Quick question: When was the last time someone really browsed through your GitHub repos?
I don’t mean glancing at your profile picture and seeing those green squares. I mean actually opening a repo, reading the README, running your code.
Yeah… probably not often.
When I first started freelancing, I would casually send GitHub links to potential clients. I figured, “They’re developers, they’ll get it.”
They didn’t.
One client admitted later:
“Honestly, we just wanted to know if you could build what we needed. Your repos were a bit overwhelming.”
Fair point.
What GitHub Is (and Isn’t)
GitHub is perfect for collaboration, version control, and code history.
But as a portfolio? It can be a maze.
- Half-finished side projects
- Experimental branches
- Repos with no README
All of that is normal for dev life — but it doesn’t exactly scream “hire me.”
The Secret Sauce: Context + Personality
Instead of dumping links, try:
- Writing a short paragraph about the project’s purpose
- Explaining the problem you solved
- Sharing your role (especially for team projects)
- Adding a screenshot or short demo video
When I redid my portfolio last year, I put a single sentence under each project about what I learned from it. One said:
“This project taught me the pain of poorly documented APIs — and why good error handling is a lifesaver.”
Guess what? That sparked a fun conversation in an interview.
Make Your Portfolio Feel Like *You*
Your portfolio is not just for showing code. It’s for showing who you are as a developer.
That’s why I finally moved beyond the GitHub link and built a proper home for my projects. And I didn’t even hand-code it — I used visitfolio.com to throw together a clean, professional page in under an hour.
It’s not about perfection. It’s about clarity.
If your portfolio is just a GitHub profile link, you’re leaving too much to chance.
Give your work a narrative. Add personality. Make it easy for people to get excited about what you build.
You’ll be surprised how much of a difference it makes — not just for recruiters, but for your own confidence too.
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