Switching from corporate work to freelancing seems like a great idea. It would give me the freedom to work only when I want, taking only jobs I want to do. As good as it sounds, there are some complications I’m running into trying to break into the freelancing world.
The one major issue I’m encountering involves my portfolio—or more specifically, my lack of one. One thing I’ve learned is that when breaking into freelancing, the single biggest asset you have is a portfolio of prior work. No matter what line of work you’re in, having a decent and comprehensive portfolio is a must to showcase your expertise.
If you think about it, it makes perfect sense. How else are prospective clients supposed to gain trust in your competence? You have to be able to display your abilities. That’s the purpose of a portfolio. That’s all fine and good, but what do you do if you’re just starting out in freelancing?
I’ve spent the last 25+ years in corporate America. All of my prior work is the property of my former employers. I have no access to any of my previous projects. I can’t access any of the git repos I created to store code or the documentation I wrote. There are no SQL scripts lying around in a folder somewhere because everything was done on a company-owned computer and stored on the company's file shares.
So, what do I do now? I have to create a portfolio from scratch. I have to create personal projects that showcase my skills. While this is no simple task, it must be done. Moreover, it will help me reassess my skill level, learn some new ones, and test myself to see what I know and what I still need to learn. It’s like Proverbs 18:15 says:
An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge. (ESV Prov 18:15)
So, this week, I’m going to plan out a new project or two to begin working on. As I progress through my data engineering training courses, I’ll use the examples in those courses as templates to build out my own projects. I’m not exactly sure where I’m going to start, but rest assured, I’ll fill you in as I work through these portfolio projects.
If you’ve built a freelance portfolio from scratch, what’s one project that helped you break through? I’d love to hear.
—Daniel