Today at Techie Youth I covered the unit of web design. This unit covered how to get clients as a beginner web designer, how to market your web business, How to find and gain clients for your business, and mistakes to avoid when creating your website.
To start off, if you don't have a portfolio to show to potential clients, some of the things you can do are:
When it comes to marketing your business, you should try both physical and digital marketing which involves: telling family and friends, events like local neighborhood councils or WordPress camp, ask local business if you can leave your business card with them, referrals, testimonials, cold calling, emailing, share GT Metrix report of the business's website with the owner, target specific people like attorneys, doctors, constructors, realtors, gyms, etc., Facebook and Google ads for your city, joining forums and Facebook groups, creating businesses on Yelp and Yellow Page, and many more, including writing your own blog post on web design.
Finally, as for gaining your own clients for your web business, you want to make sure that you first have a portfolio of 3-5 websites with a good quality, and focus on the best skills that you have related to web design. Next, you want to make sure that your websites target a niche, or a specific group of clients. After that you'd want to start finding clients, it's usually goof to focus on local businesses, family, friends, and people you know so that you've create a form of trust with them. You can also contact local ad companies for help too. Finally, once you've found a potential client, make sure to make the deal more mentally and physically easier for them to make, focus on the issues their having with their website, and create an outreach plan that involves showing how you will add value to their business and the positive results that they will get from working with you. At this point, if you already had a few clients it will also be good to become business affiliates with them as well.
And for creating your website you want to make sure that the layout of it is easy for people to go through. Some of the things you can do is: stick to 2 fonts with the same size for each, simplify the amount of information on your web site, make sure your web site works on other electronic devices, indent every 2-3 sentences within your paragraph, and ensure that the logo of your company is on the left side of the page.
Today at Techie Youth I learned all about relational and non-relational databases, SQLs and noSQLS, how those databases and computer languages worked, the differences between them, and computer courses showing me how to navigate one. To start off, a database is what is used to store data on a website, and most databases tend to fall into the category or either being relational or non-relational. A relational database is one that typically works with SQL (which is a computer language that communicates with these databases) and usually has data sorted in the form of a table which acts as a place for data storage. There are strict requirements for where the data goes in the and a schema in which the data has to be related to. The columns in the table represent the data and the rows represent the values of it. There are multiple types of relations that can be used within this database, such as: one-to-one relations (data for two values where one is connected with the other), one-to-many relations (data where one value is connected to multiple values, and many-to-many (where multiple data values are connected to each other, which adds the inclusion of a final table which connects the two values from their own tables). There are also special commands called joins which is used to retrieve and connect data in one set if it has multiple tables. However, noSQL uses a non-relational database that stores it's data within collections that contain documents that don't have to adhere to a specific schema. Which means that this is a more flexible option for if you have large amounts of data that aren't connected to each other. It can have duplicate data and all data from here needs to be updated more manually, data will also need to be merged manually as well. Horizontal scaling is typically good for noSQL since the computing power is split between multiple servers while vertical scaling is good for both noSQL and SQL where the computing power is continuously being added to one server, although with SQL there is a limit to how much you can improve it's server (how much data is being updated).
Today at Techie Youth I was shown how to navigate the online software WordPress and how to create my own website on it through using wordpress.org instead of wordpress.com. To start off, WordPress is a free open source software that was created in 2003. It is used to create your own website or blog and publish it on the internet. One of the best parts about it is the fact that you can manage to create a website on WordPress with no coding involved. The two versions of WordPress that I mention earlier have some differences. with wordpress.com you can create a free website but some of the downsides are: your website can be deleted at any time if it violates the terms and conditions, you can't monetize your website with ads, can't upload any plugins, can't upload any customizable theme, and you can't create any unique domain name. Overall the features seem pretty limiting if you want to create and self host your own website. Luckily, the other version of WordPress, wordpress.org, you have access to all the features that weren't available to you before. The only thing is that you have to download this version of WordPress in order to use it. The latter is preferable for creating a website because self-hosting is absolutely necessary if you want to create your own website that accurate represents what you want to accomplish with it.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about how set up Tortoise SVN client, checking out a SVN repository out of a server and committing changes back into it, managing conflicts in SVN, and using Git and Github. To start off, I was shown the link to the website where I can download and install Tortoise SVN and where to go on the website to install it depending on what operating system I had. After the software installed and setup I was then guided on how to transfer the non-version controlled files from SVN demo to repo1(or the repository folder). Next, I moved onto learning about checking out files from repo1 and committing changes back into the repository. To begin, there is a sub-directory where you should transfer the files from repo1 to and you can do this by first: updating and editing the files on the local client folders, copying the url of repo1 and pasting it on the svn checkout menu you get when you right-click on the sub-directory folder (co-repo1-user1), enter the user credentials, and once it's done you commit the file by right clicking it and selecting the commit option in the Tortoise SVN section. Once I learned that I moved onto how to manage conflicts in SVN, more so, a conflict where two people revise the exact same file and section and commit changes to it at the same time. If you are one of the users who receives a warning from the server because of this, what you want to do first is: to update the local copy of the file and go through with committing the correct changes to them, use the merge tool to get the combined version of the latest repository update and local update of the file, rename the merged file (which is version controlled) so it doesn't get confused with the non-version controlled version of the file, and commit changes to the merged file. Finally, once I moved on to learning about Git and Github, I learned about how to download and install the software, setup the software and user interface using html software and the command menu on my computer, what specific commands to use for when I might want to check out different branches onto my working directory, create a new branch to commit, creating a directory for a repository, showing the history of the files that were committed for an active branch, and much more.
Today at Techie youth I learned about Subversion + the basic components surrounding it and about the process behind monetizing your music. To start off, I learned that SVN, or Subversion is a centralized version control system that allows you to version control files and makes files you can collaborate with others on. The three components of Subversion are the SVN server, Visual SVN server, and the Tortoise SVN. The SVN server itself is the core component of server and client applications that was developed and released by the Apache foundation around 20 years ago. The Visual SVN server is the place that provides the environment to maintain the files in. It allows the user to graphically manage and install client applications, where repositories are created, and users and files are managed by the SVN. While the Tortoise server is a visual client that allows the user to manage files, check and commit their files to the server, and check out files from the server to manage them locally from the user's electronic device. Once I moved on to the topic of learning how to monetize music, I learned about how to reliably make income off of your songs as a musician which involved: earning royalties from streaming through digital distribution, playing in gigs, selling band merchandise online, collaborating with other brands and song artists, selling your own beats and samples, and teaching music classes and lessons. It also taught me about iSRC that's responsible for identifying your individual audio tracks in order to receive royalties, companies that will pay me well for my music, a variety of music distribution services like LANDR, Amuse, Tunecore, etc. that'll help me distribute both of my EPs and singles, making money through production music libraries and advertisements, and if I'm only interested in the instrumental part of making music, how to earn money through stock music, and some strategies I can use to bring in more passive income. Finally, to end the unit I ended up obtaining more information about how to find jobs related to film scoring through websites, job boards, and composing for music libraries.
Today at Techie Youth I learned how to host my own website using resources like HostGator, FileZilla, Cyberduck, and Netfily, different types of web hosting that's available like cloud and VPS, and the basic concepts about domain name servers and SSLs. To start off, I was shown an overview of what web hosting was and where to start if this was my first time trying to get my website hosted. I was also shown different types of web hosting that was available (shared hosting, virtual private servers, cloud, and etc.) and the pro and cons for each option. For figuring out where to go next the tutorial gave me a link to the HostGator website and a website profit course to go into more detail about web hosting. Next, I learned about how to host and upload a website using HostGator, FileZilla, Cyberduck, and Validator. HostGator is the main website to use when I need access to a domain to use for my website and decide how it is going to function. Once I've brought and customized my domain, then I can start by deleting the preexisting files on the website, use either FileZilla or Cyberduck to put in the information on the server (ip address, domain name) and the user, then copy and drag all of the files to the same place, wait for the software to register all of the information, and finally I copy and drag all my website files to the deploy section of the HostGator website and wait for it to upload . After that process is done I just wait have to wait for the domain to be set up which is a process that can take about one to twenty-four hours to be completed. Validator is used to see if there are any errors in the code you create for your web site. It's also very important that you proofread your html code before uploading your website on a web host. Finally, once I learned about the process of web hosting, the unit moved on to elaborating on the concept of domain names, domain name systems, SSLs, and how they all interact when your browser wants to receive information on the web server you want to visit. SSL is responsible for building trust between a browser and a web server and is apart of making sure the information between the browser and web server stays encrypted. A DNS or domain name system, is reponsible for making domain names and ip address easier to understand for both humans and computers. It helps browsers find the right IP address for a web server by using a domain name to check their cache for any number that a match for the domain name, if not they communicate and exchange information with more highly advanced servers that may have an IP address that matches the name of the website. Eventually, once it's been found browser goes through a process of verifying the information that the server sends them through a third-party certificate authority. Once the browser verifies the data that was sent to them, they'll begin a process with the server that includes encrypting and decrypting data being sent to each other though the use of asymmetric keys and symmetric keys.
Today at Techie Youth I gained more knowledge about digital audio workshops, how to choose the right software for yourself, and introducing popular brands of digital audio software and how they work. Generally, before you start experimenting with DAW its good to have a basic understanding of music theory, including concepts like: circle of fifths, figuring out the triplets, dotted notes, syncopation, arpeggios and more. Knowing more of music theory can be a tool that'll give you a better understanding on how to structure and improve a song, regardless if you're using a DAW or writing it on a music sheet. Once you've understand some of the basics of music theory, you can move onto deciding what digital audio workstation you want to use, and there are plenty to choose from, some of those are: Cubase, FL Studio, Ableton Live, Pro Tools, Logic Pro, and Reason. It's good to download and experiment with the free version of the software, even writing a pros and cons list of what you like and don't like about it. After you've done this, you'll be able to decide which DAW is right for you, but, it's also more important to make sure that you're picking a workstation that can bring out and make the most of your creativity. Finally, after you have decided on the software you want to use, make sure you spend extra time taking notes, to understand the mechanics , aspects, and details of the workstation that stands out to you. Each software has unique features that can either help you, or hinder you depending on what your needs are and a general understanding of music and music software, so it's best to make sure most of these things are understood before you undertake the process of music production.
Today at Techie youth I learned more about the different job roles available in web development. Some of the jobs I learned more about include a: web architect, data architect, system administrator, project manager, release, manager and a chief technical officer. For some of these jobs, like a data architect, its more valuable for you to have more experience with using software like Javascript, Python, XML, and other types of coding programs rather than just learning about it through college. Often in web development roles you're going to be dealing with a lot of situations that requires you to have a good understanding of the software and how it'll help with your projects, communicating frequently with your team on improvements that can be made and troubleshooting any problems that may come up. For example, with front-end and back-end development, those job roles often rely on the front-end developer and back-end developer to be in frequent contact with each other so that all of the coding that goes into designing the website gets sent to the back-end developer to improve the functionality and logic of it. A lot of these jobs are also very high-paying ones, with the average salary ranging from $60,000.00 to over $200,000 depending on the amount of job experience you have and cost-of-living in the area. Web development is also a job where it's more useful for you to branch out and improve your skills outside of your job role, because sometimes you'll encounter situations where it would be more efficient for the front-end developer to have more experience with software for back-end development and vice versa for back-end development to get the most out of a website or browser you might be working on.
Today at Techie Youth I learned more about how to design websites through html and css layouts and flexbox, how to create multiple pages for a web site, how to code images for a web site, and responsive design. I also moved on to learning a bit about web development roles such as: the differences between front-end and back-end developers, and the differences between a web designer and web developer.
To start off, I learned about how to use layouts and flexbox through the tags: div, header, nav, section, footer, margin, and padding. The first five tags help me create different sections of a page and describe what those sections are while the last two tags adjust the amount of empty space I want inside and outside a section box. With creating multiple pages, I was shown how to make them by creating a different file for the web pages, and copying + pasting each of them inside the folder. Afterwards I learned about different tags that'll help the software find all the pages and editing the layout across multiple pages at the same time. Finally, on the sections of coding images and responsive interfaces, I was shown how to edit the code and use different shortcuts to add images to the web site and have it render itself well on multiple devices.
On the next section, I was first shown how to tell the differences between front-end and back-end developers and which role was more beneficial. As it turns out, it's actually more important to learn skills from both roles and become a full-stack developer. Those skills include: material design, bootstrap, css grid, flexbox, sequel, pulling reports, query, and joins. Having all of those skills in my toolset will help me do well with both job roles. As for being a web designer and a web developer, the differences is, the designer mainly works with software that helps them achieve the ideal aesthetics or vision for the web site, and spends time finding inspiration on what designs to use. The web developer deals with making these designs functional enough as the designer would have it. The way to tell which role you should pick is, if you're more oriented towards visuals and solving problems using them, then you should consider web design. Although, if you're more likely to spend time analyzing things and taking objects apart to see how it works, then you should consider being a web developer. In the end, it's recommended for you to dabble in both to figure out which is more to your liking.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about free software beginners can use to create the code for their websites, and the basics of writing in both html and css.
To start off, I watch an video where I learned about how to download and install Microsoft Visual Studio Code. After installing the Microsoft vsc program, I'm then showed which extension I should download first, and creating my index.html folder where the website creation is going to be happening in. Next, I create a empty website template by pressing the '!' button and 'tab'. Once the template has been made, I can start writing code, but its important to save (ctrl + s) each time I'm done writing in a tag. Finally, as soon as I'm finished writing all the code for my website, I can right-click the screen and click on 'open with live server' to see what the language looks like on an actual web page.
For the next two videos, the unit goes into detail about the basics of writing in HTML and CSS. Firstly, I'm shown that I can delete all of the code besides Doctype! since that represents the actual page itself. Next I learn about the tags used in writing a website and how to write them in the correct order. Some of those tags are:
I also learned that after writing something like <p> you always need to end that same code with a </p> at the end, sometimes the software will do it for you, but its important to be aware of. Lastly I learned about how to combine CSS code with a bit of HTML code to change the color of the letters and the background of the website. For example if I wanted to change the header color of the website to blue I would write something like:
<style>h1 {color: blue;}</style>.
But if I wanted the letters to more specific color that the computer will still recognize I would have to do something similar to:
<style>h1 {color:rgb(150, 16, 150);}</style>.
Finally, after watching the videos I went on Khan Academy to review everything I learned about writing code so far, and to complete these challenges that involve the writing of basic html and css code for a website using a variety of tags to make list, add images, write poems, and change the design of the fake website I was creating.
Today at Techie youth I learned about the basic concepts of web development and the time, education, and resources I should invest in if I'm working to become a web developer. Also, in music production, I gained knowledge on how to create good cord progressions, tempos for film scores, and the right instrument samples for scoring a film.
To start off, in web development, I was introduced to what the internet was and how coding languages like JavaScript, HTML, and CSS is used to create websites that people interact with. Your computer, makes a request to access the server through a web browser, and the server in response sends back files and images of what it does. HTML is the foundation of a website, CSS is responsible for the design and layout, u go on a website. The languages a server uses are PHP, Python, Ruby, Java, Javascript and more. After this I moved on to learn about the step by step process of becoming a good web developer which involves (learning one part of a data language slowly over the course of a year rather than speeding through learning multiple ones, attending Harvard's first 3 CS3 classes, and learning about web development through articles and books rather than regular youtube videos on the subject.
Secondly, when I moved back into learning about music production, I gained information on how to structure the samples used in music production software to create the beats found in popular music genres like r&b, hip hop, reggaeton, house, and more. Afterwards, the unit delve more into ways to create chord progressions for a song if you're not experienced with music theory, how to add more to a melody to make it stand out in the song you're making, and how to use your sample library and midi controller to establish proper tempos to compose scores for movies, and how to properly score a scene in a movie through editing and amplifying certain instruments and music scales depending on what type of scene you're filming.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about the types of music industry jobs I can do at home and how to create music remotely when I can't be in a studio.
First, I was introduced to a variety of music industry jobs available and also was given information on the responsibilities, educational recommendations needed in order to succeed at the careers, and the average salaries for the music industry positions. Then I was shown was I could become closer to the music industry through taking internships with companies that has long lasting contacts within the music industry. After that I was shown how I can start up my own record label and some of the benefits behind that, also learning about the main ways that song artists make their money through marketing, promoting, and social media fan bases.
After that part of the unit I moved onto how to produce music from a computer. The unit started off with me learning all of the basic concepts behind music theory, so I can have a wider tool set to use when I need to come up with new beats and understand how to use my MIDI. Secondly, I was introduced to the idea of mixing tracks and editing them with various sound effects through learning a bit about DJing and the basics of it. Once I finished that I moved on to learning about all of the hardware and software I'd be using to create beats from home like: sample libraries, digital audio workstations, beat sequencers, MIDI controllers and mixing and mastering software. Shortly after that, I was shown step by step on the song making process (either by first creating a beat using percussion or adding a bass line to find the rhythm and chord progression for your song. Once you have your beat and chord progression, you usually add melodic elements by using vocals, synths depending on the genre you want. Thirdly, you'd want to add extra sound effects that'll add more detail to your song. At this point, you can use your DAW to loop the different tracks together to see how it sounds as a whole, and edit it until its balanced. Finally, you can use mixing and mastering software to combine all of the previous elements together and polished the sounds from the music tracks until you have your song).
Today at Techie Youth I reviewed the topic of Identifying Role Models and Mentors, while learning about new topics like the Jet Setter Lifestyle and an introduction to Music Production.
First, when I reviewed the unit of Identifying Role Models and Mentors, the lesson started off with me learning about how to identify what a role model is and discovering how much they influence the choices we make and the paths we take in life. Also, I was taught how I can be a role model myself. For example, role models embrace all of their failures and the shadow parts of themselves while, at the same time, live with powerful intentions, and are authentic and driven by ways to help other people. For the second part of the unit I learned about how being a mentor is different from being a role model. A mentor is someone that sets their time aside to talk about how they've accomplished their goals, give you guidance, and cheer you on when you're pursuing your passions. The unit also explained how to properly go about finding a potential mentor and show them why they should become your mentor ( you can do this by figuring out your short and long-term goals, do your research on the potential mentor. Once you meet them, talk about their likes and dislikes, be mindful of their time, ask specific questions, keep emails with them short and concise, make sure that the other person doesn't feel obligated to do this, and offer them some of your good qualities you'll bring to the mentorship).
For the second unit, the Jet Setter Lifestyle, I learned about ways you can make money through travel, and all about the steps to take to become successful at it. I also learned about the different ways you can do this for cheap and for free, but there are limitations to this as well. To begin, I was introduced to the different jobs and opportunities available for this type of lifestyle like: being a digital nomad (using tech and telecommunications to earn income traveling internationally), writing travel literature, being a house sitter for someone in another country, becoming a tour guide, photographer, and creating content in digital nomad hubs internationally. Afterwards I was taught about a variety of ways I can afford this way of living (hitchhiking, working overseas, couch-surfing, using student discounts for travel, city tourism cards, and organic farming globally), and the limitations of this lifestyle and how unpredictable and tiring it can be after a certain period of time.
Today at Techie Youth I learned more about time management through delegating tasks, identifying those tasks that aren't important vs. the ones that are, and how to set aside the right amount time needed to complete each of those important tasks. I also learned about the importance of physical and mental health and it's effect on your productivity, how to manage stressful situations that might pop up in your career, and the approach you should take when it comes to your role models and to someone who you want to be mentored by.
When finishing up the rest of the section for time management I learned about the importance of doing an financial assessment on each project given at work to see whether it'll be worth all the time, effort and resources, and if not how to delegate the task to focus on more important ones. Next, I gained information on different ways I can track the amount of time I spend doing each activity everyday. Once I completed that I moved on to prioritizing the urgent tasks I need to get done throughout the day, and how to do that (digital planners + Kaban method) in a organized and efficient manner that still leaves time for me to focus on my creative hobbies and activities.
The second section I did was Health & Productivity. The knowledge that I gained from this section is the accessible and beneficial ways I can manage my health and improve my productivity, and how to approach difficult situations as a leader. The first part of the section of the things I can do to improve my physical and mental health without spending too much time and money on medical treatments (ex. staying hydrated, exercising, eating a balanced diet, getting a healthy amount of sleep, connecting with others, and focusing on fun hobbies that'll help me learn new skills). The last part of this section showed me the steps I should take to become a strong leader, and how to interact with others as one (ex. have a strong and commanding voice, not speaking unless its important, making eye contact with others, don't emotionally react to unexpected problems, and practice good habits).
The third section, Stress Management, taught me how to view the negative situations in my life without trying to control it, but adapting to it and shifting my perspective of the situation. Another lesson it taught me was how to deal with negative people and situations in a way that won't cause me to sabotage my own relationships and career, simply by surrounding myself with more positive people and professionally adapting to a variety of problems that may come up at work. The last thing I learned was how to create reasonable and beneficial goals for myself and showing gratitude for the life that I have built.
Today at Techie you I learned about the six different skills needed to effectively prioritize your time properly, how much time is wasted doing things that either don't improve your life or makes it worse in the long run, and some of the things that you can focus on to improve your well-being and happiness as a person.
To start off, I learned that in order to use time management effectively the skills you need to have include: organization, prioritization, goal-setting, communication, planning, and stress management. After learning this I move on to focus more on some of the common things that people do that wastes a lot of their time (ex. watching television, playing video games) and some of the things I can do to make the most of time available to me during the day (buying a dishwasher, a drying machine, googling courses of skills I want to have). Also I gained knowledge on how to spend my money on things that'll help me save extra time for being productive in other important areas of my life. For example, instead of focusing on buying some of the cheapest items, focus on buying items that'll effectively save more time and money in the long-run (like investing in buying comfortable shoes to wear so you wont have to spend extra money + time on medical treatments later on). Lastly, I learned about, while I'm being productive, how important it is to find a career that is lucrative AND something that makes me happy, and working on skills that do the same thing as well.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about how to invest excess funds, how to plan for the future using everything I've learned about finances so far, and took a quiz at the end of the lesson.
To start off, I was introduced to tips on how to invest any extra money that I have and the variety of investments that are available for me at this time. The first tip that was given to me for investing is never risk more money than I'm ready to lose. Which basically means that I should first evaluate how much money I want to put towards investments, especially high-risk ones. Once I've decided on how much money I'm willing to use on investing, I can put that money towards more high risk investments like cryptocurrency, hedge funds, and becoming a money loaner. While the rest of the money I have should be invested in something that more low risk and safe like: bank accounts, and crowdfunding. There are a lot of choices to choose from when it comes to investments but it's important to watch out for ads geared towards asking you for investments or a stranger is asking you to invest in their business venture, because there's a high chance it's most likely a scam, or in case it's a person, there is a high chance of you not getting your money back. Also, with all investments, there's always some type of tax involved with pursuing that path.
Lastly, I was taught on 7 key steps on what to do when planning for my financial future. The first step involves in putting money aside (in a another savings account or 401k) for a retirement fund. Which involves saving about 5-15% of the money I receive before I get my paycheck. Secondly, I open a checking account, or rather multiple, while using direct deposit to ensure that my money goes directly into the account. The third step is to use that account to pay for any necessities that I have that include: food, shelter(rent or mortgage), transportation, healthcare, and utility bills. After I do that, I can start by taking out $10-40 of each paycheck to place in a separate checking account in order to build up an emergency fund. So that way, I don't have to dig into my savings or other account to pay for an urgent situation that might cost a lot of money. Once I start saving up more money for an emergency fund, if I have any debt, I can focus on just that by either using the snowball method to pay off multiple places I'm in debt in, or use the avalanche method to pay off the debt with the highest interest rate. For the sixth step, I can start by saving 4-8 months of my payroll either through a online savings account with around 2.4% APR, or through a money market to help me gain more through inflation costs related to banking accounts. Finally, once I have everything covered I can focus on investing the extra money I have left into avenues like: real estate, stocks, bonds, and many more ways of investing. And once I completed all these steps, then I can start focusing more on luxury items I want to buy, or places that I want to travel to.
Today at Techie Youth I learned all about ways that you can be more aware of your finances and how to manage money strategically so that you'll end up gaining more than you're spending in the long run. To start off, the lesson began by teaching me the difference between net and gross income and how to calculate your net salary. You do this generally by taking into account the cost of living in your city, cost for clothing or uniforms for work, other job expenses, and the taxes taken out before you get your paycheck.
Next I was taught about how to create a monthly budget. By creating a list and calculating the expenses from my financial statements and my monthly income, while also determining what expenses were mandatory versus those that were liable to change every month, and what a good budget looks like. I was also told to make constant adjustments to the budget to ensure that it consistently represents my financial situation. As the topic went further on, it showed me how to differentiate between what purchases were considered necessary vs, those that were based on luxury and status, and how to tell since what's considered a necessity high depends on the culture, time period, and the technological advancements that are made.
After that, it focused more on how to determine what items are more valuable to buy in the long term, which basically boiled down to items that I will gain profit from if I decided to sell them, which is also called, focusing on items with high resale value. I learned about what type of items have strong resale value, items with low resale value, ad items that can't be resold. Once I knew what's what, the lesson delved into how to minimize unnecessary spending, real life examples/steps to take to achieve this, and how to negotiate items with sellers so that you'll end up spending less for them and end up gaining more from them through using the buyer and sellers markets.
Today at Techie youth I finished up the lesson on where I learned about scams that are used on job candidates and businesses, and the ways that identity theft can happen, while also moving on to the lesson about how to network with other people.
Continuing the topic on Beware of Scams, I learned more about how certain scammers will commonly target people who look desperate, because people like that will be more vulnerable to take any offer that someone gives them. Once scammers know this they'll start selling you unrealistic job offers where you're earning a high amount of money within a short amount of time, or a high job position with no qualifications or experience. Sometimes they will make you pay a large fee for your job offer even if you never met them. When it comes to identity theft, they'll call you and ask you a series of questions that will indirectly give them your personal information under the guise of a free giveaway or an job offer. Other times, they'll sell objects for a higher price than they're worth without any intentions on giving it back for a quick buck. Which makes it important that you read the reviews of the customers that used their services and read the fine print before you accept anything.
After I moved to the topic about networking with others, I gained tips on how to prioritize important people to make connections with when it comes to running a business. For example, before you start socializing with others it's important to look up the information of the people in your job industry and try to connect and maintain a relationship with people who you share common interests with, and can also help each other out with overcoming certain obstacles within that industry. Its important that when you're networking that you know what type of people that you need around you. More importantly, try to build a relationship with the people you network with, get to know more about what they like to do, before you just ask for a favor. Overall, I learned that it's important to be authentic, helpful, intentional, and open to socializing with others when it's time for you to start networking with other people.
Today at Techie Youth I spent time trying to learn more about and reviewing how to successfully work at a remote job being more aware of scams that people will use on certain job candidates. The second part of successfully working at a remote job focused more on how to schedule video meetings and how to navigate them. Afterwards, the lesson started to move into how to approach conflict with your co-worker or your boss without taking away from the tasks that other employees have to do. It also talked about how to set proper boundaries at your job, so that the work that you're doing doesn't slip into your home life. When I moved on to the topic 'Beware of Scams' I was introduced to the variety of scams that people deal with, how to tell if a person or a company is trying to use those same scams on me, and the types of tactics that they use to get people to buy into their scams.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about some of the steps I can take to accomplish working at a remote job. One of those steps involve making sure I have the right equipment and work environment. For example, while working remotely I should have a smartphone, laptop and/or desktop computer, with a reliable access to the internet. The work environment should be somewhere in a quiet room where I can't be distracted by anything that's happening. On the topic of work environments, the lesson introduced me to other places outside, where I can conduct remote working. Some of places include: a café, a public workspace where people can register to hold their own meetings in boardrooms, or (almost) any place outside that has consistent access to the internet and quiet spaces where people can work. I forgot to mention, if you're going to be working outdoors remotely, it's important to bring a laptop + a charger and headphones to block out the noise. Afterwards, I was introduced to the on-boarding process for new employees and how to navigate it. To start off, new employees are given an overview of what to expect for their job position (and any other small details included, introducing them to their co-workers and help integrate them into the work culture, and help foster consistent lines of communication between co-workers to give each other updates with any projects or daily tasks they have to complete, or just giving them a online space where they feel more connected with each other both in and outside the (remote) office.
Today at Techie Youth, I continued to learn more about the interviewing process and how I should approach interviewers in order to show them I'm a good fit for their company.
The first part of this section of the lesson involved how to conduct yourself during phone and video interviews. For phone interviews, even though I'm not meeting the interviewer in person, I still need to do things like: bringing a list of questions I can ask the interviewer later on, having a notebook and a pen to take notes, turn off any type of distractions, smile and bring a positive attitude to the interview, and go over my resume and the job list to make sure that I know how to answer the questions the interviewer has for me. As for video interviews, it involves a lot of similar actions as phone and in-person ones, but there's a few technical details that need to be sorted out unlike other interviews. For example, make sure the camera angle is pointing directly at your face and not under it so the other person can have a proper look of your face. Secondly, make sure there's a light source behind your computer so the interviewer can see you and your surroundings. Finally, make sure the space around you is neat because it shows the other person who you are as a person. For the final part of this lesson, I gained more knowledge on how to speak up for myself in salary negotiations and job positions. More specifically, I learned what to do to prove myself fit for the job in a interview, and what kind of mindset and approach I should take if I want to get the interviewer to see that I'm intelligent and capable enough for the job.
Today at Techie youth I learned all about what to do to prepare for a job interview, what to wear + how to conduct yourself once you show up to the interview, what questions to expect from the interviewer + how to answer those questions, the questions you should ask the interviewer when prompted, and what to do after the interview is over.
Generally, the first thing you want to do is prep yourself for the interview by doing research on the company and interviewer, look up common interview questions and practice answering them by yourself and with someone else, create a reference list, and reread the job description for specific skills to mention in the interview. On the day of the interview you should've prepared the proper attire to wear to the interview the night before, bring copies of your resume + cover letter with a notebook and a pen to take notes, and straighten out your outfit before you enter the job site. Once you're there greet everyone inside, treat them respectfully and familiarize yourself with the work environment. When the interview starts, make sure you have good body language and manners + a positive attitude when answering the questions. Also make sure you're honest and authentic with your answers; tying up your answers to show your skills and accomplishments in a concise manner. Before the interview ends, make sure you've asked the employer questions about the job and company + the next steps you need to take at this point. Finally, once you leave the interview, make sure you've written a thank-you letter to the interviewer within 24 hours to show that you're the top candidate for the job.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about what requirements you need before you start looking for jobs. Along with being taught on the importance of curating and maintaining a professional public image where I'm respectful and thoughtful of my colleagues and the topics I engage in.
To start off, When I went through the course of The Prerequisites to getting employed I learned how to create a proper Linked-In profile that accurately represents the skills and experiences I have, while also creating a profile picture that's professional and with good lighting. Once I gotten to the topic of resumes, the important things I've learned was how to create a clear and concise resume that displays my job experiences and skills in a way that's personalized to, what the job position I'm applying for, needs. As for my cover letter, similar advice was given in which I was taught how to write a letter, while I'm also showing my eagerness and ability for the job position, I also display a sense of authenticity and connect with the person I'm writing to.
As I moved on to the topics of my public image and social media, the lesson showed how important it is to have a online public identity that's professional and appropriate, and to act in a thoughtful and respectful manner when I am engaging with others online. Also, it taught me how to connect with companies through each social media platform, and engage with their content in a way where I will get to know more about them and their values.
Today at Techie Youth I learned about what a checking account is, how to correctly write and endorse checks, other types of checking accounts that can be used in different situations, and about different banks that give good deals with opening a checking account. I also became informed about how to accept credit card payments, how to process them, and the wide variety of ways you can process credit card payments (i.e. payment service providers, true merchant accounts, etc.). While learning about credit card services like PayPal and Square, I read articles and watch videos on how to decide on whether I should be using payment service providers, merchant accounts, and the pros and cons of both. Once I've gotten into the section for cryptocurrency, I began to gain more knowledge about receiving money through virtual wallets, what types of virtual wallets I should be using, businesses that accept cryptocurrency, different types of software and hardware I can use to keep my virtual wallet safe, and how mercurial the exchange rate can be for cryptocurrency. Finally, to complete the final part of the section I read about both good and bad parts about getting paid with cash, and the actions that I should be aware of if this is the route I decided to take when getting a job.
What I learned at Techie Youth today includes some background information about this program and all about working remotely. When I did the topic on remote work, I learned so much about the reasons why someone would or wouldn't work remotely, what types of jobs you can do from home, the challenges that you have to overcome while working remotely, and how to work in a efficient way that's beneficial to both myself and my job.
When learning about remote work, I've come to realize that remote jobs can be more convenient than onsite jobs because of the lack of traffic and other distractions in the workplace that can prevent you from completing your workload on time. For some people it even helps them get more work done than they normally would. With the ability to have more flexible work hours, it provides another alternative for people who find themselves unable to work with 9-5 jobs where they have little control over the work they need to do, or if they have other important obligations to complete in other parts of their life. At the same time, remote working can also bring its own challenges. For example, when you spend most of your time working alone, it be a pretty isolating experience after a while. In order to combat this you have to spend time to create more opportunities to socialize with others than it just happening naturally in the workplace. Another example of a challenge with remote jobs can be the lack of innate structure that usually comes along with on-site jobs. When working remotely, its up to only you to create a work schedule that's satisfying for yourself while having the discipline to maintain this on top of other responsibilities you have in your life at the same time. For some people, depending on what their circumstances are, can have difficult time working with the lack of structure here, including having to figure out their work hours and how much money they should expect to receive from their work.
Overall remote jobs are a good alternative to try out if you feel that traditional jobs aren't working out for you. But more importantly, you should work in a way that's going to make you satisfied with yourself and your life, no matter what type of job that may be.