4 Challenges Every New Coder Faces

Learning to code can unlock all of your creative potential and open up doors to a bright future, but there are challenges that come with being a new coder. Things like technology advances, working with teams, and keeping up with new skills can be tricky for a new coder to navigate on their own. To help you prepare for the road ahead at a code camp, here are 5 challenges every new coder faces as they start out on their journey:

Keeping Up With Technology

Technology is constantly updating. If you look at Apple, they release a new update to their technology and software at least every six months. Keeping up with all of those advances can be difficult for anyone. Being a new coder, means facing the challenge of learning a new language plus keeping up with those updates. It can be tricky to keep up, but it can also be incredibly fun. Coders are known as lifelong learners. When a new update is released, coders are the ones who jump on board to play around with the technology and software. Instead of letting the updates bog you down, look at it as a fun challenge. Soak up as much as you can and don’t be afraid to talk to other coders about the updates.

Knowing How To Communicate

Coding is about more than writing lines of code. It’s about communicating your ideas, understanding your end-user, and being able to present your finished work. It’s easy to get wrapped up in your work. We’re all guilty of zoning in on what we’re doing and shutting out the outside world. The issue, though, is that as a coder, your team needs to know what’s going on with a project. As a new coder, you can’t hesitate to mention you’ve run into a roadblock. Instead, you need to know how to communicate what the issue is, be able to ask for help, and even tell your team what your plan for resolving the issue is. Poor communication can lead to missed deadlines, failed ideas, and projects that don’t meet the end-users needs.

Understanding Your Limitations

As a new coder, you’ll be out to prove your skills and abilities, but you need to keep in mind that others around you know more than you do because they have more experience. Understanding your limitations as a coder is just as important as having the technical skills to accomplish your tasks. Why? Because when you know and understand your limitations, you know when to ask for help, when to research, and how to use your time efficiently. Understanding your limitation isn’t about holding yourself back. It’s about being efficient and understanding yourself. Set goals, work hard to learn as much as possible, be proactive about skill development, and break down your tasks into smaller chunks that can easily be accomplished.

Working In Teams

Collaboration is huge in the development world. As a new coder, you’ll most likely work with other coders to accomplish a goal or finish a project. While this may not sound too daunting or challenging, it can be difficult to mesh two coders’ work and bring ideas together. Bugs and errors are inevitable so effective communication is key during all phases of the project to make sure everyone is on the same page. Everyone may have their individual style and process to complete their task, but the pieces have to fit together in the end. By thinking of it as a whole, instead of as yours and theirs, you can create something incredible, innovative, and creative. Together, you can make the code better and help each other write cleaner code and don’t hesitate to suggest areas of improvement. That’s how collaboration works.

Facing Your New Coder Challenges

At Eleven Fifty Academy, we make it part of our mission to help new coders develop the technical skills they need to be programmers and the soft skills they need to be successful employees. It’s not about just typing line of code after line of code. You need to understand how communication, collaboration, and preparation play a key role in being a coder. Through our immersive SmartStart coding programs, students gain the skills they need to be in-demand coders. We’ll teach you the basics, show you how to learn on your own, give you hands-on experiences, and guide you through setting career goals.Not ready to jump right in? No problem! Schedule some time to talk with one of our Admissions Reps to learn more about the program and how Eleven Fifty can help you reach your dreams.