Start with foundational web skills: HTML, CSS, and basic JavaScript. You don't need computer science depth, but you must understand how markup structures a page, how styles control appearance, and how the box model works. Free resources like freeCodeCamp or MDN cover this in 20–40 hours of focused study. Next, install WordPress locally using Local by Flywheel or MAMP. Learn the admin interface, post types, media library, menus, and widgets. Then pick a page builder—Elementor and Bricks Builder are current industry standards, though Gutenberg's block editor is improving fast. Spend 15–20 hours building practice pages until you understand sections, containers, responsive controls, and global styles. Practice on real projects, even unpaid ones. Offer to rebuild a local business site, volunteer for a nonprofit, or redesign your own service page. Aim for 5–10 completed sites before calling yourself job-ready. Each project teaches you something about client requests, hosting quirks, plugin conflicts, and performance tradeoffs that tutorials skip. Learn the commercial ecosystem. Understand hosting (shared vs VPS vs managed WordPress), domain registration, SSL certificates, and basic security (login limits, backups, staging environments). Know how to use a child theme, when to write custom CSS vs rely on a builder, and how to optimize images for speed without destroying quality. Build a portfolio site showcasing your best work with before/after comparisons if possible. Include brief case descriptions: the client's goal, your approach, and measurable results like load time or mobile score improvements. GitHub or Behance profiles help, but your own WordPress site proves you can execute. At Ottawa SEO, we hire junior WordPress designers who demonstrate they can translate a Figma mockup into a fast, mobile-responsive page without breaking accessibility or SEO fundamentals. Competency matters more than credentials. If you can build a 95+ PageSpeed site with proper heading hierarchy and schema markup, you're ahead of half the field. Expect 6–12 months from zero to freelance-ready if you're disciplined, longer if part-time.