Positive, hippie ways a Web Dev can earn a living

[unity100]

im wondering, is there any such way ?

without being a gear in the machine etc ?

the way it is now im already doing contract work to ordinary people, and very small businesses. ie 'the people'. small estores and such, people who have dreams of online business and giving it a shot etc.

but im wondering. is there another route that's possible. which would ... well, you know what i mean.

[Wiseman]

Uh, develop websites?

You speak as if there's a huge difference between how 'hippies' do something and how 'normal people' do things.

Do whats right. Don't ever forget that people are worth more than little printed pieces of paper.

[unity100]

you dont get the point. of course there is a difference in which a hippie does certain stuff and a non hippie does.

a non hippie may see no problems working as a butcher for example. or, as a mercenary. or, as a petroleum station worker.

however our outlook is different than many people. we intend to further mankind's evolution a step further, bringing in important philosophical perspectives that are needed to reform many of the ways we do things, ranging from issues relating to climate change to attitude towards others.

therefore yes, im wondering, whether there is readily an approach which is a step further than the one i know, for web developers.

[daisymelan]

What types of website development do you do? Do you ever do the onpage content? If so, I can steer you into what I do online. I had to learn website development after I got going, if you already know it, you are laughing. Most of my sites are now WP and I have one that I tried using Joomla for.. that was a trial. lol

You will be amazed at the freedom you can have with these skills. I work online full time now and will never have to go back to "rat race". I'm loving it! So are my kiddos.

[Velvet Smoke]

you dont get the point. of course there is a difference in which a hippie does certain stuff and a non hippie does.

a non hippie may see no problems working as a butcher for example. or, as a mercenary. or, as a petroleum station worker.

however our outlook is different than many people. we intend to further mankind's evolution a step further, bringing in important philosophical perspectives that are needed to reform many of the ways we do things, ranging from issues relating to climate change to attitude towards others.

therefore yes, im wondering, whether there is readily an approach which is a step further than the one i know, for web developers.

what ?? you make it sound as though 'hippies' (however you care to define them ?) are some kind of superior group and everyone else doesnt giv a shit and cant be of any use with their ideas or thoughts.
u cant say 'hippies' wouldnt be butchers etc, thats like a personal view point so u cant just stereotype all hippies as bein vegetarian or whatever..

[unity100]

What types of website development do you do? Do you ever do the onpage content? If so, I can steer you into what I do online. I had to learn website development after I got going, if you already know it, you are laughing. Most of my sites are now WP and I have one that I tried using Joomla for.. that was a trial. lol

You will be amazed at the freedom you can have with these skills. I work online full time now and will never have to go back to "rat race". I'm loving it! So are my kiddos.

i am running a small shop that does ecommerce development and general web development. we are doing ok. freedom is enough. im in my pajamas in my living room in front of a 28 inch monitor.

i want to be able to do more good with what im doing. something more spirituall satisfying.

[unity100]

what ?? you make it sound as though 'hippies' (however you care to define them ?) are some kind of superior group and everyone else doesnt giv a shit and cant be of any use with their ideas or thoughts.
u cant say 'hippies' wouldnt be butchers etc, thats like a personal view point so u cant just stereotype all hippies as bein vegetarian or whatever..

my definition of hippie is much narrower than yours apparently.

[Xora]

Of course you can!
Help small business get started, have free hosting, help them materialize there dreams!

I run a web developments/hosting/security company, Joken Design. And I always stick to these ethics. I can't count the number of people who had an idea of something they wanted to sell but they didn't have the money for a website, so you set something up so they can pay after. When they are doing better. You would be surprised after doing quite a ffew sites the word of mouth that gets out. Not to mention you are building a better and better portfolio which allows you to work for bigger company, make a bit of money, and help them do it in a artistic or fun way.

[daisymelan]

That's great Xora!

My thoughts are this... I am fulfilled because I enjoy my work and it gives me time to do what I feel is important in my life right now. But if you make decent money, that should give you plenty of time for following your passions and helping to make a difference if that is what is important to you.

[unity100]

Of course you can!
Help small business get started, have free hosting, help them materialize there dreams!

I run a web developments/hosting/security company, Joken Design. And I always stick to these ethics. I can't count the number of people who had an idea of something they wanted to sell but they didn't have the money for a website, so you set something up so they can pay after. When they are doing better. You would be surprised after doing quite a ffew sites the word of mouth that gets out. Not to mention you are building a better and better portfolio which allows you to work for bigger company, make a bit of money, and help them do it in a artistic or fun way.

im already kinda doing that. i want something more.

[Xora]

Perhaps you should elaborate on what you mean then.
You haven't listed what skills you have, so I cant really suggest something.

But really a Web Designer or Programmer working in Web Design has a few paths, working for small companies contract per contract, you can work for a large Web Design company, not ever meeting your clinets jsut stuck in a room working, you can try to get big client independently but alot of time you end up having to pick up a free lancer for a bit of cash to get things done on time. There isn't alot of other paths.

[unity100]

skills are not a problem. they can be acquired to meet the goals. inspiration and goal in the manner i described is the problem.

[DazedGypsy]

im already kinda doing that. i want something more.

what exactly is it that you want?
maybe web development is not the direction for you.
but first you have to answer what you're trying to accomplish. or what fulfills you.

[unity100]

if i exactly known what i wanted to do in that direction, i would be doing that. im asking in order to get some ideas.

[DazedGypsy]

if i exactly known what i wanted to do in that direction, i would be doing that. im asking in order to get some ideas.

ok. I wasn't asking what do you want to do as in what career but as in what you hope to get out of any line of work.

[unity100]

to be of service and good in the manner that resonates with my soul

[mokrit]

How about developing a digital product of some sort? You can create an
ebook that focuses on something that you believe in - maybe green living,
improving your health, something like that.

Set up a website to sell your product, make a blog, create a forum around it
- develop a community and become a leader in your field of choice. Doing
that will get you search engine rankings and you will gradually grow a
customer base that knows and trusts you.

Then you can sell them things they want, that help them or the world, and
you will have created your own way of supporting yourself in the process -
all from a very positive thing.

It is a lot of work, but with a little creativity and dedication it can be done!

If you have the technical knowledge to be able to make your thoughts
manifest online in a professional way then you are way ahead of the game
already!

Good luck figuring out your path. :)

[lunarverse]

What types of website development do you do? Do you ever do the onpage content? If so, I can steer you into what I do online. I had to learn website development after I got going, if you already know it, you are laughing. Most of my sites are now WP and I have one that I tried using Joomla for.. that was a trial. lol

You will be amazed at the freedom you can have with these skills. I work online full time now and will never have to go back to "rat race". I'm loving it! So are my kiddos.

Thats awsome. You give me hope. I got excepted to college yesterday and I'm taking web technology/ web design. I have realised that I will NEVER be a 9-5 person ever. It's just not me. I hope to one day be able to do what you do. Peace :)

[mokrit]

Thats awsome. You give me hope. I got excepted to college yesterday and I'm taking web technology/ web design. I have realised that I will NEVER be a 9-5 person ever. It's just not me. I hope to one day be able to do what you do. Peace :)

I agree too - I have web development skills and it easily keeps you out of the 9-5.

It can be a lot of fun too, because there is always more to learn.

And, you can work from anywhere in the world, which is a huge plus!

[mokrit]

The world is like a ride in an amusement park. And when you choose to go on it you think it's real because that's how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and round. It has thrills and chills and it's very brightly coloured and it's very loud and it's fun, for a while. Some people have been on the ride for a long time and they begin to question: "Is this real, or is this just a ride?" And other people have remembered, and they come back to us, they say, "Hey, don't worry, don't be afraid, ever, because this is just a ride." And we kill those people.

lunarverse - I love this sig. Asking the question of whether or not all of this is real is what has contributed most to my spirituality and buddhist ways.

[lunarverse]

me too. except I'm not really a buddhist.

[mokrit]

What path anyone follows is of course their own choice. My guess is they all lead to the same place in the end anyway.

Reason I say that this kind of thinking led me to Buddhism is because one of the main things about Buddhism is that this reality is a dream or illusion that we have chosen to accept - and seeing beyond the veil to real truth is a lot of what Buddhism is about.

but sorry - don't want to hijack your thread as this is clearly off subject :rolleyes:

[daisymelan]

lunaverse - I didn't attend school to do this (although I did do post secondary and have a lovely degree that I will never use the way I thought I would). If you are a self motivated person, there are many places I can point you to to help get you started.

Also, I know I don't really have time for it at the moment, but if anyone on hipforums wants to do some positive impact kinda sites, I can certainly help out and devote time to it. I love this kinda stuff.

Cheers!

[Xora]

Well, let me say this. It's easy to avoid to 9 - 5 if you not trying to make a living doing web design. Otherwise expect to work more than that. Im just being realistic as I've been doing this for years. I've gone through being a php developer, an ASP developer, and a cold fusion to now running my own company, and never once was I able to make a living doing less than a 9 - 5.

[mokrit]

Well, let me say this. It's easy to avoid to 9 - 5 if you not trying to make a living doing web design. Otherwise expect to work more than that. Im just being realistic as I've been doing this for years. I've gone through being a php developer, an ASP developer, and a cold fusion to now running my won company, and never once was I able to make a living doing less than a 9 - 5.

Oh, I disagree with this. I've been a project manager and coder since 1999. For a lot of years I worked for a company where I was only working 4 hours per day and making enough to live on - in NYC. It wasn't a 6-figure job or anything but hippies don't usually require that!

After I left there I started developing my own projects hiring freelancers on my own. Now I have days when I work all day long, and days when I take the whole day off just because I feel like it.

I definitely think that web development is a skill that can go in a lot of different directions. I personally love the creativity and freedom that it brings me.

However, I do agree with Xora in that it is easy to get caught up doing projects that require a lot of your time. But just about anything you do in life will have times when you have to give it 150% to get what you want out of it.

[daisymelan]

Ya, I agree mokrit. I make a full time living and I put in a lot less effort than I would if I were working a regular job. I think it depends on what you do with the web. Sounds like we have a very similar schedule. SOme weekends hubby will be busy with our kids and I will work 10 hours both Sat and SUn and not touch work very seriously for another week or two. Right now because of life situations I have less than 6 hours a week to work and I'm still making a full time income. I guess it all depends.

[Xora]

I guess it is the getting caught up in projects but I dont think you can avoid the 9 - 5 in an active Web Design company. That's a really common misconception. You have to give your clients what they want as soon as they want it..

[mokrit]

I guess it is the getting caught up in projects but I dont think you can avoid the 9 - 5 in an active Web Design company. That's a really common misconception. You have to give your clients what they want as soon as they want it..

OK, that is very true - when I was doing freelance web development work, that was probably the most on-demand working time in my life.

Freelance can be difficult. You have the perception that you will control your own schedule but in reality it is your clients that control your time. Plus, you are always looking for new clients.

But, I DO still think that there is a lot you can do as a web developer that avoids the 9-5.

My goal with it was always to earn enough money to support my artistic endeavors (I'm a performing artist too) - and it has served well for that purpose. Even when I have been on tour in other countries I have been able to get work done if I needed to.