Learn how to code but hire a programmer. Keep in mind there are wide differences in skill level. Yes, 4-5 years and most people become OK programmers. What a

Learn how to code but hire a programmer. Keep in mind there are wide differences in skill level. Yes, 4-5 years and most people become OK programmers. What about someone who did 4-5 years but has been hacking on computers since age 10? Can you expect, at age 32, to reach that same level of understanding? You're a radiologist---you can appreciate the difference in understanding that results in learning things at different ages. Programming in particular is directly related to language acquisition----you may be able to learn Mandarin at age 40 but you'll never get to the level of the 20 year old who knows 10 languages. What about someone who has done those things but also spent 10 or 20 years writing major software in a more corporate environment? What you need to avoid is someone who knows enough about programming to get the software done, but not enough to keep it from blowing up or turning into a maintenance disaster. This is because they know how to get a specific thing done but miss out on the larger implications of their code. Then you end up hiring a good programmer and the entire thing has to be scrapped and re-written, which can easily be the death of a startup. I'm not saying you can't do it. I'm just saying, get a good programmer and do what you can now, but focus on your startup as a whole. You can become a "real" programmer later, when you're 40 and retired ;)