Overcoming a friend's self-discouragement Before I turned 19 I just kind of... fell into coding. I used to think programming was something incredibly hard that only child prodigies and people with a 160+ IQ could do. (A view often reinforced by Hollywood stereotypes.) And I thought that I just wasn't smart enough.

Since getting into programming,${}^1$ I have learned that even a monkey could take up coding. (Seeing some code, it seems in fact, they do.) This is not evident to many outsiders, however.

I currently have a friend that is about to finish school and she has no idea what to do with her life. I am trying to encourage her to give coding a shot. I know she would be great at it as she's one of the smartest people I know, even if she won't believe it. Just like younger me, however, she thinks she's too dumb to have a chance at coding.

How do I convince her to give it a shot?${}^2$ What tools are there to show her it is much easier than it looks at a glance?



${}^1$I just kind of happened to get into coding via databases, but that is a rather unusual path to take and not one I would recommend to start out with.

${}^2$I don't want to pressure her into a career in programming; if she decides it's not for her, that's fine, but basic coding knowledge is surely not a bad skill to have.
I am not sure if I agree with the "monkey" part! Maybe everyone is capable of writing some code. Building serious apps is another thing...

Anyway, show her the code.org website, and let her play around for a while. If she does not like, then probably she is not fitted for this "monkey thing" :)