Ask HN: How do you deal with the powerlessness feeling of coding? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with the powerlessness feeling of coding?

#31

Post by thenerdhead » Tue, Jan 04, 2022, 7:43 PM UTC

giraffe_lady wrote: post #30

thenerdhead wrote: post #15

Look into stoicism. Everything you are describing is core to the dichotomy of control: “The chief task in life is simply this: to identify and separate matters so that I can say clearly to myself which are externals not under my control, and which have to do with the choices I actually control. Where then do I look for good and evil? Not to uncontrollable externals, but within myself to the choices that are my own...…

The practical problem with the boiled down stoic approach is that in modern life almost nothing falls firmly and clearly into one of those two categories. In OPs situation for example, webpack problems aren't under their control. But whether they use webpack, to some possibly very small extent, is. So now OP has the choice of whether to _consider_ it under their control, and push for a different tool that might make…

The whole point of the two categories is to be able to break down problems into actionable behaviors.

You won't be able to solve world hunger by yourself. But you can help by donating a meal today.

You won't be able to solve obscure webpack problems by yourself. But you can report an issue with a reproduction to the maintainers today.

It's all about perspective. If it doesn't help you, that's okay. Maybe it will help someone else like it helped me throughout my career.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with the powerlessness feeling of coding?

#32

Post by giraffe_lady » Tue, Jan 04, 2022, 9:45 PM UTC

thenerdhead wrote: post #31

giraffe_lady wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The practical problem with the boiled down stoic approach is that in modern life almost nothing falls firmly and clearly into one of those two categories. In OPs situation for example, webpack problems aren't under their control. But whether they use webpack, to some possibly very small extent, is. So now OP has the choice of whether to _consider_ it under their control, and push for a different tool that might make…

The whole point of the two categories is to be able to break down problems into actionable behaviors. You won't be able to solve world hunger by yourself. But you can help by donating a meal today. You won't be able to solve obscure webpack problems by yourself. But you can report an issue with a reproduction to the maintainers today. It's all about perspective. If it doesn't help you, that's okay. Maybe it will help…

I'm genuinely glad you've found it helpful! I'm not trying to mess with that. I just, as a problem solving tool, have never found any use for it.

For me it falls into the same category as expressions like "it is what it is" or "we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." These sayings point at important truths that should be considered frequently. But they are worthless for solving any specific problem.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with the powerlessness feeling of coding?

#33

Post by thenerdhead » Tue, Jan 04, 2022, 10:03 PM UTC

giraffe_lady wrote: post #32

thenerdhead wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The whole point of the two categories is to be able to break down problems into actionable behaviors. You won't be able to solve world hunger by yourself. But you can help by donating a meal today. You won't be able to solve obscure webpack problems by yourself. But you can report an issue with a reproduction to the maintainers today. It's all about perspective. If it doesn't help you, that's okay. Maybe it will help…

I'm genuinely glad you've found it helpful! I'm not trying to mess with that. I just, as a problem solving tool, have never found any use for it. For me it falls into the same category as expressions like "it is what it is" or "we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." These sayings point at important truths that should be considered frequently. But they are worthless for solving any specific problem.

Fair enough. It is what it is.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with the powerlessness feeling of coding?

#34

Post by GianFabien » Tue, Jan 04, 2022, 10:23 PM UTC

sdevonoes wrote: post #8

Happens to me all the time, I also feel powerless in many situations. How do I handle? Well, I try as much as I can to fix the issue by spending countless of hours on it. At some point I reach to my team for help and now the responsibility is shared: if we can't manage to fix the issue we try with another approach. Managers usually like to say "we are here to clean up your way from distractions so you can focus on th…

I have come across too many managers who fixate on a goal. Uusually set with too short a timeframe and insufficient budget (both money and resources). Then they constantly harangue the team to deliver on their expectations. Generally, such managers are trying to impress their higher ups with their management talent.

The only solution I know of is to look for a new job. At the same time push back on the demands. Helps to have no concern whether you get fired or end up quitting before the new job comes through.

Re: Ask HN: How do you deal with the powerlessness feeling of coding?

#35

Post by buffington » Tue, Jan 04, 2022, 11:25 PM UTC

Knowledge is power.

To be a great programmer, learn how to get really good at reading and understanding code.

To get good at reading and understanding code, you need to know where to look, and then you need to just start reading it. If something doesn't make sense, figure out why it doesn't make sense until it does make sense.

I know that sounds a bit like "to be good at programming, be good at programming", but there's really no way around it.

Consider your Django example, the "they" in your sentence is actually code:

> they just reload the page

Figure out where that code lives, and read it. Dive into its methods/functions, and follow the flow of inputs/outputs.

A common thing see with both junior and more experienced programmers is their acceptance of "magic". If the libraries they use just work, they don't dig into understanding why. Then when those libraries fail, they feel much the way you do.

But there's no magic. The code is written down or the framework is documented, and knowing how it works (or doesn't) is as simple as reading the code.

I've also learned, having done this for 25 years, that you'll read a lot more code then you'll write. I'd guess that I probably spend 75% of my time reading code. The rest is split between meetings, thinking, and writing code.

This isn't just a thing for programmers to consider either.

Reading code as a programmer is the same as a race car driver knowing about suspension. Or a chef knowing about heat and chemistry. Or a luthier knowing about what wood to use. Driving the car, cooking the food, or assembling the guitar are just a small part of the entire job.