3 Things I Wish I Knew When I Started Learning to Code
I came from an electronics engineering background and taught myself web development through books, FreeCodeCamp, and Udemy. Here are three things that would have saved me time.
1. Build things before you feel ready
Tutorials feel productive, but you only really learn when you get stuck on your own project. My first MERN app was messy — and that's exactly why it taught me more than any course.
2. Learn debugging, not just coding
Knowing how to read stack traces, use breakpoints, and isolate problems is more valuable than memorizing syntax. This skill compounds over time.
3. Pick a stack and go deep
I spent months jumping between frameworks. Progress came when I committed to the MERN/PERN stacks and built real projects with them. Breadth comes later.
