Self-Doubt & Procrastination - Developer Edition

Over the years of work, things I've done in the past, and meeting people in the developer community, I have something to say about the mental situation of the developer community and the challenges they all, including myself, deal with every day.

What is Self-Doubt?

If you don't already know or have never experienced it yourself, self-doubt can be hard to explain in words, but I'll try my best. Self-doubt is like having a mind of your own, but one that fights you back—kind of like an enemy within your head.

Now, this may sound very odd, but it happens to many people, not just developers. However, I'm only talking about developers here. For developers, this is a serious problem because they often doubt their own skill set and capabilities, which isn't good for them, yet they still do it.

When we talk about the development process and what developers actually do in their day-to-day work, it's mostly just thinking and figuring out ways to solve complex problems in the tech space or real-life challenges. Given that this is the everyday situation for any developer, it becomes extremely hard for them to focus on work and stay motivated while dealing with self-doubt.

Now, it may be easy for me, or anyone, to say that it's difficult to find solutions for problems when all you do is solve problems. But I want to let you know that it is not easy at all. The fear of self-doubt or the thought of others judging our skills consumes most people and stops them from chasing their dreams.

What is Procrastination?

Along with self-doubt, there is another problem developers face daily: procrastination. Procrastination is another common issue, and it’s annoying for sure—I experience it myself sometimes. But what I don’t understand about procrastination is that it never really goes away, no matter what you do or how much you try to be productive. It’s strange, but it’s the reality for many of us.

What Should We Do?

I believe both of these issues, self-doubt and procrastination, should be ignored because I think they’re just our minds playing games with us. At least that’s what I feel, but you may think differently, and that’s completely fine. For me, I find blogging helps a lot when I'm not being productive. I just write blogs and get my mind focused on something rather than wasting time doing absolutely nothing.

Now, I know blogging is not for everyone, but the main point I want to emphasize is not that blogging is the only way to beat procrastination and self-doubt. The real way to overcome these challenges is to get your mind focused and distracted by something else.

I feel like this approach could help you and many other developers who face similar challenges. I just wanted to put this out there for you because I personally find this topic worth paying attention to nowadays.

Conclusion

I don’t really know exactly how these issues can be tackled and solved, but I’m certainly not a doctor. Make sure you talk to a real doctor or someone you trust about these things. Let them know what you feel inside your mind because I know everyone feels differently.

End of Topic

At the end, if you think this blog resonates with your struggles and you feel the same way, make sure to let me know using the contact form. Alternatively, you can find me on social media to discuss this topic further and share your experiences. I'd love to hear your story and share it with others through my blog.