Hey all, so very new to this communtiy and, kind of at a loss. I've been putting off trying to land a developer career because life keeps getting in the way. Well, today the biggest obstacle to this journey has just been put in front of me. This morning at 11:15 am, my father was diagnosed with cancer of the lungs, liver and colon. The shock and sadness are still prevalent, I'm hurting, my mother and brother are hurting. I'm sad and angry because even all three of our jobs right now won't enough. So I need build my portfolio starting right now.
I need to get one of these jobs but I don't know what to build to even get my foot in the door. I've been putting it off over and over again, but this is my wake up call. I have to land a job in the next 4 months(projection from doctors).So I reach out to you those who are already in tech for guidance and what to add. I'll link my github and linkedin profiles here, I just don't know how to focus. Please, any advice or guidance would be greatly appreciated as I take things one day at a time.I have to make this work for my family's sake
github: https://github.com/JonathanMKPT
linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-thomas-5b5135114
Thanks in advance,
Jonathan Thomas
Oldest comments (6)
So sorry to hear about your father. Kia kaha (as we say in NZ).
A strategy that I had followed to get into programming after a complete change of career had been to aim for a fairly new technology for which there was rapidly growing demand. Your github repo suggests that you are into javascript. I would recommend to start with vuejs. You will find a free course on freecodecamp.org/news/vue-js-full-...
Having a concrete project to show off would greatly help. You mention that you are a possible artist. An option is to combine programming and visual expression is Visualisation. You could start small and gradually grow in complexity, while getting great visibility, without spending a dime, by using the site bit.dev/. The proposal of that site is to become a registry of reusable visual components. You could start with simple presentational infographics such as these freepik.com/search?dates=any&forma.... Then move to interactive visualisations. Then get into more and more intricate components. Then move to full page. Then get to full app. You might greatly benefit from reading, in parallel, about design systems - medium.com/@nathanacurtis
Alternatively, if you have a mind for maths, you can experiment with generative arts to create impressive content in only a few days. Here are a few people into this on codepen: codepen.io/DonKarlssonSan/pens/pop..., codepen.io/Mamboleoo/pens/public/7/, codepen.io/Alca/pens/public/13/.
For cybersecurity, you will find a list of free books at github.com/Hack-with-Github/Free-S.... You will find more ressources by searching for github.com/search?q=ethical+hacking. You will need to demonstrate some familiarity with server deployment. You can get free hosting with netlify.com/ or predictable (fixed at $5/month) on digitalocean.com/pricing/.
Best of luck!
Thank you for the possible pathways it's greatly appreciated
I found developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/W... enjoyable to learn. It is easy to get started with, and soon enough you will be making cool visuals on the web.
Thanks you,started using the docs as a reference
I'm sorry to hear about your father. Best wishes to you and your family.
Check meetup.com for tech meetups in your city. Although you are a beginner and it may be difficult to have the confidence to go meet professionals in the industry, I'm willing to bet you will be able to find someone who would like hearing about your experience as a beginner in tech and what you are learning and interested in learning. There may be groups of people learning like you too.
I find that being part of community that is passionate about something gives me passion for that thing as well.
And of course you will learn so much and encounter strange and exciting opportunities when you meet people.
Thanks, I'll set time to go to one meetup this month