Ask HN: How to maintain an online presence as a developer
8 comments
What sort of online presence? I have a basic website with some of my work history and personal projects, a bare-bones LinkedIn account and a StackOverflow account.
I'm not sure that anyone has ever visited my website and no one has asked about my StackOverflow contributions. From time to time I get job offers through LinkedIn but the offers never seem to come when I'm actually looking for a job.
I'm not sure that anyone has ever visited my website and no one has asked about my StackOverflow contributions. From time to time I get job offers through LinkedIn but the offers never seem to come when I'm actually looking for a job.
Been thinking about this.
For now I find linked and github to be enough.
I had some idea to make a personalized website with a blog etc.
I kind of concluded that it might generate more harm than good in this highly offended-prone environment where what ever you write might be construed as something offensive even if the intent wasnt as such and while the stuff I would write about would be focused on programming and maybe my experiences and approaches I cannot predict that in 10 years someone, somewhre might be offended that I used this wording or that when naming my variables.
I'm overblowing it of course in the above example but it still stands that there is more beenfit at being neutral and unknown ( and therefore much easily hireable) than playing the cancel roulette.
For now I find linked and github to be enough.
I had some idea to make a personalized website with a blog etc.
I kind of concluded that it might generate more harm than good in this highly offended-prone environment where what ever you write might be construed as something offensive even if the intent wasnt as such and while the stuff I would write about would be focused on programming and maybe my experiences and approaches I cannot predict that in 10 years someone, somewhre might be offended that I used this wording or that when naming my variables.
I'm overblowing it of course in the above example but it still stands that there is more beenfit at being neutral and unknown ( and therefore much easily hireable) than playing the cancel roulette.
A LinkedIn profile has been a big source of leads for me. I have a never ending stream of recruiters I can respond to if I feel like doing interviews.
My Github profile has come in handy once or twice. Recently I used it to do a code walk through for an interview (show us something you made and explain how it works, was roughly the prompt). Mostly I just have it for the street cred and so I can host my side projects somewhere + contribute to OSS occasionally.
You can keep a website but I did that for a while and it was a hassle to maintain and update so I stopped doing it.
My Github profile has come in handy once or twice. Recently I used it to do a code walk through for an interview (show us something you made and explain how it works, was roughly the prompt). Mostly I just have it for the street cred and so I can host my side projects somewhere + contribute to OSS occasionally.
You can keep a website but I did that for a while and it was a hassle to maintain and update so I stopped doing it.
Do you ACTUALLY need to??
Or is better to simply "network" among "people who matter"? I'd argue the latter is far better, more effective and efficient.
You can do the math on this: networking smartly due to "6 degrees of separation" is far more efficient than broadcast advertising your skills.
Broadcasting "your brand" to the world requires communication of the least common denominator of information quality while the person on the other side who is your "match" (for jobs etc.) now has to wade through millions of same-looking other people's information. It's just stupid.
Compare that to being separated from that same person by 6 hops of people. If you do the networking smartly, you'll reduce those hops and find people in the path who have a vested interest in honest endorsement of you and of the other person you are seeking. In any case, it's a whole lot less work for everyone and the match is better.
The thing I notice about this "maxim" of "personal brand" is that it's based on a "mass market selling Coke or Pepsi" mindset of marketing. Which is NEVER what a person should seek or use as an individual - you are unique and that's your selling value proposition which can never be marketed that way.
Instead you should focus on all parties having agency and intelligence (which is anti-assumed" with traditional mass market branding) and also presume that iteration, planning and intelligence are part of what YOU have and what others that matter have.
That's changes EVERYTHING about finding things like jobs and maximizing either joy and/or pay in a career.
Or is better to simply "network" among "people who matter"? I'd argue the latter is far better, more effective and efficient.
You can do the math on this: networking smartly due to "6 degrees of separation" is far more efficient than broadcast advertising your skills.
Broadcasting "your brand" to the world requires communication of the least common denominator of information quality while the person on the other side who is your "match" (for jobs etc.) now has to wade through millions of same-looking other people's information. It's just stupid.
Compare that to being separated from that same person by 6 hops of people. If you do the networking smartly, you'll reduce those hops and find people in the path who have a vested interest in honest endorsement of you and of the other person you are seeking. In any case, it's a whole lot less work for everyone and the match is better.
The thing I notice about this "maxim" of "personal brand" is that it's based on a "mass market selling Coke or Pepsi" mindset of marketing. Which is NEVER what a person should seek or use as an individual - you are unique and that's your selling value proposition which can never be marketed that way.
Instead you should focus on all parties having agency and intelligence (which is anti-assumed" with traditional mass market branding) and also presume that iteration, planning and intelligence are part of what YOU have and what others that matter have.
That's changes EVERYTHING about finding things like jobs and maximizing either joy and/or pay in a career.
Having an online presence has not significantly helped me out other than just to build my own confidence. Each year I get a number of blog posts on the front of HN and a couple of technical tweets that get modest attention (100+ likes) and it's never really been a source of jobs or promotion.
Recruiters and even most hiring managers are not watching these spaces and not capable of evaluating the merits of blog posts or projects. So it's time wasted if your only hope is to attract recruiters or managers.
I learn a lot though and I get practice writing. I think that's worthwhile personally.
Recruiters and even most hiring managers are not watching these spaces and not capable of evaluating the merits of blog posts or projects. So it's time wasted if your only hope is to attract recruiters or managers.
I learn a lot though and I get practice writing. I think that's worthwhile personally.
Just having a LinkedIn profile will for sure bring a lot of inquiries from recruiters, if that is a thing that you are looking for.
Having a website/blog might bring you leads from people that are working on same/similar projects as yours.
Having a website/blog might bring you leads from people that are working on same/similar projects as yours.
In job applications, and in interviews, I have been asked if I have a Github profile. I also know of people who have a project on Github that company's might like - if they are a React programmer, it might be a React project with modern best practices, maybe some common third-party libraries, testing etc. Kind of a work sample.
When I signed on Github, I followed the old free software mantra of putting up any code someone might find useful, even if it was kludgey (as long as it was labeled so). This does not jibe with the concept of a model work sample though.
When I signed on Github, I followed the old free software mantra of putting up any code someone might find useful, even if it was kludgey (as long as it was labeled so). This does not jibe with the concept of a model work sample though.
There are lots of opportunities in software development.
The efficacy of your online presence depends on your goals, professional/personal as they might be.
What's your goal?
What's your goal?
Did that resulted in more opportunities for you as a developer