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Why do we all know a developer who has been pounding out unmaintainable code for a decade or more? Why do people "believe in TDD but I don't have time to write tests during crunch?" How is it that we have an entire industry based around rescuing teams from acutely awful Rails apps?
It's because on the job experience is a poor teacher; plateauing as soon as the developer is able to ship code that meets requirements. Schools teach Computer Science which is only tangentially related to being a developer and most kata's are approached incorrectly, giving no value at best, and reinforcing poor practices at worst. On top of all this, our pairs (for the lucky ones who pair program) probably have not shown us anything new in months.
This presentation will give specific, concrete steps on how to slowly and steadily improve our game through practice and hard work. I'll identify what skill Rails developers should be focusing on and walk the audience through how to target and eliminate these weaknesses so that nothing but white hot joy streams out of our fingers and into our apps. There's no magic here, no secrets, and no hacks; just you and me working our butts off until we suck a little less.

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In the presentation titled "Nobody Will Train You but You," Zach Briggs discusses the necessity for developers to take their learning into their own hands, particularly within the Rails community. He starts with an engaging premise, asking if attendees look forward to work or dread it, emphasizing the idea that the responsibility for improvement lies with the individual.

Key points covered in the talk include:  
- **Personal Journey**: Zach shares his experience transitioning from a Direct Mail analytics role to becoming a junior developer after discovering Ruby on Rails. This dramatic shift illustrates that success in development comes from passion and proactive learning.
- **The Limitations of On-the-Job Experience**: He argues that many developers plateau due to a reliance on immediate work tasks rather than seeking deeper understanding and skills enhancement.
- **Effective Learning Strategies**: Zach recommends taking notes, making coding concepts personal, and utilizing resources like tutorials and screencasts as methods to truly learn rather than just perform tasks. He shares how writing down solutions helps solidify them in memory.
- **Overcoming Knowledge Gaps**: He discusses 'unknown unknowns'—aspects of coding that a developer might not even realize they don't know—and the importance of learning from mistakes and refactoring to avoid complications.
- **Learning from Others**: The value of studying other people's code and tutorials is emphasized as a critical way to grow as a developer. He highlights the importance of combining practical experience with known best practices.
- **Adopting Good Practices**: Zach notes that adopting structured approaches to coding, such as practicing Test-Driven Development (TDD) and understanding principles like Single Responsibility, enhances code maintainability and reduces future headaches.
- **The Joy of Development**: Finally, he conveys the idea that masterful developers are those who find joy in their work. He correlates fun with excellence in programming, suggesting that true skill comes from passion and creativity rather than solely effort.

In conclusion, Zach's talk is a powerful reminder to developers that improvement is a personal journey filled with practice, the adoption of solid coding principles, and the enthusiasm to continually learn and enjoy the craft. The main takeaway is that proactive engagement in one’s professional growth leads to greater programming joy and efficiency.

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