I'm in my third year of an IT degree and feel like I've lost the momentum I had during my first two years. I started with HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React, and Node/Express, built a few projects, and originally wanted to become a developer. However, I've been inconsistent and spent too much time scrolling online and using the internet to avoid boredom or stress. As a result, my skills feel fragmented and rusty, and I don't have any internship experience yet.
I'm trying to make a serious change over the next one or two months. I'd like to become as employable as possible for internships, build a couple of worthwhile projects, strengthen my fundamentals and interview skills, and ideally earn some money through development.
For anyone who has recovered from a similar situation, how would you use 30–60 days effectively? What would you prioritize learning versus building? Would you focus on one stack, such as React and Node? How would you prepare for interviews, manage phone and internet distractions, and avoid wasting time on low-value activities? I'm looking for practical guidance rather than general motivation.
3 Answers
Before adding a huge amount of new material, make sure you’re keeping up with your degree. If you’re attending classes, completing assignments and exercises, participating in group work, and submitting projects on time, you may be in better shape than you think. If your coursework has also fallen behind, repairing that foundation should come before trying to learn several new technologies or build an ambitious portfolio.
Build something you genuinely want to use or would be excited to show someone. A finished, useful project will teach you more and help your portfolio more than repeating another familiar tutorial project.
Also watch out for the illusion of learning: sometimes you keep doing tasks you already know because they feel safe, while avoiding the parts that actually challenge you. Pick a small idea, define what “finished” means, and keep moving until it exists. Employers can’t evaluate work that stayed in your head. Doomscrolling is worth treating as a direct obstacle, so set firm work periods and remove easy access to distracting sites.
You probably aren’t as far behind as you feel. Choose one stack and go deeper instead of constantly switching; React and Node are perfectly reasonable since you already know them. A useful split for the next 60 days would be roughly 80% building and 20% interview preparation. Make two projects that solve small, specific problems and finish them properly, including deployment, documentation, and a clear explanation of your decisions.
For the phone habit, don’t depend entirely on willpower. Remove the apps that cause you to scroll and leave the phone in another room while working. Also avoid long tutorial marathons and chasing new frameworks—those can feel productive without producing much.
That’s exactly the kind of plan I needed. I’ve been switching topics constantly instead of getting good at one stack, so I’m going to stick with React and Node and spend most of my time building. I’ll also make my phone physically harder to reach while I work rather than relying on willpower.