Special Report
sure your portfolio reflects that. Either remove the other elements or make them a footnote. The more experience you gain, the more you should be able to narrow down what you truly want to do. If you want to make games, make your portfolio full of games. If its microsites that you love, chaulk it full of examples of microsites that you have created. Rich applications you say? Sure, lets see them. Whatever your dream job is, make sure your portfolio is geared toward it and reflects the type of work you would like to do. Don't be afraid to leave out projects from your portfolio that are not the type of work you would like to be doing. Network with Brute Force Once you have a solid portfolio, reach out to companies in your area of interest and try to make a connection. Don't wait for job postings (although look there as well). Find companies, send them your work and see if they are interested. They may not have something now, but they could have something open up later. Also, if they seem receptive, ask for feedback on how to improve your portfolio. They see hundreds of portfolios and should be able to give you some great insight into ways of improving yours. Network with Patience Brute force networking isn't always successful. Sometimes the organizations are just too busy to look at every portfolio that passes their way, let alone write back a formal critique. Another downfall of Brute Force Networking is that you aren't establishing a close connection; instead, you are basically asking a favor of someone you haven't met. Networking with Patience, on the other hand, is a way to build connections that are mutually beneficial. The basic concept is for you to be in a situation in which you are helping each other out; therefore, it doesn't feel like a burden when you ask for help. The best way to Network with Patience is to dive into the Flash community by creating a blog, being active on forums and contributing comments to others' blogs. When you create a blog, be sure to include posts that explain things that you've learned. Try to supply source code and tutorials whenever appropriate. When you participate on the Flash forums, try to find questions that you can answer. Solving someone else's problem is not only a good way to establish a connection; it is always a great way to help master your trade. When commenting on other blogs, make sure you comment only when you have something to contribute to the conversation. Don't be the guy that posts just to add another link back to his blog. That is a quick way to lose a connection. Becoming an active member in the Flash community is not something that happens overnight. It takes time and patience; hence, Networking with Patience. But if you start early, you should have some solid
A rich Flash 10 site showcasing the world’s first robotic greensmower.
connections made by the time you are ready to search for a job. At that time, you can reach out to your friends and ask them if they know of places that are hiring. The difference between Patience and Brute Force Networking is that you are now asking your friends instead of asking complete strangers. Friends should be easier to approach and should yield a higher percentage of successful results. Just Do It (Nike Style) Let's say you can't find the perfect job. Do it anyway. You'll obviously have to do what you need to pay the bills. You should try to either get a job that is in a related field or a job that pays well so you don't have to work that much. Then during after-work hours and on weekends you should focus on whatever it is that you really want to do. Spend your free time freelancing for companies, doing projects for family and friends, joining competitions or even making up companies and making website comps for them just to expand your portfolio. In any case, always continue doing what you want to do and eventually you will end up doing it professionally. As I mentioned before in the Portfolio section, make sure you focus on your dream projects. It makes no sense wasting your weekends working on microsites if your dream job involves rich applications. If you focus on your dream projects, then eventually your hobby/night job will eventually catch a break and become your day job. Conclusion Everyone's path is different, but the general direction will be the same. As you move forward, you will find which paths work for you and which paths do not. Some Flash hopefuls will land a job right away with an internship; others may find luck with the Brute Force approach; and others still will have to rely on patience and practicing their skills after hours before they finally catch their break. In any case, you should focus on your craft, build your portfolio, become an active member in the Flash community and work on establishing a solid network of peers. Following these general tips will keep you on path toward landing a Flash/Flex developer job in the industry. With that, I leave you with an inspirational quote by Sarah Palin (Tina Fey): All you have to do is want it .
MARK GROSSNICKLE Mark Grossnickle is the Lead Flash Developer at The Basement Design & Motion ( http://thebasement.tv ), an interactive and digital design studio based out of Indianapolis, Indiana. You can learn more about Mark and his work by visiting his blog: http://blog.ickydime.com/
SurfTheCrowds Game we created for KFC during their promotion with Guitar Hero 4: http://www.surfthecrowds.com
03/2009 (5)
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