Changing careers paths through after hour projects?

Question

I currently work as an asp/vb .net IT programmer. I really enjoy iPhone programming and I'm also very interested in objective j and cappuccino. I've just kind of dabbed into these technologies and am fixing to release my first iPhone app. I'm really hoping that if I put out several iPhone apps or start creating projects with objective-j, cappuccino and atlas( when it comes out ) I will be able to one day land a job in that realm.

Has anyone reading this ever successfully made a move like this before by just developing projects in their spare time with the technologies they enjoy? If so, what kind of advice can you give me?

Answer 1

Open source is your friend. Everything you dabble with for fun, share it. Putting it up on a community code sharing site like GitHub or Google Code or whatever else suits your fancy should be one of the first things you do. Don't wait until it's "releasable." You can do it as the second step after making a new project.

Getting it into the world can help you build momentum. You don't know when you start something what'll take off and what won't. But some things will. And when you get to the point when you start looking for work in the technology you want to work in, you'll have a sizable public portfolio to point to. Even if your personal collection is 90% crap and one or two winners, simply showing that you've been working at it, that you're motivated, will impress anyone with a technical background who might be involved in your hiring.

Answer 2

If you look at http://jobs.stackoverflow.com, for example, you can see what people may be doing with the Iphone.

Once you have an application out, whether it is a hit or not, it is something to point to.

Then, you can just talk with people you know that have an Iphone, and if they have some interesting ideas, you can help implement those.

By getting experience, and having done some programs that involved others, you will develop references, and experience dealing with clients.

You can then see about applying for a job as a programmer and change your career.

Trying to implement according to the ideas from others is important, as it will help you to try doing things that you wouldn't necessarily have thought of, and to help get a better understanding from someone that may only think they know what they want.

Answer 3

Go for it!

I've worked that way my whole career. This, what we work in, is technology. To stay employable in the face of something that changes so quickly it only makes sense that we would use new things constantly and grow into new areas. Have a solid core of design and problem solving skills, but then add more and more coding tools to that.

This is great, we can tackle new challenges and in fact find that we are in higher demand by knowing new technologies that catch on mainstream.

// :)

Answer 4

Let me offer a slightly different approach to the excellent ideas already captured here; start your iPhone development but at the same time make sure you’re as proactive as possible within the community. Use Stack Overflow extensively to ask and answer questions about iPhone development, tweet about your progress and even consider blogging. Do everything you can to document your learning through online mechanisms.

Recently I blogged about Why online identities are smart career moves and I think this is very relevant in your situation. If I was looking to hire an iPhone developer a year or two from now and I could substantiate their expertise through a public “paper trail”, it would be a major bonus for their chances of getting the job, particularly given this is such a new platform and everyone’s experience is comparatively limited.

So yes, definitely jump into becoming proficient in this area during your spare time but make sure you leave your mark along the way to maximise the opportunity of progressing this into a serious career move.