Before I learned to write code, I wrote blog posts and marketing copy for businesses in the hospitality industry. Since my work was remote and on a freelance basis, I didn’t have co-workers, but house guests and strangers in coffee shops often commented on my lighting fast typing speed. Also, that I’m a very loud typer — you can rest assured that there is a lot of force behind these words!

But when I started my programming journey, the new-to-me syntax and constant changes needed to make my code work had me hunting and pecking at the keyboard like my 93-year old grandma.

Not only was the constant search for curly brackets a source of utter frustration but just watching more experienced developers work made me feel overwhelmed. Changing variable names in multiple locations all at once? Commenting out large sections of code in a single blow? It was all so fast! Were they developers _and _wizards? Maybe…

Here’s the truth, experienced developers (i.e. magicians) have two things going for them that you, as a programming newcomer, don’t:

1. They are experienced and have written million trillion times more code then you have. Give yourself a break.
2. They know keyboard shortcuts that save loads of time and prevent them from breaking their flow by reaching for their mouse or trackpad.

Why New Programmers Should Learn Keyboard Shortcuts

Learning a programming language is already mind-boggling, and often new developers are also being introduced to additional new-to-you technologies, like text editors, Git, GitHub, the Command Line, and even using a Mac, all while typing out “Hello World” for the first time.

With so much new information, it’s understandable that many new programmers don’t prioritize learning keyboard shortcuts. However, investing a little time upfront to master a few simple commands will pay off in a big way.

As you integrate these keyboard shortcuts into your repertoire you will increase your productivity, become more comfortable writing and debugging code, and likely experience a big boost to your confidence as your fellow first-time coders ask you how you learned such sorcery!

10 Mac Keyboard Shortcuts for New Programmers

While there are many keyboard shortcuts for your Mac, here are ten commands that new programmers can start using ASAP to make writing code feel more natural.

#programming #coding #mac #keyboard-shortcuts #productivity