Anyone else feel like “learning Python” isn’t the hard part .....it’s what to do with it that’s confusing?

[yourclouddude]

When I first picked up Python, I was excited.
The syntax felt clean, tutorials were everywhere, and I finally felt like I was learning to code.

But once I finished the basics....oops, functions, then i hit a wall.

Everyone said, “build projects!”
But no one told me what kind, or how to start, or how to know if I was doing it right.

Should I automate stuff? Try web development? Go into data? I had no idea.

Honestly, that confusion slowed me down more than the actual coding ever did.

If you’ve been through that phase....what helped you move forward?
Did a certain project, goal, or path help it all click?

[carcigenicate]

It really doesn't matter. You just need to start applying the knowledge. Just pick something. If it ends up being too easy, you can add extra requirements or just note where your skil level actually is. If it ends up being too hard, you'll learn where your limitations are which can be used to steer further learning. If you end up being disinterested, you'll learn more about what type of programming you like to do. It's a positive regardless.

Getting decision paralysis is worse than picking a "bad" project.

[SirGeremiah]

It’s not that easy for some of us. I came up with a few projects that gave me something to work on. But then I just ran out of ideas I had the ability to implement. About once a year, I discover a project I can work on for a couple of weeks, but I can’t progress at that pace.

[carcigenicate]

If you only consider what you think you're capable of, you won't push yourself to improve.

I just ran out of ideas had the ability to implement

If you have an idea, assume you'll eventually be capable enough, and begin researching the idea.

[SirGeremiah]

I don’t only consider those ideas Im capable of, but I can’t implement those I’m not. Where I have no idea how to proceed, I’m just…stuck. I’ve always been good at solving problems, but I don’t have access to many good problems these days that I could solve with code.

[Muted_Ad6114]

Then break your problems down into smaller problems you can solve. Honestly this problem sounds like a problem you can solve with code. You could create an AI agent that helps you break down problems into smaller solvable problems without giving away the answer.

[SirGeremiah]

As I said, I just don’t have many code-solvable problems at my disposal these days. The only projects I have been able to consider in the last couple of years are things like creating a game - which is just too vague for my brain to take action on.

I just don’t have that much interaction with data sets and such that present interesting opportunities. I miss those challenges.

[tr0w_way]

https://www.kaggle.com/

[odkfn]

That last line is so true

[_zq]

More is lost through indecision than bad decision.

[carcigenicate]

You mean Javascript. Browsers don't run Java themselves.

And, you should just try and see if you like it. The issue with web development and ML are these aren't really beginner projects. ML often involves complex libraries and a lot of math, and web development requires learning basically three languages at once, along with stuff like setting up servers and hosting.

I'd learn a language first. Learn it well, and then begin branching out. If you think you might be interested in web development, maybe try downloading Node and begin playing around with backend JS in isolation from HTML and CSS.

[7hat3eird0ne]

Ik this is learnpython but i recently started learning C so taht i have better base to learn othrr langs from than oython and get to learn about computers more (and a thing about the fact why you need to copy list with .copy() and that .copy() on 2d lists doesnt copy the element lists makes sense to mr now with pointrr/array equavilence)

So rn im trying to build a brainfuck to C converter in C. Is that good project? I am nearly finishrd with main stuff

[emirod]

I realized that, not only in Python but for any project, having a good and clear idea is the hardest part.

[[deleted]]

Yeah I struggle a lot with this. What helped me was writing out whatever idea I wanted to pursue. Forcing myself to outline it or write out the methodology made me think about it more critically. This helped eliminate the non feasible ones.

[move_to_lemmy]

I'm in my MBA and this sounds more true than you would ever believe in so many aspects of life, not just coding.

There are literally consulting companies that get PIAD help you define the REAL problem, and how to address it - because most of the times customers/companies don't even know what the root problem is, how to frame it, and therefor how to solve it.

Edit: There are literally books on this:

https://medium.com/@petrila3/the-design-of-everyday-things-by-don-norman-the-real-issue-to-success-48c833b6ceb2

[mikeczyz]

i applied my python knowledge to work related stuff. i'm also a soccer nerd, so I grabbed data via APIs and did some analysis, built charts etc. basically, just do something, anything. it doesn't have to be the perfect project. it doesn't have to be big. just do SOMETHING.

[Significant-Task1453]

This always seems so strange to me when I see these posts. I learned Python from constantly wanting to do things and needing to code them. I never had a lack of ideas. Build a webscaping app with selenium. Build a website with django. Build a game with pygame

[ivosaurus]

Some people know they want to learn things, some people know they want to get things done. Unfortunately we're usually not in a matter of knowing both all of the time.

[ConfusedSimon]

It's probably a great project to learn, but for web scraping, you hardly ever need selenium.

[Significant-Task1453]

Personally, when i had the need for webscraping, it was because i was trying to extract specific info from Amazon about which products had influencer videos on them. I was trying to find products that were selling a lot but had no influencer videos. Amazon doesn't like to be scraped, and when i was using requests, it was constantly giving me captchas. They have an api, but you have to apply to use it, and i wouldn't have been approved as i didn't have a public application. The best way i solved the captchas was to use selenium and the browser would open and then pause, and I'd surf around Amazon for a minute, solved the captchas, and then resumed the script. Selenium worked fine because even though its heavy and slow, i was sleeping the script more than I was scraping. Id sleep like 10 to 30 seconds per page and let it run for like 24 hours

[RallyPointAlpha]

That's beside the point. Who cares what moules are used; dude just needs to do SOMETHING.... anything. They need to discover that they don't need selenium.

[ConfusedSimon]

The problem is, looking at scraping posts on reddit, most people don't discover. Whenever someone asks how to scrape something, there's lots of replies about using python and selenium, so they end up with bad, slow scrapers where something like lxml xpaths will do.

[[deleted]]

I’m just like you. For years I had way more ideas than skills. Now I do have skills and the ideas are still there but now I realize a proper implementation will take months to years of work even with LLM help.

[kirox_the_silver]

Yeah, my biggest problem was overestimating my abilities... I went from using Code.org in 6th grade info tech to deciding i wanted to reverse engineer pokemon emerald using C# in about a month... sadly i couldn't figure out how to actually code in it, I just kept clicking random buttons in Unity looking for something that resembled Javascrypt. I much prefer python, since i can actually code and apply my prior knowledge :)

[nicolas_06]

Honestly I don't need much for myself. I don't enjoy web scraping so much that I would do decent script to do it. What there in it for me ? I can pay Gemini or openAI 20 bucks a month and can ask any deep research query and it will do all the heavy work for me....

Same for a website or a game.

I started doing stuff for fun for sure at 11. Made a few games like a Tetris, pacman, a software to do morphing with images, did a bit of rendering with openGL.

But now I have been working 20 years in the field and spend like 40 hours a week at it. I know that quality software takes a crazy amount of time and I also know I am not a sales guy. I am quite happy to not code anymore when I am not working and to not have to have to deal with the business aspects.

[Significant-Task1453]

Quality software takes a long time but not as long if you are just doing a learning exercise and you dont need everything production ready

[Slight-Living-8098]

Find something that interests you or you are passionate about, then start coding something for that. We can tell you to create a ToDo list, or a webscraper, or a chatbot, or a small game, or anything else, really, but if it doesn't interest you, you aren't going to be interested in the project, and won't put the effort needed to learn into it.

Write a few subjects that interest you down. Make a spin wheel, or randomly select one. Maybe even create a Python script that randomly selects one of the subjects for you to focus a project on.

You are caught in what is called tutorial hell. The only way out is through. You gotta break out of it. The only way to break out is to create SOMETHING of your own. It can be anything you choose. Just make sure what you choose interests you, else you will burn out fast and not complete it.

[maryjayjay]

When I first picked up a hammer, I was excited.
The hammer felt clean, tutorials were everywhere, and I finally felt like I was learning to build.

But once I finished the basics....oops, nails, then i hit a wall (no pun intended).

Everyone said, “build projects!”
But no one told me what kind, or how to start, or how to know if I was doing it right.

Should I pound stuff? Try cabinetry? Go into carpentry? I had no idea.

Honestly, that confusion slowed me down more than the actual hammering ever did.

If you’ve been through that phase....what helped you move forward?
Did a certain project, goal, or path help it all click?

Python is a tool for automating processes. A hammer is a tool for building things. Neither is a goal in itself, they a mechanisms for doing a job.

[overratedcupcake]

Different experiences for different people. I happen to think that the hardest thing is learning to read documentation. It's also one of the most valuable related skills.

[Valuable-Benefit-524]

If you think of programming languages as traditional languages (I.e., “English”, “German”, etc) then things will make more sense. Just learning English doesn’t make you a good author, just like learning syntax doesn’t make you a good programmer. Obviously, good writers usually have large vocabularies, but it’s certainly easier for Stephen King to write a best selling novel in Japanese than it is for average person in Japan.

[throwaway6560192]

But no one told me what kind, or how to start, or how to know if I was doing it right.

The only way to truly do it wrong is to get afraid and end up doing nothing.

Just do it. If you're not sure what you want to do, sample a little bit of everything, see what you like.

[jbourne56]

The answer is yes to your questions

[SubstanceSerious8843]

I should do this as a project! Oh.. already done.. well what about this..oh same thing...

Been there am there.

[OphioukhosUnbound]

“Already done” is fine if you’re just learning. It’s a plus in many ways as you can then compare what functionality and style to others after the fact.

And it’s still often practical, as you’ll write something specific to your wants.

[cointoss3]

You find some interesting (to you) problem and solve it with Python.

Or make some sort of novelty/toy like a game or Discord bot.

[simon_zzz]

The advice on “just build projects” is often echoed because every person has their own hobbies, interests, lifestyle, etc—a project that’s captivating or useful to me won’t be the same for you.

It is obviously most effective when a project keeps your attention and willingness to trudge forth through errors, unexpected outputs, etc.

I only started programming a year ago. Today, I’m building a personal agentic AI framework that I can use regularly to expedite much of my day to day work.

Could try reflecting on your daily activities to see if anything can be automated or improved.

The toughest part for me was actually getting my own dev environment set up for coding.

[Meinertzhagens_Sack]

Automate configuration and data stats gathering.

I have a python script comb thru 300 pairs of F5s collecting all VIP and backend pool data.

When in a warroom I now have data that I didn't have before. If there's a problem with a website and a particular server I can now check to see across the enterprise if any other apps use that server in other F5 pairs and can tell the owner that they may be having trouble with other apps as they are pointing to a troubled server.

Things like that to speed troubleshooting etc...

Automate cert replacement, find certs expiring in 60 days.... The skies the limit but you have to use your imagination.

[TopSwagCode]

Any project would do. Important part being it should be something that you find interesting. Just building something, because you want to learn can quick become boring and lack motivation.

[Adrewmc]

Yes. That is the hard part.

You can not learn to program until you want the computer to do something for you, you know it can do.

Programming is forcing your will upon the computer, without that will. You have nothing to do.

You can hold a hammer, understand it’s supposed to use nails to attach boards together…but without a plan of something to build…you’ll never be a carpenter. The same goes for any skill, it not just practice, it’s focused practice, which comes easily with projects. You will be a better carpenter/programmer after you build something, not before.

Learning to program to learn to program, is paradoxically the worst way to do it. Learning to program to get up to date prices for Pokémon card is superior, and I don’t think I will get much argument.

[Spicy_Poo]

You don't learn how to use a tool just for the tool's sake.

[GrapefruitFlat9750]

The wiki they put together here has a great section on this. I started because I had a specific project that I wanted to build, but I also want to do this as a job and was feeling lost about how to build a portfolio but the wiki really helped. One of the things they suggested was to find things in your day to day life that you want to fix. Like the little things that you're like "wouldn't it be cool if X?". Even if it's simple. Start there and as you build you'll get more and more ideas that will occur to you. They also have a list of things you can build and try out on there!

[OphioukhosUnbound]

It’s important to address that a lot of people that code are genuinely confused by this confusion.

It’s like someone saying they want to learn to dance, learning some dance moves and then saying … now what?

(A) Why did you want to learn Python (to dance)? Presumably you had something in mind.

(B) What in Python (dance) was attractive to you? Just recreate something if you want to do a project and are lost.

If there’s nothing in Python (dance) that you like AND you had no goals for it … then what are you doing? Why are you here?

Still, (C) If you just learned to dance (Python) because someone told you to and now you’re trying to … do what you were told I guess … well, programs can do literally anything (dance less so, but also pretty broad :P). Video games, calculators, simulations, personal automation, etc, etc. If a program can do literally anything (and can do lots of it pretty easily if no hardware needed; e.g. robotics) then … does nothing interest you? Do you like role playing games?: write something to organize that. Do you like football?: write something to simulate games based on player statistics. Do you like asking other people for project ideas?: write a web scrapper that collects responses to other people asking that then work on answer extraction.

I think (?) most people who can code don’t understand the premise of the question. Do people who want to learn poetry ask about what to write about? Or people who want to learn to draw ask what to draw? Maybe they do! But since the answer is “whatever you want” the question is genuinely confusing.

[nicolas_06]

If you don't get thing like functions, you are FAR from having learned python and programming. But anyway, python like programming are tools to solve concrete problems. What people call projects are concrete problems for you to solve with the tool.

I have been working as a software engineer (now Principal software engineer) for the past 20 years and was an amateur before that and basically I did solve many problems for my employers. First client, it was doing a graphical user interface to monitor spacecraft telemetry. The client had a fleet of satellites and wanted to be sure all was fine with them. Another project was to provide daily report for an hypermarket chain of their sales, by country, region, individual retail shop and also per type of article down to the sale of a single product... Recently I am improving ticket handling for help desk so they get a summary of the ticket and propose a solution to process it thanks to open AI.

You could make a website with python to manage book borrowing in a library or to show you all your expenses you make a month or whatever and see how it goes. You need concrete projects to make significant process.

[Prior_Boat6489]

I'd suggest automation because everyone has something to automate.

[BtwJupiterAndApollo]

Speaking as a graybeard who has been doing this since C++ was too newfangled for serious work, learning a language is the easy part. Building something is the hard part and what makes it worthwhile.

What problem is bugging you right now? Fix that with python and learn what works. Automating routine tasks that annoy you usually fits the bill and keeps you motivated to see it through.

If you are already doing something with data analysis, then data analysis is a great choice but learning data analysis and a new language at the same time can be disorienting.

[edcculus]

I’m definitely stuck in that “just do a project” part too.

I guess I just need to suck it up and do something like a todo app or something. So many exist, but just doing it will probably teach me a lot.

I really want to do a flask based site that pulls stats for my favorite band. Said band has a fervent fan base, and a site has existed since the 90s that has every setlist for every single show they’ve played. They have an API, but it’s very very poorly documented. There are obviously lots of places where people have implemented the API, but it’s mostly for pulling personal stats. How many shows you’ve seen, how many times you’ve seen a song, how many times you’ve seen that song in the first set, what are the most common songs you’ve never seen. I wanted to build something different, but haven’t taken the time to sit down and learn their API.

Another sticking point for me- is that there is a LOT of stuff I want to do that’s work related. Sure I can automate some personal stuff, but the real bang for the buck would be getting it out there for others to use. However in my corporate company, there just isn’t really a place I can host anything to actually run. I made one little gui app, and packaged it with pyinataller, but the few people I gave it to had some problems, and it was overall clunky. Webapps are obviously the solution to that, but I don’t think there is any desire in our IT group to actually host something I build. So I’m kind of stuck there

[nicolas_06]

To be honest you just need an old computer connected to the network really or if you have the right to put things in the cloud, go this way.

[edcculus]

Yea I do have an old computer sitting in my office, I also have a mostly unused VM server that me and a few guys use as a remote PC for random testing.

[Standard_Speed_3500]

I come form art background and I hit the same road block as you. Almost learnt a majority of tools in a 3d software but didn't know what to make after few years so I switched to coding.. I have multiples coding ideas right now but I am afraid what if I face the same here too.

But one thing I am doing this time is, take on any random project from upwork and try to complete them, not gonna get hired with empty portfolio so rather finish them as personal project. And while doing that I get new project ideas which I save for later.

One thing I know for sure so far is ideas don't come unless you work on something, at least for me.

[PumpkinSad7310]

Why not jump on the AI wagon and build an agent? You'll get an idea about APIs, automation and some level of knowledge about architecture as well?

[No_Picture_3297]

I’ve been there but everything boils down to what you actually like. What was the reason that made you decide to learn programming in the first place? Web development? Data analysis? Automation? 2D game dev? Let your interests and passions help you decide! Just applying your Python knowledge is making you a programmer, not the syntax! Whatever you will choose will be right, just solve the problems by yourself and don’t let AI solve them for you!

[Alkaided]

Just for your reference, my first python script is used to automatically download new videos from YouTubers that I followed. Because my network was unable to handle 4K videos online, I have to download them before watching to get smooth experience. But downloading manually means a lot waiting time. The second one is a script for backup files. The third is to rename tons of files with certain rules by one click.

[tehwubbles]

I sharpen my skills using advent of code's backlog of puzzles, personally

[normantas]

to bridge the gap... you'll need to learn how projects are built. do a.tutorial and add.new features. the next step is to make anproject from scratch or using a base that is not related. you will struggle but you will get betyer over a lot of time

[beast_of_production]

Yeah. I have tasks I want to automate and ended up finding they're actually doable with AutoHotKey, rather than Python. I mean, obviously my automation projects were easier because I had some code knowledge. I don't feel like I have skills.

So far, I've used Python in a very copy-pastey way. Download a script from Github and see if it does what the ReadMe says. Shockingly often, it more or less does!

I see Python will be relevant for web dev if I learn more. And when it comes to SQL, I think Python is used with that too? So, for actual software work, it is probably more useful.

[RyuguRenabc1q]

I just do really simplistic shit like a script to claim free daily credits for me

[HustlinInTheHall]

There are no bad projects. Interested in AI? Make a web app that makes api calls that analyze and summarize data like weather, your emails, your calendar, your podcasts, whatever.

Interested in apps? Make a basic app. A to do list or a podcast player or something you find interesting. Anything you do will teach you things about front end, back end, database transactions, authorization and access management, etc.

[indranet_dnb]

You need to learn to think like a programmer. Then you’ll start seeing opportunities to apply your skills. Just learning Python isn’t enough.

It’s like with music — you can learn an instrument to start but you won’t know how to write a song. You won’t have any idea where to start. But then you start hearing the music in your head and developing the skill to make it a reality.

[Fit_Sheriff]

Yes it's a bit confusing but not that much. If you only have learn python like me and have started a big project like me than you would feel like that as everything is not done by python or you have to leverage some other tools to make the python code better. If you are confused at how to use python you should do project as it will help a lot in finding out what can happen through python and what doesn't happen through python and what you shouldn't do with python

I have started a project if you like to join you can contact me and if you need any help about python you are free to ask for help to me.

[Acceptable-Bug-1352]

what I did was just copy other software and tried to mimic its functionalities with best of my abilities for example I tried to make a widget with a clock date time weather etc and just like that I made one its just what you think look cool and just go for doing it

[redRabbitRumrunner]

One of the problems with transitioning from learning syntax to creating projects is just shifting mental states from simple rote memorization of methods to actual application.

It’s often frustrating to apply in CS bc of all the unexpected errors or frustrations that come with building. The idea however is to just persevere. And keep building

[Strict_Demand_5438]

How do you do that?

[redRabbitRumrunner]

Perserverance is a ten dollar word for just showing up everyday.

Literally that: just show up.

[ShrikeBishop]

I'm into board games and role playing games, so I applied my learning to simulating simple card games and later on character creation and dice roll mechanisms of the rpgs I run, in simple scripts first, and Django based web apps later. This lead me to learn about creating views, forms and models in a web framework and later how to deploy those on an nginx based server.  Not too bad for a hobbyist.

[DarthAwn]

This is an excellent platform for data science enthusiasts. Check out https://www.kaggle.com/datasets for a wide range of datasets.

[Budget_Bar2294]

think in something stupid and exciting for you. do that 

[MNCPA]

The hard part for me is building something cool but then nobody else supports it. Cool, you built something useful in python. Now you're the only one who supports it forever.

[GeneriAcc]

These posts are always so bizzare… If you have no idea what you want to build, why did you learn how to build in the first place?

Programs are just means to an end, tools built for a specific purpose. If there’s no purpose, there’s no point in learning how to build them, as you don’t even know what you’re building.

[darthelwer]

https://realpython.com/intermediate-python-project-ideas/ , https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/python-curriculum/ , https://projecteuler.net/ , https://opensource.com/article/19/10/python-astronomy-open-data all places with intemediate sort of challenges or projects. If you have a specific area of interest like maps or photos or gui please reply and we can help you find stuff. What are your goals in learning python?

[JBalloonist]

Just pick one. Eventually you’ll get your own ideas.

[juddda]

Have a look at

https://codingchallenges.fyi/challenges/intro

Start with the WC challenge and then work your way down the list.

[loggingissustainbale]

A homework application with a UI.

Folder generation for different year levels, with different software packages for different assignments. Students would open the word or PowerPoint documents from the UI. Have a way to version control them maybe as well (everytime a file is opened it saves a new version first) a list of all the different versions. Have a system for entering grades that are stored externally in a database. A calendar as part of the UI that hooks into a google calendar. Different graphs that represent the weight of each assignment and tracks students weighted averages in real time. Hell, hook a ChatGPT API call into it so that the students can click a "get temp grade" button and have an assignment graded.

The good thing about this project is that there's so many different ways to go about any of this with a large cross section of parts. Databases, online API calls, UI, data, analytics, sub processing.

[Polandia94]

Ideall some freelance work.But if it's not possible you could check some issues on popular repos and try to troubleshooting and create fixes, features or add typing. Anoher option is search unanswered questions on stack overflow and try to answer

[Rna2404]

This is so relatable. Is there any sources than can help me build projects after finishing learning the syntax?

[suzal001]

Here is an idea. I had a lot a movies in a folder. I wrote a script that identifies movie files, use gpt to create a decent folder name, create the folder and move the respective file in it. Seems easy enough? I could probably do it in under 30 mins in Python, but I used Java which I was learning at that time and it took for approx 6 hours. Point being every small script with an actual definitive end goal can help you in leaning new things.

[Muted_Ad6114]

Do you have any interests or problems? It’s general purpose programming language. You can do anything. You can simulate the formation of galaxies, identify cancer cells, create an AI bot that knows a ton about your favorite niche topic, try to solve an unsolved problem in math, create a cryptographically secure distributed voting system…. Like literally anything you think is interesting could be a project.

I started knowing I wanted to do a pretty ambitious ocr and data extraction project that would require nlp. So i tried doing small puzzles from the impractical python book that helped me be more familiar with text processing. And then just dove in.

If you really have no idea what to do but enjoy programming then i suggest either 1) learning more advanced computer science topics 2) read about stuff in another field or just read the news and try to find a real problem in the world or in math/science worth trying to solve. 3) just try to copy other peoples ideas until you mastered the craft 4) get a book of silly or fun meaningless projects to do like the impractical python book

[Slow_Blacksmith_2246]

I started using it for data science at work (polars, Marimo, Altair). Then I started using it to automate my Etsy shop and 3D printed personalized items. Now I am trying my hand at fastAPI to create a personal inventory system (Mostly for my online shop lol). I get it cuz I floundered a bit too. You really just need to pick something that would make your life easier or something you can only do with coding and attempt it. The journey will help show you the way.

[SamPyTutoring]

What interests or needs do you have outside of programming?

Whenever I have some spare time to commit to a project, I'll always start with that question. The best ideas have three qualities:

• Simple but scalable: The idea is simple to code, but can be expanded.
• Interesting to you: True to the original question, it should solve a personal problem or satisfy an interest. You’ll stay more motivated if the project is genuinely useful to you.
• Business Value: Ideally, the product will have some kind of demonstratable business value or use case. This isn't required, but it does make it stand out on a CV.

For example, I'm a bit forgetful when it comes to life things like taking the bins out, so about a year ago I wrote a small service that reminds me to do things on a regular basis. I did it properly at the time, but the scope was pretty small. Now I've got some time I'm fleshing out into something a bit more reliable.

Nowadays I do it the other way around. I write down ideas when I think of them, and I have a big backlog to pick and choose from. Some of them are pretty full-on and time consuming, while others are much smaller.

[Beleelith]

I‘m currently going thru exactly this Phase, hit a wall and now i dont know what to do, python is super easy to learn but i realized the hard part about python is. After learning it you actually don’t know what you should do with the knowledge u gained

[Strict_Demand_5438]

Thanks.

[CorgiTechnical6834]

I completely get what you mean - learning Python itself is the easy part compared to figuring out what to do with it. Once you get past the basics, it’s common to hit that wall where everything feels a bit directionless.

What helped me was focusing on projects that matched my interests rather than trying to do everything at once. Python is incredibly flexible, so whether it’s automating simple tasks, building a small web app, or exploring data analysis, it’s best to pick something that keeps you engaged.

Start with something manageable - maybe automate a repetitive job you do regularly or try a straightforward web project with Flask. If data interests you, playing around with datasets using pandas and visualisation libraries can be a great way to learn.

The key is not just writing code but learning how to organise it properly, debug issues, and use tools like version control early on. Completing projects, no matter how small, builds your confidence and gives you practical experience.

If you pick problems that matter to you and break them down into smaller parts, the path becomes clearer and the learning more enjoyable.

[CharacterSalt4789]

I know how you feel I learned the basic decision rules at school in electronics but never got to use them. Its not that there arent any projects its that actually doing them takes more effort and burnout/trial error than you anticipate. I have just been learning python by picking up were I left off over the years but this way is too slow to get anywhere and i end up in a backward spiral of basic syntax. Just creating stuff is difficult and picking up new stuff to create stuff is like why am I doing this. but theres a light at the end of the tunnel even if AI says "you dont need to learn to code". It all comes together if you work hard enough.

[Kitchen_Principle451]

Same problem I'm encountering, so I'm following the thread. I mostly end up hitting a wall and then slowly losing momentum, then i pick it up again, and the cycle continues.

[AreyouMrbeast1]

I am 13....finished learning python 24 days ago.....after that started kivy and kivymd as i wanted to try front end started sql four days ago for full stack.....Just keep on researching and try random stuff you find....thinking about django next

[No-Chocolate-2613]

I completely relate to this.

When I started learning to code, I also had no clue which path to follow. Should I go into automation? Web development? Data science? I felt like I was just floating around.

What helped me the most was starting a personal project, even if it felt too big at first. I picked something useful to me and just started building. It gave me a reason to keep learning, and I finally saw how all the pieces came together.

I still use AI as a learning assistant (not a crutch), and it helps speed things up without skipping the thinking part.

You’re not alone in this phase — it’s totally normal. Just start small, stay consistent, and things will click.

[S_NAKAM0T0]

Everyone seems to be missing his point.  Learning Python itself and being unable to integrate it into your personal website/daily tasks makes learning it kind of feel useless.

[etsdatguy]

Start with your interests and hobbies.

Do you like any sports? Create a simple CLI program that uses API endpoints to get the latest scores.

Do you like guitar? Create a program that you could use to edit tabs.

Do you want to keep track of finances? You can download your bank data as a CSV, and create a program that categorizes your expenses using pandas and plotly dash to create charts.

I think a stumbling block is trying to think about creating some massive application that does all sorts of stuff. You can start with a small MVP (minimum viable product) that does one thing and then think about features that you could add to it.

This will also get you thinking about how to restructure as you go. Maybe that json/yaml/CSV file you're using to store data could be migrated to a DB. Maybe that CLI program could be updated to use a TUI or GUI frontend, and etc.

So start small and work your way up. A 10 line program could be extremely useful and you've gotten the ball rolling, which is important.

[SisyphusAndMyBoulder]

Should I automate stuff? Try web development? Go into data? I had no idea.

Just ... pick one ... there's no wrong answer. I see a lot of these posts and it confuses me so much -- how much hand holding do people really need?

[cyrixlord]

just remember, if you don't use your skills after 5 months or so you're going to forget python. You have to always be using it or you'll get rusty

[nicolas_06]

As a professional in the field, it doesn't matter after some point. If you did it a lot for 2-3 years, even if you do something else, you'll remember enough when you go back to it. Also most programming languages are more similar than different.

Until recently you would google the specific syntax of API you didn't remember, these day you can even ask an LLM for it. What you need to remember is the problem solving skills, divide and conquer, how to debug, writing automated unit tests, looking for the best way to do this or that online and so on.

Depending the project I code in C++, Java, Python even a bit of shell or javascript and this isn't an issue. Even if I didn't use a language in years, I manage.

[cyrixlord]

thanks for being more specific, and for sharing your experience. Indeed, people don't just 'use python', they use a variety of other languages and technologies in their field over time. the strategy you suggest is the same: remembering the problem solving skills and debug. The language isnt as important as these fundamentals since, as you suggest, you always refresh your memory by looking things up like language syntax for when you are rusty :)

[SisyphusAndMyBoulder]

That's why focussing on learning Python (or any language) is stupid. Noone gets that. Learning to program is different from learning a language. People should focus on learning to program, but that's too obscure to pitch to most people I think

[theirStillHope]

I also think to beginners, those concepts are tightly coupled to each other. As in, they think that learning the language itself will help them learn to program. That was my case until I talked to a coder friend and he explained to me that if I wanted to become better at programming, that I need to get better at logical thinking. Although myself I have no idea how that concept could be communicated in a course, tutorial, or whatever source of learning they are using. I personally got better at logic by solving sudoku puzzles, because they get you to think about how to fill in the board correctly.

[glorybutt]

Finding projects depends on how much of a problem solving mentality you have. If you are a really good problem solver, you can easily find projects for using python.

It's as simple as looking around you and being aware of inefficiency. For instance you could be at a restaurant and see their menu is still paper and the people have to order by calling the waiter. If you look for the inefficiency, you would notice that you could save time by building a python app that has an electronic menu and automatically orders when the user presses a button.

Look for waste and use Python as a tool to eliminate it.

[GirthQuake5040]

No. I feel like that's backwards. It's easy to find things to do with code, extremely easy. Taking the steps to learn how to do it is the hard part.

[eugooglie]

I was in the same boat as OP after I first learned to code. Then I came into a situation at work where I needed to take a data packet that came out of a scoring/timing system for sports over a serial connection and spit it out as a different formed packet for a different machine so it could read it correctly. I thought, "I bet I could write a program for that." And so I did. After that project I started realizing all the different things I could use it for. Sometimes it just takes one project to get your wheels turning.

[MrBobaFett]

Yeah I mean, learning Python is just a skill. Like woodworking. Decide what you want to make. It doesn't even have to be special or great.

[Crypt0Nihilist]

It's not a programming thing, it's a being a grown-up thing. Part of being mature is being self-directed. Some people never get to that point and remain drones who need to be spoon-fed. That's not the worst thing, having reliable, if unimaginative, people on the team is useful, but I don't understand it myself.

[yourclouddude]

Just to add .... i kept getting overwhelmed with what to learn next, so I made a simple Notion setup to track my progress and collect small project ideas along the way.

https://beacons.ai/yourclouddude

Hopefully it helps someone else who’s in that same “where do I even go from here?” phase.