January flew away and yet it felt the longest. Nothing got done this month. But I’m glad the overwhelming feeling I had in the beginning of this month has subsided. I’ve put up a plan, and this the outline.
Here’s my Goals for 2024:
1. Explore and learn more programming languages
Recently I started learning Golang. Although this is not my first language, I’m still struggling and learning things slowly. I only know Javascript(the hacky way!).
Mainly following 3 resources:
- Gophercises: a project based learning
- Learn go with TDD
- GoByExample
2. Building projects for maximum learning
I’ve rarely finished any personal projects. And part of the reason was always that they were easy. Same CRUD app with react, node and mongodb. After sometimes, it gets repetitive and boring.
So, my rule for building project this year is:
- Build something you have never build and have no idea how to.
- Build something with something(might be a new programming language) you don’t know.
3. Exploring a technology/domain in depth
I’m highly interested in learning how internet works and what goes under the hood. So I bought a very interesting book on Computer Networking. CN: A Top Down approach. It’s a heavy textbook and will probably take me more than a year to finish it.
4. Reading books on Software Development
My understanding is this: while nothing beats the experience, you will not always be in an environment where your experience is adding up to anything. Books give you the ability to pick the people from whom you want to learn. There’s no comprise. So, pick the best books from domain experts and read regularly.
5. Networking
It’s not obvious to me how to network with people but this year I would at least make an attempt to grow my circle beyond a dozen I know.
6. Exercise and staying active
7. Having a life outside of tech!
- Engaging in more primal activities(basking in the sunlight, touching grass, smelling flowers…)
- Building meaningful relationships
- Travelling more often
- Finding new hobbies
