In a pointer from this post on Aaron Wormus' blog today, there's a good article over on samizdat.mines.edu on "How to be a Programmer". It's been around for a while, but it still seems as true then as it does today.

To be a good programmer is difficult and noble. The hardest part of making real a collective vision of a software project is dealing with one’s coworkers and customers. Writing computer programs is important and takes great intelligence and skill. But it is really child’s play compared to everything else that a good programmer must do to make a software system that succeeds for both the customer and myriad colleagues for whom she is partially responsible. In this essay I attempt to summarize as concisely as possible those things that I wish someone had explained to me when I was twenty-one.

I agree with Aaron in that some of the piece is personal opinion, but it's still a wonderful reference and guide for someone just starting out with programming, no matter the language. Sure, it's size can be a little daunting, but no one said that being a good programmer was easy...