Boy, it’s been some time since I’ve posted here.
Anyone who’s followed my posts over on codeRunner.uk, will know that 2022 has been a pretty tough year for me. My main source of income dried up in a pretty rapid and sudden manner back in February, and it’s been tough ever since.
New readers start here:
20 years ago I took on the challenge of working for myself. Part of this was to build up my own business, and the other part was to do consultancy work (primarily technical CAD drawings and an online BOM system for my previous employer).
Due to many factors, including recessions and COVID, the business went through turbulent times and finally gasped its last breath in the aftermath of COVID. The consultancy side, that had always been there to support the business through trying times, came a cropper when my previous employer was taken over by another company and the work I’d been doing for them ceased without a word.
That brings us to February 2022, a dark time in which I didn’t know what the future would bring. I elected to go down a path of “upskilling” my computer knowledge, to adapt what I’d learned about web development and begin learning about iOS App Development. The codeRunner.uk blog details that journey.
After several months of “upskilling”, I thought it would be time to spread the net and see what employment opportunities there would be for someone with my experience, old knowledge, and new skills. Joining the likes of LinkedIn, and checking out various “developer” Twitter groups, gave me a better understanding of what I’d let myself in for.
The main conclusion I took from this is that, despite what I knew and what I’d learned, the road would be a far, far longer one than I’d previously envisaged. Hundreds of recruitment agencies would have you believe that there are £100,000 jobs a’plenty and the “career in tech” arena is ripe for taking, but actual jobs and appointments proves the opposite. Positions want to pay “entry level prices” for people with many years experience in specific technologies, and they’re incentivised to look at you more favourably if you’re a “woman in tech” or from an ethnic background.
The conclusion I drew from this is that, at least on a professional footing, the world of tech is not for me. If I continue down that path, I’m going to starve to death before I can contribute anything meaningful to anyone.
And so, with no business, no consultancy work, and no hope from my “upskilling” journey, I reluctantly came to the conclusion that my only course of action would be to re-enter the job market. This isn’t the conclusion I thought I’d come to before the end of 2022, and that’s for sure, but I’m glad that I able to steer myself through the impossible to come to the only rationable conclusion.
My codeRunner.uk blog will stand as testament to my dreams, my hopes, and my upskilling journey but, going forward, it’ll be reduced to blogging about my hobby / personal journey of coding. On the upside, it should mean I’ll be posting more thoughts back in this blog once again.