1. Don't worry if you don't get something immediately. Unless you have an IQ of 250, then perfect, efficient, bug-free code will not spring from your fingertips on the first try. That's OK. Get something that kinda-sorta works - even if it's bad - then dial it in piece by piece.
2. Every programmer discovers topic they like and topics they don't like. These are different for everybody. It's hard to decide to spend time on things you don't like, but that's the only way you'll get good at them. Don't avoid hard things - plunge into them. It'll suck at first, but if you put in the effort it will almost always be worth it. Once you've developed a deep understanding of a topic you were dreading, it's not going to seem as hard to you as you thought it was.
3. Learn what it takes to get other people to understand your ideas. Calibrate the technical content to your audience's level. Always start by giving background & context. Ask your audience if what you're saying makes sense to them.
4. Differentiate yourself from the "full-stack" devs who have infested our industry like a plague of locusts. Understand how the machine works. Take an architecture class, take a compilers class, and learn at least one native/unmanaged language (preferably C).
2. Every programmer discovers topic they like and topics they don't like. These are different for everybody. It's hard to decide to spend time on things you don't like, but that's the only way you'll get good at them. Don't avoid hard things - plunge into them. It'll suck at first, but if you put in the effort it will almost always be worth it. Once you've developed a deep understanding of a topic you were dreading, it's not going to seem as hard to you as you thought it was.
3. Learn what it takes to get other people to understand your ideas. Calibrate the technical content to your audience's level. Always start by giving background & context. Ask your audience if what you're saying makes sense to them.
4. Differentiate yourself from the "full-stack" devs who have infested our industry like a plague of locusts. Understand how the machine works. Take an architecture class, take a compilers class, and learn at least one native/unmanaged language (preferably C).