And here we are at the final article of the series. Thank you for sticking with me and Merry Christmas!
Oh and I think that you are the best and therefore the whole world (including recruiters and clients) should know about it!
I know it's scary to share your creations with the world, but it's also important to do so - if not for a better paying gig - then for the sake of spreading inspiration.
I think every person possesses unique talents and can bring new ideas and new perspectives. I hope you will soon discover where your passions lie if you haven't yet!
Nonetheless, a master needs a canvas to showcase their creations and for a web developer it's a portfolio.
Portfolio: requirements and recipe
As a visitor I want to find works and information about the author, so that I could understand what author specialises at, get inspired and potentially hire their services
The most important part about a portfolio is to make it truly yours. Not only because you'd want to stand out on the market, but because you would want to find a place or project that fits your skills and aspirations.
And believe me, I know how overwhelming it is to stare at a blank page and not knowing where to start. I hope my suggestions would help. Let's get to requirements first.
Requirements
- Your works should have titles, descriptions and keywords so that users could find them easily via search engine
- Lighthouse score is as good as it can be
- Include contact information for business inquiries
- Keep it clean and simple
Recipe
- Start with the projects you'd like to showcase
- Create the most simple markup (mobile first) to hold your chosen projects
- Add contact information or a link to it
- Fill in additional texts: e.g. about yourself or your CV
- Imagine the way you'd like user to take: which pages should they visit first
- Add decorative elements and styling in accordance to hierarchy of elements users should interact with: make the link or a button you'd like them to press stand out
- Finally, check and adjust desktop layout
- Fix as much as possible issues that Lighthouse points out
- Deploy and share with the world!
Hints
Start simple and slowly add more details. Your portfolio should be change to represent your progress and vision.
Don't worry about the looks too much - clean and simple looks much more professional and elegant than over-the-top sparkling massive and heavy monstrosity (though if that's your thing - do just that please).
There are plenty places where you can deploy for free or very cheap: e.g. static sites can be hosted on GitHub pages and dynamic services and APIs on Deno Deploy.
Hard Mode: Don't get discouraged
The hardest part of showing your talents is to keep showing them even when no one is looking. It might take some time and iterations for you to find your first client or land a first job - but you'll get there if you don't give up.
I believe in you! You made it this far and you sure have something special to offer! So please to keep it hidden in the closet!
As always, feel free to reach out and I'd be happy to help with whatever I can.
Share your creations and feedback!
Liked the ideas a lot and would love to have it all year long?
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