When I first started my career in programming, I did not realize the importance of reading documentation and other materials. This was a grave mistake on my part and resulted in long sessions of debugging to no avail. Overtime, it became a habit of mine to search for solutions using stack overflow knowing that I did not understand the underlying technologies. I have also observed this pattern repeated by my peers.
All programmers know the feeling of finally getting something to work. We input a few different lines of code and re-build our project and suddenly it works! Consequently, this is followed by feelings of relief and accomplishment. This cannot be underestimated and can result in some lousy habits.
Let’s say you solve one problem quickly using a stack-overflow answer. That technique is quick but not always. Sometimes you get stuck in a problem and spend many hours sifting through stack-overflow answers. After a few hours or days for that matter, I can bet that you still have not found the answer. This pattern is reinforced every time you find an answer because it seems effective when it works. Unfortunately, it results in lost time and energy.
The issue here is a matter of fundamentals. You must first learn to walk before you can run. The biggest skill I have learned is to know what level I am at with a technology. For instance, I’ve recently developed my personal business website which you are reading this from. It was built using Gatsby. Gatsby can be a little tricky in the beginning because there are some underlying mechanics that are used to process files called markdown.
These files need to be converted into various formats to be displayed properly on my web page with images and the like. I needed to learn about various ways Gatsby works with files to effectively arrive at a solution. Sometimes there were plugins that I could use that would allow me to quickly implement a feature but not always. Sometimes, I needed to read further into the under workings of Gatsby to fully grasp how things worked. This was many hours of reading their documentation. With time I eventually reached a point where it was getting things done confidently because I understood Gatsby enough.
Of course, it is not necessary to learn everything about a technology before you start using it. Know that the feeling you get after a quick solution is short lived and you’ll need another small win to keep motivated. So, think about your current standing with a technology. If you are a beginner, experiment and read the docs before you get started. Happy coding!