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Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

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Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#251

Post by doom2 »

I want to learn two languages in 2026:

* CW (also known as Morse code) - I'm not able to have an amateur radio station at home, so I have to work portable/QRP. Given current band conditions, CW is one easy option to make contacts

* Learn a "low level" programming language, likely C - I never had any kind of formal CS education and kind of fell into the field, initially doing web development and then data engineering. Most of my career has been dominated by Python with a smattering of Java and Scala. Maybe this year will be the year I learn something a little lower down the stack!

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#252

Post by gregsadetsky »

Embroidery!

I'd love to develop an art/tech practice and make custom embroidery pieces, maybe even daily - ie make up some words for a new t-shirt or hat every day?

Speaking of, I also learned during my initial research into this world that a lot of embroidery software seems... expensive/not competitive/a bit arcane? So I'm wondering if I'll get into all of this and start writing & releasing open source software..? Time will tell!

If anyone has played around with entry-level (or pro) machines, and has tips/tricks, I'd be super grateful! Thanks. I'm considering an entry level Brother SE700.

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#253

Post by fainpul »

boricj wrote: post #78

I want to draw again. I used to, when I was in a classroom or at a bar. Actually managed to get quite good at it through sheer boredom in grande école . Then life happened and that faded away, alongside my mental health. Recently I've rediscovered doodling while attending ACM CCS 2025 as an independent (long story) and I want to improve my mental health in 2026, to the point where I can draw regularly again.

For anybody who wants to get better at drawing, this is a classic:

https://drawabox.com/lesson/0

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#254

Post by jbeninger »

pdimitar wrote: post #182

- MANDATORY: Re-learn focus. I will not self-diagnose but I exhibit ADHD symptoms and I started actively fighting them back (they mostly come from the phone). I am not going to just deny myself access to apps on schedule -- my brain never clicked schedule, not even once in my life -- but through a persistent and sustainable self-change from deep within. It's slow but it's beginning to work. - MANDATORY: Get more inti…

I do a lot of local dev using docker. I've taken to adding an image just for agents and using that to make modifications. Agents can install or run anything they need without touching my actual machine. I can also limit what they can read and write.

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#256

Post by exasperaited »

computerfriend wrote: post #25
swgeek wrote: post #5

I want to, no, need to improve my ability to focus on the task at hand. Other than that near-universal constant, I want to try being a bit of a jack of many trades this year: learn full-stack, practice vibe coding, basics of graphics programming (update to the latest ways) I understand that means master of none, but this is a play around year for me. In theory AI should make it easier to try new things, we shall see…

Talk to a psychiatrist about ADHD.

Indeed.

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#257

Post by dannyfreeman »

pdimitar wrote: post #182

- MANDATORY: Re-learn focus. I will not self-diagnose but I exhibit ADHD symptoms and I started actively fighting them back (they mostly come from the phone). I am not going to just deny myself access to apps on schedule -- my brain never clicked schedule, not even once in my life -- but through a persistent and sustainable self-change from deep within. It's slow but it's beginning to work. - MANDATORY: Get more inti…

I hope you find that your first and last goals "re-learn focus" and "prioritize body" feed into each other nicely. I worked a lot at my ability to focus on tasks (not just work, but in general) this year, and starting an exercise routine really helped me out a lot. Strength work is a time for me to not be on the phone or computer. Having that time to be in my own head and just think about stuff I find helps sharpen my mind for the rest of the day. Good look!

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#258

Post by Maciek416 »

bapo wrote: post #215

- Art of Bonsai: We are inheriting about 50-100 bonsai plants from father. All my life I’ve been wondering how he’s been caring for them, but never gave a chance to actually learn from him. He is not doing well and we don’t know how many years he has left. That’s why 2026 will be the year of finally learning the craft from him, taking time to acquire his techniques and in general just spend more time with him.

There are one or two nice people from Switzerland (assuming you are there, just guessing from comments) on bonsainut if you are looking for local resources and helpful people. A decent-sized collection like that is a real testament to unbroken continuity (especially during the growing season where you can't skip a day or even a few hours sometimes), other hobbyists can help you fill the gap when situations come up. Stop by the r/bonsai beginners thread any time if you wanna talk trees!

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#259

Post by digitalsushi »

This is a new years resolution question barely in disguise, but they're fun cause a lot of us are cooped up, barely 4 days into winter, 86ish to go, and we're champing at the bit for change.

I am pretty sure I'm a 50th percentiler. I'm mid 40s, kinda burned out but still struggling forward in my ok-but-not-hollywood IT career, I still have a passion for doing things well in a technical society that values doing things cheap (and well). The things I am known for being good at, I still google daily, and for a long time, I've been hungry for a change - any change - but especially one that isn't chaotically negative.

So in 2026, I wanna learn how dirt works.

I actually have a giant box of dirt sitting on a shelf at the UNH community co-op soil analysis lab, waiting to give me some kind of data about the soil behind my house. (Or is it dirt? I don't know what I'm getting into).

In 2024 I tried growing some corn. It never sprouted.

In 2025 I tried growing some corn. It sprouted and a few ears had enough kernels to make one full mouthful. Tasty, but maybe 7 calories of food for a year of effort.

So in 2026 I'd like to grow: one entire fully formed ear of sweet corn. Anything else is a bonus.

That's what I wanna develop in 2026 - learning how soil works enough to make it make a thing. Small moves, Ellie.

Re: Ask HN: What skills do you want to develop or improve in 2026?

#260

Post by serf »

PaulHoule wrote: post #222

I’m interested in a subject that, I guess, could best be described as Jane Houston’s work, see https://www.amazon.com/Possible-Human-Enhancing-Physical-Abi... but involves martial arts, eastern religion, character acting, Ericksonian hypnosis, and all sorts of things. In my case it I use to express myself-as-a-fox [1] but outwardly as social artistry that functions as a form of ‘witnessing’. I will certainly not advo…

this comment has a lot of words I find interesting; and I like the book -- but I can say that I have no clue what you're talking about.

As someone interested, though : care to explain in a bit more detail for a layperson?

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