10 Must-Have Skills That Will Give Your Resume A Huge Boost
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Learning to code has become the default advice for future financial success, and it's not because Warren Buffet was bitten by a radioactive software designer. Unskilled labor is becoming a less useful component of the U.S. economy, and as we continue to grow more and more technologically dependent, it will only get worse. Programming is the new digital literacy, except you're going to need a lot more than Lavar Burton singing songs at you to become fluent in it. Check out the following courses in the Complete Learn to Code Bonus Bundle to become a master of the digital era:
HTML5 & CSS3
Although they technically aren't programming languages, HTML and CSS are the fundamental building blocks of every webpage, from the original site for Space Jam to your Gmail inbox to whatever the hell this is. Once you realize that publishing your very own dumb website only takes a handful of markup tags and some minimal styling, you can finally release yourself from your social media trance to join the wayward souls of the Indie Web.
Front-End Development
Front-end refers to the combination of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript used to deliver rich interactive elements and media. Everything you see, touch, click, and hear on the web is the result of this holy trinity of code, and it's even starting to take over desktop software. Without front-end web developers, every online service would look like it came straight out of 1995. If that doesn't horrify, then let us just remind you that 1995 was that time in human history where people thought making Batman Forever would be a good idea.
Angular
Today's JavaScript doesn't look anything like the scribbledeygook from the Netscape years, and it's all thanks to the proliferation of tools like Angular. Angular allows developers to build well-structured apps that work just as well on a decade-old version of Internet Explorer as they do on Chrome. It powers countless websites in the wild, with one notable exception that rhymes with "Spacenook." But don't let that stop you from learning Angular. If anything, sticking it to a particular CEO whose name rhymes with "Suckerberg" should be all the motivation you need to get started. Haha. Suckerberg. That'll catch on.
WordPress
If you enjoy coding but lack the courage to paddle into the churning waters of front-end tech, you can still do a heap of digital damage with WordPress. The humble blogging platform powers nearly a quarter of all websites, thanks to its famous five-minute install time and friendly interface. WordPress is ideal for putting your writing on blast, but it also has plenty of custom themes and plugins that can turn your Naruto fan fiction archive into an online store, a wiki, or anything else your dirty mind can come up with.
Databases
The relational database is probably the least-sexy technology listed here, but storing and recalling data is critical functionality for most applications. And even though the syntax for communicating with databases is littered with arcane, all-caps demands, it's possible to build entire working applications out of INSERTs and ORDER BYs. Is it smart to? Maybe not. But it'll sure troll anyone trying to mess with your system.
Ruby On Rails
Ruby on Rails provided the skeleton for the first version of Twitter, and it still happily renders views for Airbnb, GitHub, and Hulu. It's an application development framework notable for popularizing model-view-controller software architecture on the web, which provided late-'00s web developers with a sensible way of decoupling functionality from data and presentation. (And it's totally OK if that all sounds like gibberish to you. That's what this program is for, dawg.) Still widely used today, Rails has magic scaffolding that writes most of your code for you, and the Ruby language underneath reads like elegant cyborg poetry.
Python
Anyone with the slightest interest in data science should choose Python for their first hot fling with code. With its highly readable syntax and mature libraries for crunching and visualizing torrents of numbers, Python will quickly slither into your mind and lay eggs in your heart, much like a literal python . It's a powerful, general-purpose language that's used for web development, scripting 3D animations, and artificial intelligence.
Social Networks
While using this to make a homemade Facebook clone populated by fictional characters won't be the worst piece of net art ever made, it definitely won't get you $500,000 from Peter Thiel. So why is it useful to learn social networks? Because you'll definitely be able to parlay your knowledge of user authentication, data validation, and database communication into a lucrative role at a real social network, like Facebook.
ReactJS
React is Facebook's in-house JavaScript library for building user interfaces, but it's also used by tons of other services, like Netflix, Imgur, and even Walmart. It can work alongside frameworks like Angular, but it basically gives you the tools to write clean, modular code and create slick UIs that don't require constant page refreshes. React can also power mobile applications, so you can make a fortune from the app store selling exploitative freemium games. Or you can make something that's good for humanity if you have, you know, a soul.
Git
Writing code without version control is like scribbling over your typos with ink instead of whiteout. You might be able to keep a vague working understanding of everything on the page right now, but you'll be completely lost in a day or two. And god help anyone who has to edit your grubby, chicken-scratched page. Git keeps track of changes to your code and lets you jump back to a working state when everything inevitably goes to poop.
Did that seem like a lot? Well, it was. But that's the beauty of the tech industry. There's a lot going on, which might seem daunting on the one hand -- but on the other hand, it means you'll never run out of things to learn or areas to master. You could easily need to know one skill above for one job, and a totally different skill for the next job. Which is why you should start learning about all of it now with the Complete Learn to Code Bonus Bundle. This collection includes the following courses:
-- The Complete Ruby on Rails Developer Course
-- Learn Web Development by Creating a Social Network
-- Learn By Example: The Foundations of HTML, CSS & JavaScript
-- Python Tutorial: Learn by Coding
-- PHP OOP & PDO with Projects for Beginners
-- Total Web Development Course
-- An Introduction to MySQL Database Development
-- Learn Cloud Computing From Scratch
-- AngularJS for the Real World
-- Build Professional Websites with HTML5 & CSS3
-- Build Web Apps with ReactJS and Flux
-- Git Complete: The Definitive, Step-By-Step Guide
And this is important, so repeat after me: "Coding pays boatloads of money." Remember that, and as Billy Madison famously noted, "Cherishhhhhhhh it." You can get lifetime access to these 10 courses in our store for 96 percent off their usual cost, just $54.
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For more amazing must-have skills, check out 4 Crucial Skills That Will Help You Land That Corner Office.