We’re ready to bust a few myths that you’ve probably heard about coding before. For newbies starting out or those simply interested in coding, these misconceptions could potentially make or break the deal.
Many misconceptions make the coding industry seem like a closed community only for highly gifted individuals. The truth is that coding is implemented in almost every industry; attracting people from different backgrounds. They create entire worlds in video games, solve problems such as making airplanes fly or more importantly, help us to find the best pizzeria in our neighborhood! The following points prove that it takes a lot more than basic mathematical skills to be able to code.
Alright, let’s bust some myths!
1. CODING IS NOT CREATIVE
Coding does require logical and technical thinking. But the route you create to write your lines of code are infinite and eventually serve the same purpose: solve a problem in the most efficient way. To find a route, you need creativity, right? Or take the example of computer games. What would you call creating characters, stories and entire worlds if not creative?
See, coding can never be dull! It’s practically an art form.
2. YOU NEED A COMPUTER SCIENCE DEGREE
According to the Washington Post, 69% of programmers are totally or partially self-taught. There are even many entrepreneurs and software developers that are game-changers within the tech industry who started as college drop outs (think of Steve Jobs, Bill Gates or Mark Zuckerberg) – DISCLAIMER: please don’t drop out of college because of this – generally speaking it is a smart decision to finish your education.
BUt it does show that you don’t need a college degree to be a coder. It’s an inexact science that is constantly evolving. We see this in our everyday lives. Some of the biggest companies like Facebook or Apple publish their latest software update and we experience bugs within the first few days.
There is always room for improvement, whether it’s a software bug or you! 😉
Even if you have a computer science degree (or don’t), there are plenty of free and affordable tools online to help you grow from what you already know.
3. YOU CAN ONLY MAKE MONEY ONCE YOU MASTER CODING
What employers want to see in potential candidates is that you can create and build. You don’t need to be an experienced expert to do that. Focus on being part of projects instead and build something that you’re passionate about. If you love baking, create a bakery locator in your local neighborhood!
You won’t be an expert overnight, but you can learn the basics of any programming language within a matter of weeks or months. Once you’ve got the basics practiced through various hands-on projects, you’ll be ready to apply for an entry-level job!
4. IT’S ENOUGH TO MASTER ONE LANGUAGE
The hard truth about coding is that there will always be new ways to code and even languages to learn so you probably constantly need to re-learn the things you already know. We feel it would be a wise choice to gather lots of experience in any given coding language, so you eventually might even be able to declare yourself an expert polyglot…
Don’t forget that there are languages that are preferred more than others so keep your eyes open and allow yourself to learn new languages.
5. CODING REQUIRES A HIGHLY SPECIALIZED SKILL
Coding is much more than a specialized field of activity. Coders constantly solve problems creatively and being great at one thing, such as maths is helpful but being good at analyzing planning, being patient, having resilience are all skills that are just as important.
In addition to the obvious technical skills, companies have started to look for certain soft-skills in new hires as well. That’s why our chief solution architect recently gave his opinion on the 5 most important soft skills to have as a software developer.
6. YOU NEED TO BE A GENIUS TO BE A GOOD CODER
The most successful athletes are highly passionate in their sports but they don’t necessarily started off with the best athletic skills. But one thing is for sure, the best of them are the ones that get up and try again after each “failure”.
In the same way, to be a great coder you don’t need an IQ of 160 and a master’s degree. Some of the best out there simply love what they do, question everything and most importantly have the motivation to dive deep into the matter.
7. JUST LEARN THE BEST LANGUAGE
Each language fits into its own specific niche, so claiming that there is one superior language would be just another myth busted! As much as some developers may prefer Javascript over C++, the coding environment the languages are used in just isn’t the same.
If programming languages, help you to communicate a solution to your problem, then it will depend on your problem whether one language is a better fit over the other.
So what do you think? Is programming only suited for boring geniuses that were blessed with the rare coding gene? Definitely not! We do hope that this article helped you to see coding in a different light and maybe even encourages you to pursue new goals. The only thing you really need to do now is START!
“Learning to write programs stretches your mind, and helps you think better, creates a way of thinking about things that I think is helpful in all domains”
– Bill Gates