Welcome to the Treehouse Community

Want to collaborate on code errors? Have bugs you need feedback on? Looking for an extra set of eyes on your latest project? Get support with fellow developers, designers, and programmers of all backgrounds and skill levels here with the Treehouse Community! While you're at it, check out some resources Treehouse students have shared here.

Looking to learn something new?

Treehouse offers a seven day free trial for new students. Get access to thousands of hours of content and join thousands of Treehouse students and alumni in the community today.

Start your free trial

General Discussion

Not sure coding is for me

I am really struggling with motivation and I am not sure coding is for me. My ultimate goal was to become a front end web developer but I feel like there is so much to learn and this also is a field where things change fast.

I really want a job in tech but not sure coding is for me but what are my options.

I can't go back to college because I can't get financial aid and I doing this to find a stable job I enjoy., I don't know if I can afford to take a course somewhere else either. Treehouse is the up most affordable I have found.

I have thought about ux design and qa but dont have money for the course right now. I am not sure what to do,

just looking for options.

I love design and basic coding is ok but not sure how far I can go with this.

What career options do I have in tech with no degree and dont need coding skills or very minimal coding skills?

I like writing as well but need to brush up pn my writing skills and just not sure where ot start.

Any advice is appreciated.

I also suffer from bipolar disorder/depression and that could be part of the motivation issues .

6 Answers

Do you not like coding itself, or does the thought of how long it might take to become proficient make you discouraged? If it is time, I would say that the time will pass anyway, and I would definitely spend it learning. Whether it is coding or not. Maybe you might like Illustrator or photoshop? Maybe even something like Maya? If you don't like coding I would take a look at the "Design" section in the library. Don't give up!

It is more the length of time it takes to learn. I am in a bad spot financially as well so there is a lot of pressure to learn.

Have you looked into learning digital marketing? Maybe that would be more up your alley.

No havent really looked into it

Matthew Stanley
Matthew Stanley
1,071 Points

Looking at your profile, I notice that you've just scratched the surface since you came back in December. I'm not very deep in yet either, but I can tell you that the coding will be much more fun once you continue. Even little things like making a link turn red when you hover over it can be cool. Feeling that ability to change the digital world around you. If you're not already enrolled in a track, I'd sign up for the Front-End Development track. Don't try - do put in at least 15 to 30 minutes per day. It will begin to make more sense, and you won't even have to think about which attribute you need to use to change an element's appearance.

If, after a few weeks, you can't stand the thought of opening a fresh HTML doc and breathing life into a website, try something like Illustrator or Brand Identity Basics. Explore a bit.

Think of it like this. In one year, you could say that you found a tech-centric skill, pushed through the growing pains, and worked hard to earn a fulfilling career. Or you could be asking that nice lady whether she prefers paper or plastic bags. Nothing worth doing was ever easy. The choice is yours.

Andres Aguero
Andres Aguero
30,545 Points

You can do it! I know I had a lot of discouragement in the past, but I am now proud to call my self a web designer. Just think like this, if you want to be an expert in any field of study - you follow the experts who have already done it. Giving yourself little wins is also good too. Reaching out to family members who need websites is a good way to gain confidence. Also, reach out to nonprofit organizations to see if they need a revamp of their site. 9/10 chance is that they will want the help. Good luck!

I resonate with your sentiments that there is so much to learn and things change fast. But if you approach learning like a developer would approach a complex problem (i.e. break it up into smaller chunks), that feeling of being overwhelmed will start to subside.

Also, there are so many flavors of coding out there. You don't have to be everything to everyone. Maybe you will find that you really like the CSS side of things and can turn PSDs into pixel perfect layouts. Maybe you gravitate towards a specific JavaScript library and love creating interactive elements on websites. There are so many different directions you can go. My advice is just to work on little things each day and keep moving forward. Learn something new every day. It doesn't matter how small.

If after a while you still feel like coding definitely isn't your thing but you really want to be in tech, maybe the design or marketing side of things will be more up your alley. Warning though: Any time you are learning new technology or methodologies, you're ALWAYS going to hit that point where it feels overwhelming. It gets hard, but you need to power through. Based on your current point total in Treehouse, you might be at that point where you need to power through.

Like Andres said, you can do it!

Thanks all for your comments very motivating