Back in June, I went through a ton of the challenges on freeCodeCamp. I completed at least one of the challenges each day for the whole month. By the end of the month I had completed 300+ challenges. I would qualify the experience as more fun than it was difficult. This week I went back to the site for the first time since June. While there, I found out I was only two challenges away from earning their JavaScript Algorithms and Data Structures Certification. So, I completed the challenges and now I have the certification. Check it out! There are five problems that need to be solved to get the cert. As a seasoned developer with a CS degree, I wouldn’t say any of them were hard, but I enjoyed working through them. The Cash Register took the longest (about an hour) and was the most enjoyable one to solve. For anyone looking to get into coding or people who just a good place to brush up on their web development skills, I highly recommend freeCodeCamp.

The Hedgehog Concept

In terms of learning, I took in a lot of great information in the last week. I finished reading Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…And Others Don’t by Jim Collins. The book, as its title suggests, lays out a number of things that companies can do to go from being a good company to being a great one. My favorite takeaway from the book was the hedgehog concept. The idea is that a hedgehog has one tactic which is curling up and taking advantage of its spikey hair to protect itself. Great companies focus on being the best at one thing. I like this concept a lot and it’s applicable to individuals as well. It’s time to move from good to great.

Finished

Pluralsight Course(s): Continuously Deliver IIS-based .NET Applications

Book(s): Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…And Others Don’t

Currents

Pluralsight Course(s): React 16 - The Complete Guide

Book(s): Continuous Delivery: Reliable Software Releases through Build, Test, and Deployment Automation

On the Next…

Running, running, and more running. My challenge of running 100 miles in the month of September is going well. I’m up to a total of 60 miles now. So, I’m now over halfway through the challenge. I have 40 more miles to go and I’ll aim to get at least 20 more miles in this week. My last few runs have been slower than I would’ve liked so I’d like to have more of a focus on speed this week. For now, I’m on pace to get the challenge complete, but there are things I could be doing better.

I’m going to spend some time this week reading Continuous Delivery. I don’t think I’ve picked it up since May. It would be nice to make a dent in it and get it off the reading list.