The CEO leaned forward: 'What made you build a bare metal Kubernetes homelab?'
When Josh joined KubeCraft, he'd been in IT support for several years.
Whenever people tell me this, it hurts inside.
IT support is easy to get into, but hard to get out of.
Josh wasn't your typical DevOps beginner.
He'd been daily-driving Linux for years.
He had his AZ-104. He was self-teaching in his spare time.
His problem? Zero replies from recruiters.
He had the knowledge. He didn't have the proof.
92 days later, Josh sat across from that CEO.
Junior Cloud Engineer role.
Azure infrastructure. Kubernetes and GitOps.
What changed?
Two things:
First: He built proof.
Not another certification.
A bare-metal Kubernetes homelab running Flux (GitOps) and production-grade automation.
Real infrastructure. Real problems. Real solutions.
Second: He made it visible.
He fixed his LinkedIn profile and started sharing his work.
When the CEO asked about the homelab, Josh didn't just talk theory.
He walked him through his entire production setup.
Hired on the spot.
Want the playbook Josh used?
Get the free DevOps Career blueprint here:
go.kubecraft.dev/blueprint-yt-1
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Most engineers only see DevOps but Linux goes far beyond that.
If you know Linux, you are not just a better DevOps engineer.
You gain skills that open doors to all kinds of infrastructure and cloud roles.
Here are just a few examples:
☁️ Cloud Engineer. Cloud servers run on Linux.
🔧 Site Reliability Engineer. Mastering Linux internals is a must.
🌐 Network Engineer. Many use Linux for advanced troubleshooting and tools.
🖥️ System Administrator. Classic Linux stronghold.
🚀 Platform Engineer. Modern platforms run on Kubernetes and Linux.
🎙️ Developer Advocate. In cloud or open source, Linux is your playground.
Linux is everywhere.
Once you master it, you can pivot in any direction.
Where has Linux taken your career so far?
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Software Engineers: I turn nurses into DevOps engineers.
Your coding background makes it embarrassingly easy.
You write code.
You understand systems.
You debug production issues.
But DevOps interviews treat you like a junior.
Here's what nobody tells you: You're doing it backwards.
I break down the DEPLOY framework in this video, the exact system that lands software engineers DevOps roles within months.
Not through applications.
Through positioning.
watch video on watch page
27 - 4
NEW VIDEO: Proof: 10 Real DevOps Job Offers - What Each Person Did
10 students landed DevOps jobs in the past month. I break down exactly what they did in this video, so you can get the same results.
Go watch it now!
watch video on watch page
16 - 0
Two DevOps Jobs landed + A 10% Pay Raise
(This are just the results of week 38)
The KubeCraft Career Accelerator honors its name.
We accelerate careers in the DevOps space.
We don't just help beginners break into the industry.
We help seasoned professionals to get the career they want.
Even CTO level candidates find value in our offer.
If you are a software engineer or system administrator, and want to earn more doing work that you enjoy more, this is for you.
Go here to find out more:
kubecraft.click/4c7ea4
47 - 5
If you think you're in a bad position to break into tech, let me tell you my story.
The worst possible starting point:
Former nurse (zero tech background)
2-year career gap from living in a monastery
No relevant experience
No network in tech
No CS degree
I was literally starting from negative zero.
But I had something else: determination and a framework.
The moment everything changed:
I was watching Ali Abdaal talk about "letting the internet do the work for you." He meant building online businesses.
But I had a different idea: What if I became the product?
What if instead of sending 100+ applications and getting rejected, I made them come to ME?
My secret weapon: RuneScape bots
Here's the plot twist. As a kid, I was obsessed with RuneScape. By 12, I discovered I could automate the game.
Soon I was renting Linux servers in Germany, running hundreds of bot accounts, farming gold, and selling it on the black market.
To do this, I learned:
Linux administration
Automation and scripting
Server management
Problem-solving under pressure
I was already a DevOps engineer. I just didn't know it.
The transformation process:
Instead of hiding my unconventional background, I embraced it.
I started a blog. Began posting on LinkedIn. Shared my journey.
The results were insane:
Went from 0 responses to daily recruiter messages
Interviews became conversations about my projects
People started reaching out to me for opportunities
Six months later: Senior DevOps engineer role. Multiple offers.
The framework that changed everything:
T - Tools (focus on growing markets like Kubernetes)
E - Experience (build real projects, don't just study)
C - Content (share your journey, be visible)
H - Human (networking and interview skills matter)
My students are now using this same framework:
Frederik: "Landed a senior SRE role thanks to my home lab experience"
Danil: "Got hired straight out of university with no prior experience"
Jakub: "Landed a DevOps job after just one month"
The lesson?
Your background doesn't matter. Your willingness to do the work does.
Don't hide from your story. USE it.
That unconventional path that makes you feel different? That's exactly what makes you memorable.
If a former nurse turned monk can become a senior DevOps engineer, what's your excuse?
What unconventional background are you hiding that could actually be your superpower?
PS: 2 more spots for the KubeCraft Career Accelerator opened this week. Go here to apply before they are gone:
kubecraft.click/72022d
62 - 4
NEW VIDEO: I'm giving away my method for landing DevOps jobs for free.
See you there,
Mischa
watch video on watch page
20 - 0
Are you looking for a DevOps job?
I made a video that will show you how one of my students did it in 14 days.
In the video I share the complete framework he used for free.
See you there,
Mischa
watch video on watch page
28 - 2
Three more DevOps jobs landed this week. Real people. Real offers.
Jakub: Helpdesk -> DevOps Engineer. Built an Arch Linux + Kubernetes homelab, studied 10+ hrs/day, earned Azure Admin, and got an offer after 1 month of applying.
Milan: 12 years in QA -> DevOps/Platform Engineer via internal move. Installed Arch the hard way, stood up a K8s homelab, earned LPIC-1, polished LinkedIn/blog… offer letter signed.
What worked:
Practical builds (Linux, Azure, K8s, Terraform, CI/CD, Git, Python)
Homelab > theory.
Interviews felt easy because they’d already done the work.
Community, feedback, reps.
Want the same results?
Go here to learn more:
kubecraft.click/d98931
109 - 2
I run a 5-node Kubernetes cluster in my basement.
This single line in your resume will make you stand out from 99% of candidates.
"Hands-on experience emerged as the most valued factor at 95% importance" - LF Talent Report 2025
Companies need skills, not degrees.
They will hire proof:
Repos, pipelines, on-call stories. Not degrees.
Your action plan: Build a homelab.
Start with a laptop. Install Linux on it.
When you're able to install Arch Linux without using the install script, you are ready to move on to containers.
There are plenty of high-quality and free Docker tutorials out there. Use them.
Create a project that involves running multiple containers.
- Postgres database
- FastAPI backend
- Flask frontend
Build the images with GitHub Actions.
Then build a Kubernetes homelab.
This is the single most effective thing you can do to land DevOps jobs.
PS: Looking to land a DevOps job in the next 90 days?
My team still has some spots open for KubeCraft applications.
Go here to apply: kubecraft.click/076d0a
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I'm Mischa. My mission is to help you land DevOps jobs, double your salary and become a well-rounded engineer. I changed my career from nurse to DevOps engineer and now I help others achieve the same. Engineer your career with me.
25 October 2021