Ryan Kinal
100 E. St. Clair St.
Warren, PA 16365
716.581.1000
ryan.kinal@gmail.com
Ryan Kinal is a programmer and web developer, specializing in JavaScript, HTML, and CSS,
with experience in PHP, SQL, ASP.NET, and graphic design. But beyond being technologically inclined, he is also artistically motivated, through music, lindy hop, and drawing in various media. Combining these interests and talents, he is a skilled developer with an eye for aesthetic design.
Working With Pixels
Monday, October 19th 7:38 pm
As a freelancer, I do a lot of remote work. I don't have to go in to an office, or travel to see clients - at least, not too often. This means I can work in an environment where I feel comfortable (my own home), I save money on gas, and I set my own schedule in terms of when I can see friends, take part in leisure activities, and run errands. A lot of this is great. But there are definitely drawbacks.
There are a lot of clients, employers, and even coworkers that I've never met in person. I meet a lot of interesting people, but it's not usually face to face. Email, instant messaging, skype, and telephone are my primary ways of interacting with the people I work with (and for). I'm very reliant on technology for communication, but then again I need my laptop and usually an internet connection to do most of my work anyway.
So what's the problem?
I find that it's tough to really connect with people through email, IM, or even voice communication like the phone or Skype. I know that there's another person on the other end of the line, but all I really see is another email in my inbox, or a number on my phone, and I find that I really have to push myself to stay motivated and get things done. I sometimes hit a point in a project where all the interesting work is finished, and I lose my drive to get the boring stuff done. But the boring stuff is just as important as the interesting stuff in terms of getting the project finished and getting paid. With a direct human connection, I have less trouble.
Whenever I have the chance, I like to meet my clients in person. It's definitely a motivating factor, and I was reminded of this when I went down to the R.K. Hite & Co. office to get some photos for the site. It was good to meet a client in person, even if it was only a meeting with Tim, who is a friend of mine.
Otherwise, I just hope I don't run into that wall. It helps when I have constant contact with a client or coworker, and honestly, I've also found that I'm more motivated to do front-end work than I am to do back-end work. This is just a personal quirk, and it's part of the reason I take more HTML, CSS, and JavaScript jobs than PHP and SQL jobs.
As a side note, I think this is also why I've started pushing content management systems. They take the focus off of data management and back end work, and focus it more toward the tasks I enjoy. All it takes is a little paradigm shift depending on the CMS, and I can do all the CSS, JavaScript, and cross-browser testing I want.