Why have I put coding at the top of this list? Because it’s the most difficult and, at the same time, its central piece of programming. By doing coding, you also realize your mistakes in designing, error handling, threading, and then go back to those respective skills to improve. You just can not work in designing only; coding produces output, which is vital to learn and act as a success.
By the way, do not stop just after solving the problem, it’s always better to throw away your first solution, that is just a prototype, your next solution should address issues, missing requirements that you have found building a prototype.
good programmer spend time and effort in making their code clear. for making clear the code you can read the book "clean code" writed by Robert C . Martin
I thought of putting that as the second item, but it ended up third. In my opinion, this is the most critical of things to do to become a better programmer. Most of the good programmers I have seen and met are really good in data structures, algorithms, and Computer Science basics.
By learning these things, you take better advantage of what is available. Since data structure is a key piece of any program, solid knowledge of them helps during problem-solving.
Similarly, knowledge of key programming principles, search and sorting algorithms, and other well-known algorithms develop programming skills for you.
Contributing to the Open source code, especially from Apache, Google, and some other projects is another way to improve your programming skills and become a better programmer. Just signing their mailing list and the following discussion teaches you a lot.
Since most of the discussions happen between good programmers, listening to them and understanding the problem and their approach, solution, and view automatically develops good programming habits.
To get most of it, do not just sit passive, ask questions, offer your view, but also value others. If you are wondering how to start with open source contribution, then here are some nice articles from Medium to learn about open source contribution
Look at the code of open source projects, your fellow programmer’s code, your existing proprietary code, code from Java SDK, and try to understand how they work; try to see what they are doing and why they are doing it.
Find patterns, develop navigation skills; initially, you will find it boring and difficult, but with time you will develop a good code sense, which will alert you when you make a mistake, help you spot others’ mistakes, gaps, and code smell.
This Code sense is one of the signs of a better programmer, they often tend to look, at what you missed.
Working on personal programming projects has many advantages. For one, it gives you a way to learn tools and technologies that aren’t available at your current job, but which make you more marketable for the next one. Whether you contribute to an open source project or take on pro-bono work for a local community organization, you’ll gain tech skills and self-confidence. (Plus, your personal projects demonstrate to would-be employers that you’re a self-starter who never stops learning.)
Another advantage of writing code for fun is that it forces you to figure things out on your own. You can’t leave the hard stuff to someone else, so it keeps you from asking for help too soon.
Pro tip: Don’t choose only personal projects where you never fail. You need to fail! But you do probably don’t want to fail at work or when you have a deadline.
This is another form of activity which helps you to revise knowledge. By sharing knowledge, the first person who benefits is the one who shares. Since programming is vast, you tend to forget most things you don’t use for more than three months.
Participating in StackOverflow and, answering others’ queries, commenting on blogs and forums is a nice little way to revise knowledge and correct your misconception.
By putting our knowledge in front of others, we help others and put them to the test. Many times you will see someone benefiting from your knowledge, but also you are getting your misconception corrected.
No matter how good you are at actually writing code, your ability to communicate with other people will have a large impact on your career. To succeed at programming, you have to be able to present your ideas clearly and collaborate with coworkers and clients. Writing, speaking, and advocating for yourself are all necessary to advance your career.
Although the fundamental paradigms stay the same, the field of programming is constantly moving. New languages, technologies, and platforms pop up every year. To stay relevant, you have to stay on top of new developments. Otherwise, you’re pigeonholing yourself into outdated concepts and technologies.
Getting really good at programming is anything but easy. However, with a growth mindset, lots of practice, and a willingness to accept mistakes, anyone can take their programming skills to the next level. We looked at specific ways that amazing coders distinguish themselves from their competitors, but the general themes of mindset and experience will help anyone, regardless of skill level, improve their coding abilities.
To improve at most skills, you have to put in the reps. If you’re not coding regularly—say, each day or every other day—you won’t improve very fast. Learning programming has some elements in common with learning a musical instrument and others in common with writing prose. Getting good at programming takes dedication, perseverance, and repetition. Sometimes, you have to work on the same skill again and again to make it muscle memory. Studying the work of great programmers, like playing the work of great composers or reading the work of great authors, is also useful. Overall, programming is no different from learning any other skill. You must write a lot of code frequently, but you must also explore and understand the work of others.
https://stackoverflow.com/ https://github.com/ https://www.reddit.com/ https://dev.to/ https://www.codementor.io/community https://www.freecodecamp.org/ https://hashnode.com/