It felt like it was going to be an unproductive day, but actually a couple of good things happened. I got connected to several potential jobs. The first is a lower paid position where I would be doing 10 to 20 hours a week. While the rate is a little low, it’s good because if I know I have at least that much work, it takes some of the pressure off of the time I spend looking for more clients.
The other position is not paid, but the guy that it’s for has some really useful connections, and may have more work down the road that would be paid. Although, I believe he has become accustom to paying developers overseas, so I don’t know if I could justify the rate that I need. He has worked with a company in India doing apps and I think that that contact and him telling me how he does that could be very valuable.
The interesting thing about volunteering is that it can be more valuable than a paid position if you have the time to take it. When you are a volunteer you often get access to people that wouldn’t talk to you if they were paying you. Experienced leaders and business people respect someone who has the passion to work for nothing and will sometimes give of their time. It also gets you experience and builds reputation.
Volunteering can be one of the most valuable activities that you can do.
If I were to start outsourcing certain things that I do, if I was able to delegate some of my work to others, if I began to think in that mode, I’d be able to accomplish much, much more. Delegation is a key that I must learn. It’s something that I should focus on during this time I have off.