Life as a Programmer – Advice for New Programmers - Marketing Article
Programming really isn’t such a bad job. Nor is it always such a walk in the park. After over a decade in the business, I’m spilling the beans, so to speak, on the programming world. You won’t find anything revolutionary here. What you will find is experience and some basic advice for those of you thinking about a career in programming.
Programming is a job like any other, but there are some perks to it. Typically, you’ll get a desk, computer, a decent chair, and even some air conditioning. Right off the bat, that sounds like a comfortable work environment. To be honest, it’s not bad. You sit and you think and type. You draw flowcharts, analyze data, and play with a database. All in all, it’s really not bad. Basically, you will get paid for three things: Thinking, typing, and solving problems.
Now for the rough part. This is something that many programmers have to learn to deal with early in their career. Some are fine with this circumstance, but others are not. Many large corporations severely restrict your computing freedom, and they do so with antiquated systems. Sure, you’ll have a great desktop computer, but you may find yourself interfacing with mainframe systems as old as you are. The company has to get all their money’s worth out of that system before upgrading, after all. Don’t be surprised if you run into a severe lack of creativity, corporate red tape, and dull-looking cubicles.
If you are looking for a career in programming, I have some basic advice for you. First of all, specialize in something. I have found from experience that it’s harder to find a job if you have some skill in a lot of things, than if you have great skill in one or two things. Pick an area of programming and learn all you can about it.
Second, have some online samples of your work when you go for job interviews. Even if you don’t look at the examples during the interview, the prospective employer can check them out later and see what kind of work you do. This is especially helpful when you are just breaking into the business. If you don’t have actual work experience, a live portfolio of samples can make you shine.
Finally, I would advise you to seek out smaller companies. Sure, you might not get paid as much or get great benefits, but there can be some perks to make up for that. In a smaller company, there are typically fewer rules. There aren’t any large committees meeting to determine how you should spend your day. You should work, yes, but you might be able to do it how you want, instead of how some committee wants you to do it. Going right along with that, you might get some creative license in your projects. If you don’t have a group of non-programmers telling you how to program, you can cut loose a little and create some really great software.
Don’t let the job market scare you. Right now, at the time of this writing, tech jobs are a bit scarce, and most of them are underpaid. Though that’s no reason to pursue something else if what you really love is programming. Programming can be a nice job if you take your time to specialize and find a place where you fit.
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