31 Ending words, how to forge your own technical system on the road to technical growth #
Time flies, and before we know it, this section of the column has come to an end. First of all, thank you for accompanying and supporting me along the way. The entire process of this column has been a memorable experience for me, and I hope the content of the column has been beneficial to you. After reading this column, can we immediately become a Netty expert? The answer is NO. The knowledge system of Netty is vast and requires time to digest. Through continuous practice and summarization, our understanding of Netty may become even deeper at different points in time.
I believe that when you first start learning a technology, you may encounter some difficulties, such as unclear direction or getting stuck in dead ends. We need to think carefully about how to plan the optimal learning path, how to build a technical system in this field, and how to execute efficiently.
Systemization: Goal Setting and Execution #
Before learning a technology, I always ask myself a few questions:
- What problems can this technology solve and what abilities can it enhance?
- What are the short-term and long-term goals?
- What do I need to do to achieve these goals?
Nowadays, the cost of acquiring knowledge is very low. Through official documentation, blogs, and other channels, we can quickly get an overview of a technology. When you are determined to delve into a technology, the most important thing is to establish your own learning plan. Taking Netty as an example, because we are not very familiar with Netty at the beginning, we should have a rough idea of the important concepts and features of Netty that need to be deeply studied. These important contents should be included in our learning plan, and then a learning schedule should be set for a certain period of time (such as one week). In the process of learning, our understanding of Netty will deepen, and we will find that there are more knowledge points to explore. At this time, we can adjust and improve the learning plan. Just like the growth process of a big tree, we should first grasp the main trunk, then learn the branches, and constantly explore and build our own technical system.
Once we have clarified our learning direction, there are many ways to achieve our learning goals. Project practice, source code study, writing blogs, participating in communities, etc., are all effective methods. The key is to persist and avoid impatience or giving up halfway. Periodically, we should review whether our learning plan is effective and whether we have completed all the tasks we set. If we have achieved intermediate results, we can reward ourselves appropriately and give ourselves a sense of accomplishment.
Developing the Ability to Think and Summarize #
When learning a technology, most people only reach the level of being able to use it and do not really understand what problems the technology can solve or its advantages and disadvantages compared to other technologies in the same field. At the beginning, it is impossible to see the essence of a problem all at once. We need to continuously think, accumulate practical experience, and then gradually summarize our insights. An excellent technologist can understand the essence of a problem from the technical principles and find a convincing solution. It is very helpful for us to explore technical principles from excellent open-source projects. At least, it can broaden our thinking and make us more skillful in dealing with problems.
From a technical perspective, we must cultivate our habit of multidimensional thinking, rather than staying on the surface. This will enable us to make progress. A solution, a problem, or a feature may require considering multiple factors. If we can consider all aspects very carefully, it will make our work more technically profound and comprehensive. In our work, we often receive a lot of information from others, read others’ viewpoints, and learn from others’ solutions. We absorb what is worth learning and summarize our own unique thinking. Looking at problems from multiple perspectives, other people’s opinions are not necessarily correct.
Willingness to Communicate and Share #
Communication and sharing are effective ways to test our learning achievements. For example, technical sharing sessions within a team or company, writing books, blogging, etc., are excellent ways to deposit knowledge. Communication and sharing not only allow us to organize our own knowledge system and solidify our knowledge but also allow others to validate our understanding. There are always people more knowledgeable than us, so we should avoid being complacent about our technical skills.
I believe that being able to “do” a technology does not mean you can “teach” it. Sharing what you know is far more challenging than the learning process. Communication and sharing require courage. Sharing knowledge is a way to gain courage. Do not be afraid of making mistakes or shy away because you want to prove that you “understand.” We should humbly learn from others, help the team grow, and feel fulfilled after every interaction and sharing.
Conclusion #
The road ahead is long, and I will seek and explore in both directions. We are not geniuses, and it is not possible to achieve instant success. Growth requires time and accumulation, and the whole process requires continuous learning, thinking, and summarizing. Keep curiosity and enthusiasm, discard impatience, and believe that we can achieve better versions of ourselves. Finally, I would like to thank you for your support and suggestions. Please feel free to fill out this survey and leave your valuable opinions and suggestions. You are also welcome to leave me a message. Until next time!