How to Develop Software (with Pictures) – wikiHow

{“smallUrl”:”https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/2\/2d\/Develop-Software-Step-15.jpg\/v4-460px-Develop-Software-Step-15.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”\/images\/thumb\/2\/2d\/Develop-Software-Step-15.jpg\/aid1528815-v4-728px-Develop-Software-Step-15.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=\”mw-parser-output\”><p>License: <a target=\”_blank\” rel=\”nofollow noreferrer noopener\” class=\”external text\” href=\”https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\”>Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>”}

1

Take contract jobs. Although these won’t pay as well and are less reliable than full-time employment, you can significantly bulk up your portfolio by taking a series of contract jobs. Check sites like Elance and ODesk (Also known as “Upwork” now) to find work.[9]
While it can be difficult to get considered for a contract, once you get your first one it gets a lot easier.

• Hacker News is a great resource for contract and freelance jobs. Check the “Ask” section.
• While it can be tempting to bid low to secure a contract job, don’t sell your services short. Not only will you end up working more for less than you deserve, you will also anger others in your field, leading to less networking.
• Good work on a contract job can sometimes lead to a full-time position. Always put your best foot forward!

Although these won’t pay as well and are less reliable than full-time employment, you can significantly bulk up your portfolio by taking a series of contract jobs. Check sites like Elance and ODesk (Also known as “Upwork” now) to find work.While it can be difficult to get considered for a contract, once you get your first one it gets a lot easier.

{“smallUrl”:”https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/8\/8e\/Develop-Software-Step-16.jpg\/v4-460px-Develop-Software-Step-16.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”\/images\/thumb\/8\/8e\/Develop-Software-Step-16.jpg\/aid1528815-v4-728px-Develop-Software-Step-16.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=\”mw-parser-output\”><p>License: <a target=\”_blank\” rel=\”nofollow noreferrer noopener\” class=\”external text\” href=\”https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\”>Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>”}

2

Network as much as possible. Attend as many conventions and hack-a-thons as you possibly can. Not only will this expose you to more code and problems to solve, it will also help you meet other people in the industry. Despite what you might think about programmers working alone in their basement, the majority of full-time developers are part of a team and networking is just as important as any other field.

Attend as many conventions and hack-a-thons as you possibly can. Not only will this expose you to more code and problems to solve, it will also help you meet other people in the industry. Despite what you might think about programmers working alone in their basement, the majority of full-time developers are part of a team and networking is just as important as any other field.

{“smallUrl”:”https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/7\/70\/Develop-Software-Step-17.jpg\/v4-460px-Develop-Software-Step-17.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”\/images\/thumb\/7\/70\/Develop-Software-Step-17.jpg\/aid1528815-v4-728px-Develop-Software-Step-17.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=\”mw-parser-output\”><p>License: <a target=\”_blank\” rel=\”nofollow noreferrer noopener\” class=\”external text\” href=\”https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\”>Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>”}

3

Apply for full-time positions. Once you have a few contract jobs under your belt, you can start sending your resume and portfolio out to larger organizations for full-time employment. Besides Monster and Indeed, there are a variety of developer-specific job sites that you should be looking at, including GitHub Jobs, StackOverflow Job Board, AngelList, CrunchBoard, Hirelite, and Hacker News.

{“smallUrl”:”https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/c\/c6\/Develop-Software-Step-18.jpg\/v4-460px-Develop-Software-Step-18.jpg”,”bigUrl”:”\/images\/thumb\/c\/c6\/Develop-Software-Step-18.jpg\/aid1528815-v4-728px-Develop-Software-Step-18.jpg”,”smallWidth”:460,”smallHeight”:345,”bigWidth”:728,”bigHeight”:546,”licensing”:”<div class=\”mw-parser-output\”><p>License: <a target=\”_blank\” rel=\”nofollow noreferrer noopener\” class=\”external text\” href=\”https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\”>Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>”}

4

Diversify your skillset. A good software developer is usually proficient in more than one language. While a lot of what you learn will be on the job, use some of your free time to expand your knowledge and learn the basics of another language or two. This will make transitioning to new projects much easier and will make you a much more desirable job candidate.