“If you really put a small value upon yourself, rest assured that the world will not raise your price. “
-unknown, but they were definitely right

As discussed last week, you’re not a clueless n00b; you’re just new on the job.  Now how do we convince the people of this planet that that’s the case?

If you did an amazing job at Step One, perhaps you exude confidence that is a guiding light for those in doubt.  If not, then let new people know you’re out there, show old contacts evidence of your progress, and be armed with facts to fight off the naysayers.

If you’re going to be a progeek, especially in a non-traditional industry or a niche you’ve created for yourself, you need to promote the heck out of yourself and/or your job and/or the thing you’ve created.  Convince people you’re the real deal.

That means making business cards that reflect your new job, actively networking in your industry (eg: meetups), and perhaps building a website to showcase your creation or service if that’s relevant for your niche.

This only works, of course, if you believe in yourself (Step One).  All the surface professionalism in the world will still fail if you label yourself as a n00b. 

Go forth with confidence, and surround yourself with people who will advance your progeek career.  That means: people who know your industry, people who work at companies where you’d like to offer your skills, people you can learn from, and people who inspire you.

But what do you do about people who knew you back when you were still a self-proclaimed n00b?  Sometimes your friends and family will be proud of your progress.  Sometimes they will, with the best of intentions, try to convince you back to something more traditional.  Some people will just laugh.  How do you deal with that?

Firstly, a note.  If your friends don’t really care about your career either way, don’t ramble on about it.  These strategies are for dealing with people who are expressing an interest, negative or positive.

For the people who are being civil, it’s important to keep them updated as to what you’re doing.  It’s reassuring to those who are worried about you when you show them that you are, in fact, making progress.  It’s also nice to give little updates to those who support your decision.  They’re taking an interest in you, so return their attention.

When you finish a draft of a screenplay, mention it.  When you arrange a meeting with a potential investor, mention it.  When you figure out a bit of code with which you’ve been struggling, mention it.

And then, there are the trolls.  Do not confuse these with a well-intentioned relative who constantly offers their unsolicited advice that you should go back to med school.  Trolls are the people who are actively tearing you down for the sake of tearing you down.  Avoid the subject of careers with these people, and if they don’t let it go, then minimize contact with them.  Remember, you want to surround yourself with people who are a good influence.  Let the trolls go.

If you’ve got a persistent troll, or if your confidence isn’t exuding light like a bug zapper in July, then there are some things you can tell yourself to keep your confidence high.  Fortunately, it’s a long list so you’ll have a lot to back you up.  Unfortunately, its length means it warrants its own post, so it’s only going up next week.  Until then, go meet some good people and show them what you’re made of.

-Tamara Hecht