How I went from zero coding experience to making money with it (as a lawyer):

The framework:

Understand the landscape → Pick your stack → Train the muscle → Stress test it → Ship & feedback

- Getting acquainted with the terminology

I started binge-watching dev YouTube. Anything and everything. Didn’t matter if I understood it. I just needed to get fluent in the language of tech. Get familiar with it. Over time, the words started making sense, and a roadmap started to form.

→ This was like learning the rules of a new game before trying to play.

- Following a structured course

After a lot of exploration, I concluded that web development was the easiest entry point. App development required an extensive setup. With web, I just needed a code editor and a browser. So I bought a full-stack course on Udemy for ₹350 and started learning HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Then I realized I needed to go deeper, so I got individual courses for each topic, still at Rs. 350 each by making new accounts! (Sorry Udemy) The theory laid the foundation.

→ Structure removed the guesswork and gave my learning momentum.

- Follow-along courses / assisted coding

The most fun part about coding is building something.

But at this point, I only knew programming fundamentals, and that got boring quickly. So I started coding along with tutorials to build muscle memory and concept recall. I was also practicing programming fundamentals on Codewars

Practice > theory.

→ Watching isn’t learning. Putting in the reps is.

- Build projects

Since my entry point was frontend development, I went to Frontend Mentor and started converting designs into real web pages. No hand-holding. Maximum friction. Supercharged learning! I started with simple HTML/CSS problems. From there, the difficulty increased as interactivity was introduced and JavaScript came into play. This was the biggest needle mover early in the learning journey.

→ Projects forced me to apply what I had learned and exposed the gaps in my understanding.

- Portfolio website

Then I bought a domain and built a personal website using React.

I hosted my design-to-code projects and simple applications that used public APIs and basic CRUD applications, and started sharing it with people to create a feedback loop.

→Identity shift: From learner to builder

Building things is SUPER fun, but there was also an underlying assumption I was testing:

“Can I learn a new skill from scratch, create proof of work and skill, and then get paid for it, all in 6 months?”

I’ve been working professionally as a software engineer for over 3.5 years. On weekends, I’ve been building prototypes, mostly as a way to learn how to turn an idea into something real, explore a new technology or solve my own problem.

But now that going from idea to a bare-bones V0 has become drastically easier, the more important question is:

What’s actually worth building?

So before jumping into code, I’m forcing myself to answer a few hard questions:

- What clear problem or pain point is being solved? (Focus on the problem before the solution.)

- Who exactly is experiencing this pain? (Who are we building for?)

- Is it a problem people are willing to pay to solve? (How deep and urgent is the pain?)

- Can customers be acquired profitably? (Is the cost of acquisition lower than the value they bring?) The goal of this exercise is simple:

A mindset shift → From writing code to building a product to building a business.

This may seem rudimentary, but definitely a great starting point in developing shift in thinking.

You're lying in a hospital ward. There's an old TV in the top right corner. The same channel is on since you arrived a week ago. The sound is off.

People come in and out of your room. Doctors, nurses, friends, family and the occasional lost stranger looking for his pregnant wife about to deliver their baby (he is in the wrong ward).

You can hear people tell you how you're going to be alright, the clutter of medical equipment, the shuffling footsteps, the wheels of the food tray as it is moved to and from your bed. The doctors are kind and the nurses sweet and diligent.

You can hear them but you're not really listening anymore. You're focused entirely on the TV because just a few moments ago, it started playing the most unexpected show:

The Story of Your Life

Right before you breathe your last breath, in the midst of your end-of-life-brain-surge, as you are enjoying a delicious cocktail of neurotransmitters like Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), Endorphins and Serotonin, time slows down and the chapters of your life start flipping vividly on the TV. You see your life go by on the screen:

Taking your first steps, buying your first car, falling in love for the first time, saying goodbye to your dog.

The greatest hits. The rock bottoms. The dreams. Years of life compressed in a moment. Everything else blurs outs. Even the soundtrack is hypnotising.

But suddenly the alarm goes off, you wake up in bed, at home, healthy and full of life, and you realise it was all a dream. You get out of bed, put on your shoes and step out of the house and go for a run, thinking about the stories you have to write and live while you're alive, so you can see them played back to you when the game is finally over.

1. Choose kindness in every situation, regardless of how others behave. Your character shouldn't depend on others' actions.

2. Situations are neutral - they become positive or negative through your interpretation. What troubles us isn't events themselves, but our judgments about them.

3. Mind over matter - master your mind to end suffering. Your mind is a powerful tool; train it to serve you rather than control you. Recognize that thoughts and emotions are temporary.

4. Live consciously and stay present. Mindfulness isn't just about meditation - it's about experiencing each moment fully and making deliberate choices rather than operating on autopilot.

5. Self-respect and inner judgment matter more than external validation. Focus on being worthy of your own approval first.

6. Never complain, as it changes nothing and weakens your character. Transform that energy into solving problems instead.

7. The obstacle is the way - every setback contains opportunity. What blocks the path becomes the path. Difficulties are opportunities for growth and innovation.

8. Adversity builds resilience. Welcome challenges as teachers that strengthen your character and wisdom. What seems like misfortune often leads to unexpected growth.

9. Treat each act as if it were your last - this brings quality, presence, and dignity to everything you do. Make each moment count.

10. Act virtuously for its own sake, not for recognition. True virtue needs no audience or reward - it is its own reward.

11. Time is finite and death inevitable - act now. Don't waste time on trivial matters or procrastination. Tomorrow isn't guaranteed.

12. Observe people's true nature with compassion and clarity. Understand that their actions stem from their beliefs and experiences, even when misguided.

13. Practice gratitude daily - it transforms your perspective and brings contentment. Be thankful even for challenges.

14. Actions speak louder than words - demonstrate your philosophy through behavior rather than talking about it.

15. Learn from others' experiences and mistakes. Wisdom doesn't always need to come from personal failure.

In the dungeons of my heart, now cold, still,

Blackened with soot,

Once roared a fire—

Warming up everything and everyone around it,

Nurturing life—

Flora!

Fauna!

Creepers decorated the wall,

Flowers bloomed in the shrubbery.

It was a garden more and a dark cold dungeon less.

————

And in the center of it all, lay my muse,

Shimmering in the light of the blazing fire,

Glowing, mesmerizing, whispering.

———

The fire burned strong, day after night,

Intensifying.

And before I knew it, it was a blazing inferno—

Untamed, unyielding, undying.

It roared louder than ever,

And turned everything to ash that lay in its wake.

———

When nothing else remained, with nothing to feed it,

It slowly grew silent, leaving nothing but death—

Nothing but the remains of life that previously flourished.

And in the center, once again, lay my muse,

Petrified.

———

In the dungeons of my heart, now cold, still,

Blackened with soot,

After an eternity, I saw a spark.

For a second, everything was illuminated.

For a second I saw my muse, shimmering, glowing, mesmerizing as ever.

And I began striking the stones in my hand,

To get the fire started once again,

To get it roaring once again,

Just like I did an eternity ago—

So life would bloom once again, light would pierce through the darkness once again—

Only so I could be engulfed in its flames,

When it consumes me, once again.

As I walk barefoot across a meadow with lush green grass, surrounded by ice-capped peaks, breathing in the cool and clear mountain air, I have the choice of becoming completely aware of the sensations that I am experiencing.

I can feel the blades of grass under my feet. The grass is wet and now so are my feet. With every step, I experience the texture of the grass. I stop and spread out my toes.

With eyes closed, I bring my attention to the individual blades of grass caressing my feet.

In this moment, I have brought my awareness to my feet and the sensations that are being picked up by the nerve endings.

Instantly, I change the focus of my attention from my feet to the visual feedback that my eyes are receiving.

There is a tree in the middle of the meadow. There is some distance between me and the tree, and on the first glance, I can distinguish the trunk of the tree from the branches and the leaves on it. It is a tree like any other. As I continue to observe the tree, I can now start differentiating between the many leaves and how they sway with the breeze. The longer I observe, the more detail my brain is able to capture.

Once again, I sit down on the wet grass, close my eyes, and shift my attention to the sounds of the landscape.

Initially, I hear many sounds mixed up with one another, in a symphony, without differentiating between the source of the individual sounds. But as I continue to pay attention to what I hear, I am able to identify the instruments of this natural orchestra.

I can hear the birds singing, the rustle of leaves in the wind, and the sounds of insects.

As I spend more time with my attention on what I am hearing, I can hear my breath.

Enough time goes by, I shift my focus to the center of my chest, and now I can even hear my heartbeat in the midst of these sounds.

Here, we are experiencing a phenomenon which might be most attenuated in our species.

Awareness and our ability to shift it from one subject to another is possibly unique to our species, as is the ability to observe what is going through our mind.

When a dog sees food, it has the tendency to pursue it. Can a dog take a moment to observe its compulsiveness to consume the food and then decide not to eat it?

A human being on a diet may have an irresistible urge to eat ice cream when it is placed before them. But imagine this human being is motivated to improve their food intake and, after waging a war of thought against the urge, decides not to eat the ice cream.

Where the behavior of an animal with a primitive brain may be directed completely out of instinct, a human being can observe their thoughts and make thought-out decisions simply by shifting awareness to what aligns with their identity. Awareness, and the ability to maneuver it, is like any other skill and it can be trained. It begins by the simple act of observation.

• Up before 7 AM and out of the door for a walk/run/sprints.

  • This will shift my circadian rhythm (internal 24 hour clock which regulates a host of activities in the body like hormone release, body temperature regulation, sleep-wake cycle and more) to be in tune with day and night.

  • Physical exertion upon waking up will improve alertness early in the morning.

  • Instead of showing up at work barely out of slumber, be primed for a productive day.

• Daily exercise.

  • At least 10k steps for sufficient activity throughout the day.

  • A 30 minute calisthenic workout at home or outdoors early in the morning. No gym.

  • Philosophical shift in training from bodybuilding to functional training + energy regulation + mental stimulation.

  • Full body workouts.

• A diet comprised of whole / minimally processed food.

  • 9/10 meals are healthy and home cooked.

  • No sugar.

    • Except with the occasional milk coffee (Cappuccino, Latte).

  • Optimise for protein, quality fats and minimal carbs from sources like fruits and vegetables.

• A strict no-low-effort-entertainment policy.

  • No content scrolling

  • No shows

  • No movies

  • Cultivate boredom

  • Mindset shift from consumption oriented to creativity oriented.

• Daily writing.

  • What have you learned personally and professionally?

  • What idea or theory did you read in a book that was fascinating?

  • Write down an experience from the past. Tell a story. (Inspired by Storyworthy by Matthew Dicks)

  • Visualise the future - let your imagination run free.

  • Ask Ai for writing prompts.

I want 2025 to be a year of exponential growth. Not just ordinary progress, but real transformation:

• Deeper knowledge

• Stronger skillsets

• Measurable progress

• Harder, better, faster, stronger and smarter.

All the good stuff!

AND, all of this has to be underlined with a sense of adventure because if you're not having fun along the way, then what's the damn point, right?

But this is not going to happen automatically, on accident, or on its own.

Growth has to be manufactured.

You have to stop being the monkey acting randomly and on impulse, at least for a while.

You have to become the monkey with the plan. You have to have a recipe! We have to define a system that we follow without question, and if the system is well thought out and well designed, it will have the desired effect. And if the system doesn't work, it can be modified once we have some data.

So what is the recipe?

I don't have the whole recipe yet. But here are some of the ingredients:

• Boredom: By rejecting instant entertainment (doom scrolling, binge watching, junk processed food), I will be able to cultivate boredom.

• Create don't consume: Mindset shift from a consumer to a producer. Consumption is easy. Doesn't really require effort. Ideating, creating and producing however require effort, energy and time.

• Minimalism: Do more of less. Instead of spreading myself around doing many things together, focusing on a few things that actually move the needle.

• Execution: Once the plan is set, it has to be executed relentlessly. All thinking and no action offers no tangible value. It is essential but beyond a point it is just entertainment.

And when I combine these ingredients - embracing boredom, choosing creation over consumption, maintaining focus through minimalism, and executing relentlessly - I'll have the energy and motivation to do the things that require greater effort but yield lasting satisfaction.

This is my recipe for an exciting 2025. Let's cook!

I spent 6 months doing the absolute bare minimum and 6 months actively chasing a goal. Here's what I learned:

While doing the bare minimum:

I was watching a lot of TV series.

I was eating a lot of junk food.

I was doom scrolling like crazy.

Classic consumer behavior.

But as a consequence, I was getting fat, lazy, and stupid. Now in the moment, it felt pretty good. And it was pretty easy.

But on the other hand, when I was actively pursuing a goal, when I was living an objective oriented life:

I was running. I was reading. I was cooking.

And because I was documenting the process, I was also writing, shooting, and editing, while doing my 9:5 job.

This felt difficult, but the days felt fuller, and I slept like a baby. So if the success metric is satisfaction and fulfilment, I found the answer to lie in doing more.