Goal: become developer this year from scratch. Feedback? • Hacker News Board

Re: Goal: become developer this year from scratch. Feedback?

#11

Post by brudgers » Sun, Feb 05, 2012, 2:51 PM UTC

grokaholic wrote: post #6

brudgers wrote: post #3

> "By Dec, goal is to get first client and make $2k from web dev. After taxes, that $2k will cover Jan expenses, buying another month to find the next client, then the next." That's not a very workable strategy. Work for your December client will interfere with finding your January client - or your January client will show up in October promising to be your December client. Then your March client shows up, only he wa…

Thanks for the constructive criticism! To clarify, my goal is not to find a client in Dec, but by Dec. Start focusing on client hunting around Sept, giving me about 4 months to find a gig. Still unrealistic? Currently don't see a better option than to try, and if I fail, go back to temping/saving until I can try again. Is there a smarter way I'm overlooking? Thanks for again for your input.

How realistic it is depends on how many people you know who will pay you several thousand dollars to do what you do. Finding clients isn't like finding a job - a new website is a change to business operations.

Client development can take years - relatively few people pull the trigger on $3000 expenditures each day.

And when they do, why should they hire you?

Re: Goal: become developer this year from scratch. Feedback?

#12

Post by grokaholic » Sun, Feb 05, 2012, 6:08 PM UTC

brudgers wrote: post #11

grokaholic wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for the constructive criticism! To clarify, my goal is not to find a client in Dec, but by Dec. Start focusing on client hunting around Sept, giving me about 4 months to find a gig. Still unrealistic? Currently don't see a better option than to try, and if I fail, go back to temping/saving until I can try again. Is there a smarter way I'm overlooking? Thanks for again for your input.

How realistic it is depends on how many people you know who will pay you several thousand dollars to do what you do. Finding clients isn't like finding a job - a new website is a change to business operations. Client development can take years - relatively few people pull the trigger on $3000 expenditures each day. And when they do, why should they hire you?

Will have a clearer idea around Sept. Then I'll know where my skills/portfolio will be, and can test out what price the market will bear for my skills. Could be more or less than I expect. Rather than wait till I have total certainty, will just go for it, find out if things work, and if not, learn and adjust. Unless there's some smarter way to do this with more guarantees that I'm overlooking, then will do that. I'm willing to try and a fail for years if needed. Reason for the 1 year goal is not because I'm impatient and will quit if things don't work right away. It's to make sure that I'm not overly patient--waiting years until absolutely sure that everything is guaranteed and understood in advance before leaping in.

Agree with your point that not everybody drops $2k on one project. So if that happens I'll just have to meet the $2k goal by getting more customers paying less per project. A lazy way to introduce myself to lots of clients right away is to sign up with a temp agency like RHI's Creative Group that will match my skills to clients for a cut of my hourly wage. Having temped before, I know this is a way to make lots of connections in a short period of time. Would need to validate my worth to the agency first, but that's still easier than doing the same to several clients. Along the same lines: subcontracting. Really, will try everything, see what works.

How did you snag your first clients? Were you already established as a dev through work at a company before you started freelancing? Or did you freelance before having dev jobs on your resume?

Re: Goal: become developer this year from scratch. Feedback?

#13

Post by grokaholic » Sun, Feb 05, 2012, 6:14 PM UTC

dirkdeman wrote: post #10

Have you considered learning PHP with a framework? Code Igniter isn't too hardto learn, and the bonus of this strategy is that you'll learn using a framework. Once you get that switching to RoR or Django isn't too big of a step. In fact, you can use codeigniter for making your own custom CMS, killing two birds with one stone! This is the link to the tut: http://net.tutsplus.com/articles/news/codeigniter-from-scrat...

I'm considering. My passion is for Python and Django, though some people say I should go with PHP and Wordpress because it's easier to learn, and to get paid. CodeIgniter comes up too. I've already invested some time with Python/Django, enjoy it, and wonder if it would still save time to learn PHP which I have no prior exp in? Perhaps the bigger issue is that there's more noob-friendly PHP work out there. Thanks for the link, checking it out right now.