After months of internal deliberation, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s finally time for me to learn Swift. Since I started working at Kinsta a year and a half ago, I’ve felt inspired to learn how to code – probably because I get to see the work of our awesome developers firsthand.

Initially, I tried learning JavaScript, but quickly gave up on it because I realized I have no intention to build webapps, and I think there are better languages for backend development. Next, I moved on to Python, which I was able to pick up pretty quickly. I actually really like Python. The language makes sense to me, and I was able to prototype ideas quickly. ICON, the blockchain project I do a lot of work for, uses Python primarily, so I was able to develop a few ICON blockchain-related tools as well.

I’ve also written a variety of personal Python scripts to boost productivity by automating repetitive tasks.

I know enough Python now to be happy. I don’t see myself ever becoming a Python developer because I’m not super interested in automation, infrastructure deployment, and API development – a few things which Python excels at.

I am quite interested in developing apps in the Apple ecosystem though. Over the years, I’ve continuously procrastinated learning Swift because I kept telling myself that learning a platform-specific language is limiting. Recently, I came to the realization that learning a niche language like Swift might actually be good for me. I have a tendency to try too many things at once. For example when I was learning Python, I got sidetracked with trying to figure out Django, Ansible, and Flask all at once – it ended up being a huge waste of time because I only really needed Python for blockchain and automation work. Thus, I think limiting myself to creating an iOS app with Swift will be a refreshing experience.

For now, I’m going through the Swift documentation. Next week, I’m going to start a Udemy course that was on sale for $11.99 (wow). I’m hoping to set aside one hour a day early in the morning for learning Swift, but I’m not going to put too much pressure on myself because life with a full time job and a baby in the middle of a global pandemic is difficult.

I’ll provide a progress update every week or two. Stay tuned!