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General Discussion

Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points
Posted by Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points

I feel overwhelmed.

Im really enjoying the courses so far, however there would appear to be SO much to earn and not all of it is making sense to me right now. The instructor tells me I'll pick it up later as we do more examples and I usually do, but it's really hard at times to grasp everything. I think, "oh man, this is just the design aspect. You'll still want to learn about the development side too, along with other programming languages." When I think of that I get so anxious! All of this coding is tough, and there's so much to learn. How do you all learn so much?

9 Answers

Calvin Nix
Calvin Nix
43,828 Points
Calvin Nix
Calvin Nix
43,828 Points

Hey Carson,

I know exactly how you are feeling. The best thing that you can do is once you feel you have a very basic understanding of how to make a website then you should apply your knowledge into a simple project. Nothing will help you learn more and solidify key concepts then actually working through the everyday problems that a web developer would work through. This will teach you to appreciate all the tools that are available to you as well.

Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points
Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points

Thank you for the advice, and you're right; practice makes perfect. I will practice some simple projects as simple projects are all I can handle for the time being!

:)

Ryno Botha
Ryno Botha
Courses Plus Student 4,055 Points
Ryno Botha
Ryno Botha
Courses Plus Student 4,055 Points

Just remember to save your Work or Practices xP So you can always go back to it if you forgot something.

Haha No one will remember all the work, you'll just have to understand the work and practice, there will be times where you forget some stuff, happens to all of us ^^ you'll just have to know where to look and find the answer.

So its important to save what ever you did and Studies, so you'll have everything you need x)

Simon Jensen
Simon Jensen
3,558 Points
Simon Jensen
Simon Jensen
3,558 Points

I have been in this field for 6 years now and i still only own design, html,css, php and mysql and some jquery. but then im really good at that.

so i think you should find out what you wanna learn and then be really good at that.

Later on when you get bored you can always learn a new languages.

To learn design you should go to dribbble.com find a nice design and then try to create the same in photoshop,Sketch or whatever you use to design with (remember only for practice) You will learn A LOT by this way.

but yea we all feel overwhelmed sometimes :)

Ian Hudson
Ian Hudson
13,457 Points
Ian Hudson
Ian Hudson
13,457 Points

Carson, I felt the same way as well. Check out the "Treehouse Show" that is constantly showing new tools to use. I bookmark the sites all the time and now have a large library to reference.

Wendell Pulsipher
Wendell Pulsipher
10,183 Points

same here.. my favorites bar is packed with web dev tools... everything from Foundation, Bootstrap, Screenfly and Wordpress to Jotform, my XAMPP directory, Nearlyfreespeech (hosting) and a JSminifier to docs for UA styles and a fair number of programming languages and frameworks, ASCII codes and hex color references and tons more... it's a whole universe to used to really.

Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points
Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points

I really enjoy reading your replies, that's another thing I love about treehouse; the community.

Joseph Groark
Joseph Groark
24,499 Points
Joseph Groark
Joseph Groark
24,499 Points

Carson, you don't need to be anxious, you're on a new journey in life, one that will take you to new places and new experiences. Don't fear learning it's a right of passage for all those who wish to expand their horizons. It can be a beautiful thing to stare at the mountain of knowledge that you still have to conquer, because when you get to the top you will take pride in how hard you worked to get there.

Keep going!

Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points
Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points

"It can be a beautiful thing to stare at the mountain of knowledge that you still have to conquer, because when you get to the top you will take pride in how hard you worked to get there."

Preach my friend! You're right. Thanks Joseph.

Graham Davidson
PLUS
Graham Davidson
Courses Plus Student 14,966 Points
Graham Davidson
Graham Davidson
Courses Plus Student 14,966 Points

Hi Carson - welcome to the club.

I have been doing this for years now and I know nothing most of the time - it is just one of the curses of web development. You will always find someone that knows more than you do. The only think I can suggest is be consistent in your approach do a little bit each day and you will see gains they may appear small at first but when you look back in months time you will be amazed at how far you have come.

G

Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points
Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points

Yeah consistency is key for sure. Thanks Graham.

Kenneth Love
STAFF
Kenneth Love
Treehouse Guest Teacher
Kenneth Love
Kenneth Love
Treehouse Guest Teacher

I've been a programmer for years. I'm one of the teachers here at Treehouse.

I still get overwhelmed by how much stuff is out there in the programming world.

Learn a little every day, repeat what you learned yesterday, explain the stuff you learned last week to someone else. You'll be comfortable with it all soon.

Calvin Nix
Calvin Nix
43,828 Points
Calvin Nix
Calvin Nix
43,828 Points

Hey Kenneth,

How's the Python course coming along?

Kenneth Love
Kenneth Love
Treehouse Guest Teacher
Kenneth Love
Kenneth Love
Treehouse Guest Teacher

Calvin Nix It's coming along. Lots to plan and create, as I'm sure you can imagine.

Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points
Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points

I am not worthy! It's good to know that this overwhelming feeling is normal, even for the more experienced coders. Thanks for your comment.

Wendell Pulsipher
Wendell Pulsipher
10,183 Points
Wendell Pulsipher
Wendell Pulsipher
10,183 Points

trust me Carson, it takes A TON of practice to get it all down. I've been doing web design and development almost daily for years and I'm still learning more every day. Be patient with yourself

Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points
Carson Clark
Carson Clark
2,159 Points

Thank you Wendell. It's awesome to hear all of this feedback, it's very re-assuring.

Ian Hudson
Ian Hudson
13,457 Points
Ian Hudson
Ian Hudson
13,457 Points

Carson,

I was remembering a Roadmap for Web Dev and Design I saw on Youtube. Check it out here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zXqs6X0lzKI

It's short (20 mins) but to the point and may help you on your path. :D This longtime WebDev/Designer recommends treehouse as well. Just keep swimming, Just keep swimming ...

Hope this helps,

Ian