Hey everyone! I'm 21 and have been learning programming for about 7 months with a private tutor. So far, I've picked up JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and Sass, and I'm about to dive into React. I'm completely switching my career path, and honestly, it's a bit frightening. I've made progress, but I often feel like I don't know enough yet.
While learning is not as scary as the job hunt, that's where my anxiety kicks in. I would really appreciate any advice or personal stories about how you found your first job in tech. Thanks a lot!
Just to add, I currently work in a job where I've got about 5 years of experience, and my salary is decent. However, I'm feeling burned out and realize that I don't want to stick with a stable job if I don't find joy in it anymore. I'm really ready to embrace this change, but the uncertainty is scary!
4 Answers
For my first jobs, I often made myself affordable enough that my lack of experience wasn't a big deal. I even worked for free during summers just to build a resume. Focus on building a skill set; once you have some experience, you can demand better pay!
I had quite a rough start too. Fresh out of college, I spent nearly two years job hunting in 2009. I ended up commuting over an hour for a low-paying job just building emails and landing pages. My strategy was simply to look up companies and directly email them. You have to be proactive!
My journey started with some low-paid gigs and even volunteer work while I was still in school. Those references and experiences eventually helped me land a proper job. The market was more favorable back then, but it did take time.
My first IT job came from a casual chat at a party during my college years. A guy I met helped me get an interview, and I got the job! Prior community college experience helped, even though it wasn't programming-related. Building a portfolio while doing side projects is also key!
That's seriously motivating! I might just take that advice and look for internships or volunteer positions to build up my portfolio.