Beggars Can't Be Choosers
One of the bigger issues facing IT professionals is: “the challenge of building experience“.
This challenge exists because employers still require experience for hiring, even when you need their jobs to build experience!
It’s the classic Catch-22: “chicken or egg which came first challenge” that may be solved through internships or full-time jobs.
However, internships are getting increasingly competitive (Read More …) and employers are still insisting on handson experience before making job offers.
Why Internships Are Hard To Get
For a while, internships helped provide the missing handson experience to IT professionals learning new skills or transitioning careers.
Is Mindless Resume Submission Working?
Finding a job is just a numbers game, so submitting my resume to several job postings will get me hired … says a business analyst!
This is the mindset of some IT job seekers who approach the business of finding a job as if it is purely a numbers game.
But is a successful job search simply a numbers game or is there more to getting a job than that?
Michael Jackson, King of Pop. August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009
Michael Jackson discovered his musical strengths early in his career, developed into a musical genius and then dedicated his life to serving humanity with music.
What we know about legends or superstars like Michael Phelps, Michael Jordan or Michael Jackson is that they are the best at what they do.
But the reason why we love the Michaels’ (Phelps, Jordan, Jackson) is: “we are just like them way down or deep inside of us”!
On of my readers needs help with putting together his career advancement plan. I posted the information I provided to him below. If you have any question about this or about your career, post it as comment at the end of the post and I would answer it for you.
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Set a SMART Goal
Begin by creating a comprehensive end to end career roadmap or plan.
Your career roadmap needs to include a SMART goal (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely goal) That means that you need to define an end objective (for example, mastering business analysis or learning computer programming or improving your software testing skills) and a timeline for achieving it.
2009 is proving to be a big year for online learning as more tech professionals enroll in web based, video based, distance learning programs to improve their skills and employment prospects.
I have compiled some predictions from learning experts, coaches, trainers, educators and training providers published in the eLearn Magazine
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Allison Rossett, San Diego State University, USA: … today, in these harsh economic times, there is pressure to reduce costs. Technology is favored over registrations in hotels and hours in classrooms away from customers and clients …
There are a number of ways you can learn programming or business analysis or any
other technical skill. I recommend both coaching and self study. I
am going to compare both modes of learning so you have a better idea of what
works for you and what doesn't.
Self Study or Teach Yourself
Self study is the type of learning where you are 100% responsible for the
outcome. It involves researching a concept, subject or topic through books,
online websites and other types of media. You set the learning goals by
yourself, draw up a lesson plan and then do your own reading and learning.
Recession Proof Your Career
Is the US economy already in a recession?
Will the weakened US economy affect the global economy leading to a recession in Canada, Europe, Asia, Australia and perhaps other international markets?
Should you really care about a recession and how it will affect your career, job or income?
How About A Refresher Course On Recessions?
If you do not quite realize what a recession looks like, perhaps you can do with this refresher on the last recession to hit the US economy in 2001.
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