In the first article, I talked about something most people don’t like to admit: getting into tech isn’t the hardest part — staying long enough to grow is.
A lot of beginners start motivated, study consistently for weeks or months, and then hit a wall. Not because they lack intelligence, but because the learning process starts to feel confusing, lonely, and directionless.
This time, I want to focus on the learning journey itself — and why, today, learning programming without using AI is missing a huge opportunity.
The real problem isn’t the lack of content
If you’re starting now, you’ve probably already noticed this:
There is no shortage of content.
- Online courses
- YouTube tutorials
- Roadmaps
- Bootcamps
- Blog posts saying “learn X in 30 days”
The problem isn’t access to information.
The real problem is:
- Not knowing what to focus on
- Not knowing if you’re improving
- Not knowing if you’re learning the right way
- Not knowing what to ask
Learning alone requires a skill that nobody really teaches:
how to move forward even when you’re not sure you’re doing it right.
Tutorials are helpful — until they aren’t
In the beginning, tutorials feel amazing.
You follow step by step, everything works, and it feels like progress.
But then something happens.
- You try to build something on your own and suddenly:
- You don’t know where to start
- You don’t know which part of the code to write first
- You don’t know if the error is yours or the tutorial’s
- You feel stuck again
This is usually the moment people start thinking:
“Maybe I’m just not cut out for this.”
But this is actually the moment where real learning begins.
Moving from copying to creating is uncomfortable.
And that discomfort is part of the process.
Where AI fits into the learning process
Today, beginners have something I didn’t have when I started my career:
AI as a learning companion.
But there’s an important distinction to make.
AI is not here to replace learning.
AI is not here to think for you.
AI is not here to magically turn beginners into senior developers.
Used the wrong way, it can even slow your growth.
Used the right way, it can accelerate your understanding dramatically.
The right way to use AI while learning
AI works best when you treat it like a patient mentor, not a code generator.
It can help you:
Understand concepts from different angles
Debug errors when you feel completely stuck
Break down complex problems into smaller parts
Explore alternatives and trade-offs
Learn how experienced developers think
But if all you do is ask:
“Write this code for me”
You’re skipping the exact mental process that makes you improve.
The real value comes when you start asking better questions, like:
- “Why is this solution better than another one?”
- “What are the trade-offs here?”
- “How would I structure this problem step by step?”
- “What should I learn next based on this mistake?”
That’s where real growth happens.
Learning how to ask better questions
One of the biggest shifts in my own career happened when I realized this:
The people who grow the fastest aren’t the ones who know more answers.
They’re the ones who ask better questions.
AI makes this even more powerful.
It gives you instant feedback, different perspectives, and explanations tailored to your level. But the quality of what you get depends heavily on the quality of what you ask.
In a way, learning how to use AI properly is also learning how to think more clearly.
And that skill will stay relevant no matter how much technology changes.
The new risk: trying to learn everything at once
There’s also a new kind of trap now.
Because AI makes things easier, many beginners try to learn:
- A programming language
- A framework
- Cloud
- Databases
- AI
- Automation
All at the same time.
This usually leads to:
- Overwhelm
- Anxiety
- Constant feeling of being behind
- Lack of depth in anything
The order still matters.
Fundamentals first.
AI as an amplifier — not a shortcut.
What actually works in the long run
After years in software development, and now using AI daily as part of my workflow, a few things became very clear:
- Consistency beats intensity
- Clarity beats speed
- Thinking beats tools
AI doesn’t replace any of this.
But it can make the journey less lonely, less confusing, and more efficient.
Especially in the early stages.
Why I’m bringing AI into this conversation
Because the industry is already changing.
Ignoring AI today means:
- Slower learning
- More frustration when stuck
- Less confidence experimenting
Using AI consciously means:
- Faster understanding
- Better problem-solving habits
- More independence over time
And this applies from the very first day of learning programming.
Next article
One of the most common questions I’ve heard from beginners over the years is:
“Do I need to be good at math to learn programming?”
In the next post, I’ll break this down honestly — because the answer is very different from what most people expect.
If that question has ever crossed your mind, stay tuned.
And if you’re currently learning, I’d like to know:
What has been the hardest part so far?
Top comments (2)
Really helpful and beginner friendly article — thank you!
Hi ak0047, thank you for the feedback. This is something that I took sometime to understand and now with all this noise over the IT industry I think it can help people that are starting.