It's funny how I will start my first blog post as a technical writer by giving advice. I am very new to programming, currently a student at ALX and it's been a rough path. ALX is an agile learning program and I find it very difficult to keep up with tasks.

In the last two weeks, to be fair to all concerned we had five peer learning days ( a day off to learn with peers and see what you are doing wrong in your code). Despite these days, I realised I still can not meet up with my tasks. The reason is that I took 4 days off. Well it was supposed to be 2, but once I could not catch up, it became 4 and it's piling up. Well from my short experience, learning a new thing is not easy. Here are a few ways I would suggest you take to stay motivated.

1. Organise your space We cannot overemphasize how much organising your space helps to organise your life. Simple things like having a place for everything and knowing where to get what can help you draw out a beautiful plan you can follow to remain motivated in learning your new skill. If you have heard the phrase success begot success you will understand how simply organising your space can help you to create organised plans and these plans become sources of motivation.

2. Do something that will make you feel productive first It's tempting to want to start the day's business by trying to learn your new skill first, but it is not the best thing you want to do. Learning familiar concepts that would make you feel like you have succeeded makes it easier for your brain to learn something new. For instance, if you are very new to programming, trying to read and understand how some codes work may not be very easy for you. If you started your day by doing something productive that allows you to achieve a particular purpose, it becomes easier to learn how this code works. In other words, I am saying start with simpler/familiar concepts and work your way to those very difficult concepts.

3. Try to cut out distractions Yup, once you have your plan as a result of organisation, you need to cut out every form of distraction. Your phone, people that can disturb you and other things that could constitute a distraction. It is easier to learn something new in a quiet environment than in a noisy place. It's pretty straightforward, if it does not allow you to learn, then it is probably time to cut it off.

4. Make efforts to practice every day Practice! Practice!! Practice!!! Don't stop practising. If you don't feel like doing anything that day use less time in your practice. Not coding for one day will take you 3 days away from coding and is the easiest way to give up learning how to become a programmer. By all means, practise every day.

5. Treat yourself right In all you do, listen to your body. Treat yourself to completing tasks and ensure you get enough rest. Buy snacks, gifts or anything that can appreciate you for the hard work and time you have invested in your growth.