Book, Video, and Newsletter Recommendations to Help You Grow

Sep 24, 2023

This newsletter contains a lot of good recommendations. You wouldn’t want to miss out!

A book recommendation: Automate the Boring Stuff with Python
A video recommendation: These coding projects give you an unfair advantage
A newsletter recommendation: ByteByteGo
Finally, the only way to improve your skills

Book Recommendation: "Automate the Boring Stuff with Python" 🐍

[Link: https://automatetheboringstuff.com/#toc]

I previously recommended another book, Impractical Python Project, but I just found out it's part of a series (silly me). This one's even cooler! You can create practical computer automation that are actually useful. While I haven't started any projects from it yet, I'm planning to (very soon!).

There are even more books from this series that you can check out, such as:

Cover of Automate the Boring Stuff with Python

Video Recommendation: "These coding projects give you an unfair advantage" 🚀

[Link: These coding projects give you an unfair advantage]

I've watched a bunch of project idea videos, and this one stands out as the most helpful. These projects are challenging but incredibly useful in real life. I'm eyeing a Spotify Auto Download project (basically, it downloads songs from Spotify for me whenever I add a new one so I can listen to the songs offline)—super handy since I don't have Spotify Premium.

💼 And here's a tip I got from a Robinhood Software Engineer with an impressive background: Build projects that benefit society. Recruiters love that!

Newsletter Recommendation: ByteByteGo 📰

Among the newsletters I've subscribed to, ByteByteGo is a favorite. It delivers useful, informative content without being overly complex. For example, it includes helpful charts like this:

I'm keen on reading more news. If anyone wants to join in for added motivation, ping me! 👓📣

The Only Way to Improve: Do it every day 🔄

The key to improvement is practice. Even during the summer, when I didn't go all-out, I learned more than I am now. School's got me juggling various unrelated classes, clubs, part-time work, assignments, and paperwork, leaving less time for self-study.

In fact, I've tracked my last month, and here's what I've noticed: I've spent too little time on programming, with more time going to "HW" and "Other" stuff.

🚫 I need to change that. Stagnation isn't good.

I'd like to recommend another YouTube video: How To Code Everyday

📆 TL;DW: Create a project list with time estimates. That way, even with just 30 minutes or an hour, you'll know what's doable. As you build more projects, momentum will make it easier.

WHAT’S NEXT?

That's it for this edition of the coding newsletter! I'd love to hear from you. What topics excite you the most? Do you have any recommended resources or papers for my learning journey? Share your thoughts, experiences, and questions on anything I’ve discussed. Let's keep the conversation going and connect with each other.

Happy coding!

From Bytes of Growth 🌱