Self-Taught Developer Journal, Day 35: Reflection
Tags: webdev, beginners, devjournal, codenewbie
Published: 2022-01-10 05:03:42

Today, I thought it would be nice reflect on the progress I've made on my Self-Taught Developer Journey.

On November 19, 2021, I made a post describing the path I would take to become a [Self-Taught Developer](https://dev.to/jennifer_tieu/starting-my-self-taught-developer-journey-2dga). I haven't revisited my post since I made it and it was interesting re-reading it. I could recall the uncertainty and excitement I felt at the time.

## Updates
In the beginning of my post, I mentioned I was taking CS50 which I ended up dropping instead for The Odin Project to focus on web development. I’m still going strong on Twitter with day 72 of #100DaysOfCode. 

I am still reading The C Programming Language, 2nd Edition by Brian W. Kernighan, Dennis M. Ritchie, but I decided to put it aside for now since I'm studying JavaScript. It’s difficult to learn two languages at the same time.

I did have a “crash course” on HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. I'm really glad I took this approach. I've accepted I won't be able to know everything and it's not worth getting caught up with the small details. I will have knowledge gaps and I will try my best to fill them in at a later time. I'll tackle the problems as I go and learn from them. First, I need to get the basics down first.

I haven't had a chance to build any projects yet, but my hope is to start soon. 

I still haven't determined what kind of developer I want to be, but I am enjoying front-end a lot. It involves aspects I enjoy like design and being able to create something visually interactive. As a GIS Technician, I’ve made maps which have helped people make informed decisions in a visual way. Therefore, I feel like the elements that I liked about GIS translate into front-end development and I think it’s why I am enjoying it more. Regardless, I do want to try back-end and see how I like it too.

## What I've learned
Writing every time I was studying and trying to conceptualize topics was a challenge. I wouldn’t say the quality was for each post was consistent either. I can tell that some of my posts were from days where I had less motivation vs others. However, I am happy that I still put something down despite how I was feeling that day. I think it’s a very realistic depiction of how learning is, you have your good days and bad days. 

I learned that like with life, everyone experiences it differently. So,
like becoming a developer, everyone's journey will never be the exactly same as yours so don’t stress about if what you’re doing is right or wrong. Do what works best for you and have fun with it. 

## The future and closing thoughts
I didn’t have a end goal in mind when I started writing this series. I realized I won’t ever stop learning, but I don’t think I’ll continue writing this forever. Although, I’ve gotten into a habit of making a post when I study for #100DaysOfCode… Maybe I’ll stop when I finish #100DaysOfCode? But something I did enjoy a lot was talking through assignments and projects so I think that’s something I would continue after this. It’s very helpful to walk through my thought process and write it down so that might be something I try. I guess we shall see.