Before actually performing on stage, musicians usually spent countless hours practicing their skills. Of course, learning an instrument is hard and requires lots of time and focus. But is learning an instrument so much different than learning to program? How much time do we actually spend honing our development skills? On the contrary - how often do we, as developers, go "on stage" without having actually practiced our skills and tools?
Scientific research has shown that it takes about 10 years or 1000 hours of practice to become an expert. The key is deliberative practice: trying new things outside the personal comfort zone. Learning with and from others is arguably the most efficient way to do so. However, finding likeminded developers outside the workplace is often difficult. The Softwerkskammer tackles this problem by providing a platform for software craftsmen across Germany for sharing their knowledge and training their skills. Today, there exist local Softwerkskammer communities in most major German cities and since recently also here in Munich!
If you are living in Munich and keen to practice with other developers, why not come to our next meeting on Thursday, November 15th? We will perform (as always) a hands-on-session, which will be based on the "Taking Baby Steps" format. It is a great way to practice programming and refactoring in small incremental steps. I can promise you this: it will definitely move you out of your comfort zone!
