Why the coding aesthetic is a trap.

x_x — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 07:28:06 +0000

Ok , First of all, I just want to start with saying that there is no problem with an appreciation of an art-style or aesthetic and you shouldn't feel like there is .

In some cases liking the way something looks can become like a motivation and inspiration for you to do anything not just coding.

But when an aesthetic starts to get in the way of learning , coding and even what you think about yourself and who you are ...that is when you need to take a step back .

(Just a quick note: this is mainly for an audience of beginners and intermediates, but if you're an expert in the field, that's fine too!)

If you just started to learn coding or a getting a lil good at it, getting into the how your desk setup should look like is a pretty bad idea (i'd say a trap) . Being a (beginner) coder your main focus should be on learning new things and making and experimenting with projects . Having a cool desk setup is nice and all , but it can be a trap . So how is it one in the first place .I'll explain

"Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe."

that was a quote by — Abraham Lincoln
(Note: There is a big difference between sharpening your skills like Lincoln suggests, and just making the axe look pretty!)

Ok first point , Chasing the Coding Aesthetic is:

1)
a. Time consuming
b. Exhausting
and
c. money-wasting (optional)

How i know ? I've been there (and others like me) . About a few years back , I was still learning java script but I know only a lil . I came across those "code with me" videos I clicked one .loved them so on so on and

I started using my time I set for coding on watching their videos, making my desk clean ,adding plushies everywhere , And it felt like the more I watched videos, bought accessories, abandoned projects with broken syntax, and posted on Facebook, the more I felt like a programmer.

(Even though I stopped watching those videos ,thanks to my ambitious yet lazy self , I'm still learning things I would've already learned a year or 2 ago)

The phenomenon/term for feeling good because your surroundings validates that you are who you want to be is what we call Identity signaling .
lets get more into that

In consumer psychology, there is something called Identity Signaling. You are using material culture (physical tech objects) to fast-track your sense of belonging to a specific group.

Basically, it's when the You are deriving your self worth from the desk plants you put on your table and the stickers on your laptop

and you know what?

you feel gooooood

I watched (still watch) those coding vlog videos and felt like i did something myself.

It’s a strange feeling: you get all the satisfaction of solving a problem without ever having to face the code itself. You’re living rent free through their clean setup and flawless file management, while your own text editor sits blank and miserable

Real coding isn't as neat as it seems. It's mostly going insane and overly frustrated over a bug on line 1257 (there is no line 1257) and painstakingly making a dummy example (of your entire file in most cases) just so you can hide your actual code from ChatGPT (bc it is embarrasing to be found using chagpt you don't feel a coder copy and pasting the actual code). That’s just how it is

Sadly , real coding is mildly boring , frustrating and rewarding a lil worth it a lil not (and again sadly not as much "feel good" as arranging your desk setup)but coding can be fun intruiging even exciting. What's stopping it from being this way , is what we prioritize , So is it how we look or what we want to learn that's the question you'll have to answer .

tysm for listening

bye
x_xjs

DEV Community: x_x

Why the coding aesthetic is a trap.