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fazil.klkt
fazil.klkt

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Is being a programmer hard?

Though many people are eager to learn and choose programming as a job like myself,is it common to feel under super pressure in your first project.

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linkbenjamin profile image
Ben Link

I think it comes down to the motivations that drove you to seek it out. Framing is everything!

"I wanted to be a programmer to make lots of money" --> could definitely lead you to a place where you're doing something that doesn't come naturally to you, that you don't necessarily enjoy, just to pay bills.

"I wanted to be a programmer because I love to do it" --> you're less likely to stratify it as "hard" or "easy" because anything that challenges you is just you perfecting your craft. It's a growth-oriented mindset.

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alco profile image
Jakub Stibůrek

I actually started because I found out that one can make good money doing this. Only after some time I came to love it. I think going in an industry for money is valid. After all, that's what jobs are about.

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Daniel Steele

I agree with this point, I don’t think Ben is saying that going into an industry for money isn’t valid or anything like that, he’s simply saying that the difficulty of a task such as becoming a programmer can be viewed very differently based upon the motivation behind it! If you’re doing it for money and not enjoyment then you are more likely to view a setback or challenge as hard, but if you do it for enjoyment then these blockers are just opportunities to grow and therefore maybe seen as less “hard”.

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alco profile image
Jakub Stibůrek

Isn't that true for any kind of challenge? When you enjoy overcoming it it's gonna be easier.

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danieldsteele profile image
Daniel Steele

Absolutely true! Any challenge can be seen in different lights depending on your motivations!

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Medea

You’re absolutely right!

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asinkxcoswt profile image
Pipat Sampaokit

A person can be good at a sport but still fail to make it a career. I think this is similar to programming as a hobby versus as a career.

What is really hard, maybe, is not much about your programming capability itself, but the general ability to work under business pressure.

In my first project, I was stressed out like crazy when my boss asked me to estimate tasks in number of hours. If you are like me, you may be suffering by the fear of failing to meet people expectation. Let's try to think like you are practicing to face failures. When you can laugh after a failure, that is when you become professional.

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mhmd_fazil profile image
fazil.klkt

this seems to be my situation : )

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Megan Sullivan

is it common to feel under super pressure in your first project

In my experience, this depends largely on the environment you're working in. (I'm assuming that "your first project" means your first paid job, vs. your first time building something on the side.)

When I was looking for my first full-time programming job, I made a point to choose a company that knew how to support junior engineers. Ideally, the expectations for a junior or intern should be that you're still learning and may need more support from other teammates. From your end, it's about feeling comfortable asking for help and communicating with your team when you feel that pressure starting to build up. And then your manager and teammates should be willing to show you the ropes and help you get unstuck.

Unfortunately, not all teams have that kind of support system. But that's something you can ask about during interviews, to try and get a sense of whether or not it's a supportive environment.

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Keff

Short answer: YES, it is
Long answer: It depends on how you tackle the complex parts of programming, uncertainty, and pressure. At the start it might be quite hard to grasp some concepts, but with time it gets easier and easier. It also depends on how you define hard, for me the hard part is not programming but the soft skills around it (e.g. dealing with clients, attending meetings, etc...). That beeing said, if you enjoy it and enjoy failure and learning continously, you will have a better time than somebody who does not like failure for example.

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Bhagya

Yeah. But if we have a good motive we can make it easier.💫​🤓​

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Jon Randy 🎖️ • Edited

Not really, but it probably can be if you let it. Pressure can, and should, be ignored