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Twenty+ Communities for Designer Work
In this article, Linda provides twenty+ communities where you can find work as a designer or programmer.
In the previous two articles, Linda talked about community-building and offered some examples of sites where you could build community. But, what if your time is stretched and you don't want to build community? What if you'd rather join a social media platform – especially to look for work? In this article, Linda provides twenty+ communities where you can find work as a designer or programmer.
Conclusion
You might wonder why I would suggest seeking community to find work rather than using sites such as LinkedIn or Guru:
- LinkedIn provides users with a great way to connect to peers, friends and possible employers, and it also provides a way to build community through groups. But, entrepreneurial communities allow you to jump into a venue that is focused on individuals who are building businesses. The community aspect, then, is a by-product, and it comes from gathering folks together who have a common goal. While LinkedIn is focused, this social media tool and others might carry the tendency to blur lines between business and personal relationships. Entrepreneurial communities, on the other hand, are purely business first – friendships are secondary, and trust is a necessary attribute that carries throughout any type of relationship. If you consistently provide lousy work or questionable connections, a community may ostracise you.
- Guru and other freelance bid sites provide great opportunities for jobs; but, you and I both know that the jobs usually go to the lowest bidders, and little opportunity exists to build relationships at these sites. An entrepreneurial community allows users to seek resources based upon friend or peer recommendation as well as the connections made within the community itself.
If you find a community where you can find jobs as well as learn more about how to build your own business, then you've found a spot that will change your life as you know it. The bonus is that you get to meet new people who have the same energy and focus as you do – the creative entrepreneurial spirit.
Linda Goin
Linda Goin carries an A.A. in graphic design, a B.F.A. in visual communications with a minor in business and marketing and an M.A. in American History with a minor in the Reformation. While the latter degree doesn't seem to fit with the first two educational experiences, Linda used her 25-year design expertise on archaeological digs and in the study of material culture. Now she uses her education and experiences in social media experiments.
Accolades for her work include fifteen first-place Colorado Press Association awards, numerous fine art and graphic design awards, and interviews about content development with The Wall St. Journal, Chicago Tribune, Psychology Today, and L.A. Times.