I first started with GitHub because a recruiter told me I needed a portfolio of some sort to demonstrate my skills to potential employers. Given that I'd been a

I first started with GitHub because a recruiter told me I needed a portfolio of some sort to demonstrate my skills to potential employers. Given that I'd been applying for graduate/junior roles in the industry for over three years with frustratingly little success at getting to face-to-face interview stage, I decided to build some side projects to show people what I could do. I got my first professional coding job a year later. I lucked out by finding an employer who not only looked at my GitHub, but was also willing to take a risk on hiring a 49yo junior. The side-project is still on-going: developing it keeps me entertained when the grind of regular work drains my enthusiasm for coding.