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5 Simple Habits to Become a Stronger Junior Developer
5 Simple Habits to Become a Stronger Junior Developer
Subject: 5 Simple Habits to Become a Stronger Junior Developer
Hey Junior Engineers! Happy Monday!
This week, let’s talk about something that doesn’t involve writing code—but can make a big difference in your growth as a developer: your daily habits.
The difference between developers who stay stuck and those who move up often comes down to small actions they repeat every day.
Here are 5 easy habits that can help you learn faster, build confidence, and get noticed in a good way.
🧠 Big Idea: Habits Help You Grow Over Time
What you do every day matters more than what you do once in a while.
The best part? You don’t have to be perfect. But if you keep practicing good habits, you’ll improve without even realizing it.
✨ 5 Habits That Help Junior Developers Succeed
1. Ask for help early.
When you’re stuck for more than 30 minutes, it’s a good idea to pause and ask for help. But don’t just say "it doesn’t work"—explain what you tried, what you expected, and what happened. This shows you’re thinking through the problem and helps others give better answers. The faster you unblock yourself, the more you'll learn.
2. Take notes.
As you learn new things—commands, tools, bugs you fixed—write them down. Use a notes app, a Notion doc, or even a paper notebook. You’ll save time later and start to see patterns. Keeping a "things I Googled" list helps you avoid repeating mistakes.
3. Read code often.
Don’t just write code—study it. Look at examples on GitHub, your teammates’ pull requests, or the code behind tutorials. You’ll pick up new patterns, learn different styles, and start understanding what clean, readable code looks like in the real world.
Before you open a pull request or ask for feedback, reread your code. Can you simplify anything? Are there comments or logs you forgot to remove? Writing a clear explanation of what your code does also helps reviewers and shows you understand your own work.
5. Celebrate your small wins.
Learning to code takes time. Every bug you fix, concept you understand, or tool you learn is a win—even if it seems small. Keep a "wins" list each week to remind yourself of your progress. It’s a great way to stay motivated and fight imposter syndrome.
🌱 Growth Tip: These Habits Help People Trust You
You don’t need to know everything to be a good developer. But if you:
Ask good questions
Write things down
Keep learning
Communicate well
People will want to work with you. And that’s how your career grows.
🔗 Helpful Resources
🙋 Junior Dev Q&A
Q: “What if I feel like I’m not making progress?”
A: It's completely normal to feel like you're not making progress—especially in a field as challenging and fast-moving as software development. The truth is, even when it doesn't feel like it, you're learning more than you realize. Try focusing on the small things you accomplish each day instead of worrying about how fast you're improving. Keep a list of what you've learned, questions you've answered, or bugs you've solved. Looking back over a few weeks, you'll be amazed at how far you've come. Everyone grows at a different pace, and it's okay to take your time. You're doing great—just keep showing up and building one step at a time.
That’s it for Week 8! Want to grow? Start small. These habits are powerful.
Know someone who’s starting their dev journey? Share this newsletter with them.
Keep going!