Why I'm Starting Over: A CS Student's Honest Journey into Freelancing

 

Student choosing between traditional studies and a freelancing path signpost.

For nine years, I've tried to build a blog. Nine years of starting, posting a few times, checking the traffic, seeing nothing, and quitting. Then trying again a year or two later, on a different platform, with the same result. If you've ever done this — you'll know exactly the cycle I'm talking about.

This post is me breaking that cycle. Not because I suddenly found a traffic hack, but because I finally understood what I was doing wrong: I was chasing numbers before I had anything worth reading. So this time, I'm doing it differently — I'm building identity first, audience second.

A Bit About Me

I'm a software engineering student based in Karachi, currently working as a frontend developer — React.js, HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript, Bootstrap, and PHP are my daily tools. I also have a background in digital marketing. Somewhere between coding, freelancing gigs, and university deadlines, I realized I had a lot to say — I just never said it consistently.

Why CodeAndHustle Exists

Most blogs in this space fall into two categories: polished "guru" content promising six-figure freelancing income in 30 days, or abandoned blogs like my old ones — a handful of posts and then silence.

I don't want to build either of those.

CodeAndHustle will be the honest middle ground — a real, ongoing record of what it's actually like to build a career in freelancing and web development while still a student. That means:

• The long stretch where I couldn't land a single client, no matter how many profiles I set up or proposals I sent
• The skills I picked up along the way that actually turned out to be useful — not just résumé fillers
• The late nights juggling a job, university, and freelance deadlines
• The mistakes — because those are usually more useful than the wins

No fake success stories. Just documented, real progress — good weeks and bad ones both.

The Struggle That Almost Made Me Quit

Before any of this, there was a long stretch where I couldn't land a client at all. Every application felt like it disappeared into a void — no replies, no interviews, nothing. It's the kind of silence that makes you start questioning whether you're actually good enough, even when you know your skills are real.

What eventually shifted things wasn't a shortcut — it was picking up more practical skills along the way and actually applying them to something real. That's how I ended up building a full web app project for TCB (Taboot Committee Bufferzone), a Karachi-based scouts and community welfare group that manages Muharram events. It was a multi-page platform — events, a gallery, a member dashboard, an admin panel — the kind of project that forces you to actually use everything you've learned, not just talk about it. You can see it here: TCB.

It wasn't a huge payday. But it was proof — to a client, and honestly to myself — that I could take on a real project and deliver it. That's the kind of small win this blog is going to track a lot of.

What You'll Find Here

To keep things organized (and to keep myself accountable), I'm splitting content into four areas:

• My Journey — the ongoing, personal story: how this all started, where it's headed.
• Skills — practical, beginner-friendly guides on freelancing platforms, building a portfolio from zero, and the web development skills that are actually worth learning first.
• Career — how I'm balancing a full-time job, a degree, and client work, plus broader thoughts on building a career in tech and digital marketing in Pakistan.
• Mistakes — the pitfalls I've hit, so hopefully you don't have to hit the same ones.

Why This Time Is Different

I used to write only when I felt inspired, then check my traffic the next day, feel discouraged when nothing moved, and quietly stop. This time, I'm doing the opposite: writing on a fixed weekly schedule, not checking analytics for the first two months, and measuring success by whether I showed up — not by how many people read it.

If you're a student, a beginner freelancer, or just someone trying to build something consistently without burning out, I think you'll find something useful here. And if you're someone who's tried and stopped before — like I have, more times than I'd like to admit — maybe this is proof that starting over, properly this time, is still worth doing.

Thanks for reading the first post. There's a lot more coming — every week, starting now.