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I suppose you can still focus on a few technologies when looking for new projects and freelancing. At the beginning it should be quite complicated since you won

I suppose you can still focus on a few technologies when looking for new projects and freelancing. At the beginning it should be quite complicated since you won't like the idea of letting a project go just because it requires some new framework you don't know, but it's a price to be paid in order to have more expertise and experience using your skillset (proper financial planning might help in this transition). If you keep learning and relearning things for each 2-weeks project you find, you'll end up without much depth in any of the technologies you have used. The question then is: which technologies/frameworks/languages should you focus on?

kiraken 12y ago
But most developers i know are proficient in multiple frameworks and languages, that's why i'm trying to be at least good in them, i suppose the only way to do so is to create a repo for each new thing i learn in github and make sure to put a new project in each rep every week
- danielalmeida 12y ago
  I'm not saying you can only know a couple of frameworks, but it 's hard to be an expert in Python/Django, Ruby/Rails, Node.js and Java. You can do the same for frontend stuff. For example: I think it's a better option to be a Django and Angular.js expert, good at Node.js and Backbone.js.. and kind of ignore projects related to Java, Rails, Ember, React etc. You can pick anything you want, it's just an example. You can still work on side-projects with the trendy stuff and migrate depending on your interests and the market, but you shouldn't transition into new things every month. Just my 2 cents, best of luck. :)
- eropple 12y ago
  Are they proficient, or are they good at faking it until they become proficient? I have a lot of tricks in my toolbox to seem ready and productive, while I'm scrambling behind the scenes to actually become ready and productive. (Difference is, I'm willing to admit it, because I am confident in the value I create.)
  - scobar 12y ago
    I'm curious to know how you admit it. I recently completed a website redesign for a relative in Brazil. He wanted to use the existing MySQL db and some PHP functions, and expand on both. I had some experience with HTML, very little with CSS and Javascript, and had never built a website using a text editor alone for the code. I'd just completed the HTML/CSS, JavaScript, and jQuery courses on Codecademy and was excited to apply what I'd learned, but I made it very clear that I wasn't an expert at frontend code nor design and had no PHP nor databse experience and would need to learn them to complete the project. He showed me various websites and features he liked, and I recreated them with HTML, CSS, and jQuery designing the new site to his satisfaction in about 5 days. Then, I powered through a couple tutorials on PHP and MySQL for a couple days. Most of the old PHP that he wanted to salvage was filled with deprecated code, so I rewrote it. The data he wanted to store and use for the new site required entirely new db tables. So the new site didn't reuse any of the old code. It took me a month to complete the site and get it online. A few days later, the owner of a quite-a-bit larger company that partners with my relative's company told him that he really liked the new site, and asked for my info. My relative told me that I was far too modest about my ability before I took on his project; that I wasn't an amateur at all. I know that I was and still consider myself very much an amateur, but I know I can (and enjoy to) learn new technologies pretty quickly. I take pride in doing a job well, and really believe I'll provide a lot of value to the projects I work on. I just can't sell myself without being completely honest about areas that I know I have lots left to learn. How can I be completely honest without seeming incompetent next to a 'professional' (and great salesman) who only knows how to plug content into a CMS template? How do you express your confidence in the value you create when you're aware you will have to learn a lot to create that value?
    - eropple 12y ago
      "I don't know how to do that. But I know how to do X and Y, and can be productive using that by Z date. Is that an acceptable starting time for your project?" That said, I don't consult or contract anymore, I work FT instead. As a FT employee, seeking a fit requires a greater investment of time on both sides, and a slight misalignment can prove valuable to both parties.

kiraken 12y ago

But most developers i know are proficient in multiple frameworks and languages, that's why i'm trying to be at least good in them, i suppose the only way to do so is to create a repo for each new thing i learn in github and make sure to put a new project in each rep every week

danielalmeida 12y ago
I'm not saying you can only know a couple of frameworks, but it 's hard to be an expert in Python/Django, Ruby/Rails, Node.js and Java. You can do the same for frontend stuff. For example: I think it's a better option to be a Django and Angular.js expert, good at Node.js and Backbone.js.. and kind of ignore projects related to Java, Rails, Ember, React etc. You can pick anything you want, it's just an example. You can still work on side-projects with the trendy stuff and migrate depending on your interests and the market, but you shouldn't transition into new things every month. Just my 2 cents, best of luck. :)
eropple 12y ago
Are they proficient, or are they good at faking it until they become proficient? I have a lot of tricks in my toolbox to seem ready and productive, while I'm scrambling behind the scenes to actually become ready and productive. (Difference is, I'm willing to admit it, because I am confident in the value I create.)
- scobar 12y ago
  I'm curious to know how you admit it. I recently completed a website redesign for a relative in Brazil. He wanted to use the existing MySQL db and some PHP functions, and expand on both. I had some experience with HTML, very little with CSS and Javascript, and had never built a website using a text editor alone for the code. I'd just completed the HTML/CSS, JavaScript, and jQuery courses on Codecademy and was excited to apply what I'd learned, but I made it very clear that I wasn't an expert at frontend code nor design and had no PHP nor databse experience and would need to learn them to complete the project. He showed me various websites and features he liked, and I recreated them with HTML, CSS, and jQuery designing the new site to his satisfaction in about 5 days. Then, I powered through a couple tutorials on PHP and MySQL for a couple days. Most of the old PHP that he wanted to salvage was filled with deprecated code, so I rewrote it. The data he wanted to store and use for the new site required entirely new db tables. So the new site didn't reuse any of the old code. It took me a month to complete the site and get it online. A few days later, the owner of a quite-a-bit larger company that partners with my relative's company told him that he really liked the new site, and asked for my info. My relative told me that I was far too modest about my ability before I took on his project; that I wasn't an amateur at all. I know that I was and still consider myself very much an amateur, but I know I can (and enjoy to) learn new technologies pretty quickly. I take pride in doing a job well, and really believe I'll provide a lot of value to the projects I work on. I just can't sell myself without being completely honest about areas that I know I have lots left to learn. How can I be completely honest without seeming incompetent next to a 'professional' (and great salesman) who only knows how to plug content into a CMS template? How do you express your confidence in the value you create when you're aware you will have to learn a lot to create that value?
  - eropple 12y ago
    "I don't know how to do that. But I know how to do X and Y, and can be productive using that by Z date. Is that an acceptable starting time for your project?" That said, I don't consult or contract anymore, I work FT instead. As a FT employee, seeking a fit requires a greater investment of time on both sides, and a slight misalignment can prove valuable to both parties.