I thought the process of Python mastery went something like:
- Discover list comprehensions
- Discover generators
- Incorporate map, reduce, filter, iter, range, xrange often into your code
- Discover Decorators
- Write recursive functions, a lot
- Discover itertools and functools
- Read Real World Haskell (read free online)
- Rewrite all your old Python code with tons of higher order functions, recursion, and whatnot.
- Annoy your cubicle mates every time they present you with a Python class. Claim it could be "better" implemented as a dictionary plus some functions. Embrace functional programming.
- Rediscover the Strategy pattern and then all those things from imperative code you tried so hard to forget after Haskell.
- Find a balance.
https://stackoverflow.com/a/2576240/878451