I'm learning to code. Again.
I used to love programming in high school and it was that love that lead me to get involved online, teach myself web designing & some intermediate PHP and eventually develop the product that became WooThemes.
And then I stopped coding to focus on running a business. Which made loads of sense at the time of course. Heck, the business started to grow at an alarming rate, there were new challenges everywhere and the team we were hiring had more time to refine their coding skills. So mine became obsolete and I justified not coding by saying / believing that my time was more profitable spent elsewhere. Big mistake.
The Future
I haven't quite bought into the "coding is the new writing" mantra with some enthusiasts even suggesting that everyone should learn to code at school. But there is merit in that argument.
The Internet is at an all-time high at the moment. More people worldwide have access to it and are spending more time, doing various different things, on the internet every day. This won't slow down in the next couple of years.
But the internet isn't the be-all & end-all either… At the moment, every one and their mother is looking for a reputable web developer of a technical cofounder and the supply is short. So it's a good thing that people are learning to code, because we need those skills in the short-term. In the long-term, we'll eventually have an over-supply of web developers.
This should however not deter you from learning to code today.
Everything will have an user interface
We've already seen the way in which user interfaces are penetrating our daily lives. Smartphones & tablets are the best example of this at present. In the future, I can totally see my (supposedly) simple toaster having an interface of sorts. Everything will eventually have some kind of user interface.
And user interfaces need to be programmed.
Beyond writing (a blog post for another day), the skill to code is probably one of the most relevant & sustainable skills that you can teach yourself. You don't need to be the best coder either; you just need to hold your own with some code.
There are multiple, easy ways to learn code in your spare time, at your own pace & convenience. Choose a language, choose a learning vehicle and get coding.