[afarrell]

There is a skill to setting yourself up to learn well. In fact, for any given body of knowledge, learning that body of knowledge is its own skill. It is very hard to teach yourself 'Advanced X' if you don't know 'Basic X' because without knowing the basics, you run into walls and don't even know the outline of what a solution would look like.

> You'll get there. Don't worry about the details.

Actually, if you don't actively seek out well-written resources and possible-to-set-up environments, you won't. You'll run out of time because you have to go to the job that pays your rent. You'll get stuck and distracted because you are trying to sleep-deprive yourself in order to buy more time (doesn't work. learning well requires sleep.)

Finding a well-written resource like Think Python[1] has a real and significant impact on someone's ability to learn to program alongside all the other stressors of life.

So what happens after a person is done with introductory resources. Are they stuck at that level? No. They now have a map of the terrain of all the things they don't know and they could teach themselves. They have become better at teaching themselves more things in that domain.

[1] http://openbookproject.net/thinkcs/python/english3e/

[stegosaurus]

"You'll run out of time because you have to go to the job that pays your rent."

I think we have a fundamental disagreement here in that I don't believe that the answer to having a bad work-life balance is to try to increase your efficiency outside of work.

If your job is taking over your life, you owe it to yourself and to the entire labouring population to try to fix that situation.

Coping strategies are rarely good long-term solutions.

[afarrell]

> If your job is taking over your life, you owe it to yourself and to the entire labouring population to try to fix that situation.

How? That requires negotiating power. Negotiating power requires either collective action or an individually having better alternative to working their current job. Collective action is risky because you could be fired and lose your $42,382 income.

[stegosaurus]

"risky because you could be fired and lose your $42,382 income"

What good is said income if you have no free time, and no savings building up to produce future free time?

Let's call it a day here - you think I'm insane, I think you're insane, we won't reach a consensus.

[afarrell]

I don't think you're insane. I think you're lacking a particular way of looking at the situation. Since your original comment started with a question, I was hoping to communicate that additional perspective. Ah well.

Be well and have some strawberries.

[GFK_of_xmaspast]

> What good is said income

Well, for starters it gives you a dry place to sleep at night and food to put in your belly.