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Learn How to Code in 2021 – Tips from a Full Stack Developer

So you want to learn how to code. Congrats, if you have the Resilience and if you’re Relentless about learning to code, your world will forever change. I think Coding is something everyone should learn!

I love coding. I think everyone should learn it because of the freedom and flexibility that comes with knowing how to code.

One way to learn more about coding is to read blog posts and books on code. You can also ask people for advice or simply watch Youtube videos on How to Code.

The best part is, most are free online courses and tutorials about learning to code.

Tools of the Coding Trade

Depending on the type of project you’ll be working on will determine what tools you will need. Listed below is what you will typically need.

  • Laptop
  • Text-editor or IDE aka Integrated Development Environment
  • Local Server
  • Quality learning resources
  • Motivation, Discipline, Focus & Determination

Decide and take action

Every day, you get hundreds, maybe thousands of ideas. Some are simple and some that could change your life forever. However, very few people take the idea from thought to reality because they’re afraid of failure or simply don’t know what to do next

It’s one thing to think about doing something, it’s a completely different mindset when you make a decision and being purposeful in learning how to code.

I’ve said it in previous videos, you must dedicate time every day to learning code, studying code, breaking down what is being accomplished with code.

If you want to improve your coding skills, daily coding must be a habit. You never know what great things will come your way if you put in the effort.

I cannot stress enough the importance of spending time every day learning to code. To be a successful coder, you must spend at least an hour a day learning about code. It will help you grow and make you more efficient!

This means you need to turn off your phone, turn off the tv, don’t look at email, and just get into the zone.

I like listening to music while coding. I put on my noise cancellation headsets, turn down the lights and just get myself into the zone.

Why do you want to learn how to code?

What’s your motivation, what made you think about becoming a coder? Are you looking to change careers? Do you want greater control of your time?

Everyone has a different reason why they want to learn how to code. Ultimately you need to know your why, and your why must be stronger than any distraction or roadblocks that will get in your way.

Otherwise, it won’t matter how great your idea is — if you don’t work hard enough to achieve your goal, then you will fail.

A lot of people have trouble keeping up with their goals because they aren’t motivated enough. However, you can keep your motivation going strong by remembering the reason why you want to learn how to code in the first place.

When you’re trying to achieve your goals, don’t let anything get in the way—not even yourself.

What are you looking to create with code?

What type of projects do you want to work on? What problems are you looking to solve with code? knowing the answer to this question will take us to the next step.

Coding Projects

You can learn to make video games, apps, websites and so much more! The best thing you can do with code is create a program that helps make your job easier. With code, you can do almost anything! You can automate simple tasks or even change the world. You could even work for Facebook, Google, Apple, Tesla, Netflix or Amazon or any of the many companies that specialize in software development or web design & development.

Choose the programming language or languages you’ll learn to code with.

Choose your programming language based on what you’re looking to accomplish. Every programmer has an opinion on which is the best coding language and why. Don’t only go by what others say. Research what are the best coding languages based on the type of work you’re going to be working on.

Learn a Development Stack

You will quickly realize that you need to learn more than one programming language in order to create a usable program. You will often hear about development stacks, and there are a lot of stacks you can choose to learn For me, I use the LAMP Stack which stands for Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP/Python/Perl. Since I’m a web developer, this stack makes sense for me and is one of the most widely used stacks in the web development industry.

When I’m developing a website, the languages I use are HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Node, Gulp, PHP, and Git for version control.

For automation, like automating the editing of very long videos, I use Python.

You should research what languages are best for your projects based on what you’re looking to accomplish career-wise.

You can look at what developers of a particular coding language earn, what programming languages companies you want to work for use in their environments, and what languages are likely to be around for a while.

Choose quality learning resources you’ll use to learn how to code.

There’s a lot of ways to learn how to code. You can learn by reading books, online tutorials, documentation pages, videos, boot camps, etc.

If you have the money, boot camps can be helpful because they tend to put you in a more focused environment where you’ll get direction and feedback. Boot camps do cost a lot, but you’ll likely learn faster.

If you can’t afford a boot camp, then invest in the right training materials and create your own boot camp at home.

The goal is to have dedicated time for coding and to make coding a priority.

Follow tutorials step-by-step – try to fully understand what’s being explained

A mistake people make when first learning how to code is being a spectator. Watching the videos or reading the books in a casual manner versus actually working through it at the same time and taking it slow.

The best way to learn how to code is by coding. It’s as simple as that!

Focus on learning the syntax of the coding language first, then try and understand how code logic works.

This is like first learning your ABCs, learning the definition of words, and then finally learning how to put those words into sentences, paragraphs, and getting a solid grasp of the grammar.

In code this means, learning about variables, functions, classes, objects, and other constructs; and then learning about data structures, algorithms, and how to put your code into a logical format.

Learn how to think like a programmer, which is a step-by-step process

Think about what your end-product might look like and then break it down into smaller components. Think about how an end-user might benefit from your project. Think about each step in the process of your program.

Code it differently from the tutorial

You don’t want to get stuck just doing tutorials. You can end up with a fixed mindset that can make it hard for you to think differently and create something unique.

I recommend first finishing the tutorial you’re learning from. Making sure you fully understand it, and then move on to the next part, which is to refactor the code, try and make it do the same thing, differently, meaning with your own code logic that still produces the same end results.

Can you optimize the code, can you reduce the amount of code needed to accomplish the same task, can you make the code more secure? Those are just a few things to think about.

With all you learned, Code something different

Learning to code is a process, and the next part of the coding process is to code something of your own. Work on an idea you have. Learn to code by coding your own project from scratch.

Programs and code are used to solve problems people might have. Some of the best inspiration might actually come not from within, but from external sources. For new ideas, I usually ask my friends for advice. They’re always excited to help me out and give their input!

Learn by doing!

This is the most important part of learning how to code. Don’t be a spectator, don’t just be a consumer, BE a Doer, a Creator. You learn best by doing. You gain knowledge by doing. You’ll reach your goal of learning how to code, by coding.

I know it seems obvious, but try learning a new skill like dancing or playing an instrument. You’ll have fun and probably get better at it by actually practicing and doing it, rather than if you just read about it!

As the Nike slogan says, Just Do it! Maybe I should refactor that phrase too: Just Code It!

Now’s the time to Check out some of my other articles and videos where I share my insights on being a developer and tutorials on how to code.

Thanks for reading my article on How to Learn to Code in 2021.

I’ll see you, in the next one. Happy Coding!



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