Salesforce coding lessons for the 99%Finally, Apex tutorials for point-and-click admins! Written by a self-taught Google engineer.
Salesforce coding lessons for the 99%
Dear David,
What’s your secret to working hard and being productive?
I know what I need to do but I’m struggling to find the motivation to actually do it.
I don’t know how you manage to do it with Google, kids, and SFDC99. Please help.
Sincerely,
Unmotivated
Dear Unmotivated,
Thank you for asking this – I believe it’s among the most important questions of our generation!
I don’t consider myself ultra-productive, but I have learned a few tricks from people who are:
Focus on a purpose
A purpose is a deeply rooted need in your heart. It’s different than a goal, but works alongside it by providing meaning to your goals.
For example, your goal might be to learn to code so you can earn $150,000 a year. That’s a great goal but by itself isn’t enough to motivate you to study for 5 – 10 hours a week.
Instead, you should focus on your purpose, or your reason for having the goal. Maybe your purpose for learning to code is so you can provide for your kids and pay for their college tuition. Or to give your family a better life than you had growing up. Maybe it’s just to pass the death bed test. The key is to focus on something with greater meaning than just yourself!
Remove distractions – no multitasking
There are so many distractions in today’s world.
News, social media, email, after hours messages from your day job, etc, are all good things, but horrible for productivity. The further you can distance yourself from these things while working, the more effective you’ll be.
Sit in a dedicated working area. Leave your phone outside the room. Close all browser tabs unrelated to work. Set a structured time frame for later in the day when you can check them, and stick with it.
And if you’re really addicted to social media, for example, delete it (even temporarily)!
Build good habits
Productivity is a muscle that needs to be trained.
As with exercise, it’s better to do a small workout everyday than to do one long workout each week. Force yourself to work towards your goals each day, even if it’s only for 15 minutes. Weekends too!
Reward yourself for small milestones too
If you only reward yourself for the big milestones, it’s easy to lose your motivation.
Simple things, like going out for ice cream after writing a trigger, can be so satisfying. And when you reach your big milestones, like passing a certification, you absolutely should also have a BIG reward.
Hope these tips help you in your journey!
Sincerely,
David
Join the discussion in the comments section below! Got a question? Send it to the mailbag: sfdc99.mailbag@gmail.com
I was working as a salesforce developer and then left my job due to some personal goals and now I am coming back and started practicing in trailhead. This post has motivated me to start again after a long break.
Thanks a lot David for this post. You got a new follower. :P
Dear David,
You are truly an inspiration! I’m your new follower and this is exactly what I was looking for.
Bang on!
Looking forward in learning so many things from you. I have been following your Apex Academy tutorial sice past few weeks and you have created magic there with your teaching skills.
Thanks a lot!!
Thank you Archana!
Great post, as always.
Thanks David!
Thanks, David for being a good mentor and for guiding people like me on the right path
Ha ha ha, happy to help Sri. =)
Hello David
This is really motivating. Thanks for sharing.
I took my service cloud consultant exam for almost 3 times now(within 2 weeks). Each time I lost it by 1 or 2 points. I have gone through the study guides over and over. I had a feeling that I was ready each time when I took the exam.
I can’t figure out what I am missing and lost hope.
Any thoughts!
Thanks,
M&M
Definitely check out the guide on this site! There is a specific methodology I recommend. =)
I can totally understand that..Salesforce is such a large platform and when one is faced with the decision of switching career, learning SF or simply trying to learn Salesforce in a “vacuum” then yes it is daunting.. There is too much information out there, some of it outdated and the questions at the exam (admin) are nothing like what one is learning from courses.
Yes you GOT to have a plan an keep the eye on the price and DO NOT RUSH and specially do not try to learn “by heart”
Really helpful …….Thank you !!
Thanks!
I really like the idea of the PURPOSE. Since becoming a father couple weeks ago I hardly could motivate myself due I can’t see my baby girl while I’m working. But PURPOSE is a simple but excellent approach, and I definitaley need to reward myself more often…
Yes!
Wow that was really helpful. Thanks David you are awesome.
Thank you Ravi!