
Long hours are nothing unusual in the tech industry. Whether you’re a developer facing hundreds of hours of crunch time in order to ship a new game, or a datacenter administrator on a tight deadline to upgrade too many server racks, or a QA tester with a zoo of bugs to squish, there’s seemingly no end to the work that needs to be done. Which is, of course, why you should consider doing a side project. As developer (and frequent Dice contributor) David Bolton describes in a new column on Dice’s UK Website, side projects—whether writing software, building Websites, or contributing to an open-source platform—are an excellent way to not only boost your skills, but improve your chances when you’re searching for a new position. A good side project, he wrote, could “make the difference between your CV getting you to an interview [or] ending up in the rubbish bin.” And he’s right. Side projects allow you to:
- Show Off Skills: It’s one thing to learn programming in school, or take some classes to pick up a new skill-set; but showing that you’re acquired skills and put them to practical use will set you apart from other applicants.
- Show Off Time Management: Side projects take a lot of time and effort. If you’re completed a few successfully while holding down a day job, it hints that you’re very good at time management.
- Show Off Your Passion: Employers are always on the lookout for candidates who are passionate about what they do.
- Show You’re a Self-Starter: Side projects are usually started under your own volition. Pursuing one will demonstrate to employers that you have the initiative to begin something and see it through—a valuable skill in the workplace.