'''Programming''' can be a very frustrating thing to do at any level.

There are a few things that have kept me going:
   * Be excited when little things work
   * Realize that from little things big things are built
   * Everybody is still learning (even Knuth)
   * Focus on being the best programmer you can be, rather than as good as someone else
   * Realize that holy/language wars just bring upset and the best thing to do is to fix the problem than complain
   * Don't be intimidated by 500+ page books (almost everybody finds them frustrating)
   * Remember your past difficulties when helping new programmers
 

Please extend this list.