I’ll be totally honest, before I got serious about web development, I read quite a few articles like this. So I don’t blame you for landing here and it’s not a sign you shouldn’t pursue this craft. But let me start by asking a few questions to help you determine whether you should continue down this path, because it’s not an easy one.
Here are a few practical questions to ask yourself before going down this path.
1. Curiosity – Do you really have an interest in computers, the internet, and software?
Curiosity about this subject matter is, in my opinion, the most important prerequisite to have before going into this field.
Why? Because the tools and technologies change all the time.
This is not a field where you can “Gut it out through coding boot camp and become a developer forever”. Or a “I just gotta get my degree then I’m set up for life”.
This industry is a meritocracy where your work product and performance is pretty dang objective. It doesn’t really matter where you went to school or what boot camp you came from, if you don’t know what you’re doing, it will show very quickly.
This is an industry that changes all the time and requires a continued interest to constantly learn new things. Curiosity will make it feel like a hobby and not work. And it’s critical for getting you through the hard times.
2. Personality Fit – Are you the kind of person that can work alone in solitude for long periods of time?
For me, I am drained by being around other people. Luckily, this played into my favor when it came to buckling down to learn to code.
But, if you’re the type of person that loses their mind when they are alone for more than a couple hours, this is likely not the place for you. Sure, at some companies they might do pair programming and all that kind of stuff, but it’s important to realize that most people in this field are introverts and this will not feel the same as working on a SAAS sales team.
It’s simply selection bias – the nature of this business and what is required to reach a point where you can join a team is the ability to focus and work alone for long periods of time. Hundreds of hours.
If this freaks you out, then it’s probably not for you.
On the bright side, introverts who write software typically don’t want to be the ones talking to people about it and building relationships with customers. For every entrepreneurial software engineer there is an opportunity for an outgoing and friendly teammate who focuses on business and relationships.
So don’t quit all together on technology, just find a different spot on the team.
3. Intentions – Are you sure it’s not just about the money?
The fact is, this industry does pay really well. But the reason it pays really well is because the skills to be successful in this industry are rare and valuable.
And they’re rare and valuable because they’re very hard to acquire.
There’s nothing wrong per se with wanting to find work that pays well. It’s just that, I can tell you from experience that there is a lot of time required to get to the place where you will get paid well for this skill. And unless you have a lot of willpower or desperation, you’re going to hit the wall and give up far before you land a job as a web developer.
The desire to make good money is not enough to get you through the process of learning the technologies, getting the job, and holding down a successful career in this space.
There are plenty of other way’s to make good money in this life. I strongly advise you pursue a route that you’re curious about because it will make it feel a lot less like work and you’ll be much more likely to crush your competition.
Should you be a web developer?
So, there you have it! Those are the questions that I’d recommend asking yourself before going down this route. You don’t necessarily need to have emphatically answered “yes” to all the questions before dipping your toe into the water. But these will help set some expectations on the “big picture” of this industry.
For me, I picked up an HTML for Dummies book off my sister-in-law’s bookshelf and knew about 50 pages in that the curiosity was there.
If you haven’t ever tinkered with web development, then you should at least play around with it as you can’t be curious about something you’ve never seen or experienced.
But don’t be too disappointed if this made you feel like this industry isn’t for you. As I mentioned, there are tons of ways to make good money today that don’t require an interest in computers or being an introvert.
Being someone who can build relationships and earn peoples trust is a superpower in itself. There’s always a career for resilient and passionate people.