Do you think you need a college degree to earn a high income and work from home? Think again. In this blog post, I’ll share the inspiring story of De’Audra Ansley, a 33-year-old product manager who makes over $100,000 a year without a bachelor’s degree. I’ll also give you some tips on how you can follow her example and achieve your career goals.
Who is De’Audra Ansley and what does she do?
De’Audra Ansley is a product manager at a real estate firm based in central Texas. She works remotely from her home in Houston and is responsible for developing and launching new features and services for the company’s website and app. She collaborates with engineers, designers, marketers, and customers to identify problems, create solutions, and measure results.
Ansley didn’t always have a clear career path in tech. She enrolled as a biomedical engineering major at the University of Texas at San Antonio in 2008, but left midway through her freshman year after feeling burned out and uninspired in her classes. She decided to pursue her passion for tech on her own, without a formal degree.
How did she land her first job in tech?
Ansley landed her first corporate job after college as a production assistant at BMF, a creative marketing agency in Austin, by highlighting the soft skills she picked up at volunteer gigs and part-time jobs on her resume. These skills included communication, leadership, and time management.
At BMF, Ansley learned two of the most important skills she would later need to become a product manager: problem-solving and working across teams. She coordinated events at South by Southwest with hundreds of attendees and made sure that her colleagues, the vendors, and clients were all happy and on the same page.
Ansley knew that to stand out in her field and compete for future opportunities with people who had bachelor’s degrees, she would need to possess exceptional skills and hands-on work experience. She spent her weekends reading business books, taking online classes in product design and organizational development, and building her own projects.
How did she advance her career and increase her income?
Ansley applied for every job opportunity she could find in tech, regardless of the degree requirements. She didn’t let the rejections discourage her. She used every interview as a learning experience and improved her resume and portfolio accordingly.
She landed her first product management role at a startup called Zappos in 2012, where she helped launch a new online marketplace for shoes. She impressed her managers with her creativity, initiative, and customer focus. She also networked with other product managers and mentors in the industry and learned from their feedback and advice.
She moved on to bigger and better roles at companies like Amazon, Airbnb, and Uber, where she worked on products that reached millions of users. She negotiated her salary and benefits at every stage and increased her income from $40,000 a year at BMF to over $100,000 a year at her current job.
What are some tips for aspiring product managers without a degree?
If you want to follow Ansley’s footsteps and become a successful product manager without a degree, here are some tips to help you get started:
- Build your skills and portfolio. You don’t need a degree to learn the skills you need to be a product manager. You can take online courses, read books and blogs, watch videos, and listen to podcasts. You can also work on your own projects or join a team of other aspiring product managers and build something together. Showcase your work on a website or a platform like Product Hunt and get feedback from users and experts.
- Network and apply. Don’t be afraid to reach out to people who work in product management and ask them for advice, referrals, or opportunities. You can use platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, or [Meetup] to find and connect with them. You can also apply for jobs that interest you, even if they ask for a degree. Focus on your skills, experience, and achievements, and show how you can add value to the company and the product.
- Learn and grow. Product management is a dynamic and evolving field that requires constant learning and adaptation. You should always be curious and seek new knowledge and insights. You should also be open to feedback and criticism and use them to improve your performance and skills. You should also set goals and track your progress and celebrate your wins.
Conclusion
De’Audra Ansley is a 33-year-old product manager who makes over $100,000 a year without a bachelor’s degree. She achieved her success by following her passion, building her skills, applying for opportunities, and learning from others. You can do the same if you have the drive, the determination, and the desire to make a difference.
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Source:
(1) 33-year-old makes over $100,000, works from home without a degree – CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/25/33-year-old-makes-over-100000-works-from-home-without-a-degree.html.
(2) This 34-year-old makes $100,000 a year without a bachelor’s degree—here …. https://www.cnbc.com/2023/11/02/34-year-old-makes-100000-a-year-designing-shoeswithout-a-bachelors-degree.html.
(3) 9 Jobs That Pay Over $100K Without a Bachelor’s Degree. https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/jobs-that-pay-100k-year-without-a-degree.
(4) 33-year-old makes over $100,000 and works from home without a bachelor’s degree—here’s how. https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/careers/33-year-old-makes-over-100000-and-works-from-home-without-a-bachelor-s-degree-here-s-how/ar-BB1hfNfl.
Hi, I’m deoravijendra, a professional content writer and digital marketer with 5 years of SEO experience. I’m passionate about crafting compelling content and optimizing online presence for maximum impact.