Too much information
Nowadays, you will find an abundance of choices (books, tutorials, courses, bootcamps etc) that promises to make you the best developer out there. With so many choices one can only wonder:
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Where should I start?
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What if this tutorial is better than the other one?
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Should I read them all to become good?
The main problem with all that choices, especially for self-starters, is that you donât know what you donât know.
So how can someone pick the right source to start?
Unfortunately, I was also struggling to find the best tutorial/course/book before I began something new, which just led to infinite procrastination. There is a great book, written by Barry Schwartz, âThe Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Lessâ, that explores this state called decision-making paralysis. The central idea is that while having a wide range of choices may seem beneficial, it actually overwhelms individuals, causing anxiety and stress rather than increasing their well-being. This, in turn, can result in a fear of making the wrong choice or missing out on a better option.
Imagine if you were at a restaurant with a catalog that had a huge amount of options, spanning pages and pages. Wouldnât you find it difficult to decide which one to pick? I know that I would!
So, whatâs the plan?
Initially, you must shut off the âvoicesâ. Social media bombards us every day with a huge amount of data - a lot more than a human brain can process - that set unrealistic expectations on ourselves by making us think that we should be able to learn everything. Donât listen to them!
Instead, do these three things:
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Ask yourself why you want to learn something, where is this going to help you?
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Define your goals and values. By doing so, you will be able to distinguish between what you need to learn now and what is clutter (You can find more info on the matter on âLimitlessâ by Jim Kwik).
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Embrace the concept of good enough. Find a source, skim it, and if it covers 60-70% of your needs, start right away!
By doing so, you will be able to make quicker decisions and progress much faster.
A great first place to start whether you are a frontend, backend, qa or devops is the developer roadmap https://roadmap.sh/. It gives you a step-by-step guide that you can use to structure your learning.
Have you ever felt this way? What did you do? Do you have any others tips I should include? Letâs discuss!
Happy learning!