How to build “real world” full stack web development skills?
Somehow, you’ve been hearing a lot of “full stack web development” lately. Everyone seems to say it’ll boost your career and we couldn’t agree more. But you are now tired of all the drama that is going on in your head and want to do something about it. You want to start learning full stack skills. But there is a big question that is looming in front of you – Where do I start from? Well, we got your back. After you have identified what stack you want to go ahead with, it’s time you jump right in!
1. Sincerity and Patience
You are taking a big step, so shouldn’t you prep your mind first? I’ll sound like a grandma here – You won’t be able to accomplish anything if you don’t double down on it. Go right in. Immerse yourself. Get serious. It won’t work if you are not consistent and sincere with your efforts. “I don’t want to attend the class today”. Nope. Don’t let your mind trick you out of it. And that’s not all. Rome wasn’t built in a day. You’ll need time to build skills. You’ll need patience. When you are learning a new skill, you will never get it right the first time around (unless you are Einstein’s great grandchild). Might not even the second, or even the third. This is where your commitment and resilience is put to test. Don’t forget why you started learning the skill in the first place. So when you go through the dip, your “why” would give you the fuel to rise up again.
2. Learn basics in a format that suits you
You have the mental foundation ready, it’s time to dip your toes in the water. You would first need to learn the basics. Congratulations! You are lucky enough to be born in an age where there is an abundance of information. On everything. Everywhere. You just need to choose what suits you best.
If you are a person who is more comfortable with self paced learning, and prefer to do things on your own, you may check these out:
Free courses: Did anybody just say free!!? Yes! You may want to check out this course from Edureka to kick start your journey.
Paid courses: If you want to go for a more structured and a more vast learning, and are ready to cough up a few rupees, you can check these courses out, suited for different levels:
Beginner: Codecademy, LinkedIn Learning, Udemy
Intermediate: Udacity, Coursera
Advanced: Pluralsight
But if you are someone who prefers guidance and a more interactive learning experience, check out the Real world Enterprise Application Developer program from Vivanet.
READ covers all the technologies that are required to build, deploy and test an application from end to end, packaged under one roof. It focuses on experiential learning by providing its students live projects to work on. All of this is taken care of in a simulated corporate environment that uses Agile practices. The mentors aim at shaping you into a full fledged professional, equipped to impress your boss with your skills from Day 1. Sounds like a good deal, huh?
3. Build a project on your own
Whatever course you choose, it will give you all the ammunition you need to become a pro. But here’s the deal, you need to know how to use that ammunition. In the tech world, you do that by building projects. If you have heard of a cool project idea from your friends, or have one of your own in your mind, go ahead and build it. If you don’t know where to start, feel free to check this(link to next post) list of project ideas that we have collated. Do NOT skip this step. This is where the real learning happens. You will find yourself getting stuck a million times. And when that happens to you, remember these two things: (a) My grandma-like advice of patience (b) Returning to the next step of this post, which is to:
4. Finding a community that can help you grow
Golden rule for learning anything in life: When you are stuck, ask for help. If you are building your project along with your friends, great! Brainstorm together! If things are getting out of your hands, reach out to your teachers/mentors. But if it’s a really sneaky problem you have gotten into, there are loads of online communities where you can ask questions and get solutions, from people who’ve been there and have done that. Stack Overflow is a no brainer. Reddit is another favourite. Subreddits to check out: r/AskProgramming, r/LearnProgramming, and r/Coding.
5. Look for an internship
The best way to learn real world skills is to get into the real world! An internship gives you exactly that opportunity. For the uninitiated, an internship is a chance to work on a real project for an organization. If you’re lucky, you might even be working alongside a team that is already on it. While you may or may not get paid for it, the experience you gain from an internship is enormous. Your books or course may teach you all the theoretical stuff, an internship will give you a feel of how doing it in real life feels like. Not only will you become more skilful in your trade, but also gain a big exposure to what corporate culture feels like. It will expand your thinking. You will come in contact with people you will want to learn from, and you will find yourself growing immensely within that short period of your internship.
Nothing in this world seems “tough” once it is broken down into tiny, baby steps. Full stack development may sound like a big deal, but it really isn’t! Once you have taken the dive, and are consistent in your effort with your baby steps, one day you’ll suddenly find asking yourself – How did I even come this far? 🙂
Author: Simmipreet Kaur