Story

I'm someone who got into building/programming in early 2025, when vibe coding tools became more usable. Since then, I'd like to think that I have developed a lot as a programmer, but I still have this deep sense of imposter syndrome / worry that AI is too much of a crutch and I'm not really learning.

I have shipped a few projects, I always review AI-suggested code, do daily coding practice without AI, watch youtube videos, etc. but still don't know if I'm striking the right balance or whether I can really call myself a programmer.

I often see people say that the solution is to just fully learn to code without AI, (i.e, go "cold turkey"), which may be the best, but I wonder if the optimal path is somewhere in between given that AI is clearlly changing the game here in terms of what it means to be a programmer.

I'm curious how you have all handled this balancing act in the past few years. More concretely, what strategies do you use to both be efficient and able to ship / move quickly while ensuring you are also taking the time to really process and understand and learn what you are doing?