Coder’s Burnout
After almost 6 weeks of my full-stack coding bootcamp, I am starting to feel weary. Day after day of sitting in front of my computer coding does take a toll on you, mentally and physically. I don’t think it’s due to lack of enthusiasm for what I’m doing because it truly does challenge my brain each and every day. I think this feeling comes from just the sheer overwhelming amount of information and labs that are given to us every day. (ITS A LOT) I have recently been struggling with motivation more than anything and feeling totally burnt out. I have figured out some quick tips to help reduce some of the effects of coder’s burnout and I would like to share them with you.
Physical aspects:
When you go from any type of lifestyle to sitting in front of your tiny computer screen coding; and straining your eyes for any mistakes you might have made, it can some definite side effects. My very first week of bootcamps I had major head-aches every single day. I believe it to be the result of straining my eyes more than I normally do in a day on top of the overexposure to blue-light from screens that I’m not used to. To combat this I tried some anti-blue-light glasses that my girlfriend had recommended. They have been a life-saver to say the least. Since then my headaches have become almost non existent and I no longer lay awake at night feeling like someone hasn’t yet shut the lights off in my head. I would highly recommend these glasses to anyone that has shown any of these symptoms.
When coding for extended periods of time it can become very easy for several hours to go by in what seems like an instant. Throughout this time your body has not moved much and it can be easy to feel stiff or sore. I began having back pain after sitting in my chair so long. To help with these feelings of stiffness and soreness, I have found that exercising regularly throughout the week works wonders. Getting in the gym or even just moving around in general can help you a lot. Not only does this help with the physical aspect however, I have come to realize that exercise can sometimes just clear my mind like nothing else can. I can be stuck on a problem, leave to go exercise when I cant figure it out, return and all of a sudden the solution seems like it was sitting right in front of my nose the whole time.
Mental Aspects:
Setting weekly goals for myself is one of the only reason’s why I have been able to keep up with the bootcamp until this point. In an environment where it is so easy to get behind and feel lost or alone, making sure to hit my weekly goals that I set out for myself makes me always be sure that I AM making progress. Over the course of a week you can go on a crazy emotional roller coaster with a bunch of mental “high’s” and “lows”. However, knowing that no matter what happened I have accomplished whatever goals I set myself for that week can sometimes be enough to keep me going.
Another tip I can give to help combat losing motivation and in turn, burning out; is to take breaks. It is OKAY to not code every waking chance you get. I really had trouble with this at first, particularly because I did not want to get behind. The more I tried to keep up, the more I felt like I was slowly but surely getting further and further behind in lessons and labs. As counter-intuitive as it may seem, this was the case. I soon realized that if i spent some of my spare time away from my studies, I was much more productive when I did choose to get back at it again. I think that taking breaks helps keep you fresh and alert mentally which will overall help your chances against getting burnt out.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, I would suggest all of these alternatives anyone who has feelings similar to what was previously described regarding burnout. These are by no means full proof preventatives for coding burnouts however I think they definitely reduce the chance. Furthermore they are just some healthy life skills that you can apply in other places in your life as well. Thank you for your time.