I am technically a programmer. A bad programmer. I am capable of writing bad (and sometimes effective) code.

But I don't write software that I sell. That would be a terrible idea. It would take me infinitely longer to do it myself, and it wouldn't be as good.

Instead, I hire someone to do it for me. Most people feel intimidated when they think about trying to find a good programmer. But it's *far* easier than you might think.

There are a number of different web sites these days whose only purpose is to help you find quality freelance work. And they aren't just for programming either. I've hired people to make graphics and write software tutorials for me. And I know people who have hired someone to write an entire book for them.

Different sites may specialize in different kinds of work. For example, there are sites that focus primarily on web-based scripts. At any rate, you can probably find someone to do whatever you need at one of these sites. So don't worry about finding a good programmer.

Another issue that may put you off from hiring a programmer is cost. In some cases, programmers can be expensive. $30-$50 an hour or more. But more often than not, you'll find programmers on freelance sites for *much* less than that. I still sometimes find it hard to believe how cheaply some people will work.

Of course, you get what you pay for. Or so they say. But that hasn't been my experience in hiring programmers. I often get more than I pay for.

I was a factory worker at a well known window manufacturing company.

My job consisted of pulling pieces of wood off of a chute, checking them for knots and other defects, sorting them accordingly, and then piling them about 5 feet high on pallets.

That's what I did. All day long. Can you say, "brain dead"?

The factory was too noisy to listen to headphones. We all had our separate chutes to work at (yeehaw), and work was fast paced, so talking with other co-workers was difficult.

At end of each day I'd have to pick wood splinters out of my hands (working with gloves was an option, but it made handling and sorting wood much more difficult).

We had rotating shifts so one month I'd be working day shift, and next I'd be working from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.!

Growing up, I never imagined I'd be stuck in such a horrible job.

But you know what?

I'm actually very GLAD I had experience of working in a factory!

Why??

...Simply because it *motivated* me to get off my lazy butt and do something better with my life!

Like most people, I'd always had dream of starting my own business and making piles of money (not wood) as a result.

But I learned (the hard way) that dreams aren't worth JACK unless you take steps to achieve them.

Very few people become wealthy and successful in life, simply because very few people take action to achieve their dreams!