The fastest shortcut to learning is copying—unscrupulously

The fastest shortcut to learning is copying—unscrupulously.

I was reading a 2017 research article, back when StackOverflow was at its peak, claiming that “copy-pasting code isn’t teaching you programming.”

First, when Google came up: — “Developers aren’t really learning to code; they just look up answers on Google.”

Then came StackOverflow: — “Developers aren’t learning proper programming; they just copy-paste from StackOverflow.”

And now: — “Developers aren’t learning programming; they’re just vibecoding apps with AI.”

All of those claims are valid because copying alone doesn’t teach you a damn thing.

But it is the fastest way to learn. In fact, copying is a crucial step in the learning process! It’s required!

Copying (or imitation) is at the core of why we value mentors and leaders: so we can learn by copying them.

After all, isn’t imitation what kids do best?

Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. — Matthew 18:3

For a long time, I knew that imitating my influences was a cheat code to level up in anything I do. But my ego got in the way. I did not want to be them, I wanted to be me, with my own way of doing things a.k.a. “style”

Until I realized the people I looked up to didn’t care. They imitated, studied, and copied the heck out of their influences, too.

So I don’t care anymore either. I take what works from here and there, stitch things together, and in the process, my own voice—my “style”—flourishes.

Man, sometimes it takes you a long time to sound like yourself. — Miles Davis