If you’ve ever spent any time playing video games and wondering about the process by which they are created, you have likely made the association between learning something new by making it fun with games.
If you already code, you don’t need it explained, but you can certainly see the value in gamifying your efforts to take some of the mundanity and boredom out of the process. So what makes leveling up your coding with games so great? Keep reading to find out.
The Addictive Element Activates Your Reward System
If you’re a gamer, it’s no secret how much fun it is to chase the bad guys, build something, work toward finishing a mission, or use your strategy skills to outsmart the enemy. There’s a certain amount of reward just from enjoying the game and meeting your objective before you shut it off for the day.
However, using what you learn from games and applying it to coding is a reward in and of itself. Translating the skills that you get from gaming to coding means making progress, seeking new and innovative solutions, and building resources. This sense of achievement is motivating, which is part of the reward.
What are the Other Rewards?
In some cases, the rewards of coding don’t offer the same sense of instant gratification that you experience when you’re gaming. However, if you know where to look, you will find them. Sometimes it can feel like you’ve wasted hours of your time completing a CMS update or fixing the compatibility of a plug in.
While it can seem like a time and energy drain, these tasks actually offer the reward of learning new things. You have skills that you can use again next time you encounter the same issue and chances are that it won’t take as long to complete the second time around. In other words, every time you complete a coding task, you are collecting knowledge that you can use in the future. And that’s a fantastic reward!
Coding and Gaming
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So, your new mission is to look at coding like you would solving a video game or finishing the last level and being the winner. Not only will this make coding more fun, but it also keeps you track for making progress and reaching your goal. Translate the steps you would use in a video game into the steps you take to complete a coding task. Have a look below to see what those steps are.
- Get prepared – where and when are you going to work on your coding skills? What programs are you going to use? What’s your goal?
- Take it up a level – acknowledge the barriers standing in your way (lack of time, boredom, etc.) and then make a plan to break through them.
- Collect items and team members – do this by making connections with other coders, designers, content managers, and anyone else who can be on your team and help you reach your end goal. Stay organized as you gather the items you need, using a spreadsheet, planner or other device to keep everything in one easy to access place.
- Enjoy the result – here’s where the reward comes in. Now that you have completed the previous steps, you are in a prime position to enjoy the fruits of your labor with your team (launching a website, rolling out a new browser, etc.).
Gaming and coding just go together and approaching your coding as a game makes it more fun, boosts your creativity and creates an environment that leaves you looking forward to your next coding task. Enhance your coding skills today and enjoy all of the rewards that are sure to follow close behind. And what’s great is that no one is too young to start learning to code.