Ah, good old Chicago. I'm an IT manager at a Page Ranking Firm in the city, I had no experience or college. I graduated Highschool brought my laptop downtown and found an IT job the same day. It is a tough market in Chicago but I had nothing to show as far as credentials, degrees. All they had from me was my word that I have been working with computers for 14 years and can handle whatever comes. Also I make a decent amount just consulting around the Chicago area. Most charge well into the 100's so I charge around 50% less and that gets me a lot more business and the word spreads quick.