The Passionate Programmer

I have just finished reading a very inspirational book The Passionate Programmer: Creating a Remarkable Career in Software Development by Chad Fowler. Geared towards programmers, it’s choke full of  simple, easy to read ideas that can be applied to help make-over a career.

Over the last couple of years, I have stalled in my career and have even contemplated jumping ship. However, after reading this book, I feel really energized and inspired. The idea of striving to continuously improve, learn and grow has been re-instilled in me and am stoked again!

I don’t want to give away all the great points in this book, but some of the things that I took away from it are:-

• Be the Worst – The people around you affect your own performance so seek those that are better than you so that you can challenge yourself.
• Practice, Practice, Practice – Make time to practice and make sure you don’t practice during your performance.
• Be Where You’re At – Be ambitious but don’t wear it on your sleeve. Focusing on the present allows you to enjoy the small victories of daily work life.

One of the things that I enjoyed and plan to incorporate is the ‘Act on It!’ section at the end of each chapter which challenges you to grow on the topic covered in that chapter. Programmer or Not, this is a book I would highly recommend to anyone looking to spruce up their career.