Perhaps the most obvious and powerful of changes in our world is the penetration of computers into our personal lives. This is penetration to the point of integration — to the point of augmentation. No surprise there; everyone’s talking about it.
One less obvious result of this monumental shift, however, is that the skill of programming will move from a field specialization to a life skill. It will become a method of optimizing and improving oneself, much like diet and exercise is today.
This will involve coding skills only incidentally. Even more important than prowess with a given language will be the ability to conceptualize a problem, break it into pieces, and design a solution. This ability is the true life skill worth having, and it will soon become the new literacy.
Just as the industrial revolution transformed fitness into a means of self-improvement for the masses, the integration of computers into our personal lives will do the same for programming.
Take advantage of being among the first to see this happen. Learn to code. Tell your friends. Teach your kids. Early.