From Hero to Zero - How and why I became a beginner developer again? - and why you should, too?

Introduction

Three months ago, I was just another 17 year-old developer who had +3 years in web development. Doing some client work here and there and I felt that I was technically comfortable building web apps and websites. but I also felt emotionally uncomfortable.

Although I am really passionate about coding since I was 10 years old. I felt a little burnt-out and didn't know why exactly I was feeling like that. In my mind, I was doing the work I really love and making some profit out of out SO why I'm not happy. I start doubting my passion, doubting my skills and even had an irrational anxiety. My productivity was going really down and eventually I have decided to just stop.

Every time I had an idea to code I did this 👇🏻

1. Open my laptop
2. Open my text editor (VS code, btw)
3. Create a new project folder
4. Close my editor
5. Close my laptop
6. Go to bed while crying in panic 😣

My friends and parents tried to help me a lot but it was just not working. This effected my mental health, physical health and my productivity.

" I really wanted to get back and code, but I just can't"

After one of my friends gave me an advice which I thought it won't work [SPOILER ALERT: It did!]. He told me: "Why you don't just explore other kinds of development just for fun like game development or mobile app development". I replied: "I'm not really into game development maybe I will try mobile development just for fun" 🤷🏻‍♂️

The Transition

I heard about Flutter and Dart. It's a very hot technology right now and people seem to like it so I decided to give it a shot. I had this resistance going back from being an experienced developer to a completely beginner developer, however, It wasn't that hard. Actually, It wasn't hard at all. 😄

Sometimes we are our own enemies. We block ourself from our creative mind. We give up to procrastination and overthink the work we need to do without even trying it in the first place.

Finally I came to a very important conclusion:

• Switching to another field of development is not bad
• Going back to the beginner zone is actually GOOD
• Monetizing the skills you are passionate about can be unhealthy sometimes
• Code is just code. Code is the concept we love and the vibe we admire

Doing what you love

This tough experience taught me to focus on what make me happy and do what I love. Having fun and enjoying my time alive is first priority then money comes in the second place. I don't mean that we should quit our work and go to night clubs. NO. Just make sure you have some space for yourself and your enjoyment, In my case I found my enjoyment in writing code for fun and learning new things (Beating my ago and be a beginner again) alongside writing code for work. Our time is very limited and we have only one life to live and guess what? Developers have life, too. 🔥 👨🏻‍💻

Why should you become a beginner (again)?

We were all beginners at some point of our journey and probably you might be thinking: If I don't experience burn-out or anxiety like you did, why should I consider going back to learn a new thing or a new technology while I am already a professional in one? 🤔

1. You may noticed that the development industry is always changing. For example, just a few years ago Angular was the dominating the front-end web dev industry and suddenly React is the most used front-end framework in the competition above both Angular and Vue. Now, there is a new technology called "Svelte" which has a lot of potential, too. What I want to say that you shouldn't stick with only one thing our industry is always changing and that requires learning new things from scratch.
2. Exploring new things is a very important habit I wish I had earlier. Let's say, You may think that you are a good web developer but then you decide to try game development and you find that you are the GREATEST game developer on earth. The point is you shouldn't limit yourself and if never try you will never know.

Conclusion

It's great to learn new things. It's ok to be a beginner again. Have fun while you are still alive. Never lose your passion for learning. Always be learning. Imagine the possibilities. Overcome your ego, your procrastination and never stop until you are proud. ✨

You are meant to be great!

Never give up.