2 Weeks into Learning JavaScript – Hitting Roadblocks

Update from last post

This marks two full weeks of learning JavaScript. I’ve been putting in between 2-3 hours a day, with one day clocking in 8 hours of learning. I’ve made a few changes from the initial learning plan, outlined here: Starting to Learn JavaScript

  • I found the later lectures in Practical JavaScript going a bit too deep into unknown waters. I’ve switched to following Colt Steele’s The Web Developer Bootcamp.
    • Coming into all of this, I already have competency in HTML/CSS so I skipped the first 9 lectures and started at lecture 10, JavaScript.
    • Also having done Code Academy’s JavaScript course a few years ago, I had some familiarity with basic JavaScript syntax, for loops, if statements, etc.
  • Moved text editor from Sublime Text to VS Code…primarily for the built in terminal

Pitfall of being above average

Learning for me is often easy. I pick up most things relatively easily. I don’t need to put in much effort.

Until…when something truly difficult arises…

There haven’t been too many occasions where I remember something being very difficult, but I can distinctly remember giving up on all of them: high school chemistry, first year programming in university, interviewing for graduate jobs.

The issue at hand is I’ve never learned how to learn. Most things have either fallen into one of two buckets:

  1. Easy to learn / understood it without much effort
  2. Too hard, gave up

I have had very little practice with being in the second quadrant of the 4 Stages of Competency: conscious incompetence.

I’m following the course. I’m memorising some of the code. But I don’t understand it.

When it works, I don’t know why. When it doesn’t work, I don’t know why. When I read the documentation, it’s too advanced and I don’t understand it.

Trust in the process

There is only one way to go, and that is forward.

I am placing my trust in the universal law that over time, I will start to understand it. Over time, I will progress into competency.

For now, I will keep writing JS everyday.

 

Starting to Learn JavaScript

I’ve decided to learn JavaScript. The end goal is to reach a state where I can confidently and competently build my own web/mobile apps.

Plan

Starting with https://watchandcode.com Practical JavaScript free video course

Then complete The Web Developer Bootcamp on Udemy by Colt Steele

Practice 3~ hours per day, following along with the course material provided

Goal

I’m hoping that within 12 months, I’ll know enough to start building some basic apps and move to a level of conscious competence (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_stages_of_competence)

App ideas 

  • WordPress plugin for workout tracker