We all need a little motivation in our lives. Some people argue that motivation is temporary, but motivation is like taking showers — you need one every day. There are times where I notice my motivation is slipping, so every now and then, I either write or create a video for myself and for others, to get motivated.
The video below and the written content that follows is part of a series where I share my thoughts on how and why you need to stay motivated. I hope you enjoy.
The Early Days of Programming
Back in the day, programmers didn’t have programming books to open, they didn’t have Google to search, they didn’t have ChatGPT to ask. They had to make it up as they were going along.
They had to stretch their minds and do something that had never been done before. They had to combine their logic and their know-how, with their creativity. They had to do what was considered impossible. They had to do what others thought was nothing but a dream.
Why Is Programming So Hard?
We’re in a field that’s often challenging, filled with complex problems that stretch our minds and test our limits. We’ve all experienced moments when the code just doesn’t seem to work, when the bugs seem unsolvable and the project seems impossible. It’s during those moments that we must remind ourselves why we started — the passion we had when we wrote those first lines of code, the excitement we felt when our program finally ran successfully. If you’ve ever dealt with imposter syndrome, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Bring yourself back to that moment.
The road to mastering programming is not smooth. It’s paved with errors, crashes, and countless hours of debugging. But each error is a step forward, every bug you fix is a new lesson learned, and every failed project brings you closer to success.
The Innovators
The greatest programmers, the ones who revolutionized our world, they all faced these challenges. They all felt frustrated, and at some point, they all wanted to give up. But they didn’t. They understood that the path to success is never a straight line. They decided to break through those barriers, to go over those obstacles, and to create what others couldn’t even imagine.
Programming is like a puzzle — sometimes you’re missing pieces, sometimes the pieces don’t seem to fit. But every time you solve a problem you’re adding another piece to your knowledge, becoming a better, stronger, more skilled programmer.
Don’t let the fear of failure stop you. Embrace it, learn from it. You might not see it now, but every line of code you write brings you closer to your goal.
You’re not Alone!
You might feel alone, but you’re not. The developer community is worldwide — Stack Overflow, Discord servers, Reddit communities, open source projects. If you get stuck, somebody, somewhere, probably has a solution to the problem you’re trying to solve.
So don’t quit. In the world of programming, the only real failure is giving up.
Coder’s Challenge
The Finish Line & The Journey
Yeah, we all want to get to the finish line, but you have to learn to enjoy the journey — the ups and downs, the points in time when you feel like you just can’t do it. Embrace those moments. Consider those obstacles a challenge and find a way to overcome them.
We all make mistakes — here are the programmer mistakes I wish I’d known about sooner.
We Have It All
Back in the day, programmers had none of this — and they still built the foundations we code on today. You have every advantage they didn’t. We have IDEs and code editors that catch your errors in real time, telling you the exact line where your syntax went wrong. We have AI that can explain code, generate boilerplate, and help you debug at 2am.
For some reason we feel like it’s not enough. But you have more than enough. What you’re creating is going to solve somebody’s problem, and it’s your job to get that out to the world.
If you need more fuel, check out The Talented Coder and DevWP — the WordPress development training theme I built to help you learn by doing.
Take up the challenge, stop making excuses, and CODE YOUR EMPIRE!
Programmer Motivation FAQ
How Do I Stay Motivated as a Programmer?
Reconnect with why you started coding in the first place. Set small, achievable goals so you see progress daily. Mix up your routine — work on a side project, contribute to open source, or watch a talk that fires you up. Motivation fades when you grind without direction, so give yourself something specific to chase.
Is It Normal to Want to Quit Programming?
Absolutely. Every programmer hits walls — impossible bugs, overwhelming projects, the feeling that everyone else “gets it” and you don’t. That’s not a sign you should quit. It’s a sign you’re pushing past your comfort zone, which is exactly where growth happens.
How Do I Deal with Programming Burnout?
Step away from the screen. Burnout doesn’t fix itself by pushing harder. Take a break, work on something completely different, or revisit a project you’re proud of to remind yourself how far you’ve come. Then come back with a clear head and a smaller, focused goal.