Why coding looks scary

And, how you don’t need to panic.

#1 — Coding looks like a foreign language from another planet

That’s correct. Coding syntaxes do look scary. Many people say that learning how to code is like learning a new language. That’s partially true, except that learning how to code is much easier than learning a new language. Why? Because coding is about laying out the logics. You can already write a simple program by knowing a few basic rules in defining the logics.

Here are some simple programs (in plain English):

• if the traffic light is red, then you need to stop the car
• keep adding 1 ball into a box until there are 100 balls in the box
• given a list of names, search your own name

No need to panic: Coding is defining logics with its own language, instead of English.

#2 — Don’t know where to begin

Although there are many resources online, it’s still daunting to get started. What should you learn? Where should you learn from? Free? Paid?

We all want to save the time we waste when we learn, especially with a full-time job.

The internet has too many resources, it’s like asking you to go to the library and become a genius. You will save so much time if you’re given the correct general direction.

No need to panic: We’ve written a straightforward guide for you to follow: What should I learn first in Coding?

#3 — Conflicting advice

There are many debates online on what you should learn and how you should learn them. Should you learn JavaScript or Python? Should you learn online for free all by yourself or pay a fortune to attend a coding bootcamp?

Should you use a Mac or PC to code?

The technology ecosystem has frequent changes. Today, Python is the hot tech. Tomorrow, everyone is talking about JavaScript. So, is Python irrelevant now?

PHP is old. Well, Facebook runs on PHP.

Ruby on Rails is dead. Well, many successful businesses including Twitter started with it.

JavaScript is the hot shot. Everything else is irrelevant. Well, is it really that developer friendly or, more importantly, good for novice learners?

No need to panic: You just pick any one of the technologies and learn the fundamental concepts. Different businesses use different tools, so you will have to learn on the go. The key point is that you can apply your knowledge across different technologies. There’s no need to fight about which one to learn. Chances are you might be required by your team to learn a particular technology in the future. Learn the fundamentals. Don’t fight about a particular technology when you are first learning.

#4 — Do I have to memorize everything?

At school, we were often asked to memorize knowledge. In Coding, the important thing is to understand.

It’s far more important to understand the fundamentals concepts than it is to memorize patterns and syntaxes.

As long as you understand the concept, you can look up the syntaxes online.

No need to panic: You don’t need to memorize at all. You just have to understand. As you code more and more, you will naturally remember things you repeat often.

#5 — Am I suitable to become a coder?

When people first begin to learn coding, they often hit challenges and start questioning themselves whether or not they are suitable to become a coder at all.

The truth is that most coders struggled when they first started coding. Coding is a special mindset that takes time to develop. You have to think in a particular way, and it’s not intuitive. It’s not a skill set that we might have picked up in childhood.

So, coding is naturally hard for us.

Coding has a steep learning curve. The beginning is hard. But, as you progress, it gets easier because you will know more.

Nobody was born ready to start coding. Learning something new is always a challenge.

Is coding for everybody? No, not everyone. Some people enjoy it more.

Should everybody have a skill in coding? We believe so!

If English and math are a huge part of our lives, we believe Coding will be too.

Was English and math easy to learn in the beginning? Not at all!

No need to panic: Most people struggled in their early journey in coding. It requires commitment, perseverance and consistency to learn any important skills.

This is written by me and the team at Altcademy — an online coding bootcamp with 5,000+ students from 80+ cities.

That’s it. If you still have doubts, we are happy to answer them! Just comment below!