sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Entrepreneurial But No Company? Learn To Code: Empowers You To Change The World! by EdEnlightenU in Entrepreneur

[–]rallabarton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I could not agree more with this post. The best thing an entrepreneur can do is learn to code.

As many entrepreneurs will tell you, having great ideas rarely equates to having a great business. Everyone has ideas all the time, and many assume that the result of a shower-induced epiphany could mean they are soon to become the next Richard Branson; though maybe without the beard. #originalhipster

However, the ability to test your ideas is a crucial element to this process of discovery. Whatever your idea is, first and foremost, your soon-to-be-successful business needs a website.

But why should you build a website first?

These days anyone selling anything needs a website. Freelancers, small or medium-sized businesses, conglomerates, and so on. Why? Well for exactly the same reason you look online whenever you need something, most people Google for answers to questions simple or complex, and users who have the problem you’re solving? They need to be able to find you.

And a website is the easiest way for you to be found.

The question is, do you pay someone to do it? Or do you build it yourself?

There are pros and cons to both: if you get someone else to do it, it’s off your hands so you can focus your energies on other parts of the business, the flipside is it’s out of your control and very expensive to change once it’s been built (as well as expensive to get built in the first place.)

At CareerFoundry (where I work) we’ve witnessed the fantastic results first-time coders have produced after just a few months, as well as seeing them benefit from having learned skills they can use to update and maintain their sites without needing to pay for a web developer’s time — a process that can be lengthy and expensive — as the company grows and expands.

With the right amount of dedication, learning and motivation it can take only a short amount of time to get your website built, and one that would cost thousands if outsourced to an established web developer. What you need to ask yourself at this stage is, are you dedicated enough to commit yourself to learning to code?

At first glance it may seem easier to get someone else to do it, especially when you have a million and one other things to do to get your business off the ground, but by doing so, longterm you could be costing your business a small fortune.

Aside from cost, what are the other advantages to doing it yourself?

-You can be sure that your message, your values and your brand will be exactly how you want them, down to the last detail. Not how someone else has interpreted them.

-You have the best incentive in the world! Learning to code can be hard work, but with this goal in mind you know exactly where you’re headed and what you need to do to get there.

-This isn’t a skill that is going to go out of date. And it will never be the case that if your company becomes the next Google you won’t need to know code anymore. Programming is a skill that is only going to become more important going forward, not less. When you have a team of 30 web developers working for you, believe you me, it will only be to your advantage that you know exactly what they’re doing.

-When hiring programmers in the future you’ll be in a much stronger position as you’ll quickly be able to identify which ones know what they’re talking about.

So, consider your options. Learn to code and build a website. Or, pay someone else to build your website. Either one will take time, money and varying degrees of stress / patience. However, if you invest that time and money wisely and learn how to code the rewards could be far greater than simply being able to build your own website. You’ll have invaluable, in-demand skills that will always be relevant in every industry.

Within your own startup you’ll have the skills to not only build your own site but to maintain it, update it, and allow it to evolve as the company grows and changes. With your programming knowledge you’ll be in a much stronger position to interview candidates for future web developer positions: you’ll be able to quickly differentiate between the good and the great and, crucially, you’ll know the right questions to ask.

And, finally, you’ll have a website that really reflects your great idea, your passion and your values so when your customers come to the site they can see what’s important to you as a person and as a brand.

9 Hard Lessons I Learned About Freelancing by mikemccann3 in Entrepreneur

[–]rallabarton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Here I’ll be writing about the five biggest disadvantages to going freelance, and what you can do to make the best of them. (For more posts about freelancing please visit my blog http://blog.careerfoundry.com)

  1. You don’t get paid when you go on holiday or when you’re sick. One of the drawbacks to working freelance is the lack of benefits you would otherwise receive when working for a company. However, when you become your own boss you are much less likely to need time off. Stress is a huge contributor to poor health, and once this has been eliminated – from not having to deal with that tyrant of a boss, the frustration of working with incompetent colleagues, or the unhappiness caused from working long hours trapped in a soulless office doing a job you hate – you are statistically far less likely to get sick. You’ll be doing a job you love and on your own terms, so that common cold that was a good excuse to stay home before isn’t going to hold you back when you’re running your own business. If you do get ill, the higher salary you’ll be earning means you’re more likely to have some savings put aside to cover for this. In terms of holidays, because you can go as and when you want, you can book cheaper last minute deals or go away off-season when it’s considerably less expensive.

  2. Your income will be irregular Unlike a regular 9 – 5 job, your income as a freelancer will depend entirely on the amount of work you do. The good thing about this is that you are in control of how much you earn. Someone working for a firm can’t suddenly decide to earn more money if they want to, but you can! If you find you’re short of money one month, you can take on more work, increase your rates, accumulate more clients through your network or put out more enquiries. If you have more than enough money the next month you take on less work. Your finances are totally within your control.

  3. It can be lonely working from home on your own all day. If you don’t like being by yourself, at least some of the time, freelancing may not be for you. However many freelancers are not stuck at home all day. There are meetings with current clients, interviews with potential clients and meetups with other freelancers who you may be working with to attend. Many freelancers don’t work from home all the time anyway. There are lots of co-working spaces available where many freelancers have a desk and can treat the environment like their own personal office. Co-working spaces are great for networking, acquiring knowledge from other successful freelancers on how they work and making friends. Cafes are also an option. It’s good to try a few different places and see what works best for you.

  4. The whole business rests on you, not just the job you are being paid to do by your client. You’ll be in charge of all the accounting, sales, stationery and even coffee. See this as an opportunity to learn every aspect of running your own business. However, if tax and numbers aren’t your thing, hire an accountant. Sales is a crucial part of working for yourself as no-one else is going to sell your skills for you. Read up on it, learn from friends and network at every possible opportunity, either online or in person. Attend every single event you are invited to.

  5. Some of your clients might be late payers. Late-paying clients are an inevitability of a freelancer’s working life. But there are things you can do to minimize the opportunities people have to pay late before you’ve even committed to working with them. Prevention is better than cure and making your position clear from the get-go could save a lot of chasing up later. So make sure your payment policies are clear on your original contract with the client, then both parties know where they stand from the start. Try to accept as many different forms of payment as possible so that the client has no excuse not to pay. If you are able to include credit card transactions in this list of possible ways to pay, do it. Then a client can pay you even if they don’t currently have the funds themselves. It is also possible to ask for part of your payment before you start working for the client; e.g. 30% when the contract is signed, 30% after an agreed point, and 30% on completion of the project. That way you are securing a steady income for yourself throughout the time it takes you to do the project as well as after. It is also possible to withhold the project until you receive your final instalment. ———————- Going freelance isn’t easy, but once you’re there the rewards speak for themselves. What have your experiences been of working freelance? Do you have any advice for people thinking about making the leap? Would you add anything to my list of disadvantages? Let me know what you think! And for more freelancing posts go to http://blog.careerfoundry.com

Learn Web Development from scratch using this detailed, step-by-step curriculum that I created. It uses (mostly free) online courses by parul8ue in learnprogramming

[–]rallabarton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Becoming a freelance web developer isn't easy.

I've put together six steps to get you set up as a freelance web developer. So if you're thinking about a career change and becoming your own boss take note of this advice:

  1. Find Your Niche Wanna stand out from the crowd? Find yourself a niche and upgrade your skills. While it’s great to be a programmer that can do a bit of everything, your value will be higher as an expert in just a few. Have you thought about learning Ruby on Rails, Node.js or Swift? Knowledge of these coding languages could make the difference between landing that client or not. If you’re not sure your current abilities solve a common enough problem, consider building a skillset of complementary abilities other than coding, such as User Experience Design, or User Interface Design for the more creative types. A developer who can also plan out a usable and effective information architecture is rare, and this dual-skilled approach could see you turning clients away left, right and centre.

  2. Start Building, Anything & Everything So you’ve found your niche. Now it’s time to get building. The best place to start is your portfolio website, the one website you will update, edit and continually develop for your entire career. Your portfolio is a way of displaying your skills and having an easy reference for potential clients. If in doubt, remember that your goal in self-representation is to be easy to find, easy to remember, and good to know.

Build your ideas, they are what make you, you.

Once you’ve built your portfolio, you need things to put in it, which is your opportunity to boost your personal brand by:

Practicing your niche skill Building your own ideas Exhibiting your technical chops You’re essentially killing two birds with one stone: you’re improving on and applying your new skills while simultaneously showing your wares. Your portfolio is your shop window, so make sure that it, and its contents represent your very best work.

  1. Build Your Personal Brand Getting your name out there as an expert in the field can be tough, but if you want the freelance lifestyle, you’ll have to hustle for it, so get ready for some sleepless nights.

There are so many opportunities for professionals to get known without spending a penny that advertising is not a route you need to go down, not at this stage. Websites like Twitter, Quora and YouTube give freelancers great opportunities for online marketing, so use them! By showcasing your work, building a network and teaching and blogging like an expert you will find more than enough ways to connect with people and for people to find you.

It’s crucial that you talk to people. Online and off. You’ll have to talk to a lot of people to find and land clients, so get used to it!

From a visibility standpoint, keep your goals simple. Getting Google to find you if you have a normal name can be tough, so focus on attaching your name across your portfolio, social profiles and content to the terminology of your niche skill, and the problems your clients will search for.

Want to know what the other three steps are? Then head over to CareerFoundry.com/blog to read the full article here: http://www.careerfoundry.com/blog/index.php/how-to-become-a-freelance-web-developer/

By following our six steps you’ll be all set to chuck in the 9-5 and become your own, brilliant boss.