Jesse Skinner, Special Guest Writer

Jesse Skinner is a Canadian web developer who moved to Berlin, Germany in April 2005. His strongest skills and interests lay in the gap between web design and server-side programming. He is experienced in working with XHTML, JavaScript, CSS and Flash in the browser, and Java, PHP, and ColdFusion on the server.

He has also done database programming and design with Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL and Oracle. He a Certified Java Programmer, Certified Flash MX Developer, and Advanced Certified ColdFusion MX Developer.

And now, here's Jesse...

Working at home on the Internet

In the 80s, you could certainly start your own business. You'd have to save up some money or get a loan from the bank. Then you'd need to pay for an office or store, fill it with furniture, get business cards and stationary, hire some staff, and of course you'd have to advertise your business. You'd just have to pay to make a TV, Radio, Magazine or Newspaper ad, and then pay to have it shown for a few seconds. And hopefully 1% of the people who saw it would call your phone number.

And then in walked the Internet

Now, everything has changed. To start a business, all you need is a computer, the Internet, and probably a web site (costs starting at $0). Now, you can advertise to a specific group of people spread out from across the world. You can also work to make your web site show up on certain search results without paying a cent. You certainly don't need an office. You don't even need to wear pants. And if you need help from other people, you can search the web for the right specialists (who are also probably working from home).

I realise that everybody reading this already knows all this. The whole world already knows all this. But for some insane reason, hardly anybody seems to be reacting! There are still millions of people working in offices. Companies are still paying big money to advertise in traditional media.

This is the time for us-in-the-know to take advantage of what we know and go kick some ass! While the big companies are wasting millions by paying their employees to surf the web, chat around the water cooler, have long boring meetings and fill out time sheets, we can come along and seriously compete.

We can build up our Microbrands, mastering niches we not only excel in but love to do. We can wake up every morning and decide what to do with our companies. Not just our companies, our lives. The possibilities are endless, and the risks are relatively low.

In the 80s, we had to hope our neighbours would be interested in our services. Now, we can service the whole world. And this doesn't just mean we have 6 billion potential customers. This means that we can run a business by focusing on just 1000 people spread across the world with a very specific need.

This isn't just about telecommuting or entrepreneurship. It's a major change in the opportunities available to everyone. It's a major change in the way we can choose to live our lives. And since we're the first ones to have this opportunity, we're going to have to make up a lot of it on our own. But that's not the hard part, that's the exciting part!

I agree with Jesse, that's the exciting part. I hope you enjoyed the article as much as I did, and make sure you visit Jesse, he always has something interesting to read on his site.


Jesse's Blog:
The Future of the Internet

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