Have you ever used guru.com ? I was interested in the name's kitschyness and thought to see if there were any projects fit for Joomla Gurus on the site and signed up for the first time...

...When I got there I was dismayed at finding yet another mechanic beast of a jobsite a la monster (bloody terrible name) which makes all people looking for work on it feel exchangable and non-human.  Personally, I think that's shitty - because most people who do freelance creative/tech work are passionate about what they do and love opportunities to showcase that plus whatever other zanyness is in their character.

Check the def'n of 'freelancer' provided to us by wikipedia :

"A freelancer or freelance worker is a person who pursues a profession without a long-term commitment to any one employer."

Lies I tell you! Lies! I say this because most freelancers work for themselves - and commitments you make to yourself in life are usually a lot more serious and true than to any employer!  or at least they should be.

There's definately an under-appreciation of 'freelancers' in the tech sector and I think this boils down to people not realising the difference between knowledge and understanding.  For example, there are tons of Joomla developers around the globe who all have acquired the knowledge needed to do a base install and config, however, they all understand Joomla differently - this unique understanding is what should be valued and priced accordingly.

You see, Freelancer A (or 'Firm A' for that matter), may get a decent site up that lets you use Joomla's inherent ability to publish and manage articles with ease.  He/She/They might do this but have no idea about who you are, what makes you go into your office every morning and so on - leading to them not understanding the site asides from its technical function...

I'm not out to diss anyone who takes a technical approach to development... Rather, push for employers to start looking at the employment process as an opportunity to forge new personal relationships - don't be afraid to search for a person you can relate to and learn from.

As for sites like guru.com - you should consider loosening your tie and taking off your charcoal grey 1980s Sears suit.. or at least changing into something Zegna or otherwise funky ;)

Ahhh!  I'm glad I just wrote this - now I'm even more committed to making Joomla Jobs  something people can enjoy sharing.

Comments (6) >>

Lies I tell you! Lies! lol
written by Amy Stephen, November 30, 2006

I like your style! You are a "must read."

merci madame!
written by qasim, November 30, 2006

And if you ever feel free to post to Why Joomla (this goes for anyone reading this comment), its as easy as registering, logging in and posting a submission!

Freelancer
written by clvngodess, July 11, 2007

You didn't address Guru.com's exhorbitant fees with no guarantees of landing a gig. Or the fact that when you are a "guru" on their site that you are competing against a global market where the wages or freelance fees are third world standard (art directors from India working for $7/hr!). Also, if you are testing the site, for free, there are free services, you are not allowed to bid on any gigs. At all. It's their blatant tactic to get you pay them hundreds of dollars to bid freelance gigs. It's such a scam.

guru
written by whodini, January 26, 2008

yes I own a guru acount vendor for that matter (wow! ) and let me tell you, it is a total sh$%job. its such a waste to use one of your bids to show all your talent, give a quote and be undercut by someone form india bidding 10 dollars for a 200 dollar job.

...
written by Hush Hush, June 08, 2008

Thank goodness someone else has complained about guru. I have no money and where I live, there really isn't any opportunity to make money with the creative skills I have, so I turn to the internet to find anything I can do to make money and maybe get out of my situation, so I joined guru.com thinking hey, this looks like a legit place to earn money using my talents but when I saw that you pretty much have to pay ridiculous fees just to be able to even LOOK at half of the jobs available let alone bid on them, I was disappointed. I don't even know why they bother having a "basic" membership. It might as well be called a free trial you get nothing for. Needless to say, I went elsewhere.

Really, why use Joomla? No,really..
written by peter tate, July 11, 2008

Feels like so many steps backwards...so easy to see why Microsoft is so successful.
Microsoft gave people such freedom.... this Joomla nonsense is so limiting, makes you shudder thinking of the stiffness of the rubbish…and the cost –Oh the box is free –now lets pay to put something in it.What a joke this is.
Stifling, really, really stifling.
Please, someone box it up, let us be creative again!
The only comforting thought is that it WILL be gone.
Just look at this site....the creation of it.

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