How to Express Your Personality in Tech
We don’t need another recipe app — Unless you cook some really wild shit.
Despite the old adage “People want to work with those they know, like, and trust.”, a personality in the workforce will leave you hungry and unemployed — But you don’t have to be horrendously boring as you play the interview game.
You want to make that To-Do List? Knock yourself out. It’s a good way to learn the basics. Prepare to bore both a recruiter and your peers with our 6-second attention spans.
Consider these instead:
Disclaimer:
Use common sense. Don’t put legal-but-questionable activities in your portfolio. Also, this is oriented toward entry-to-associate level portfolios. You can still touch these old projects up as you advance!
All You Need is HTML, CSS, and Javascript
The eternal argument on Twitter — “HTML isn’t a programming language.”
“CSS isn’t a programming language.”
“You can do the same stuff in CSS that you can in Javascript, and it’s easier.”
No matter your side of the argument, if you’re in front end, these are what your fancy-pants libraries are built upon. So the vanilla versions have a use.
Make a slideshow of something you love.
Look at what I made with the above languages: I didn’t know you could do transitions like this — This is all one webpage.
Show us something you like. Not what you think other people want. If you’re applying for an eCommerce site, make a sideshow of their products.
I made a really cool slideshow showing off my Animal Crossing island during a night I couldn’t sleep.
Show us what you can do with a slideshow and a single webpage. It’s more than you think. Make a slideshow of your previous projects with links to more information. Ask for good feedback or recommendations and stick them in.
Internet and Interactivity go hand in hand.
POST: “Make A Tourism Slide Show With HTML/CSS/Javascript (Ft. Traversy Media)”
Full Disclaimer: My Island has changed quite a bit since this was created.
Show a Collection ☕
I have a TON of mugs, and I’ve always wanted to share them. I’m proud of them, even if I didn’t physically design or craft them myself.
This project not only shows the above languages, but introduced me to Sass, a Sass Compiler in Visual Studio Code, CSS Grid, and an image placeholder code.
Fun fact. That is my third iteration/attempt at making this gallery. You can learn a lot from projects you do. For instance, I learned that I have too many damn mugs.
POST: “The Many Forms of An Image Gallery” (Feb. 2021)
Data is Everywhere — Download It, Manipulate It, Make It Work.
If you want to work in Data Analysis, you’re going to be looking at, what seems to me, rather boring data. Some things, like sales data, have potential to be fun, but to a human, who reads that for fun?
(I read “Consumer Reports” for fun in high school. No judgement.)
If you’re applying to a position where they’re all about that boring data, show them what you can do with it — But hit them with flavor later:
Analyze Online Shopping
I love cooking. It’s a fun way to unwind while keeping your mind active. Target has a new grocery line, Good and Gather, replacing most of Market Pantry.
While looking at a block of cheese, I wondered “Hey, what do most people think about this new brand? How is it rated on the website?”
So I
- Gathered ratings data from individual item pages.
- Stuck them in a spreadsheet.
- Exported it to .CSV and put it into Tableau
- Looked at the variation of ratings by department, price, and other factors.
POST: “Good and Gather(ing Data to Use in Tableau)”
Go To The Movies 🎥
If you‘re a Movie Buff, you know what Letterboxd is. You have an account to keep track of the films you watch — The dates, the ratings, the year released.
And it’s all kept in an easily exportable .CSV file you can play with in Tableau. I’ve -
- Sorted my films by views and ratings.
- Sorted by average ratings per year.
- Sorted by the amount of numerical ratings given.
You may piss someone off with your ratings, but don’t employers want someone who challenges their views? If they pass on you because you liked “Birds of Prey”, good riddance! It’s a great film!
DIY Business on The Cloud
This is a little more technical. If you’re aiming to be a Cloud Admin, this is a good place to start.
Make Your Own Business in Azure
I’m going to work in edTech one day, and decided “In order to learn Azure, I’m going to make a company, name it what I want, populate it with random names, and learn the product.”
If you have a history of using Windows to organize users, groups, and policies, it will be less confusing.
Total newbie? No problem, use the resource I did by AzureDan. You’ll be making your ideal business in no time.
If the preceding tips seem obvious, remember: Many consultants on social media sell you obvious advice for 10$, 25$, 50$ — At least mine is free.
But you can BMAC if you want, and find me @ runtcpip.com
