Striking out on my own
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Two days before Christmas my prior employer laid me off with only a couple days notice. I’d been with them for 10 years and thought I’d retire there.
But this is a different era, and if history has taught me nothing else, it is that you have to flow with the changes and find the opportunity in them instead of fighting them.
This year, I have decided that I am going to take a shot at being self-employed. While there ~are~ jobs out there for those who are actually willing to work, I know I am never going to make the money I once did. Nor do I want to.
So logic dictates that if I am going to work and make a moderate income, I’d rather work for myself and love what I am doing rather than just get another traditional 8-to-5 job.
I really do not have much faith in corporate America anymore, and personally feel that this shift in the economy will be a shot in the arm for for small business.
For years small business has been on the decline as giant corporations have moved into town after town and paved over the landscape with homogenous, large scale distribution and financial clout.
With the breakdown of big corporations, cracks are appearing and once again small businesses are doing what they’ve historically been very good at doing: finding a tiny niche and setting up shop.
My appeal is this: hire me as a a freelance writer or independent web developer.
If you are looking for a writer, visit the Writing section of my site to see get a feel for my sense of style. While most of this is fiction or editorial, I am an excellent technical writer as well, however I am not at liberty to post materials I have written for others.
If you are looking for a web developer, here are a few sites that I’ve worked on:
LRWMedia.com
Design goals for this site were for a very monochromatic look where the occasional use of color was highly notable.
FiberMX.com
FiberMX is a company that is on the cutting edge of "green" construction materials, and has developed a revolutionary fiber-based additive for concrete products that improves the strength and crack resistance of the product. The kicker: it is made from 100% recycled material!
CarterAndEvans.com
This is a Joomla CMS based site for one of Tampa’s premier marriage and family therapy groups. The main design goals where to improve navigation, and provide index and search capability for all the resources they have on their site.
On a separate note, they are one of the few groups that practice Adlerian psychology: if you truly want to make a difference in your life, it is well worth your time to contact them.
QwikChord.com
This is a very simple site that was built using RapidWeaver, a template based web editor. Design goals for this site were to have simple HTML pages that rendered quickly, sparse graphics, and a slightly quirky and unusual layout that reinforced the unique philosophy of the company.
This site is actually a “work in progress” as we are still in the very early stages of site design. As such, you will notice incomplete content, and the graphics, navigations, and colors will change over the next 2 or 3 weeks as I modify the style sheets so the website reflects the “in the door” experience of the salon.
I do have several other sites that I have worked on if anyone is interested.
My focus and specialty are small businesses, entrepreneurs, and professionals who need solid and polished web presence. If you find that the cheap $5 hosting sites and “quick and dirty” templates do not fit your needs, and spending $3k - $8k for a development house is too expensive, then I am your man!
I specialize in taking the vision and direction of a small business and turning it into a top-notch website, and I do this without overwhelming my clients with technical jargon or tying them into a commitment where they are reliant on me for everything.
Interested? Contact me via email