It’s the last episode! I’m sharing the biggest lessons I wish I knew when I first started learning to code, and also what’s still to come on the Start Over Coder journey.My Parting Advice1. Set a clear goal from the beginning2. Build actual

074: Ask Me Anything

Jan 18th, 2021 24m 6s

In this episode I’m answering listener questions…ask me anything! The questions I answer in this episode are:What kind of laptop to you use? —EllenWhat was the coding school that rejected you in episode 48? —KarlDo you think you’d ever

073: Discoveries! Chingu & uMatrix

Jan 17th, 2021 18m 40s

This week I’m sharing 2 more awesome resources for learning to code.ChinguChingu is a learning community that gets you working on a dev team no matter what skill level you’re at. How it works:Apply to join a team. Skill levels range from H

072: CS50 Course Review & Wrapping Up My Node/Express App

Jan 16th, 2021 25m 29s

In this episode I’m wrapping up a few loose ends: the final report on my first from-scratch Node application, and a course review of Harvard’s CS50: Intro to Computer Science.NOTE: The CS50 course review starts about 9 minutes in!Node/Expres

071: First Freelance Work

Jan 15th, 2021 14m 44s

Since setting a goal at the beginning of the year, I’ve made 3 attempts to get my first paid developer work. These are the big takeaways and things I’ve learned:Know when to not accept a project, even if you’re just trying to get a foot in t

070: Real Life Dev Meeting

Jan 14th, 2021 15m 4s

This week I sat in on a status meeting with a developer team in my company. Pretty cool to see what it’s actually like to work as a developer (well, get a glimpse at least!)!I was really glad to have had access to this experience without much

069: Working The Command Line

Jan 13th, 2021 16m 56s

The command line is a basic necessity for any developer and I’ve gotten fairly comfortable with it since I started learning how to code. Not sure what I’m talking about? Think back to any movie/tv show with a hacker hacking away into that black

068: Post-Conference Review

Jan 12th, 2021 12m 9s

I’m back from last week’s conference! How did I do with the goals I set out before going? Pretty well! Plus gained some tips for future conferences.Show Links:Episode 67 - Pre-Conference PrepCodeland talk links coming soon!Junior Devel

067: Pre-Conference Prep

Jan 11th, 2021 15m 6s

I’m heading to a coding conference in a few days! And unlike some past events I’ve been to, this time I’m doing a bit of preparatory thinking/planning to help me make the most out of attending. I’ve set 3 goals I’d like to accomplish during the

066: Documenting The Process

Jan 10th, 2021 19m 22s

I was getting set to record a second ‘stumbling block’ episode when I went back to the podcast episodes I recorded last year when I first had these difficulties, and instead was reminded of the things I found helpful at that time to get out of

065: New Computer, New Dev Setup

Jan 9th, 2021 15m 21s

There’s a lot involved to get up and running with a new dev environment—it can be pretty troublesome in fact! After working on one machine for a while, it’s easy to forget (or take for granted) all of the software and helper tools you’ve instal

064: Discoveries! Financial Toolbelt & Second Career Devs Podcast

Jan 8th, 2021 11m 40s

It’s another pair of discoveries this week! The website Financial Toolbelt has some great calculators if you want to start getting to know your personal finances. And the Second Career Devs podcast is a must for any and all Start Over Coders!S

063: Intros Intros Everywhere!

Jan 7th, 2021 15m 52s

Introduction overload! There are plenty of good introductory workshops, blog posts, and articles out there. But is it too much of a good thing? Recently I’ve felt like the sheer number of articles and events have been taking away from my effort

062: Prototyping with Figma

Jan 6th, 2021 13m 27s

Figma is a great prototyping tool I’ve been experimenting with this week. It’s a software tool available for Mac or PC, and they also have a great web interface that allows you to collaborate on designs live (!) with other people.I’ve been usi

061: React First Impressions

Jan 5th, 2021 15m 18s

This week’s episode it about my first attempts at learning the React framework…it was a mixed bag but here are my first impressions:Bottom line: I don’t think I’ve hit the pain points yet that React can solve. Also, using React requires a pret

060: It Doesn’t Actually Have To Take This Long!

Jan 4th, 2021 18m 33s

It’s been a year since I started this podcast! But I’m still not earning money as a developer. Does it really have to take over a year to learn enough to become a working programmer?Short answer: no, I really don’t think so!But for me, a few

059: How I FI - Day To Day Details & Top 10 Action Points

Jan 3rd, 2021 32m 45s

It’s the last episode (for now!) in the How I FI series and today I’m talking about my top 10 actions for getting myself to financial independence. To recap:Know my expenses.Know my net worth.Have zero debt.Keep an emergency fund.

058: How I FI - Learning The Basics

Jan 2nd, 2021 20m 35s

Continuing on with a favorite topic of mine—financial independence! In last week's episode I shared a bit about what my mindset around personal finances was before I discovered the concept of FI. Tl;dr: the more I earned, the more I spent, and

057: How I FI - The Starting Point

Jan 1st, 2021 15m 41s

Let’s talk about financial independence!Up until now I’ve shied away from talking about the FI side of this Start Over Coder project. I’ve made so many wrong moves with my own money that it’s like, who am I to talk about the subject with any k

056: Planning A New Website Project

Dec 31st, 2020 22m 4s

For any new web project, taking the time to PLAN before you CODE is key! Here are some key questions I asked myself before I started coding the new Start Over Coder website. It came down to 7 key questions, which I discuss in this episode.Thi

055: CSS Grid Is Awesome!!!

Dec 30th, 2020 14m 58s

Verdict on CSS Grid…it is awesome! This episode is about what I learned after digging in to the syntax and how you can learn it as well.CSS Grid is a new display method that is part of the native CSS3 syntax, and is supported in the majority o

054: Don’t Wait Like Me!—Get Recruitment Ready

Dec 29th, 2020 16m 4s

Whether you’re actively looking for a job or not, you should be recruitment ready! I learned that the hard way this week. This episode is about what I wish I’d done ahead of time.What is recruitment ready?Up-to-date CV/resumé that is writte

053: Pair Programming

Dec 28th, 2020 16m 58s

Pair programming is a productive way to write code with other people, and often used as an interview tool as well. I’ve been incorporating pairing into my study plan recently, and here’s what I learned!What is pair programming? It’s two people

052: Relational Databases Intro

Dec 27th, 2020 14m 11s

Working with data is one of the most important aspects of development. This week I got an intro to relational databases, and here’s what I learned.As we all know, a database is where we store data…what makes it relational is the method we use

051: Static Site Generators - Best Bet For A Low-Maintenance Website

Dec 26th, 2020 17m 1s

They say every professional coder should have a portfolio available for potential clients and employers to review. Here’s a low-maintenance, inexpensive (or free!) way to do it.The simplest and least expensive way to host a website is to creat