> I like math and can read and do elementary proofs. It probably helps when you are familiar with mathematical concepts and notations - proving theorems is, I

> I like math and can read and do elementary proofs. It probably helps when you are familiar with mathematical concepts and notations - proving theorems is, I think, less relevant in everyday programming than universities make it out to be. > otherwise there will be huge gaps and misconceptions in my mental space. That is part of the journey. Programming isn't something you plan at the beginning of your career and then you just happen to make all the right decisions on the way. You'll fill those gaps as you progress, and it helps talking to experienced programmers. HN is great for that. > 1. From where do I learn the bare minimum? MOOCs, books, etc? Any suggestions? Youtube, blogs, Linkedin/Udemy/Coursea classes. Books are also cool if you're the reading type of person, but they are non interactive and you can't ask any questions. > What type of things can I build? Build something you like or need. My first programmes were text-only games, a text editor and Tetris. I think web programming in the browser (HTML + Javascript) is the quickest way to productivity, but it's a bit messy because of the high rate of evolution. Embedded device programming (eg Arduino) can make for a cool holiday-illumination or home/car automation project. If you're more the analytical type of person, you could re-implement the most important algorithms (operations on data structure, sorting, searching, computing various functions, numerical algebra) with a scripting language like Python. > I wonder in awe how people go like - "I need to accomplish this job. Let me think about it. Ok so now let me code up a small tool that does the job for me". Problem decomposition. Just like maths. > How to achieve this level, where the ideas don't get bottlenecked As an individual, that is never going to happen. Even after decades in the game, I still got more ideas than time. But you can run open source projects and speed things up with the contribution of multiple people.