Thoughts
In the spirit of keeping things short, I'll leave you with this.
If at first you don't succeed, just dust yourself and try again.
Until next time, happy coding!
Cover Image by Steve Johnson on Unsplash
Top comments (7)
Hi A,
Awesome!
Which course did you like better? The U of Mich or the Google?
;))
Hey Matt,
The courses are difficult to compare. Python for Everybody is a lot more technical than the Google course. It takes you through the basics to some intermediate Python concepts. The Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate is for people with no programming experience. It teaches a lot more soft skills and it goes through some very, very basic data entry stuff (ex. what a spreadsheet is, how to enter data into a cell, etc.).
With that said, I definitely prefer the Python for Everybody specialization because it's more in line with my current level. The Google course feels too easy at times.
I ask because, Like you, I think I am past the very basics of Python. I feel I need more intermediate-level material, OOPs or ??? So I am re-evaluating Python course material AGAIN.
In one sense, I am feeling dubious about so many courses. I ask myself, Can I do the same on my own? However, I am starting to believe that courses do a couple things for ME.
So, on a similar note,
Note to self: I would love to see someone put together an authoritative course outline/syllabus for different topics. Maybe, some sort of Open-Source Github repo that could be community-written and sourced to increase its relevance. Or does that already exist in FreeCodeCamp, for example?
You've made a lot of good points and asked a lot of good questions. Let's go piece-by-piece.
Deciding whether to self-teach is a personal decision with a lot of factors to consider. The primary reason that I feel comfortable going the "self-taught" route is that I'm an energy with over 8 years of professional experience and two engineering degrees (B.S. in Electrical Engineering and M.S. in Systems Engineering). If I was coming from a non-technical background or a technical background vastly different from coding/developing/software, I would probably choose a bootcamp or college-level certificate program.
Being part of a formal program has many benefits:
Like anything in life, doing it yourself is possible, but for many, it comes at the cost of time, effort and quality. If you are going the self-taught route, you'd need to recreate each of those aspects that are built into formal programs. Otherwise, you could find yourself struggling to find a job/pass interviews.
Personally, I wouldn't get caught up on if it's possible to do it myself. I would instead ask, what's the quickest and most efficient way to get where I'm trying to go with the resources I have.
As far as the books you sent, I haven't gotten through much of them as I've been focused on the Python course that I'm in. However, I did like what I saw in the Intermediate Python book. Right now, I'm working on wrapping my head around writing Python scripts that create & modify databases with SQL commands as well as handling data from different file types (text, xml, json). It's been quite interesting. I'm not really qualified to answer what topics are key to learn as a programmer because I'm not a professional programmer. I'm here learning like everyone else.
Whether a curriculum exists depends on what you want to learn. If you're into web development, there's an abundance of curriculums, roadmaps and free programs (including freeCodeCamp, The Odin Project). For other types of development, there's probably free/low cost courses and books. It's just a matter of searching for them. You can also look up university syllabi and curriculums and use that as a base. The sky's the limit. It just takes time and effort and asking questions in forums, on Twitter, etc.
I hope some of this helps.
Hi A,
Your notes have always been very thoughtful, and filled with great ideas. I appreciate that. Thank you for your effort too.
Thanks for sharing this update! Very inspiring to follow along on your journey! I've enjoyed reading about your progression and learning adventures. 🙂
On the topic of "wanting to fade into the background and not write any more summaries"-- I totally understand. Me too! A few weeks ago, I stumbled over this great post though about the the concept of "learning exhaust". Ie. Leaving a public trail of your learnings as you go. I've been following the philosophy myself these past sixty days and have been really loving it. Even if it's a little tiring, tracking daily progress, victories and failures, and having a public record of it is very fulfilling upon reflection!
Thanks for sharing the podcast ep too-- will definitely check it out! Upwards and onward! 🚀
PS. Btw, for your "last recap" link above-- I think you linked to this article instead of your last recap! 😄
Thanks Robert!
Yes, learning in public is worthwhile, but it sure has its moments where it's super tiring. I keep doing it though because it's been really beneficial to me. This is by far the longest I've coded and written about it. I remember starting and being unsure if I would even make it and here I am 65 days later.
Thx, I forgot to fill in the link, that's why it wasn't working.