Self Led Learning

This week at Makers we had a lecture on how to effectively make use of our self led learning time, as a programmer much of my spare time is spent independently learning so considering how I best put it to use is very important. Here are some pointers on how to make the best of your independent learning time, this post is written from the perspective of a junior software engineer, however, do keep in mind these practices can be applied to any skillset.

What methods of learning work for you?

One of the first things most people do when trying to obtain a new skill is to refer to a resource of education on the subject at hand, this may be, a book, a YouTube tutorial, or anything in between. Consider how you best learn, do you learn best by reading, following guides, trial, and error? Personally I feel there is value in doing, to learn a skill you need to actively practice it in order to fully get to grips. However, the truth be told I don’t believe there are any cut and dry answers, you need to figure out what works best for you.

Set yourself small goals and break down larger problems into smaller chunks

In programming, this is a common practice often led with what we call test-driven development. If you are trying to write a very complicated program you don’t jump in and try to do it all at once, you break down the larger problem into…