Imagine, you wake up one day and have to learn to program. Just because we all know from the media that the future is of programmers.
Let’s take mobile apps for example. You want to make a mobile application. There are a lot of options available nowadays. You have SwiftUI, Compose, React Native, Flutter, etc… It was not the case 10 years ago. There was either Objective-C or Java (or JS for web nerds).
Now let’s say you start with SwiftUI. There are a bunch of learning and open-source materials out there to get you started. Which is great. We are in one of the best times when we have a huge community of interconnected people all around the world sharing knowledge and ideas.
You followed the materials and started making apps. The pace will be slow at the beginning but you will be zero to hero in no time (at least what those courses on Udemy claim).
At some point in your journey, you might come across problems that will drain you. You cannot keep dragging on existing knowledge. You will have to go back to basics aka go back in time to learn the inner workings.
Knowing the basics is very important whether you are developing a mobile application or building a house.
Having a good grasp of the basics at the beginning will allow you to take big leaps in your journey allowing you to achieve great things in less time.
Programming
Taking the example of SwiftUI. You have to know Swift. Once you know Swift it is also important to know the inner workings of Swift that will help you optimize code.
If you are working with images, video, audio, or graphics you will definitely touch CoreImage, CoreAudio, Metal, OpenGL, etc…
And when it comes to making things smooth like butter you will have to dig deeper into C/C++.
We can go much deeper into Assembly but I will keep it strictly for enthusiasts.
So you see, if you know C/C++ you can understand Core libraries better. If you know Core (Objective-C) you will know the inner workings of Swift better. And eventually, you can write better SwiftUI code to create even better apps.
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SwiftUI
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Swift
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Core libs
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Objective-C
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C/C++
I am not saying you cannot achieve success just by knowing the current hot technology available at your disposal. But knowing the basics will give you a boost and will distinguish you from others.
You can apply this to Android apps too. Using Compose should know Kotlin, should know Android Java, should know real Java, etc…
Tech
You got the idea. Now you can apply the same analogy to any technology.
Current hot topic AI. Sure!
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Using ChatGPT, Dall-E or Midjourney
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Writing prompts
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Learn LLM (Large Language Model)
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Learn supervised and reinforcement learning techniques
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Basics of different types of Algorithms
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Data set: Raw data and Training data
Life
How can we apply the same technique to life?
Cooking a delicious meal: Go to basics. Learn ingredients. Learn the flavors. Learn how heat and cold change texture and taste, and what ingredients go with what.
Home improvement: Go to basics. Learn types of building materials, what makes them strong or flexible, tools required, how electrical connections work, how pipes are designed, etc…
Doing laundry!: Isn’t this common sense? Well, maybe not for all. What dark colors should not be mixed with light ones, how to remove stains, washing cashmere vs jeans vs silk. Most information you can decode from labels. But to even understand that label you need to know the basics of signs.
Personal Finance: Knowing the basics of how money works, like savings and compounding, will help you in the later parts of your life. It will also help you live a rich life on a budget.
You can always have a professional take care of most of the above life tasks. But still, knowing the basics of each task will help you understand what is happening and take informative decisions accordingly.
Conclusion
Never be afraid to start from the beginning. Learning basics will help you accelerate your career as well as your general life technicalities.
