Seeking Career Advice: From Production to Frontend Dev - Feeling Stuck and Considering Change

Career Advice
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Hello freeCodeCamp Community,

I find myself at a crossroads in my journey as a frontend developer and could really use some guidance and insights from this knowledgeable community.

About 15 months ago, I decided to make a career shift from production work to tech. After an intense eight-month learning period, I secured a frontend development role, where I’ve been for about seven months now. My tech stack includes TypeScript, VueJS, and occasionally React. I’ve even developed an app for both Android & iOS using Ionic with Capacitor.

Despite these accomplishments, I’m currently feeling stuck. The company I work for is experiencing financial instability, leading to occasional delays in salary payments. Additionally, there are certain practices within the company that raise concerns for me.

My work environment offers great flexibility – I can work from anywhere, at any time. However, this lack of structured scheduling and the absence of clear directions or adequate UX/UI templates for projects are proving to be significant hurdles. My motivation has been waning, and the job has been becoming more of a struggle by the day.

On a personal level, I have a strong desire to deepen my IT knowledge and follow my interests within the field. But after a full and often draining workweek, I find it difficult to muster the energy to focus on learning and personal projects during the weekends. My attempts have frequently led to feelings of burnout, which I’m keen to avoid.

The option of seeking a new opportunity is on my mind, especially one that offers more structure. Yet, I’m recognizing the challenge that comes with not having a personal portfolio or projects to demonstrate my abilities and skills to potential employers.

I’m looking for advice on several fronts:

  1. How do you maintain motivation for personal growth and continued learning amid a demanding job?

  2. Any strategies for portfolio development when time is scarce, and mental fatigue is a factor?

  3. For those who’ve faced instability in your work environment, how did you know it was time to seek out new opportunities?

  4. How does one initiate a job search and successfully market themselves with a relatively modest amount of work to showcase?

Any advice, personal experiences, or resources you can share would be incredibly beneficial as I try to navigate these challenges and decide on the best path forward.

Thank you all for your help and support!

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