How to get a good job in the web industry
Fri, March 05, 2010 · 10:02 PM
I work a great job at The Boeing company. I’m payed well, have excellent benefits, work with my wife, so we carpool and each lunch together, and have all sorts of opportunities for growth inside the company. But anyone who has talked with me knows that I’m not doing what I’m passionate about for a living.
I want to help companies use the web to further their business ventures. I want to build websites, consult business owners, drive traffic, and make conversions. And as much as I love Boeing, I’ve come to realize that it’s not the right place for me to get those things. So how do you leave a great job, to start in a new field?
Honestly, I don’t know the answer, but I’ve got an idea: work for free.
It may not make sense at first, but there are really only two reasons an employer wouldn’t want to hire you:
- They don’t know you as a person (i.e. your character, work ethic and personality).
- You don’t have a track record to prove you know what you’re doing
There is the possibility that the company you want a job at isn’t hiring, but that’s out of your control, and, thus, outside the scope of this post.
Working for free gives your potential employer a no-risk opportunity to both (1) get to know you as a person (and employee) and (2) see if you know anything about the job you want to do. Working for free gives you a chance to prove yourself.
You can do pro-bono work for a wide array of companies, and I think that’s great. I’ve been a volunteer web designer at my church for the last year and a half. While I learned more from that experience then I have any of the small for-profit projects I’ve done, I still lacked the track record of being able to deliver results on a consistent basis.
When you go to work for a web design company for free, you get to jump right into the meat of real web business. You can hone your skills by collaborating with other professionals and ultimately you can prove that you would be asset to that company. Although, it is a sacrifice of your time, if it’s something you really want, then why not go for it. Work weekends and evenings, or get your regular schedule changed to create time and go for it.
I don’t recommend quitting your current job to work for free, but if you think you have what it takes to make a living doing what you love. Go for it! Find a company you respect and would like to work for, get a solid self-presentation together, and contact them with an offer they can’t turn down. I’m trying this, so I’ll let you know how it goes.
To our dreams!
Posted by Jim in Tutorial/Tips · Misc · (0) Comments