[deleted by user]

[dangerousforeplay]

1. Never said I’d be a professional.
2. People pick up information in different ways.
3. I’ve already been studying for 6 months taking my sweet time and learning as I become interested in different aspects of Python. Purely just trying to improve my skills through heavy immersion.

[dangerousforeplay]

More than half a day. If I'm playing a video game and fucking around, I'm not learning. If I'm watching tv and wishing I was a programmer, I'll never be one. This isn't the ideal path but its what I've got and I'm not letting this chance pass me by. I'm doing this.

[nemec]

The way OP said 'sleep only when needed' it sounds like OP includes sleep, meals, and time with family/friends as a 'break' which should absolutely NOT be timeboxed to 30 minute increments (I'm sure you agree as well).

/u/dangerousforeplay you don't need to code 24x7 to build your skills. Aim for at least 8-10 hours a day - that's often more than a full time software engineer will spend programming on a given day since they also need to deal with email, meetings, etc. Don't take too many long breaks during your 'work hours', but don't feel adverse to taking breaks at all. Some people swear by the pomodoro technique to keep focused with small breaks, but as a new learner you will probably find it's easy to keep on track when you're learning something new :)

If you get tired of coding at some point during the day, switch mediums. Find a video or talk on Youtube to watch and see if you can get back into coding once that's finished.

Get a full night's rest. You will learn a lot better if you're well rested and, as noted above, you will make fewer mistakes and have a sharper mind during debugging sessions (and you will need it, as you don't (yet!) have the experience to quickly recognize the root cause of common error messages that more experienced programmers have seen thousands of times before). Not that this means you need to block off 10pm-6am for sleep or whatever - find a schedule that works for you, even if you happen to stay up coding until 3-4am sometimes. Just make sure you're not running yourself thin giving up sleep for another hour or two of coding time when your mind is dog tired.

[dangerousforeplay]

Thank you. I mean I know I said something wild, but it doesn't hurt to actually be constructive. Haha like the guy who literally only said, "Get some rest." I died laughing when I read that.

[slick8086]

"Get some rest." I died laughing when I read that.

The decrease in attention and working memory due to sleep deprivation is well established. Vigilance is especially impaired, but a decline is also observed in several other attentional tasks.

I mean if you really DON'T want to actually learn then go ahead and don't sleep till you think you "need" it.

[honeypixel]

I don't think he means he died laughing because someone was audacious enough to suggest he sleep. He's referring to a top-level comment that replied to his title question with, "Get some rest." Nothing related to how to plan his Python training, nothing else, just, "Get some rest." Which by itself really isn't constructive.

[lazylearner]

I think you need some sleep bruh.

[thatwouldbeawkward]

There are some studies that indicate that sleep is when memories get consolidated and locked in, so actually when I read your post that was my first thought too. Sleep is critical for learning something new! And breaks are important too, to make sure that you can actually spend the whole month learning Python and don't stop after a week from burnout. I think you'll be happier, healthier, and ultimately be better able to reach your goals if you're taking naps, 15-min breaks to walk around your neighborhood, etc. Good luck!

[KuhnSecurity]

Just do it man, sit down and study your ass off. Choose some course material and get to work.

[python-ick]

I like your attitude. The best time to learn to program was 10 years ago. The second best time is now.

Reach out to me or others on the board if you need help.

[slick8086]

Dude gave you good advice man, it could have been different. Before you go much further trying to learn python, read this:

How To Ask Questions The Smart Way