"What started as a curiosity turned into a career. From earning nothing to ₹50,000 with code – here’s my real story."
🎓 The Beginning: Just a Regular College Student
I was just another engineering student in India. Attending classes, doing assignments, and wondering what to do with my life. I didn’t come from a tech-savvy background, nor did I have money to invest in expensive courses.
One evening, while scrolling through YouTube, I came across a video titled: “How to make money online with coding.” Something clicked. That night changed everything.
💡 Step 1: Learning Coding – Completely Free
I had zero budget. But the internet is a goldmine if you’re serious. I started with the most basic tools and platforms:
🧑💻 YouTube Channels:
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CodeWithHarry – Simple, Hindi explanations helped me understand fast. 
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Apna College – Great for DSA and project ideas. 
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Traversy Media – International level tutorials. 
🌐 Free Learning Platforms:
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freeCodeCamp.org – Gave me a full curriculum in Web Development. 
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W3Schools – Perfect for HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. 
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MDN Web Docs – For deeper understanding of web technologies. 
🛠️ Tools I Used:
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VS Code – For all my coding work. 
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GitHub – To upload and showcase my projects. 
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Canva – For resume and social media visuals. 
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Notion – To plan my learning and schedule. 
I dedicated just 2 hours daily, and slowly I started understanding how websites work, how code becomes a product, and how people earn from it.
🔨 Step 2: Building Projects – Turning Knowledge into Skill
Learning is one thing. But applying that knowledge is where the magic happens. I began building small projects, even if they weren’t perfect:
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A personal portfolio website using HTML, CSS 
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A To-Do List App with JavaScript 
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A Python Automation Bot that could auto-comment on Instagram 
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A Quote Generator App 
I uploaded everything to GitHub and shared it on LinkedIn and Twitter. Slowly, people started noticing my work. More importantly, I built confidence.
💰 Step 3: The First Earnings – Real Money from Code
After 2-3 months of consistent learning and building, I was ready to take my first client project.
📍 Where I Got My First Gig:
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I created a Fiverr profile and uploaded my portfolio. 
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I also joined Facebook groups related to freelance work. 
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I reached out to small businesses on LinkedIn, offering website design help. 
One day, a client on Fiverr offered me ₹1,000 to fix a simple website issue. That was my first payment. It felt amazing. Not just because of the money — but because I got paid for my skill.
📈 Step 4: Scaling to ₹50,000
Once I cracked the first project, I started receiving more offers:
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Built landing pages for startups 
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Created Python automation scripts for data scraping 
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Helped fix bugs on WordPress websites 
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Did basic SEO for blogs and small sites 
Most of my income came from:
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Fiverr & Freelancer 
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Referrals through LinkedIn 
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Selling a simple Python tool on Gumroad 
Within 5 months, my total earnings crossed ₹50,000 — part-time, while still in college.
🕒 Step 5: Balancing College and Freelancing
Managing coding, learning, and college was a challenge. Here’s how I handled it:
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Weekdays: 1-2 hours of coding after classes 
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Weekends: Focused on projects and client work 
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Reduced screen time on social media and used that energy to learn 
Time management is a skill that every student-turned-freelancer needs to master.
🧠 Skills That Made Me Money
If you're starting today, focus on these high-demand skills:
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Web Development (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React) 
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Python Automation 
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WordPress Customization 
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Bug Fixing & Optimization 
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Basic SEO and Digital Tools 
You don’t need to master everything — learn one skill deeply, then monetize it.
🚀 Tools That Helped Me Grow
Here are the free tools that supported my journey:
| Tool | Purpose | 
|---|---|
| VS Code | Code editor | 
| GitHub | Hosting and showcasing projects | 
| Canva | Resume and Fiverr gig designs | 
| Notion | Note-taking and planning | 
| Grammarly | Writing better proposals | 
| Google Keep | Quick notes on the go | 
💬 Final Thoughts: You Can Do This Too
"I didn’t have a mentor. I didn’t have money. I didn’t even know where to start. But I had time, internet, and consistency."
If you're a college student and wondering “Can I earn from coding without a degree or paid course?” — The answer is YES.
You don’t need to wait for graduation. Start today. Make mistakes. Build stuff. Share your work. The internet rewards consistency and effort.
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