One of the most difficult things about becoming a software developer, is the experience paradox of needing to have a job to get experience and needing to have experience in order to get a job.
This problem is of course not relegated to the field of software development, but many new software developers often struggle with getting that first job–especially if they come into software development from another field–most notoriously quality assurance. It definitely seems like it is especially difficult to transition from the role of quality analyst to software developer–even if you can competently write code.
So, how exactly do you get experience when can’t get a job without it?
It’s an interesting problem to ponder. There doesn’t seem to be very many good solutions to the problem. Most software developers just assume you have to get lucky in order to get that first job without experience. The other popular alternative it to simply lie about your previous experience until you have enough that you don’t have to.
I’m not really a big fan of making up a fake history in order to get a job. It’s pretty likely you’ll get found out and it’s not a great way to start of a relationship with an employer.
And, I’m also not that fond of leaving things up to luck either. Counting on luck isn’t a good way to build a successful career. I’d much rather work with things that are directly under my control than rely on chance.
So, that brings us back to the question we started with–or rather a modification of it: Without experience, lying or dumb luck, how can I get a job?
One of the best ways to gain experience without a job is to create your own job.
What’s that you say? Create my own job?
Yes, you heard me right. There is basically nothing stopping you from creating your own company, hiring yourself as the only employee and doing real work that will count as valid experience.
Now, of course, it’s not just as simple as that. You need to create some real valid experience. You can’t just create a shim company, call yourself the lead software developer and use it to get a job. But, what you can do is to work on creating a few simple apps and do it under the name of a company that you create. There is nothing dishonest or fishy with that approach.
Today, it is easier than ever to do, because it is possible to create simple mobile or web application as a solo developer. It is even easy to sell an application you create–although, getting customers might be the hard part.
I usually recommend that developer starting out, who are trying to get experience, start off by developing a few mobile applications. The reason I recommend this approach is because mobile applications are generally expected to be fairly small projects and they are easy to sell and distribute. Actually having an application that is being used or sold bring a bit more credibility than just building something for “fun.”
But, you don’t have to build an mobile application. Really, you just have to build something useful that is a real application–not just a demo project. This means building something end-to-end.
The barrier to entry is extremely low today. Just about anyone can build their own application and distribute it. That means that you can build a real, legit software company all by yourself.
With a few applications created, not only will you be able to claim some real valid experience, but you’ll also be able to show the source code for the applications you built at a job interview. You might even find that you will be ahead of some developers who have 4-to-5 years experience, but have never successfully built an application end-to-end. Many software developer start out getting experience maintaining existing systems, but never learn how to actually build a complete application. If you can show some experience building a complete application, even if you are doing it for your own company, you can put yourself way ahead.
If one of your applications takes off, you might even find that you don’t need to get a job working for someone else. Your own software company might become successful itself.
They key is getting into the interview.
You might be thinking that creating your own company and building a few apps is not the same as having a real job and having real experience. I tend to disagree, I tend to think it is actually more valuable and shows a more practical ability, but I realize that some employers and some developers will disagree with me.
It doesn’t matter though, because the point of gaining this experience is to get into the job interview. It is very difficult to get a job interview without any experience on your resume, and it is fairly easy to make a job at your own company look just the same as a job from any other company on your resume.
Of course, once you get into the interview, you need to be completely honest about the situation. Don’t try and pretend that the company you worked for was anything other than your own creation. Instead, use this information to your advantage. Talk about how you created your own job and took initiative instead of waiting for a job to come to you. Talk about how you learned a great deal by building and distributing your own applications.Turn everything that might be seen as a negative into a positive.
Now, this technique of gaining your first experience might not get you a top level software development position, but it should at least help you get your foot in the door–which is arguably the hardest part.
| Reference: | The Experience Paradox–How to Get a Job Without Experience from our JCG partner John Sonmez at the Making the Complex Simple blog. |
Very nice and practical. Best part about the article is that it doesn’t force you to fake your experience, while still getting ahead with what you love to do.
Great eye opener and motivating.
Really helpful. Thank you.
its very interesting. ..thnx for its..better idea for others…provide motivation thoughts for negative impact guys
..thnx
Not a bad idea. One can do this to prove his/her solo experience. But again working in a team is always preferable.