Should you do #100DaysOfCode?

Thinking about doing the #100DaysOfCode Challenge on X/Twitter? Well, you've come to the right place!

When I first discovered #100DaysOfCode, I was very curious about it since I love a good challenge. At that time I had already started learning HTML and CSS via freeCodeCamp's Responsive Web Design Course.

Somehow I heard that there's a big tech community on Twitter, so I decided to check it out. That's when I kept seeing the #100DaysOfCode hashtag floating around everywhere.

After looking into it, I thought, "Hey, this seems cool. I'm already studying (almost) every day, so why not do this?"

I had no idea people would actually care about what I was up to; I just wanted to document my progress with the challenge.

Now, I have completed the challenge twice, met some awesome people, and am currently on round 3!

There are certainly pros and cons to doing the challenge. In this post, we'll walk through my experience with the challenge, and by the end, you'll hopefully be able to decide if it's right for you.

---

Before getting into my experience with the challenge, consider these questions to help you decide if #100DaysOfCode is a good idea for you:

Do you want to do it?

Do you actually have a desire to code every day for 100 days?

If the answer is no, it will be pretty difficult to succeed at doing this challenge.

Are you new to coding?

Then this challenge is perfect for you. Personally, I find it hard to get into a habit of doing something unless I get obsessed with it.

Coding every day provides me with a sense of achievement, and documenting my progress makes me feel like I am getting closer and closer to my goals.

Whether your goal is to land a job or learn a new language/framework, seeing your progress laid out in front of you can be extremely motivating.

Do you need external accountability?

Then this is perfect, especially if you make connections with other people doing the challenge. You can keep each other accountable.

By posting your wins and your struggles, you will end up meeting so many kind people willing to congratulate, support, and also correct you when you're wrong about something.

---

My Experience with #100DaysOfCode

Let's take a look at each round and the pros and cons with each.

Round 1

The first time I did #100DaysOfCode, I had just started learning to code about a month or two prior.

After making this post, I coded for 100 days STRAIGHT. It was intense, but it helped me form the habit of coding. After about 30 days, it just became a part of my daily routine.

Of course, it's hard to keep up when traveling or attending family events, but I made a promise to myself (and everyone on X 😆) that no matter what I would code every day.

Even if that meant some days I needed to code on my phone! (Mimo was great for that)

If you are like me and need to do something every day to stay consistent, then I highly recommend pushing yourself to do this.

During this time I definitely achieved a lot of cool things, and I'm still proud of myself for that!

However, if you have self-control and can stay consistent without coding literally every day, then you can try a different approach.

Round 2

This time, I let myself take breaks when needed (and considering the amount of life stuff that happened during this time, I really needed that.)

So, if I needed to, I would sometimes take breaks for 1-3 days, then continue where I left off.

Personally, I think that during the first round (pushing myself every day) I progressed more quickly. So if you feel that it's possible for you to do that without getting burnt out, then JUST DO IT.

Here's my day 100 for round 2:

FYI: During this round, I ended up switching my focus to learning about C#/.NET. This was for multiple reasons that I'll get into in my next blog post!

Round 3 (Minus Weekends)

Now, if you follow me on X, you should know that I am currently on round 3 of #100DaysOfCode. In the very beginning of this round I managed to finally achieve my goal of landing my first job in tech (yay!).

So what method am I currently using? 100 days straight, or breaks whenever?

Well, I realized a good compromise between the two is #100DaysOfCode minus weekends. I started to treat it as a full-time job, but let myself have the weekends off so I don't continue to put stress on my personal/family life.

Doing 100 days straight was amazing, but the main negative aspect for me was always worrying about coding when I got home from traveling or going out with my family/friends. I am not a morning person, so I would always end up studying late at night.

With #100DaysOfCode minus weekends, I feel a sense of balance but also have structure. My approach is this: Mon-Fri I MUST code, study, read up, and apply for jobs (anything tech-related is fine with me as long as I get some coding in).

Now that we've talked about the different ways you could do #100DaysOfCode, I'd like to share some tips that have had a significant impact on me.

Tips

Along the way, I've pinpointed some things that have been game-changers for me:

• Have a "Why". Why do you want to do this? What do you want to get out of it? (ex: Finish a project/course, learn a new language)
• ALWAYS code in the morning at the same time as you drink your coffee (somehow I combined my coffee-drinking habit with coding, and I think it really helped)
• Take breaks when needed (the Pomodoro technique is great)
• Learn about habit formation (read Atomic Habits)
• If you like music, create a playlist that you ONLY listen to when studying. This conditions your mind to know that it's time to code!
• Social media (X/LinkedIn) is important for community building/networking, but don't use it during your study blocks (schedule when you can use social media or you'll end up wasting a lot of time scrolling)
• Go on X spaces and meet people (great way to network)! Currently, a great space is called the tech commute.

Now it's up to you

After reading this are you interested in starting the #100DaysOfCode challenge on X?

If you do, make sure to tag me so I can show some support!

---

If you're looking for more resources to learn how to code check out my Free Coding Resources site, it has links to a bunch of my favorite courses/resources!

If you have any questions or want to connect, the best place to reach me is on X/Twitter.

Happy coding!