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>“They [high school students] know more than we do about programming and 3D printing, all that cool stuff,” he says. “They can make a design in a very different

by giarc 11y ago

>“They [high school students] know more than we do about programming and 3D printing, all that cool stuff,” he says. “They can make a design in a very different way than how we were trained.” I think this is an important statement. Kids tinkering in their basement have knowledge to do great work, but are often overlooked because of their age or education.

jayhuang 11y ago
This exactly. Back when I first started taking client work, I had plenty of trouble securing contracts because owners/execs saw a kid at the table, not someone who was going to solve their problems for a respectable amount of money. This was always the result of prospective clients insisting to have a video call/meet prior to any work being done. Quickly after, I strongly refused any situation that would give away my age. I'd be lying to say I didn't receive a lot of opposition but when your chance of securing a deal is sub 10% and tons more time wasted, it's easy to just drop the prospect. By now, my age is (for the most part), no longer a deal-killer, but I still usually do the same thing unless they're referred by an existing client. It's a huge timesaver.
ldehaan 11y ago
agreed, I had a rough time of it, I started working in computing at 13 and only got the job because my mom hired me to automate data entry at the local college. I was actually pretty lucky to be able to work with the places that I have, but it was a lot of applying everywhere and hoping they didn't ask how old I was on the phone interview. I actually had to grow a beard before people stopped asking me how old I was and focused on asking me technical questions :D it does seem to be taking a turn, I have seen a lot of kids hanging out at the local tinker mill working on cool projects and talking about starting their own companies. which seems like a much more accessible thing than it was when I was a kid.

by giarc 11y ago

jayhuang 11y ago

This exactly. Back when I first started taking client work, I had plenty of trouble securing contracts because owners/execs saw a kid at the table, not someone who was going to solve their problems for a respectable amount of money. This was always the result of prospective clients insisting to have a video call/meet prior to any work being done. Quickly after, I strongly refused any situation that would give away my age. I'd be lying to say I didn't receive a lot of opposition but when your chance of securing a deal is sub 10% and tons more time wasted, it's easy to just drop the prospect. By now, my age is (for the most part), no longer a deal-killer, but I still usually do the same thing unless they're referred by an existing client. It's a huge timesaver.

ldehaan 11y ago

agreed, I had a rough time of it, I started working in computing at 13 and only got the job because my mom hired me to automate data entry at the local college. I was actually pretty lucky to be able to work with the places that I have, but it was a lot of applying everywhere and hoping they didn't ask how old I was on the phone interview. I actually had to grow a beard before people stopped asking me how old I was and focused on asking me technical questions :D it does seem to be taking a turn, I have seen a lot of kids hanging out at the local tinker mill working on cool projects and talking about starting their own companies. which seems like a much more accessible thing than it was when I was a kid.