“I think everybody in this country should learn how to program a computer… because it teaches you how to think.”

Steve Jobs

I’m probably biased since I have been in tech for over two decades now. Still, I really believe that learning how to code has helped me a lot, even outside of work.

First, let me tell you why it will help you, then I’ll tell you how to do it. It’s not that difficult to get started.

Why learn to code?

It helps develop logical thinking and problem-solving skills.

“Learning to code has the inadvertent effect of teaching you how to think,” says Adrian Degus, CEO of Nuvro. “Understanding logic, at a deep level, has improved my problem-solving proficiency tenfold,” he adds.

Coding teaches us that in order to solve complex problems, we often have to break them down into smaller bits. We then solve these bits and integrate them into one major solution. This logic-heavy approach is obviously transferable and is useful in figuring out problems way beyond coding and technology.

It teaches persistence.

Yes, you learn to breakdown problems into smaller chunks but, soon, you realize that these smaller chunks are actually larger than they seemed. Then you start writing your code and debugging and testing, and you realize that you need to fix this minor issue. But that minor issue opens up a huge can of worms all over the place.

Not great, but it really teaches you to be persistent. Along the way, you also learn to become more careful, understanding that you need to find that balance in understanding the small chunks yet still considering the overall picture.

Also, the joy that you get when you make something work after hours (sometimes days?) of debugging, PRICELESS.

It opens the door to job opportunities.

This probably goes without saying but learning to code opens up so many job opportunities. Not just as a coder, but as I mentioned, the transferable skills helps in other areas.

Note: If you are keen on getting into tech but not necessarily as a “hard-core” developer, you might want to give our podcast a listen.

In interviews, you can talk about how this skill can help you do your work more efficiently. I know for one that VB macro programming is a highly sought skill in a lot of financial institutions.

Side Note: With your coding skills, you can even automate some of your work making you more efficient. It’ll be up to you if you want to use that to get other (more) work done, or take it easy (in Pinoy terms, petiks!).

More Reasons

There are plenty of other reasons why coding is useful, but I won’t get to them one-by-one

1. It gives us more confidence with technology.
2. If you decide to become a developer, there are more opportunities for work from home 🤗
3. You can create (almost) anything you want

How to get started? Learn To Code

As I said, it’s not that difficult to learn to code. Well, at least, getting started isn’t. Becoming an expert is a totally different ballgame. It will take lots of practice and practical application! Don’t worry, I truly believe you can already reap the benefits I mentioned just with the basics.

There are tons of learning material out there, from YouTube tutorials to StackOverflow. That’s great news but it can also be overwhelming.

My recommendation is to get on Udemy and purchase a course especially developed for beginners. That way it will teach you the fundamentals. Skipping this will be bad in the long run, especially if you do not have any prior programming knowledge.

Now, if you do not know which programming language to start with, I work recommend Python because (1) the syntax is relatively easy and (2) because of its flexibility. I also highly recommend that you purchase the 100 Days of Code – The Complete Python Pro Bootcamp for 2021 by Angela Yu.

Share Your Experience

Whether you are a seasoned coder or new in tech, let me know how your experience has been. I would love to hear from fellow geeks. 😉