I wanted to share a story about success with you today. Grab a coffee, settle in and enjoy the read.
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Over the past few months my son has really taken to the Pokemon Trading Card Game and seeing as I used to enjoy it as a kid, I figured I'd teach him how to really play it (not just stare at the cards).
In our first game, after letting him decide which decks we were each to play with, I proceeded to trounce him. Surprisingly he took it quite well, then proceeded to demand a rematch.
A day or so later, I beat him again - this time, he got frustrated and a little upset.
My win streak continued for a few weeks, as did the frustration and tears on his end.
Fast forward to this past weekend and things shook up a little. The game with him was quite challenging and in the end, he destroyed me!
As I celebrated and did a happy dance with him, I realised how proud I was.
Here was a kid that tried and lost, time and time again, slowly building up his experience with every loss. Yes it was emotionally difficult for him (he's not even 10!), yes he complained and yes he vowed never to play again every time. Once he pushed through the sting of defeat though, he always got back up and tried again.
He didn't even know he was displaying one of the fundamental behaviours of success.
His persistence and determination got him that win. It was a product of everything he'd learned from every prior defeat.
There's another thing this experience highlighted though. When he spoke about his win to my wife and anyone else that'd listen, he only ever mentioned the win. The amount of effort, through losing and trying again, was never discussed by anyone - certainly not him.
The win was just the tip of the iceberg. Below the surface there was a mountain made of every failed attempt. His success was not just "pure luck".
You can probably guess where I'm going with this by now. Both of these points are ring true when we talk about our career and Python journey.
Your successes with Python don't happen overnight. You don't master anything in one sitting. You practice, you push code, you seek criticism by code review and you try again. The countless nights scratching your head over code that isn't working as expected. These are the experiences that build your mountain.
Your working application on the other end, your promotion at work, your new job, your open source project - these are the tip of the iceberg for you.
So here's the message: if you're finding things frustrating while you work toward your Python and Career goals, just remember that your efforts are building your foundation. You're climbing that mountain one step at a time. Be persistent, be determined and you'll find your success.
If you need that extra push, it's time to come and talk with us so we can help you climb your mountain.
P.S.: Never forget - Persistence, Determination and a whole lot of failed attempts are the foundation of success. If you want to get there faster, come talk with us. https://pybit.es/talk