The first step with coding is VISUALIZING
I was a middle child; a loner as a kid. When I was maybe 7 years old, I would be in my yard, which you may call an empty lot, sitting “Indian style” doing the greatest, most entertaining activity you could think of during that time…playing in dirt.
I would occasionally stare up at the sun, looking directly at this small, far away but unbelievably powerful yellow circle. Have you ever stared at the sun for a long period of time? When you do, this yellow circle doesn’t stay yellow but it gets constantly washed over in continuous color waves of purple, green, neon blue, neon yellow. Unfortunately for me, I didn’t learn until years later that staring directly at the sun is very bad for your vision. So I went from 2 eyes to 4, was finally able to see the world at its highest clarity and then I went off to learn from other things I should’ve been or shouldn’t have been doing.
This whole story relates directly to the process of learning how to Code.
When I first started getting hit in the head with terms, syntax, projects and problem solving using 3 Languages and 2 Frameworks, I couldn’t see what was happening. I couldn’t see what these terms were about or how they were connected or how to use them to make something practical, even though we use the internet EVERY SINGLE DAY. At this point, I basically only had 2 eyes and I was staring at the sun.
In between not fully being able to explain processes and desperately trying to connect the dots, something clicked! As my instructor started class and went over projects, I could see the meaning behind the words and examples she used. I could look at a website and get a general idea of how a particular feature could be created, and more importantly, I could have my own ideas and visualize them into fruition, step by step.
Test your mind’s eye to see how far it can see. Look ahead in your mind through as many steps as you can. Then you plan and create based off what you can see and deal with the unforeseen when it comes to light.
Just for clarity purposes, I do suggest you sit “Indian style” and play in the dirt at least once a year…whether 1993 or 2017, it’s just f***ing fun.
