I am searching for a remote job. But i never thought it would be so difficult.
Hi guys! I'm new here and i want to share my experience and where i want to be in the next years.
So, i'm full stack developer here in Brazil, working mainly with PHP, NodeJS, Vue, HTML/CSS and MySQL.
Nowadays i'm looking for a job that pays in $ dollars basically because here in brazil we have a minimum wage that would be $250/month, so i was thinking in get a job that pays at least $1.500 (minimum wage in a regular city in USA/Canada?) for someone with my skills.
I mean, i have between 3-4 years of experience and i can't even find someone that is willing to have a try and deal with those terms.
I saw all those startups in 'AngelList' paying $50k/annual and all i want is approx. $20k/annual to start with. How hard it should be and why i can't find anything like that?
I can speak, write and listen well but honestly i think people are afraid to hire a software engineer across the globe.
What would you suggest me to do?
This is really weird that we all keep hearing the stories of people who took one basic coding course with no prior experience nor degree and landed a 6 figure job within eight months.
My observation is that reality is slightly different. Angel List serves mostly as a continuous hiring platform for companies - so it may seem they are looking for a particular role while, in fact, they are just collecting CVs.
My advice:
Write a long, emotional, and detailed post on LinkedIn describing what role you are looking for and what your competencies are. People often share such posts, and you might reach a decent number of views.
While browsing the Angel List, check "contract" and "remote" in the job search bar. 75% of full-time roles are on-site, and relocation is a good deal for the employer only when it comes to hiring a senior level developer. Don't take my words for granted, though. These are my loosely held opinions and observations.
Good luck!
Hey Matheus, can you shoot me an email? jonathan[at]emailoctopus.com. We're remote friendly and looking for a PHP/Vue developer.
I struggled to find a remote job too. Because of this I fell into freelancing. I'm so glad this happened! I would skip the job hunt, and instead look for projects that you can execute on. I know a lot of people complain about Upwork, but I have had a lot of success on the platform.
Hey
Could you share approach for upwork
Since it's quite crowded 😅
Sure! Basically you want to find a super specific niche. Maybe it's a framework for a specific language, or a JavaScript library. Make that is your entire profile. You are the xyz JavaScript guy, no one knows it better than you! Of course make sure you study it, so this is actually true.
Then you just have to wait. Someone will eventually need that skill, and your profile will stick out because that's the only thing you focus on. Make sure you absolutely crush that job, so you get a 5 star rating. Do that about 5 or 6 times and you will eventually become "top rated". Once this happens you can apply for generic React or Python jobs and you'll have a much higher chance of success.
Totally understand the frustration. I am a content marketer from Kenya with 6 years experience. I have been working with a startup based in the US for about 4 years now and even then, I didn't quite apply for work there. The founder just noticed me from a different forum online and reached out.
I would advise that you leverage the relationships you build here on Indie Hackers and other forums. Hopefully someone will notice and pick you out. There are several IH founders whose companies can comfortably match your compensation needs.
Currently on the hunt for a new remote challenge too but it is a long-term game plan for me. It might be very stressful if you make it a short-term goal.
All the best!
Dude, I feel you. I'm a U.S. citizen and living abroad currently. Just wading through the low pay jobs listed everywhere to find a one that'll pay fairly is a job in itself.
I've basically committed to just looking for full-time relocated work back in the U.S., Canada, or Germany now because I'm tired of of trying to find remote contract work. I've gotten more interviews scheduled in the past 1 week of searching than I have with 3+ months of remote searching.
How long have you been searching? I wonder if hiring slows at the end of the year as we get closer to the holidays?
Every month i try to look for new jobs but nothing pops up.
I know a few people looking for remote jobs right now, and it is very VERY difficult at the moment, even for highly skilled people.
There is just so much competition and desire for remote jobs at the present time that it is very difficult to get heard over the noise.
We are actually considering doing some hiring in 2020 for remote positions (we are a totally remote SaaS startup), and really, I am thinking of avoiding the traditional hiring job boards etc. and just talking to people that I have met and struck up some sort of relationship online (like this very post).
I find that hanging out in communities such as IH, or even SaaS or development related Facebook groups or forums tends to introduce me to people that I can get to know and to consider asking if they want to work with us down the track.
Build your reputation and employability via those channels. I see that another startup has already reached out to you to talk in these comments, so good luck with that!
Can you prove that you have the technical chops to do a job? In that case, don't worry how much that same job pays in Brazil, just go after US-based compensation, if you are going to work remote for a US-based company.
Some companies would obviously want to use your location to their advantage, but you should only compare yourself based on skills. It's bloody hard to find great developers in US, so if you are one, set the bar high.
I would go straight to UpWork and start working through Jobs to gain experience. As with all things, you want to pick a niche and become the resident expert in it over time. I've done this successfully in my niche (e-commerce) and it will ensure that you keep making more and more money.
I was thinking about doing that, but I’ve had seen so many bad comments about UpWork recently that it scared me. Any tips about how to start there and get a first job?
My #1 tip is to not compromise on price (as with anything in life). Crappy clients often times start by asking for discounts or want fixed bids. In my experience, I weed out a lot of bad experiences by just letting those clients move on by. All of my jobs are from UpWork have been clients that are not budget constrained and are paid by the hour (very important). My goal is to establish myself with a few good clients that keep feeding me work.
The second is that as with any client work, communication is key. So if something is going to be more expensive, or take longer than expected, or won't work as expected... Immediately bring it up. It's the professional thing to do and will avoid a lot of stress and lost expectations.
The third is to not be desperate. Don't be afraid to fire clients and do NOT compromise on your must haves for jobs. There are 10s of thousands of contract dev jobs out there and it only takes a few for you to sustain yourself if you adhere to your budget requirements.
This comment was deleted 6 years ago.
This comment was deleted 6 years ago.