I get paid to code in Perl. Which has humor value, because there are many, many Perl programmers who are better coders than I am. For those who might want to move from "Perl as a hobby" to "Perl as a job", my number one recommendation is to read and implement Josh Kaufman's "The Personal MBA" (PMBA).

If you want to program for pay, you are a business. Many of us skipped business school, and few of us can afford to take several years off of life so we can spend a few hundred thousand dollars to "learn business". In PMBA Josh explains the basic functions of business in easily digestible sections. Some of the insights seem basic; like creating an Economically Viable Product. Yet how we perceive ourselves as a producer influences how we present ourselves. For example, a person goes to a hardware store and buys a quarter inch drill bit. They don't really care about having a quarter inch drill bit, but they do care about being able to make quarter inch holes.

Hiring managers have the same perspective. They don't need another programmer, but they want to solve business problems with software. They need the ability to turn business needs into robust and maintainable code in a cost efficient manner. As you market yourself, how can you move from saying "I'm a programmer" to "I solve business problems using computer code"? Does your resume show that? Would your current team (paid or not) recommend you for that ability? If not, spend time resolving that. Build the reputation for solving problems. Build the reputation for being someone others enjoy working with. Write code that others can test and support.

2020 has been a rough year for many of us, and there many problems to be solved. Bring your problem-solving self to the table, the world needs you.