Found yourself in tutorial hell? You're not alone! With YouTube and countless online learning platforms available, it can be challenging to decide where to invest your time. Unfortunately, this hinders your true learning and slows down your progress.
I've been in this situation myself and eventually realized that it wasn't helping me as much as I thought. Recently, I noticed a classmate going through the exact same thing, which made me want to explore this topic further.
So what's tutorial hell?
Tutorial hell happens when you get stuck in a cycle of only following tutorials without really understanding the concept. A lot of people believe that by doing a tutorial once, they completely mastered the skill. When they want to learn something new or get stuck they will always want to watch a video about it instead of attempting to figure it out themselves.
But hey, don't get me wrong, tutorials are not a bad thing at all. Everyone has done them, including me. And I learned a lot from them! They can actually be really helpful and have lots of value. However, it's crucial to find the right balance between using tutorials and taking the initiative to explore and learn things on your own.
Why do people get stuck?
Fear of Forgetting:
The fear of forgetting important information can hinder learning. However, with proper prep-research and effective learning strategies, this fear can be minimized.
Mimicking vs. Understanding:
When you mimic something without understanding it, it stops you from being creative. Seek for a good understanding, experiment, and ask questions to level up your creativity and apply knowledge effectively.
The Need for Realistic Learning Pace:
Trying to learn too much too quickly leads to overwhelm. Set realistic goals, break down complex topics, and focus on incremental progress. Compound your learning!
Ways to escape it:
Understand, Make, Check
The way I solved tutorial hell is by:
- Start by understanding the thinking process explained in the video.
- When you think that you got the concept, close the video and try doing it yourself.
- When you get stuck, you can always refer back to the video for help.
Keep in mind that this approach can be very time consuming. However, I believe that this is one of the most effective ways to learn a skill.
Feynman Technique
The Feynman Technique is a method for learning more effectively. It consists of four steps and helps you understand difficult topics in a more easy understandable way. Here's how it works:
- Choose a topic that you want to learn about.
- Do some research and gather information about the topic.
- Explain or write the topic in a way that could explain it to a younger child.
- Reflect on how good a child grasped the concept and refine your explenation so it becomes more clear.
Cover important points and use examples to improve your explenation.
Build
Most learning comes from the trial and error. Theory alone is insufficient. Try to build projects, solve real-world problems, and participate in coding challenges to improve your knowledge.
Conclusion
Don't get discouraged if you're stuck in tutorial hell. Instead of just copying tutorials, focus on understanding the concepts. Be curious, experiment, and ask questions. Take it one step at a time and practice by building projects. Learning is a journey, so keep going and never give up.