You're aiming to master a programming language. How do you measure your progress effectively?

For mastering any programming language , building logical thinking is the key. Solving problems consistently makes you feel confident and if it's based on a project, you can easily see the learning progress each day. But sometimes there can be problems that take longer than usual, at those times sir back ,try to simplify it, break the complex logic and try to solve the problem.

Mastery of anything is measured by how much confident you are about doing something with it and how much did you achieve in what you aimed for. If you learned python language to implement machine learning and AI then it could only be said that ylu mastered if you can implement things with it. Perfection is never expected but effectiveness and efficiency matters. You can not tell you have mastered anything without testing yourself in a critical situation. What if my algorithm is highly accurate but too slow for business? Can I optimize it? If not then is there any other algorithm to achieve desired result with better speed? Unless you yourself isn't confident and satisfied with your results then you haven't mastered the language.

Understanding of a particular language is majorly defined by realistic goals that are intended for the learning process. In the first instance, you should establish how you want to achieve short-term goals, for example, learning the structure of a language or developing small products. Slowly move to achieve advanced objectives, for instance, creating complete applications or providing solutions to open-source initiatives. In goal setting, it is always advantageous to divide your learning process into several parts because this way you can easily assess how far you have come along and this aspect in particular encourages you to go on.

Most probably say do xyz certifications or tutorials or follow abc doctrine to "become a master". But no. Start of small and learn the basics of the language for yourself (invest time). Then if you think you understand enough try to give back (opensource; some lib you use need extra option). Even if your ideas are crap or simple or dont work/wrong the os world will probably try to help you be better by giving ideas and insights. This may enhance your understanding of the language. Listening and accepting you are crap or being silly is one of the most fundamental lessons for learning programming and any language. Others know better than you and they may help you get better at knowing what you know (listen!).

Dominar un lenguaje de programación requiere dedicación, práctica constante y una evaluación efectiva de tu progreso mediante herramientas de seguimiento. Establece un objetivo claro y alcanzable, comenza con programas de baja complejidad, divide al problema general, en pequeños problemas a resolver, utiliza patrones de diseño. Busca feedback de otros programadores. La clave del éxito es ser constante, paciente y disfrutar del proceso del aprendizaje.

Besides knowing how to code and solve problems the theoretical knowledge that should be possessed by a programmer is of great importance. Knowledge in data structures, algorithms, and design patterns is considered core knowledge in coding good programs. Reviewing and practicing these notions will contribute to the enhancement of your theoretical background, and help solve challenging issues or find ways in improving the code of a program. It hence calls for maintenance of balance in between the practice and theory so as to ensure that one is fully equipped with skills.

The fact is that the consistent practice can help to master a programming language. Spend allotted time to coding and solve various problems ranging from basic to the ones that require more time. Thus, various aspects of coding are likely to improve gradually or even increase because of enhanced speed, decreased number of bugs, and problem solving skills, which are signs that the programmer is becoming more knowledgeable and skilled.

Participate effectively and embrace the community you want to be a part of. Contribute to the growth of the technology you are learning or sharing knowledge. Use the 70/20/10 teaching methodology and apply your knowledge through personal projects, articles, open source, etc. Many communities like the Javascript, Node, Python, PHP ecosystem are open and you can be a part of helping others and applying your knowledge through knowledge dissipation

Feedback is essential for solidly building your knowledge about a given technology. Be open to criticism and suggestions, as this is the only way you will mature as you learn and apply what you have learned. Try to be critical in what you do, in your codes and ask other people to analyze it, through a Code Review. Technologies constantly change and die, but the solid foundation of software engineering never or rarely changes.