Rachel Willmer - 20 years without a 'proper job' Have you ever wondered how you could be your own boss? or how you could make money from your side project? or build the next Facebook or Uber. To be a coder in today's world of work is to have amazing opportunities to design the business life you want. I've enjoyed the last 20 years without a 'real job', as company founder, freelancer and side-project-hacker. Now I am bootstrapping my current company to profitability. Listen to my stories and learn from my mistakes and successes. ----- Have you ever wondered how you could be your own boss? If so, then this talk is for you. Maybe you're working on a sideproject and wonder how you could make some money from it? Or maybe you have the idea for the next Facebook or Uber? To be a coder in today's world of work is to have amazing opportunities to design the business life you want. You can work remotely; you can write books, or teach, or consult, with anyone anywhere. You can have a crazy idea on Friday and have it running by Monday. Design your architecture to use cloud computing, so your tiny team can scale up your huge ideas. Or keep it small, and just earn some extra money with a Wordpress plugin, or a training course. It has been 21 years since I last had a 'real job' and a regular income. I survived creating and running a company through the madness of the dotcom years. I made money from sideprojects, that I had started just for fun and for learning. I have freelanced without needing to use an agency to find the work. And now I'm bootstrapping my current business to profitability. Listen to my stories and learn from my mistakes and successes.