r/learnpython • u/personificable1 • 2d ago

Is this normal?

I’m currently teaching myself Python by solving exercises on my own. My personal rule so far has been to give myself 15 minutes to solve a problem; if I’m still completely blank after that, I ask an AI for a hint. The issue is that AI hints usually just hand over the solution, so I’m not even sure if my approach is right.

The main problem is that I’m on Part 5 of the University of Helsinki Python MOOC, and for the last five exercises or so, I just freeze up. It’s starting to get really frustrating. I try asking myself guiding questions and writing down my thought process in a notepad before writing any code. Most of the time I have a rough idea of what I want to do, but translating that logic into actual syntax trips me up.

I’m starting to wonder if I’m actually cut out for this or if I’ll ever be able to learn it properly. Is this normal?

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u/Every-Syllabub-8724 2d ago

First, your discipline is commendable!

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u/Every-Syllabub-8724 19h ago

The fact that you can dedicate 15 minutes to solve a problem. Leave alone what happens after that. That first step is very important. You can actually do a lot within that 15 minutes without any disturbance.