🏗️ Learning Go: Quotes, Lessons, and First Impressions

I’ve started dipping my toes into Go—learning a new language after Python. While Python is fantastic for getting things done quickly, I missed the type safety of C#. Python isn’t always the best for production software, especially in teams with varying experience levels.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Python and building with FastAPI and Pydantic and definitely going to have to look at PydanticAI soon!

I really wanted to explore something new and that could solve some of the speed and scale problems Python suffers with being a single-core interpreted language.

I went through the whole Rewrite in Rust phase but for what I mainly work on it’s not a good fit. I also work on a team of various skillsets and disciplines, it would be too hard for everyone to learn Rust and honestly they don’t need to. I also did the Rust vs Go comparison and watched countless Youtube videos. But really it’s comparing a screwdriver and a saw, both tools but for different use-cases and situations.

In the end I thought Go would be a nice language that’s easy to pick up and would solve potential issues that could be missed by a dynamic language like Python for our team.

🎙️ Discovering the Go Time Podcast

I stumbled upon the Go Time Podcast early on and immediately dove in. I love the different perspectives and experiences shared—it’s an engaging and insightful listen.

10/10 would recommend! 🎧✅

Below are some quotes and key takeaways from the hundreds of podcast episodes I’ve listened to.

✨ Quotes & Learnings

The art of writing is rewriting. – Ernest Hemingway

A lot of code stays in its initial state longer than it should, especially under the pressure to ship quickly. Instead, we should treat our code like a first draft—expecting it to change and improve through reviews and collaboration.

A little copying is better than a little dependency.

Go is designed to be simple and “batteries included” 🔋. Instead of pulling in unnecessary packages, Go’s standard library provides powerful tools like net/http, reducing the need for external dependencies.

Simple code is better than clever code.

If you’ve ever maintained software for a long time, you’ve likely seen clever code bite back. Go was built with readability in mind, making simplicity a core philosophy. Optimizing for clarity over complexity benefits both individual developers and teams.

Write code for the next person and the average developer.

This is crucial when working on teams. If you’re building a project solo, it may not matter as much, but in a company or open-source project, writing clear, maintainable code is essential.

I’ll admit, I still need to get better at this! When you’re moving fast, it’s easy to focus on shipping instead of maintainability. But for long-term success, prioritizing clarity is worth it.

If you’re not embarrassed by your first release, you released too late.

This one is interesting. My senior software engineer take? “It depends.” 😆

I totally get that waiting too long for a perfect release means you miss out on valuable user feedback. That said, there are caveats—in avionics, healthcare, or regulated industries, moving too fast can have serious consequences.

Ultimately, it’s about understanding your domain and finding the right balance between speed and reliability.

🔜 More to Come!

These are just a few of the quotes and lessons I’ve picked up while learning Go. I’ll be sharing more insights, code snippets, and discoveries as I continue this journey.

🚧 Stay tuned—more to come soon! 🚀