Hi friend,

Welcome back to the monthly newsletter, I hope you’re staying safe wherever you are around the world. How was your May 2022? Mine was slightly uneventful (like last month) and flu-ridden due to colder weather. I hope yours was better.

Let’s focus on a learning dilemma, an ongoing issue I and many face. How to continue a learning path when things get difficult and stale. Disclaimer, this newsletter is from Mr Ash.co, as you subscribed or downloaded a freebie. Read online or listen here, enjoy!

The Learning Dilemma

Professional Development (PD) is important in education, in a way, its my job to learn. I typically focus on a course or project to learn new skills or sharpen existing ones.

Currently, I’m learning Python, a flexible, popular programming language with a beginner-friendly design. I’m learning via the online, self-paced CS50P course from Harvard. It spans 11 weeks with succinct lectures and challenging problem sets, oh and it’s 100% free. For help, there’s a discord server to ask educators and students.

What’s the dilemma? What’s so difficult?

It, got, hard, and, boring. One particular week wasn’t interesting as the previous weeks. It’s a pretty bad excuse for a learning dilemma, but I think it’s an important one.

Here’s how I’m combating the dilemma:

1. Writing this public newsletter.
2. Sharing problem set advice via the blog.
3. Tweeting some progress.
4. Just keep going.

It’s simple in the end, to not stop, to continue when it’s hard and/or boring. Sometimes there’s no ’hack’ or special trick, it’s just ‘heads down’ and study.

Catch-Up & Next Steps

Looking back on May and forward to June.

Months Memories

• Another spin around the sun for me, I’m a year older @27, so wise.
• I started and (sort of) finished my first collaborative python programming project.
• This tweet shared PyScript, a new way to use Python in web pages.
• Mike Driscoll, a prominent Python Educator retweeted my website.
• I got Recut by Dave Ceddia, it automatically cuts silence from audio and video files.
• We hired one of my good friends at work, it’s great to be working along with him!
• No new content either articles or videos this month, having a break.

Content I’ve Consumed

• Videos: David’s OSINT and SCADA interviews, Fireships CS Concepts and Web3, Chuck’s Malware, and FreeCodeCamps Discord Bot.
• Podcasts: How I Built This Discord, Darknet 116: Mad Dog and 117: Daniel the Paladin.

Key Point Indicators (KPIs)

• Newsletter friends: 188 (+9%)
• YouTube subscribers: 421 (+13%)
• Blog views, visitors: 1806 (+22%), 694 (-24%)

Next Month:

• Continue CS50P, complete Weeks 5-9.

It’s been another mixed month, nothing to complain about, just living life here. I hope you have a rewarding June, talk in ~30 days.

Kind regards,

Ash