Coding seems to be the new buzz when it comes to occupations. Many have dreamed to at one point work as a programmer for Google or a game developer at Blizzard. Many people ranging from Mark Zuckerberg to Bill Gates have learned to code and highly recommend it, and I do as well. Due to such popularity, it is inevitable for people to jump on the bandwagon only for their expectations to be crushed by reality. This is the goal of this article, to simply enlighten you about these misconceptions about coding to help you make a better decision as to whether coding is right for you.
Misconception #1: Learning code will make you successful
It is important to understand that knowing code is not going to suddenly make you successful. It’s common to think that something that many people are doing will lead you to stardom and lots of money. This is not the case. Rather, the environment becomes more competitive as a growing number of students compete for a chance to work for the richest firms. Yes, it is possible to still make money from doing computer science or coding. However, you are not gonna succeed just because you know how to use C++. A more truthful statement would be that coding is a skill that is sought out by employers as it can be used to speed up certain tasks in the workplace.
Misconception #2: Coding is easy
It is often believed that coding is a simple task. You just put some commands on a computer and then suddenly, BAM! You just created an algorithm that models the velocity of a rocket. This is sadly not the case. Coding is not an easy process. In fact, it can be rather challenging as you try to learn all the elements in your specified language and stare into lines and lines of code looking for one single bug. Coding can be hard and can take a lot of time to become good at it. For those who think that coding is a piece of cake, sorry to burst your bubble.
Misconception #3: Coding Requires a lot of math
The third misconception is a more positive thing about coding. Yes, you don’t need to be a math expert to learn to code. One of the amazing things you can do with code is to simply make your own website, which requires no math whatsoever. Math is only necessary when coding simulations or creating codes that solve problems. An example of this would be Google’s Kickstart competition where codes are needed to solve complex mathematical questions.
Misconception #4: Coding is expensive to learn
This is not necessarily a misconception but rather an important thing that everyone should know. YOU CAN LEARN TO CODE FOR FREE! You don’t have to go into a coding boot camp or take some paid online class. Coding can be done from the comfort of your home without paying a dime. I personally am currently learning Python through Code Academy’s Python 2 lesson to better understand the fundamentals of code. I encourage you to scour the internet for these free resources.
Misconception #5: You need to memorize all the elements/commands
This is false. There are many library sheets that present you with all coding elements, making coding a bit easier. Yes, memorizing common elements would benefit the speed at which your code but it is not a necessary requirement. You can find some sample cheat sheets on Code Academy as well.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is important that you do a lot of research behind coding before you dedicate time to it. You are not gonna have a fun time if you go into coding with the wrong expectations and it is better that you spend your time on something else. Coding is a hard hobby with lots of different languages with different purposes. However, the most important lesson here is that when you pursue coding, you’re not doing it for the money or because everyone else is doing it. Instead, you are doing it because it is something that you genuinely want to do. You love to create things and are willing to take the time to learn whilst enduring the pains of troubleshooting to create those things. Hence, if you are that person, then coding is truly something you should take
Comments