Hey Pythonista,

Happy Friday! Here are 10 developer mindset lessons or wins from people following the Pybites Approach ™

We have you drop the tutorials (safe zone) and build from day 1. Dabrien went from no coding knowledge to shipping a command line program in mere weeks. Focused learning + practical application is everything.

Completing projects start to finish rekindles interest in software development and boosts confidence.  These tangible achievements are crucial for career advancement and self-assurance.

The ability to learn and apply new technologies and skills quickly is paramount. The space is moving very fast: just look at how AI tools are changing the way we work. Our approach makes you more efficient at learning new tools and frameworks to stay relevant and solve problems more effectively.

Do you ever feel you're stuck or moving without any clear direction towards your next career opportunity? Guidance on career and goal setting is critical. You're not going to get very far if the ladder is leaning against the wrong wall. But sometimes we're not even aware this is happening until we speak with a mentor.

The importance of community support, networking, and camaraderie is one of the things that people appreciate the most. You're not alone! Being part of a supportive learning environment significantly enhances the learning experience and combats imposter syndrome, staying motivated. Also, the networking part has been critical both in my and Julian's career. You have to proactively reach out to people. "Build it and they'll come" does not happen unfortunately!

One pivotal moment as an intermediate developer for me was getting code feedback through reviews by more experienced developers (listen here). And people working with us have expressed the enormous benefits of mentorship and collaborative learning, because of the direct feedback, accountability, and insights gained from our experienced team. This highlights the advantage of learning from others' experiences and approaches to problem-solving. There are no shortcuts, but there surely are "smartcuts".

Mentioned before but needs a separate bullet! This is one of the biggest problems in software development and to make it worse, not many people talk about it (we do! Check out our podcast).

People we work with talk about overcoming imposter syndrome and building self-confidence through our coaching. This points to the importance of positive reinforcement, practical successes, and again, having a supportive community to combat feelings of inadequacy.

The focus on developing Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) and practical applications showcases the importance of applying theoretical knowledge to real-world projects. This hands-on experience is crucial for really understanding the full lifecycle of software development and for job readiness (it's much more than Python syntax only!)

Let's be honest, as developers, we can get a bit itchy about anything that borders marketing or selling oneself. But it's critical. There are many good developers out there, and you are one too. The thing is, if you don't put your work out there, nobody will know!

We encourage people we work with to start blogging and engaging on social media a.k.a. "building an online presence / build a personal brand". This will enhance visibility, open new opportunities, and establish credibility in the field. Pybites started as a blog and by putting a lot of content out (and having the willingness to be vulnerable along the way), these things all became true for us. But we had to hit "publish" soon and do it often.

Kind of mentioned before but let's wrap it up with one of the main struggles programmers have. This has been identified by us talking with hundreds of (aspiring) developers.

Moving beyond endless tutorials to building actual projects is one of the biggest wins people achieve with us. Helping people APPLY what they've learned in a structured way and breaking the cycle of passive learning is what sets us apart. This transition from passive to active learning is critical for deepening understanding and skill mastery, or as Daniel said: "At the end of the day, what raises you as a coder is not the tutorials, that hold your hands throughout the whole way, but the ones that let go of your hands when they know you can stand on your feet, albeit it's very difficult sometimes."

These 10 lessons underscore the nuanced nature of developing a successful developer mindset that we as Pybites have developed, distilled and packaged over the years. But everybody's journey is different, so if the above resonates with you, there are a couple of ways to take the next important step on your journey:

1. Book us in for a quick call to talk about your goals. First and foremost, we want to get to know you and learn about your goals and where you get stuck, so we can better help you.

2. If you want to check out our coaching options, go to pybit.es

3. You liked what you read but you'd like to learn more, especially on the mindset side. Check out our podcast: https://www.pybitespodcast.com/

4. You'd like to hear more from the people themselves that have worked with us. You can read / watch more here: https://pybitesdevelopermindset.com/testimonials

5. You want to engage with them and us in our friendly and supportive community, join here: https://pybites.circle.so/

Here's to continued growth in 2024! 📈

Bob & Julian