How not to lose your mind as a Junior Front End Developer
Hello!
I am Peter, a junior developer at a web agency with a focus on front end. Today, I would like to share my experiences as a junior and the ways to keep motivation high. When I started one year ago, I wish I had read an article on the same topic. I hope it is interesting for everyone, from "I have no clue what I am doing" to "I can write code blindfolded"... Let's go!
No comparison
First-semester students tend to compare themselves to their younger – or same-aged – colleagues who are already more productive and knowledgeable. This is almost THE most pointless thing you can do. A much better way is to observe your own progress and compare yourself only to the person you were the day before. If you find that you can now do something that would have been unthinkable before, it means you have grown and can be proud of yourself.
No distraction
How often does it happen that you actually just want to learn Grids, but then open a new Youtube course about Gulp and notice that there is a tweet about a new JavaScript library? Tabs are suddenly open: PHP basics, Ruby on Rails tutorial, new React course, ...
Ultimately, we are left with someone who has a superficial understanding of the subject matter and is unable to provide tangible outcomes.
A detailed study plan would be the best solution. You don't have to completely isolate yourself from the outside world, but just be careful where your attention falls.
Normally, the plan looks like this: A high-quality, adaptive layout is key, as is a thorough understanding of ES2015 theory. A working knowledge of jQuery and one or two popular frameworks will also be beneficial. Keep up with the latest trends and learn the newest JavaScript frameworks to stay ahead of the curve.
Be ready to make A LOT of mistakes!
You will make a lot of mistakes. Recently, I ruined a repository where a week-long team work was saved. Imagine how "lucky" I was. Fortunately, my colleagues were able to restore it effortlessly.
The best thing to do when you have a problem:
- Don't hush up anything. Tell your co-workers that you made a mistake and provide as many details as possible, especially what you did and how you did it. Everyone makes mistakes, there are no exceptions to this rule.
- Learn a solution in detail. Replicate the problem and solution in a test environment. Remember, there is no shame in making a mistake, but there is shame in not learning from the mistake.
- Explain the problem, for example in the form of a blog post. That way you will remember the case better yourself and possibly save someone else's job with the same problem.
No panic
Again, keep calm, relax. All good developers I know are calm like zen masters. Deadlines, problems, difficult mistakes or voluntary night shifts are inevitable. Panicking about things like this only distracts and doesn't allow for clear decisions.
Learning from others
You wrote several lines of code and created a beautiful website. One would like to print out the code, frame it and hang it on the wall, one is so proud. Then some lead developer comes along and reworks the entire code – great. But instead of getting angry, it makes more sense to be thankful. At least someone took the time to check out all your mental outpourings. Read the comments carefully and make sure you fully understand everything. If necessary, don't hesitate to ask the Lead Dev to clear your doubts and explain the solution. Don't be shy about voicing your own concerns and ideas: this way you'll share your thinking and you'll even come up with possible sources of error together. And if all planets are in line you can even prove that you were actually right ;)
Daily tasks
It is always good to plan your daily tasks in advance. If you then achieve your goals, you will feel good – this also creates self-confidence. Choose tasks that are solvable – but not too easy – and at the end of the day you will no longer be angry that you have "accomplished nothing". If you do nothing outside of work, your learning progress will slow down considerably. Stay on the ball, otherwise you will fall behind – best practices of yesterday are already outdated today.
The pet-project
Working on something unrelated to your job can be beneficial: whether it's a blog, plugin, open-source project, or game. Allocating only a limited amount of time for it can actually increase creativity and productivity due to the limited resources. Plus, you gain experience and knowledge while working on something you're passionate about.
Make (much) small out of big
It is not realistic to expect that you will learn a new framework within the course of a day. It is similarly unreasonable to believe that one could become an excellent programmer within the month – overworking often leads to burnout. The best way to become an expert is through routine; day in and day out, week after week, without extended breaks, working towards a goal. This is the most effective method that I have discovered. Break down a large task into manageable chunks and devote your time to each section successively.
Time is money
Do not waste time or resources on something that will not yield results. If you are struggling with a task, stop spending evenings trying to find a way to do it yourself. You likely do not have the skills required to solve problems that even Google cannot answer. Set a time limit—mine is two hours—and if you cannot find a solution within that timeframe, ask a coworker or friend for advice. If you do not understand something, either ask for clarification or seek help from someone else. Repeat this process until the task is completed.
The thing with sleep
The most likely well-known and at the same time least appreciated advice people receive is simply to get enough sleep. A 2-hour sleep zombie who only functions with several hits of the coffee bat will not accomplish much throughout the day. Two hours before bed, turn off all devices and then avoid screen time as much as possible. Go for a walk, workout - whatever, just don't sit in front of the computer. If you're not careful, you'll catch yourself just watching four hours of meaningless YouTube videos, or scrolling through newsfeeds for ages. This is not efficient and ultimately only deprives you of healthy sleep. I haven't had any grandiose ideas while watching Fail Clip No. 271 at one in the morning yet.
“But why?"
Most experts cannot even say why they use a certain function or library. They just know that the code wouldn't work otherwise. It sounds simpler than it is, but try to avoid quick, superficial solutions. Go deeper and answer the "why" question. The market is full of programmers who can't explain solutions to simple tasks.
Learning another language
Languages are everything. You don't want to learn? Well, that's your decision. Some other junior developer with better language skills will probably get the next project instead of you.
Thank you for reading! I hope my thoughts on this topic can help you at least a little on your way.
