“The feeling is less like an ending than just another starting point.”

– Chuck Palahniuk, Choke

I’ll be done with my second challenge on Saturday. Here are a few things I learned from spending one month learning Python:

• Going to the gym is easier than writing code.

During my first challenge I didn’t get distracted at all. This time things were a little different. Because programming is done on a computer, I’d often get sidetracked and start screwing around online. To combat this, I ended up setting a timer and forbidding myself from doing anything but program during that time. It worked surprisingly well.

• Writing code isn’t very hard.

Aside from getting distracted, I thought this challenge was fairly easy. Codecademy made learning Python incredibly simple and fun. If you can play a video game, you have enough technical aptitude to start learning how to program.

• Programming is a boring subject to write about.

As you may have noticed, I didn’t have a lot of posts about writing code. This is because I didn’t think that there would be much of an audience for stories about functions, loops, and other technical details. Starting out, I didn’t know a whole ton about Python anyway; I didn’t feel like I should try and claim expertise over the subject.

• Programming is exciting to learn.

Despite the fact that programming is a dry subject for me to write about, I had a blast learning it. Coding is like playing with LEGOs; it’s fun, creative, and only limited to what you can imagine. Unlike LEGO, there are no pieces to step on; which makes programming even better.

• I’m still a liar.

I promised to write about backlinks, and wrote about why not to use them. With hacking I did a similar thing. Not being able to predict the future means that I’ll often discover that I don’t want something I thought I had needed. In turn, I decided not to write about subjects that I had no personal interest in.

• I don’t need to like everything I try.

Discovering you don’t enjoy something, is important. Before I developed indifference towards backlinking, I would waste a ton of time worrying about whether or not I should research it. To quote GI Joe: “knowing is half the battle,” if I know a battle is pointless there’s no reason to engage in it.

Stay tuned for next week’s post, where I’ll be revealing my third challenge.

“Where the only winning move is not to play.”

– WarGames

At the start of this challenge I promised to write about hacking, it’s a subject that has fascinated me since childhood. I’d grown up on books like The Hacker Diaries : Confessions of Teenage Hackers and movies such as Sneakers, the result of which left me in awe at the power of electronic manipulation.

During the past month, I’ve actually found several sources where I could learn to hack. I’ve chosen to engage in none of them. I don’t need to learn how to destroy, anyone can do that, I need to learn how to create. While I am aware that hacking does have positive uses, I still don’t want to entrust myself with that kind of power. Learning how to break into computers and websites is like learning how to pick locks, eventually you’re going to use your skills to go somewhere you shouldn’t.

I’m not trying to knock anyone who does hack, and I respect the guys who use their abilities to bust child porn sites and corruption. I just know that I don’t feel responsible enough to hold that type of power. The ability to go through other peoples emails, browsing history, and bank statements (all through the veil of an anonymous proxy server); would be too tempting.

if the day ever comes where I’m completely void of any mischievous inclinations, I might get into the hacking scene. Until then, I’ll just stick to learning Python.

“Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.”

– Steve Jobs

“…the time has come to ask yourselves does your blog suck … and what are you doing to change it?”

– Michael Gray

Last Thursday I was planning on writing up a massive post about backlinking, but something else happened instead. And I decided that I don’t really care about my Google page ranking. For whatever reason, creating backlinks just doesn’t appeal to me.

Rather than paying someone to trick Google, I’m going to continue marketing my own website. Aside from the aspect of saving money, being my own PR agent has some additional benefits:

• I get to learn a valuable life skill.

Contrary to what Mad Men taught me, advertising is actually hard work. There’s a fine line between generating good publicity and being a cocky narcissist. Since starting this site, I’ve learned a lot about writing promotional material and interacting with readers. I’ve also learned a lot about niche marketing and appealing to specific demographics.

• I like to give back and build relationships.

Since nobody has to read my site, I try and offer incentives for those that do. This idea wasn’t of my own creation and I actually stole it from my childhood role model, Stan Lee. As a kid I loved how Lee gave Marvel a very fan friendly atmosphere and how he made readers feel included. I hope that my doing things like publishing a free booklet of juicing recipes, responding to comments, and following back on Twitter; helps to strengthen my relationship with readers.

• I already have (almost) top rated posts.

Because I often write about obscure subjects (and use the SEO by Yoast plugin for WordPress, which I highly recommend downloading), I’ve already got a few top rated Google posts. By researching and writing quality material, I’ve managed to do the same thing that backlinking does without spending any extra money.