[michaelschade]

Great write-up, and nice to see another's experiences. Obviously these are all just tips and don't all have to be followed, so I do want to point out that I disagree with the idea of paying for an instructor–at least initially.

One of the nice things about the open-source community and having a great ecosystem around <insert language> is that you can hop on IRC (http://www.python.org/community/irc/) or find your way to the mailing lists and there will be at least a few very smart people overjoyed to help you learn–as long as you put in the initial effort, try the problem yourself first, and then ask for help (and be willing to listen to their advice).

Then, if you go through all of that and try really, really hard, be patient, ask for help, and still find yourself lost, maybe seeking an instructor is a good idea. I'm just saying to beginners that I wouldn't jump to that right away.

Overall, nice writeup, and thanks Mark for sharing your experiences and being willing to push your own boundaries and learn more! Yay for not falling into the abyss of managerial stagnation!