Learning to code can be challenging, especially if you’re just starting out and don’t have any experience with it yet. The learning curve may seem steep, and you may find yourself feeling overwhelmed. In this article, we’ll discuss some ways to stay motivated when learning to code so that you can successfully complete your coursework and become an expert in your field.
1. Set a Goal
Many students will tell you that it’s easy to become demotivated when learning to code. Most won’t feel like they’re making much progress, which can make learning feel pointless and boring. Setting a goal can make all of these feelings disappear. Having a goal will keep you accountable to yourself, meaning there’s no room for excuses when you don’t hit your target.
Your goal could be practically anything, like the type of job you’d like to get after learning how to code or a particular project you want to complete. Whatever your goal is, make sure to write it down and refer to it often to keep yourself motivated as you learn.
2. Make a Plan
Once you set a goal, you’ll need to plan how to reach it. What programming languages and web development tools will you need to learn? How do you plan to learn them—through a bootcamp, classes, or self-study? Which topics do you need to cover, and in what order? When would you like to complete your course of study?
You’ll need to think these questions through, create a detailed plan based on your answers, then write your plan down. This will help keep you on track as you learn to code. Of course, if you choose to enroll in a coding bootcamp, the entire curriculum will already be laid out for you, which will save you a lot of time and energy (and ensure there are no gaps in your learning plan.)
3. Get a Mentor
It’s also helpful to get a mentor to help keep you motivated as you learn how to code. Having a mentor is invaluable for a number of reasons—they can provide you with ongoing support, give you career advice, help you when you get stuck, and challenge you to keep going when you’re tempted to give up. Getting a mentor will help keep you on track as you learn how to code and ensure that you always feel like you have someone who’s invested in your success.
4. Take One Step at a Time
As you’re learning to code, it’s important to take things one step at a time. If you try to take on too much at once, it’s more likely you’ll become overwhelmed and want to give up. In order to stay motivated, you need to start small and learn coding bit by bit.
This is best accomplished by learning a little every day; studying consistently will keep you on track while helping you avoid feeling like you’ve taken on too much. Then, you can try to integrate newly acquired skills into your current skills set. If you feel lost or like things are moving too fast for you, don't worry—you can slow down and take as much time as you need.
5. Chart Your Progress
When you’re in the middle of your coding education, you may feel like you’re stuck in a rut and not making much headway. Thankfully, there’s an easy way to combat that: by keeping track of your progress. It doesn’t matter how you do this—it could be something as simple as listing everything you want to learn then crossing items off one by one or creating a spreadsheet. But the key idea is that you can look back at your past accomplishments whenever you start to feel stuck; seeing how you’ve grown and increased your knowledge will give you the energy and confidence you need to push through.
6. Savor the Small Victories
As you continue on your educational journey, it’s important to celebrate small wins along the way. It's not enough to just stay focused and put in your study time every day. If you only remain focused on your one big goal and the task at hand, you may start to feel like you’re not moving forward. Take time to recognize all the small victories, like learning a new tool or completing a challenging coding exercise. That way, you’re more likely to enjoy the process and maintain momentum.
7. Don’t Compare Yourself to Others
One of the biggest dangers when learning something new is the temptation to compare your achievement to what others are accomplishing. Comparing yourself to others won’t help you move forward more quickly; if anything, it will hinder your progress.
Regardless of how well you’re doing, making comparisons will only slow you down. If you’re going faster than others, you may feel like you can slack off for a bit. If you find that other people are learning more quickly than you are, you’ll become discouraged and be more apt to give up. It’s best to simply keep your eyes on your own goal and pay no attention to what others are doing.
Learn How to Code with Noble Desktop
One of the best ways to stay motivated as you learn to code is to have built-in structure and support to keep you on track; this can easily be provided through a web development bootcamp at Noble Desktop. Bootcamps are intensive programs that can teach you everything you need to know about coding. The curriculum and schedule have already been created for you, so you don’t have to worry about coming up with your own educational plan.
You can even take specialized bootcamps that match your learning goal; Noble Desktop offers various options, including a front end web development bootcamp, full stack web development bootcamp, JavaScript bootcamp, and Python bootcamp. All of these web development bootcamps are available live online, which means you can learn from the comfort of your own home.
If you don’t want to commit to an entire bootcamp, that’s okay—there are plenty of other options available at Noble Desktop. For example, you could take one or two web development classes to see how you like coding before enrolling in a bootcamp. There are classes for practically any coding language, tools, library, or framework you can imagine, including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Python, React, Express.js, MongoDB, Git, and Bootstrap.
These web development courses are available live online, which means you get real-time training and immediate feedback without dealing with a long commute to class. If you prefer learning in person, you can check Noble Desktop’s Classes near me tool to find web development classes in your area.