A Fantastic Ted Talk

This is by far one of the most important ted talks I've seen in a while.

I think about my own journey into becoming a software developer and where I started with literally 0 skill in the area and how I am/was dedicated to mastery. Not long ago, I thought I would just "never be a software developer" because I just simply wasn't committed to becoming proficient in coding and I really didn't believe it was possible for me.

Then, after years of kind of wanting it, I realized something else: the power of regret. Regret, or rather, having regrets is one of the driving forces in my life since I only get one shot at this thing we call life.

I knew for years that I would regret not acquiring the skill of controlling computers (what computer programming is/does) especially as my coding co-founder left a business which I thought, at the time, was going to change the restaurant industry around the world.

I am super competitive so the idea of failing at yet another business was too painful. So I decided to do everything in my power to learn how to code.

It took months. That's it. Months. At that point I had been in classrooms for years and I was afraid of dedicating months? Pretty much. It's sad but it's truth; I was afraid.

Now when I say months, I mean I could build a very basic web application from scratch with practically 0 help from others. This was incredibly motivating to me and pushed me further down the rabbit hole of the world of programming.

I redesigned my old business's web software from scratch. It was not a great product so I did it again. And again. And again.

Then I realized something else: learning to control computers is far more important than shifting one single industry. Computers can and will shift every industry again and again and again. It's something I had to be a part of.

That's also when I realized my journey to becoming a proficient coder wasn't actually all that difficult. Sure I still had a long way to go to become a master (ahem I still feel that way over 6 years later), but I knew that I had enough skills to be able to build confidence and momentum with others.

And so, [Coding for Entrepreneurs](http://join CFE.com/) was born and my life has been drastically altered ever since.

I'm lucky enough to be raised by parents who believed in me and helped me realize that I am in control of how hard I work and how I will choose to persevere. In other words, they helped me believe in myself and my choices.

I believe you can persevere to learn any skill, but only if you choose to work for it. Mastery just takes grit and perseverance and time.

Cheers,

Justin

"I demand more from myself than anyone else possibly could" - Michael Jordan