My articles on brain hacking, and on being a programmer with ADHD live on ADHDTechies.com
I write about React, Next.js and other full-stack Jamstack topics at cutintothejamstack.com.
I've written about various tech topics on the Echobind Blog.
Older articles on freelancing as a programmer are below.
This is part 2 of a multi-part series on working with tech recruiters and staffing agencies. In part one, we talked about the right times in your career to work with tech recruiters, and good mindsets to have when working with them. In this post, weâll dive into some of the pros and cons to ...
Tech recruiters often get a bad rap. Some of it is warranted; too many of them harass programmers with unsolicited cold emails or LinkedIn messages that make us feel like numbers. How many of us have been pestered about “the opportunity of a lifetime” …with a company weâre not remotely interested in, using a programming ...
Hereâs a simple JavaScript / ES6 refactoring pattern that comes up often. Usually youâll start a project by combining a loose methods into an object, and passing data as parameters. As the object grows bigger, you’ll see that some of the methods are related, and belong in their own class. How do you get them ...
One of the top questions I get asked by people looking to learn to code is “Where do I start??” There are dozens upon dozens of programming languages to choose from. On top of that, there are frameworks for each of those. And tools, plugins, and add-ons for each that number in the hundreds. It seems every day there’s something new, so for a rookie, the options can be overwhelming. It’s easy to get analysis paralysis in this situation. So stop thinking about it. Just learn JavaScript. You will not regret it. Here are a half-dozen reasons why.
Quite often, clients will come to me and ask me for help doing any of a number of things. Redesigning and rebuilding their website. Building a single-page React app. Creating a WordPress or Shopify theme. Building a mobile app. Or otherwise creating or altering a complicated piece of technology. I could stop right there and ...
Chances are, unless youâre somewhat experienced with Javascript, you probably write a lot of sloppy JS. Itâs not an insult. Donât take it that way. Itâs just a reality, and itâs not your fault. When everyone starts out with Javascript (like any programming language), they learn how to write it the most basic way. And most of ...
Being a career freelancer / consultant is great for so many reasons, but in many ways requires a number of shifts out of the typical 9-5 mindset. You have to switch up some of your mental habits to be a better freelancer. Also, just because you are a freelancer, it doesn’t mean that you can’t ...
You just graduated with a Computer Science degree. Or finished the Web Development Immersive program at General Assembly, or another programming program (heh). Now what? Maybe you just want some extra help, such as java programming help or maybe you’re preparing your children for a career in programming, and want to get them enrolled in ...
The technology industry moves fast. Stuff is happening all day long, and all night – since there are developments going on all over the world in Europe, Asia and so on. So I read as much as I can to keep my skills relevant and know about as much going on as possible. Here’s a ...
Someone once said there are two types of writers: those that try to get a line perfect before writing the next one, and those who dump everything out fast and revise it later. The latter are often much, much more prolific (or so I hear). Programmers fall into those categories too. We have natural tendencies ...
I was reading an interview with developer Mark Dalgleish recently. He mentions how important it is that we as developers do something about our confrontational nature. I think it’s a little exaggerated to say we have a “confrontational nature.” Maybe even a little insulting, and over-generalized. But I think there’s fact in the idea that there’s sometimes a ...
As developers, we love to code, build, create, invent. As consultants our livelihood is dependent on this; yet, I believe we have a certain responsibility to decline jobs when theyâre not warranted (See: The Importance of Saying NO). Far too often in the past I’ve seen tech built when tech doesnât need to be built. ...
Ethics is a topic rarely, if ever talked about among freelance developers. Some of the more successful developers I know definitely have a sense of what’s right and what’s wrong in our business. At the very least, they do the best job possible since their credibility is at stake. But more often our conversations revolve ...
No matter how long you’ve been in this business, you should keep practicing the craft of coding. The better you get at what you do, the easier things will start to become. You’ll get gigs easier. Tasks that used to take you an hour will take you 30 mins. Your confidence will grow, and so will ...
Across the world, coffee shops with free wifi and great caffeination options have become great workplace options for everyone from students to freelancers to startup founders. I’ve worked from tons upon tons of them in almost every city I’ve traveled to, and I’m constantly getting better at finding ones I like. And I know a ...
A few years ago, I had to make some serious choices about the way I work. I’ve always enjoyed doing technology work, but since I was a young kid I’ve never felt quite ârightâ working in a typical 9-5 schedule. It wasn’t until far into my adult life that I found out I had a ...
I had someone contact me recently who wanted a website redesigned and rebuilt. It was a portal site with lots of different featuresâŚ.products to sell, services to book, and so on. I got on the phone with the owner of the site to learn more. When I asked what the goal of the site was, she said ...
Freelance developers, full-time developers and brand-new-fresh-outta-school-newbie developers all face a similar dilemma at different times in their careers: how the hell do I get a job? If youâre freelance, youâre going to be constantly looking for new projects throughout your career. If youâre not freelance, youâll still face this challenge once in a long while. And ...
I’m a full-stack developer by trade, but front-end is my specialty. I’ve seen it treated with a bit of ambiguity over the years though, so I think it’s worthwhile to clarify the term. Front-end development defined For a clear working definition of front-end development, I’ll use a variation upon Wikipedia’s definition: Front end development is ...
I love a lot of aspects of the freelance life. It suits me well, which is why Iâve done of it for most of my 15 year career. In fact, in those 15 years Iâve only held one full-time salaried job. And now Iâm back to freelancing again. So that may tell you something. But ...
It’s really fun – and can be super productive – to work from a good “coffice” (a cafe you work from. Google it.). I’ve been a serial cafe worker for a number of years now, so I’ve learned all the ins and outs of it. There are a few things I take on the road with me all ...
Having a can-do attitude is generally a good thing. However, learning to respectfully decline requests or projects is vital for your career in the long run. This is especially true for freelancers, but relevant for everyone. More productive is always better, naturally. But realistically, no one person can do everything. Taking on too much can break ...
There is SO MUCH free information on every technology in existence. Pop a few keywords into google and youâll find blogs and tutorials. Check github and youâll find a ton of plugins and sample applications. The availability of information is virtually limitless. Since there’s so much information, there’s a temptation to try and do it ...
After working as a developer for quite some time (decades), Iâve recently started to train other developers and teams in ways to improve their front-end development skillsets and processes. Linting is one of the least talked about, but most essential tools in a front-end developerâs toolbox. So when people ask âWhatâs the easiest thing we can do ...
On programming languages & frameworks It’s ok to love the framework or language you use the most. If Python is your shit, then use it like crazy. You really should get great with one thing before scattering your attention too much with others anyway. Being too attached to one language can lead to being closed to alternatives. If ...
These days, web frameworks are everything. Whether youâre building a startup, a data-driven app, or even a static HTML website, theyâre a requirement for just about every project. (Note: By “web frameworks,” I’m lumping all different types together: server-side frameworks (Ruby on Rails, Django), HTML frameworks (Bootstrap, Zurb Foundation), or Javascript frameworks (Backbone.js, AngularJS). ) And ...
Iâm not a big follower of sports in general, but they can serve as a good metaphor for development. Software engineering is sometimes mistakenly thought of as one big sport; i.e., if youâre good at PHP, you must be good at Python – since theyâre basically the same thing, right? Well, no. Not at all, ...
I recently completed an all-offline mobile web app for a client. I was quite proud of the finished product, but had a few realizations about the state of offline web applications that  I thought were worth sharing. Below are some of the insights I took away from the experience. Insight #1: Offline capabilities are different across ...