How To Overcome Lack of References

[Ask IT Career Coach] is a Career Advice Column for Information Technology (IT) professionals looking for answers to their most challenging career situations …

Submit questions about your career using the [Ask IT Career Coach] service and I will answer it for you just like I am answering this question …

Here Is A Job Search, Resume & Job Interview Coaching Question

Worked for a private company for 12 years. All 18 other employees quit through time and I was left alone the last two years with the CEO trying to save the company.

I had finally to quit under bad terms. The CEO spoke very highly of my abilities, but I do not dare name him as a reference under the circumstances.

My references are mainly European companies we did business with but no specific individuals.

Any ideas as to how I can address the lack of business references in my resume and interviews?

• When Are References Needed In The Hiring Process?

  Do you realize that you don’t need to provide references for verification purposes until you actually have a job offer?

  It is kind of putting the horse before the cart to focus on or worry about references before you actually have a job because that is the last step in the hiring process.

  Now, some recruiters and staffing agencies will try and reverse the hiring order by asking for references when you submit a resume!

  You have a few options: You may ask the recruiter to verify the references only after you are given a job offer and you accept it.

  This is important because if you manage to get a few references and then submit your resume to 20 jobs, you don’t want your references to receive 20 phone calls each!

  If you subject your references to that number of phone calls … you are allowing recruiters / staffing agencies to abuse the hiring process and your references will probably feel harassed and ask you to desist from using their names before you even get a job offer.

  So my advice is: treat your few references like they are gold and don’t subject them to unnecessary harassment, abuse or phone calls.

  The other route that you may take with recruiters who ask for references before they offer you a job is to tell them that you will provide that when you have an actual job offer!

• Don’t Over Think The Reference Process

  From your question, I think that you may be putting an undue burden on yourself and over-thinking the reference and hiring process.

  It used to be that job candidates will include their references in their resume or use a line like … “references available upon request“.

  I would say that is really old school to use that line.

  Don’t mention your references on your resume and don’t even bother to say that you will furnish references upon request because that is just too early in the process.

  There is one exception to this rule. If you are filling an employment application form and you are not using a staffing agency, you may have to include a few references.

  In this situation, I will say that you may include anyone you know professionally.

• Work Your Professional Contacts

  Do not focus just on managers, include your co-workers and even subordinates in your search for references.

  Join LinkedIn, and take the time to get in touch with every company that you have worked for in your professional life or who you provided services to at any point in time in your career.

  Once you get your contacts sorted out, call and talk to each of them or e-mail them for a reference and you would be surprised how many people will be ready to give you a job reference

  If you work through all your contacts, you will find a few people that will give you references, unless you are an absolute, total jerk … and I know you are not one because jerks don’t hang out at my blog

  I believe that if you work through all your professional contacts, you will find at least three (3) people who will be willing to give you a good reference.

• Don’t obsess over the quality of your reference.

  If your CEO spoke highly of your abilities, you should used him except if he is standing trial for crime, fraud or something crazy like that.

  If the reason why you are hesitating to use your CEO is that your company went bankrupt or became insolvent and then I will say that you should use him because companies go bankrupt all the time and those same CEOS will be hired to start a new company by another group of shareholders … that is how business gets done!

  So, don’t shut yourself out of the hiring game by taking things too personal.

My final advice is this .. don’t carry the responsibility for the failure of your company around with you.

If your CEO wants to give you a good reference, be very grateful for that because a CEO’s reference carries a lot of weight even in the circumstances that you described as long as your CEO is not facing charges for illegal conduct.

So, that is it my friend … free yourself from all that false responsibility and go get the job you want!

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This post was submitted by mina_g.

Make your Knowledge or Skills Work

There is such a wealth of information out there that it can be overwhelming to someone trying to figure out what they need to learn.

I mean, when you look in your local bookstore you will see a huge section of books to help, but what you won’t find is the insider information that teaches you exactly the most profitable techniques or what you absolutely must know.

You also won’t find any resources that will give you the inside information about what you need to know so that you stand out from the crowd.

You also won’t find the inside information about what to expect at information technology job interviews and more importantly – how to answer them!

Our online online career coaching or online training classes provides this information and more.

And not only that, but it is structured in such a way that it is easy to learn. Each step builds on what you learn in the previous step so you never get overwhelmed.

Here is how we help make knowledge and skills work.

Learn Whenever – Why Not Learn At Your Own Time?

You may login to our learning management system (LMS) and take your training at a time that is convenient for you.

And you don’t have to worry about following our timetable or rearranging your schedule to meet our class schedules ever!

Open Enrollment – Let the Scheduling Work for You

Registration for our online classes is always open and because of this, you may enroll at any time.

This is quite unlike other vendors that force you to enroll on specific days or restrict enrollments to their own schedule.

Pause & Resume – Take A Break When You Want

You may pause or resume your training at will and you will never be penalized for doing that.

Use this to catch up with pressing work or life commitments and for taking vacations or time off.

This is in contrast to rigid classroom training that forces you to start or finish your at the same time as everyone else!

Progress Monitoring – How Are You Doing?

As you complete learning activities like quizzes and assignments, your grade is recorded in real-time on an online report card that doubles as your virtual transcript.

Your online report card gives a measurable, objective assessment of how you are doing at a glance.

Virtual Coaching – What Do You Want To Learn?

Your ability to post questions for your course instructor as you learn or progress through your material differentiates our training from other vendors that dump videos on you or leave you to figure it out by yourself!

Our instructors do not walk away because online collaboration is built right into our learning management system (LMS) as part of our core service offering and not as an afterthought!

Real Learning – Resources For Work

Did you know that you still retain login access to our learning management system even after your training is completed?

This access allows you to watch your training videos as often as you want or use those videos as a reference resource on the job!

For Utter Beginners or Experienced Professionals

Our classes take you from novice or utter beginner to advanced level topics in a step by step fashion with each lesson building on the topics taught in previous lessons so you don’t feel overwhelmed or dumped on!

We make no assumptions about your background and that is why we also teach all the pre-requisite knowledge as part our classes.

Practice Tests – Better or More Effective Online Learning

Use the online quizzes integrated into our learning management system (LMS) to improve your retention, comprehension or recall for work or job interview purposes.

Retrieval based tests have been scientifically proven to boost your ability to learn new information and that is why we recommend or use them.

In other words, taking our practice tests will help reduce the learning curve typically associated with mastering new concepts.

Assignments – Bridging the Gap Between Knowledge and Practice

We provide assignments similar to those performed on the job so that you get handson practice at solving problems.

Assignments matter because they help you practice putting your knowledge or skills to work in a safe, virtual environment before you tackle them in the real world.

Bridging that gap between what you know and what you can do, helps you become better, more confident and successful at work!

Comprehensive Learning – Stay Ahead of the Technology Curve

Information Technology (IT) skills easily become rusty or out-dated because of the rapid pace of technological change.

Besides, information changes so quickly and so often that keeping up with is a challenge for everyone.

But now, with our comprehensive online curriculum, you may enroll and catchup with what you really need to know just by signing up for a class!

Social Learning – Research Best Practices

While our private discussion groups are for you and the course instructors only, our public study groups are for you and other participants registered for the same course.

Use our public discussion groups for researching best practices employed at other organizations or for learning from other participants who may contribute helpful solutions challenges or problems facing you at work.

Affordable, Convenient & Effective Learning

Our online coaching or training offers are all based on the same premise:

Anyone (regardless) of their background should be able to learn from any location in the world at any time of the day or night that fits their geographic, life or work commitments.

• We make learning more affordable by combining the information you need including both entry level and advanced topics in one course.

• Our private, web-based, learning management system allows you to enroll when you want or pause and resume your training at your own convenience.

• Using practice tests which have been scientifically proven to boost your ability to retain, recall or understand new material, we make your learning more effective.

Right now, we are fulfilling coaching and training services for a world-wide information technology audience which includes course participants from USA, Canada, UK, Australia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), India, South Africa and several other countries … so why don’t you join us?

Let us help make your knowledge or skills work. Our secret is the sequence: what to do, how to do it, when to do it, and for how long, so that it all make sense.

So, why not enroll right now in an online career coaching or online training class and learn how to make your knowledge or skills work?

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What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?

Compliments of the Season and Merry Christmas To You. What is the toughest challenge facing your career right now?

Post a detailed question regarding your challenges right now, and I will help you take care of them, once and for all!

How To Discover Your Passion?

Perhaps, your toughest challenge is …

• How to choose the right career or
• How to make a career change or
• How to get an entry level job that is inline with your career goals

Regardless of the type of challenge facing your career, go ahead and post a detailed question regarding your challenge and I will answer it for you

How To Do The Work You Love?

Perhaps, your toughest challenge is …

• How to become highly skilled at your job or
• How to get suitable hands-on experience or
• How to transition from a beginner or junior position to a senior-level job

Leave a detailed comment about your challenging career situation using the form below and I will answer it for you!

How To Take Your Passion To The Market?

Perhaps, the most challenging situation facing your career is …

• How to rewrite your resume and/or cover letter, so you can get the job you want or
• How to distinguish yourself from others in your industry, so that you can standout or get hired or
• How to ace your job / technical interviews so that you can get jobs more easily …

Whatever your challenge, just go ahead and ask a question using the “comment form” below and I will answer it for you.

I may answer by writing a new article that addresses your concerns or by posting a comprehensive reply to your comment below.

The concern or challenge facing you is important to me, so go right away and post it as a comment on this page.

The sooner you ask that question, the sooner I can take care of it for you. So, let’s get started

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MBA - Laid Off and Looking For Work!

[Ask IT Career Coach] is a Career Advice Column for Information Technology (IT) professionals looking for answers to their most challenging career situations.

This question was submitted by a reader who would like to know: “If An MBA Is Required For Business Analyst Jobs“.

Here Is The Question on Educational Requirements for Business Analyst Jobs:

… I will be working for one year then I have plans to go for a one year MBA program.

Will this plan help be to become a business analyst? And in this one year of working period before going for an MBA, i would like to load myself with extra courses like SAP or SAS or any other relevant courses.

Kindly let me know which part time course will be suitable for me to in this one year working period to become a business analyst.

I am not from computer background so do i need to do some computer programming related courses like c++ or java which will not be so easy for a beginner?

Thank you

Is An MBA Required For Business Analyst Jobs?

Here is the answer to the question: is an MBA required for business analyst jobs?

Business Analyst Jobs Are Not Traditional

Your question is based on the premise that Information Technology (IT) jobs are just like other traditional careers (law, medicine, education, etc.) … but they are not!

The IT Industry is fundamentally different from other sectors of the economy. For one, it is in a constant state of change and it is also in its infancy.

The Business Analyst Career has its roots in Systems Analysis, Software Development and Business Process Engineering amongst others.

So, business analysis as a profession is still in its infancy and it is still evolving and unlike other non-IT industries, there is no degree required for a job in business analysis or any of the other information technology fields.

So the answer to your question is: NO, an MBA Degree is not required for a Business Analysis Job.

Which College Degree Is Required For A Business Analyst Job?

Neither an MBA or SAS or SPSS or any one degree is required for a business analyst job … that is old school thinking!

Any degree will work for you because hiring managers are more concerned about your actual performance on the job than on your paper qualifications or credentials!

As a matter of fact, even if you get a job based on your paper qualifications, you are bound to lose the job, if you don’t understand the roles and responsibilities of a business analyst and perform accordingly.

Information Technology is a performance driven, prove-it field and business analysts are not exempt from that culture.

Your college education only goes to prove that you are literate and that you can be trusted to converse or discuss on workplace issues, intelligently.

Your college degree by itself does not qualify your for a business analyst job.

What Are Hiring Managers Looking For?

Hiring managers are looking for functional business analysis skills because business analysis skills are different from MBA skills or SAS or SPSS or any other body of knowledge.

In other words, getting an MBA degree does not convey functional business analysis skills.

To start with, business analysts gather, document, validate and manage requirements using specific processes like UML or Use Cases.

So, you can’t expect to get that from an MBA program or bypass this skill requirement by learning another course like SAS or SPSS.

In addition, employers often view business analysts as domain specialists because they are looking for subject matter expertise and previous business knowledge in their industry.

This is why you may see job postings for CRM Business Analysts or Sales & Marketing Business Analyst or IT Business Analyst.

Understand How To ACE IT Jobs / Principles of Success in IT Careers

My goal in this community is to get you started down the path that leads to career nirvana and stop you from forking over thousands of dollars in hard-earned money or waste time chasing down self-imposed limiting beliefs or myths supplied by others.

So, I would advise you to do just this:

1. Don’t analyze Business Analyst jobs the way you would analyze jobs in other industries because that won’t work .

   Don’t assume that an MBA degree pre-qualifies you for a business analyst job the way that a medical or law degree places you in the direct path of becoming a doctor or a lawyer.

2. Don’t try to bypass the requirement for business analysis skills by taking non-business analysis courses.

   Learn business analysis first and then if you need to get an MBA or any other degree to fulfill your personal educational ambitions, do so afterwards.

3. Take the shortest path to becoming a business analyst and give the hiring managers what they want.

   Learn business analysis, get hands on business analysis experience and bring you resume to market as quickly as possible.

4. Focus your learning on business analysis techniques, skills and practices.

   You may learn business analysis in an online class because that fits in more conveniently with your hectic study schedule.

5. The most impressive thing on your resume is your handson experience.

   So either get handson experience as an IT business analyst or get domain / subject matter expertise relevant to the domain you may want to specialize in.

Take a direct path to becoming a business analyst and don’t spend your time chasing rabbit trails … that is the [IT Career Coach's] ACE (Affordable, Convenient, Effective)

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The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 helps American families that choose public service. It does several things to make college easier for American families;

1. It invests more than forty (40) billion dollars in college and going forward it will be adjusted to keep pace with inflation or cost of living

2. By 2017, the maximum PELL Awards may be raised to six thousand dollars ($6,000). These are grants and not loans, so they don’t add up to student debt for qualifying families

3. To qualify for student grants and low-interest student loans, fill out the FAFSA forms

4. You may also qualify for up to a $10,000 credit for four years of tuition and related expenses … for your child’s tuition including books. This is called The American Opportunity Tax Credit. It triples the amount you can deduct from your taxes for college.

5. Beginning in 2014, students can limit their payments to 10% of their income with any remaining balance forgiven after 20 years.

6. Graduates who work as teachers, nurses or other public service professions including the military can have their loans forgiven after ten (10) years.

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US President Barack Obama signs the HIRE Act, a 17.6 billion dollar jobs bill unemployment package that his administration hopes will encourage small businesses to hire new workers or give them the confidence to buy the equipment needed to grow their business.

The ceremony was held in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, DC on Thursday

Here is the full text of President Obama’s Hire Act Job Bill.

The Full Text of President Obama’s Hire Act Job Bill

Madame Speaker, Majority Leader Reid as well as some of my cabinet members who are here.

In a few moments, I will sign what is called the “Hire Act” – a jobs bill that will encourage businesses to hire and help put Americans back to work.

And I’d like to say a few words about what this jobs bill will mean for workers, for businesses, and for America’s economic recovery.

There are a number of ways to look at an economic recovery. Through the eyes of an economist, you look at the different stages of recovery. You look at whether an economy has begun to grow. At whether businesses have begun to hire temporary workers or increase the hours of existing workers. You look at whether businesses, small and large, have begun to hire full-time employees again.

That’s how economists measure a recovery – and by those measures, we are beginning to move in the right direction.

But through the eyes of most Americans, recovery is about something more fundamental:

• Do I have a decent job?

• Can I provide for my family?

• Do I feel a sense of financial security?

The great recession that we’ve just gone through, took a terrible toll on the middle class, and on our economy as a whole.

For every one of the over 8 million people who lost their job in recent years, there’s a story of struggle; of a family that’s forced to choose between paying the electric bill, or the car insurance, or a daughter’s college tuition; of vacations, weddings, and retirements that have been postponed.

So here’s the good news: a consensus is forming that, partly because of the necessary – and often unpopular – measures we took over the past year, our economy is now growing again and we may soon be adding jobs instead of losing them.

The jobs bill I’m signing today is intended to help accelerate that process.

I’m signing that, mindful, as I’ve said before, the solution to our economic problems won’t come from government alone. Government can’t create all of the jobs we need or repair all of the damage done by this recession.

But what we can do is to promote a strong, dynamic private sector – the true engine of job-creation in our economy. We can help provide an impetus for America’s businesses to start hiring again. We can nurture the conditions that allow companies to succeed and grow.

That’s exactly what this jobs bill will help us do. Now, make no mistake: while this jobs bill is absolutely necessary, it is by no means enough.

There is a lot more we need to do to spur hiring in the private sector and bring about a full economic recovery – from helping creditworthy small businesses get the loans that they need to expand, to offering incentives to make homes and businesses more energy-efficient, to investing in infrastructure so we can put Americans to work doing the work that America needs done.

Nevertheless, this jobs bill will make a difference in several important ways.

1. First, we’ll forgive payroll taxes for businesses that hire someone who’s been out of work for at least two months – that’s a tax benefit that will apply to unemployed workers hired between last month and the end of this year.

   This tax cut says to employers: if you hire a worker who’s unemployed, you won’t have to pay payroll taxes on that worker for the rest of the year. And businesses that move quickly to hire today will get a bigger tax credit than businesses that wait until later this year.

   This tax cut will be particularly helpful fto small business owners. Many of them are on the fence right now about whether to bring in that extra worker or two, or whether to hire anyone at all This jobs bill should help make their decision that much easier.

   By the way, I’d also note that part of what health insurance reform would do is provide tax credits for over 4 million small businesses so they don’t have to choose between hiring workers and offering coverage.

2. The second this bill does is to enourage smaller businesses to grow and hire by permitting them to write off investments they make in equipment this year.

   These kinds of expenses typically take years to depreciate, but under this law, businesses will be able to invest up to $250,000 – in say, factory equipment – and write it off right away. Put simply, we’ll give businesses an incentive to invest in their own future – and to do it today.

3. Third, we’ll reform municipal bonds to encourage job-creation by expanding investment in schools and clean energy projects.

   Say a town wants to put people to work rebuilding a crumbling elementary school or putting up wind turbines. With this law, we’ll make it easier for them to raise the money they need to do what the want to do by using a model we call Build America Bonds – one of the most successful programs in the Recovery Act. We’ll give Americans a better chance to invest in the future of their communities and of our country.

4. Finally, this jobs bill will maintain crucial investments in our roads and bridges as we head into the spring and summer months, when construction jobs are picking up.

I want to commend all of those Members of Congress – and their leadership is what made this bill possible, many of themare with us today.

I’m also gratified that over a dozen Republicans agreed that the need for this jobs bill was urgent, and that they were willing to break out of the partisan morass to help us take this forward-step for the American people.

I hope this’s a prelude to further cooperation in the days and months to come, as we continue the work of digging our way out of this recession and rebuilding our economy in a way that works for all Americans.

After all, the jobs bill I’m signing today – and our broader efforts to achieve a recovery – aren’t about politics. They’re not about Democrat versus Republican. This isn’t some game we’re playing her. They’re about the people in this country who are out of work and looking for a job; they’re about all of the Americans – of every race, region, and age – who’ve shared their stories with me.

• The single mother who’s told me she’s filled out hundreds of job applications and been on dozens of interviews, but still hasn’t found a job.

• The father whose son told me he started working when he was a teenager, and recently found himself out of a job for the first time in his life.

• The children who write to me, worried about their mums, worried about what the future holds for their families.

That’s who I’m thinking about every morning when I enter into the Oval Office.

That is who I am signing this bill For and that’s who I will continue to fight for so long as I’m President of the United States.

So, with that, let me sign this bill and let’ get to work.

Hire Acts Jobs Bill Signing Ceremony

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The Most Difficult Challenge Of My Career

Hello,

“What is the most difficult challenge facing your career right now”?

Your most difficult challenge may be about how to get a job or how to improve your skills or how to get promoted on the job

Perhaps your most difficult challenge is about how to transition out of or into a business analyst or computer programming or database developer career.

Whatever your challenge is, just go ahead and post it as a comment on this page and I will deal with it for you.

I may answer it by writing a new article that addresses your concern or by posting a comprehensive reply to your comment.

The concern or challenge facing you is important to me, so go right away and post it as a comment on this page.

Thank You,

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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?

Why Resumes Get Tossed

1. Learn It First – Before you start submitting resumes, first learn how to do the job you are applying for.

   Getting the right knowledge and skills does more for your job search because it assures the attention of hiring managers.

   Yet some job seekers assume that they can get the attention of hiring managers by simply re-writing their resume without significantly improving their skills!

   In a real life example, a marketing and sales professional with no real world business analysis knowledge, skills or experience, just keeps rewriting or submitting resumes for business analyst jobs without taking the time to study or learn!

   There is danger when one conditions the mind to act reflexively without thinking.

   Applying for jobs is not meant to be a mindless task that one attempts like an unthinking robot.

   You be the judge of the job prospects of anyone who thinks that “finding a job is just a numbers game“.

2. Which Comes First Learning Or Doing – learning has always been the forerunner to doing. You always have to learn a career before you can start performing the roles, responsibilities or duties belonging to the career.

   As a basic rule, everyone has to first learn a skill before they can start producing or working with the skill.

   In some careers, the practice of learning before doing is regulated and enforced by law.

   For example, you cannot become a Medical Doctor without going though Medical school and training. And you cannot just assume that you are a Medical Doctor and start submitting your resume for jobs without first learning, studying for and passing medical examinations.

   In information technology careers, the practice of learning before doing is not enforced by laws or exams or any set of IT schools because it is enforced by the Information Technology (IT) employer.

   Employers want to know that you’ve mastered the knowledge, skills and experience needed for the job before you are hired.

   And when you think of the rigorous credentialing, certification and licensing standards applied to other non information technology careers, you will agree that IT employers are not asking for much!

   The good news is that, it is not how you learn new skills, careers or work that matters (self study, books, coaching, training, college is ok) but that you learn it well … in a rigorous, thorough, step by step way!

3. Learning Comes Before Finding A Job – employers don’t want to re-train new hires. In other words, job postings are written for those who will be productive from day one.

   What this means is that if you are looking for a new job, you need to take the time to learn or master the skills required for the job and not just shop your resume around.

   Posting your resume mindlessly without first learning the required skills is a black hole that either sucks up your time and energy or brands you in a negative light as thoughtless to employers.

4. Take a Personal Inventory of your Skills – Do yourself a favor during this holiday season.

   Take a personal inventory of the skills required for your job. List all the skills required; (for example: UML, Use Cases, Requirements Management, SQL, Databases) and then rate yourself on a scale of one to ten on each skill.

   Finally, take the time to study, learn and improve on your weak areas because that is one of the best gifts you can give to yourself or your family!

This post discusses why most resumes get tossed by hiring managers. If you have a question or need some help with your career, post it as a comment on this page and we will be glad to answer it for you!

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Ask IT Career Coach

Po Bronson, author of “What Should I Do with My Life?” listened to more than 900 people who dared to be honest with themselves about their line of work or careers!

In the end, he discovered that it comes down to a simple gut check: “You either love what you do or you don’t.“

With that in mind, here’s question posted by a reader who needs advice on “what to do about making wrong career choices”.

What To Do About making Wrong Career Choices

I think I did myself well careerwise by reading for a degree that bears no inclination to what I am trying to aspire to in life.

The programme entitled: Degree in Computing with Management Studies is embeded with C++, COBOL and Report Programme Generator (RPG) courses.

The final year I underwent a gruelling course in Artificial Intelligence that I haven’t started to utilise in anyway in my career path.

What I strongly desire is a competence in database management and its integration with records management and design.

Regards

Career Transitions Are A Fact Of Life

Hello,

I feel your pain because I have been in your shoes – in a similar situation.

I’ve had to transition career several times from Chemical Engineering to IT Sales to IT Consulting to IT Career Coaching!

I’m reasonably sure that my last transition is permanent … but that doesn’t mean much because I expect my IT Career Coaching skills to change so much that I would literally be re-inventing myself every year!

Think about it for a moment. The world around us is constantly changing and we have to remain flexible and adaptable or we become as dead as the DoDo!

Fact is … “career transitions are a part of life“!

What I’ve learnt that I would like to share with you is this: “march boldly in the direction of your dreams!“

Start by forgiving yourself thoroughly.

Forgiving yourself is really not as easy as it sounds … put some effort into giving yourself a break because you did the best that you could based on the information you had.

Don’t be too hard on yourself; make sure you take out some time to love on yourself before you do the next big thing.

Now, having done that, “follow your call wherever it leads without any hesitation“!

Since your heart is saying that you need to become a database professional, do exactly that!

“Jump into the water with both feet and don’t be afraid of getting your feet wet”.

What I mean is: “pursue your dreams fearlessly, follow your heart wherever it leads and don’t be afraid of making mistakes”.

You owe yourself the pursuit of “life, liberty and love”.

What Should I Do with My Life?

Po Bronson, author of “What Should I Do with My Life?” listened to more than 900 people who dared to be honest with themselves about their line of work or careers!

In the end, he discovered that it comes down to a simple gut check: “You either love what you do or you don’t!”

So, if you find yourself doubting or regretting the choices you’ve made for your career or work, do these:

1. Do What You Love; Start building your career around what you love or enjoy doing. Be honest with yourself by finding out what type of work fulfills you and doing it.

2. Discover Your Strengths; Don’t spend your entire career or life building on weaknesses by doing what you don’t love.

   Discover what you excel at doing and then pursue opportunities that align with them.

   Use a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) Analysis to reposition your career.

3. Follow Your Dreams; It’s never too late to discover or follow your dreams, aspirations or happiness.

   Don’t deny yourself the right to pursue life, liberty and happiness because everyone including your dear self, deserves better!

4. Develop A Positive Mental Attitude; Don’t let past mistakes or career choices hinder you from making better decisions going forward!

   Believe that “you can do better and you will” because “if you think that you can, you can!“

5. Learn From Past Mistakes; Don’t be reacting to past failures, learn from them!

   We all do the best that we can, based on the information we have. Now, re-invent your career by making better, informed decisions based on your past failures!

6. Plan to Succeed; Now prepare a step by step plan for transitioning to a your new career!

   Start with a SWOT Analysis that addresses specific issues like “how you will learn new skills” and “how you will gain hands-on experience“.

   You need to plan your career transition because “failing to plan is the same as planning to fail!”

7. Now, Do What You Love; You’ve learnt from past mistakes and planned a better career transition, now start doing what you love.

   Stick to doing what you love even when it’s tough on your purse or ego.

   Because a day will come when you’ll start reaping the financial and emotional rewards of “Career Nirvana!”

How To Achieve Career Nirvana

You’re not alone in making wrong career choices. But you must overcome the past by learning from it and by making better, informed decisions going forward!

This post answers a question posted by a reader who needs advice on “what to do about making wrong career choices”!

If you have a question about your career or are facing a challenge, be sure to post it as a comment on this page and I will answer it for you!

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highly paid corporate programmer

Becoming a corporate software developer is not the same thing as becoming a freelance programmer or a systems programmer.

• Corporate programmers are hired for coding skills in programming languages like Microsoft .NET (ASP.NET, C#, VB.NET, SQL Server) and they tend to work regular, office jobs as contract or full-time programmers.

• Systems programmers tend to work with programming languages like C/C++ and they also work for companies like Microsoft that build operating systems or systems software.

• Freelance programmers work on their own hours and they tend to focus exclusively on web development, web design and user interface (UI) jobs using programming languages and platforms like PHP, WordPress or Microsoft .NET.

Microsoft .NET is the recommended programming language for Corporate Programmers.

However, transitioning careers to Microsoft .NET programming may seem like a daunting or impossible task because you need solid Hands-ON experience which is hard to get without a full-time Microsoft.NET job!

So, the question is, “How Do You Gain Hands-On Experience For Microsoft.NET Corporate Programmer Jobs Outside Regular, Full-Time Employment?“

How To Get An Entry Level Corporate Programming Job

Start by transitioning into a Microsoft.NET Software Developer Career in manageable steps or phases which allows you to achieve career success.

Your first step in becoming a highly paid corporate programmer is to learn Microsoft.NET Programming.

The next step after that, is to gain solid hands-on programming experience!

Both steps must be completed before you can achieve the goal of becoming a corporate programmer!

First Step: The first step in your career transition is to learn the ins and outs of Microsoft .NET Programming. This would include learning ASP.NET, C#, SQL SERVER and the Microsoft.NET Framework.

You can’t bypass the requirement to learn Microsoft.NET programming because you’ll be asked programming questions at your technical interview which you will have to ace before you are hired!

Second Step: The next step involves getting solid, hands-on Microsoft.NET programming experience.

Handson experience is a requirement for information technology jobs because this is a handson, practical industry where what you can do is valued even more than your educational qualifications.

Click here to read more about how to get handson computer programming experience!

1. Become a Freelance Microsoft.NET Software Developer:

   You may consider starting your career as a freelance programmer before you get hired for corporate / full-time programming jobs.

   The experience or skill-level required for some freelance jobs is not as extensive as that of full-time programming jobs because clients can easily work away if they don’t like your job or try your services and see if they like working with you first before hiring you on a longer-term basis.

   Freelance Programming Jobs are not necessarily as lucrative as full-time or contract programming jobs but they do allow you to gain the mandatory hands-on programming experience by working on real-world software development projects for real-world clients.

   Becoming a freelance programmer while in training as a Microsoft.NET Programmer may also provide you with additional income, which is helpful whether you’re just transitioning careers or looking for a full-time programming job.

   Your initial focus should not be to earn a high income but to gain the hands-on programming experience which is required for programming positions.

2. Become a Highly-Paid Corporate Programmer:

   After you’ve completed learning Microsoft.NET, C#, ASP.NET, SQL Server and worked on some freelance computer programming projects, you may transition into a regular full-time or independent Contract Programming job.

   Independent Contract Programmers are highly paid corporate programmers with billing rates ranging from $45/hr. to $60/hr. and even more!

   However, Independent Contract Programming is not for everyone because you have to pay your own employment taxes or provide your own benefits or face some downtime in-between projects meaning that your income may fluctuate.

   As an independent contract programmer, you also have to market your skills consistently to compensate for any downtime in-between programming projects.

   The good news is that “the demand for contract programmers is quite high” and each programming project usually lasts for a while (between 6 months and two years).

3. Become a Full-Time Computer Programmer:

   Finally, after you’ve gained strong freelance or contract programming experience or you’ve worked on a number of corporate consulting gigs, you may be ready to become a full-time, salaried computer programmer.

   The upside of a full-time, permanent, salaried computer programming job is that you’re guaranteed medical benefits, a good paycheck and some stability in your employment.

   You won’t have to pay your own taxes or be on the look-out for the next consulting gig or wonder where your next paycheck is going to come from!

   The downside of a full-time, salaried programming career is that you may not earn as much as a corporate programmer because you don’t handle as much risk.

   Also, you don’t have the flexibility of deciding who to work for or the ability to switch programming projects or teams when you want!

If you’re interested in learning more about the differences or distinction between full-time and contract programming jobs, read this article titled: “full time programming compared to contract programming jobs …”

How To Overcome Hurdles In Transitioning To A Computer Programming Career

1. Transition your Career in Phases

   Break up your career transition into phases and set SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable and Realistic) goals for each phase.

   Transitioning your career in steps helps because you set achievable goals and build up the momentum that helps you follow though on a plan that leads to career success.

2. Take Your Software Developer Training

   Transitioning to a new career begins with learning new skills.

   So, don’t neglect to acquire the required skills and don’t be looking for alternatives that promise a career transition without learning or acquiring new programming skills!

3. Give Employers What They Want!

   Employers require hands-on programming experience which may seem unfair because you need their jobs to gain experience.

   However, don’t waste time hoping that employers will change their requirement for hands-on programming experience because you will be more successful at giving employers what they want than at getting them to change their minds.

So, you may transition into a highly paid computer programming career by following this step-by-step plan that allows you to build on past successes or achieve your goals in stages!

You may also enroll for the Software Developer Boot Camp Training and the Sql Boot Camp Training, since both SQL and Microsoft .NET programming skills are required for Software Developer Jobs.

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Ask IT Career Coach

This question was posted by a reader who wants to overcome obstacles posed by employment gaps in an Oracle Programming Career!

Please, send this post to your friends using the “Tell a Friend” Button button below. You earn points or cash each time you refer an article to your friends using the Tell a Friend Button.

If you need help with a Question or Challenge, be sure to ask it as a comment on this page and I will answer it fully just as I am answering this reader’s question below!

Here is the Reader’s Question:

Hello,

The toughest challege facing my career right now is, I have been unemployeed for an extended period of time.

I have nine years of Oracle programming experience, but I have been out of work for some years now.

I have been told by employeers that it has been too long since I have had any professional experience.

The job market is very competitive right now.

How do I compete with other programmers who may not have been out of work as long as I have?

I am attending classes so that I am not completely idle. My major is Computer Information Systems. However, I urgently need to work.

Here is my Answer:

Although, the job market is competitive, getting back into full-time employment after a stay at home period is not impossible.

Follow these guidelines to boost your competitiveness compared to that of other computer programmers.

1. Broaden Your Skills: To stay competitive in the job market, you must broaden your skills because IT Managers are hiring for a broader range of skills!

   Begin by learning those skill that are in high demand and are also a natural complement to your existing skill base.

   For example, SQL Server programming skills are in high-demand and will complement your existing skill sets. By learning SQL Server programming you will be able to target both Oracle Programming Jobs and SQL Server Database Programming Jobs.

2. Transition To a Software Developer Career: Take advantage of your existing programming strengths by learning a new programming language!

   Draw upon your understanding of Oracle programming to learn a completely new programming tool.

   This will help your career by giving you skills that make you more attractive to employers.

   For example, there are lots of programming jobs that require Microsoft .NET Front-End Programming Skills and Oracle Database or SQL Server Back-End Developer Skills.

   By learning Microsoft.NET you will become competitive in the current job market as you gain the ability to work on the User Interface Front-End or Business Logic Layer or Database Back-End!

3. Overcome Employment Gaps By Becoming More Marketable: There is nothing that you can do about your employment gaps because it’s already happened and it is going to stay on your resume!

   However there is plenty you can do if you understand the power of having a marketable skill.

   When you hear employers complaining about the gaps in your employment, what they are really saying is that they don’t find your resume or skills compelling enough!

   You can completely by-pass this objection by acquiring the kind of skills that make you a marketable, in-demand IT Professional.

   This is the single, most important thing within your power to do … Learn a new skill or career that makes you instantly attractive, desirable and employable!

How to Overcome Your Employment Gap?

Not too long ago, I was helping someone who hadn’t worked for a number of years. He was in a pretty bad situation because he had a very short employment history and also an employment gap for no good reason.

The way we got around that situation was by getting him to update his skills by learning Microsoft .NET Software Development.

The demand for Microsoft .NET programmers is so high that this guy got hired at his very first interview … despite not having a credible explanation for the gaps on his resume!

I ‘m saying that considering your Nine Years of Oracle programming experience, all you have to do is to make yourself more marketable.

Remember that you already have a far better resume than the individual in question.

So, How Do You Become A Microsoft .NET Software Developer?

1. You become a Microsoft .NET Software Developer by enrolling at the SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS BOOT CAMP!

   The software developers boot camp is an Online, Video Based, Web Based, Instructor Led, Beginner to Advanced Software Developer Training that incorporates knowledge based training in the form of Video Lessons and Hands-On Skill Building Microsoft.NET Training in the form of Microsoft .NET Projects, Case Studies, Labs, Hands-On Coding Activities and more.

2. The SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS BOOT CAMP provides you with the skill needed to become a professional software developer or consultant. You learn ASP.NET, C#, Web-Based development in a practical, real-world, hands-on online computer programming course!

3. Finally, I will also advise you to register for the SQL Boot Camp because SQL Server Database skills are usually required in Microsoft .NET software developer positions. You should register for both the SQL Boot Camp and the Software Developers Boot Camp at the same time to get the best results.

   So, register here for the SQL BOOT CAMP and also register here for the SOFTWARE DEVELOPERS BOOT CAMP!

This post answers a question posted by a reader on “How To Overcome Employment Gaps in Oracle Programming Career! If you have any Question about your career, Post IT as a comment on this page and I will be sure to answer it for you!

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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”!

Each of us … everyone … has strengths that when discovered, developed and dedicated to the service of others … makes us stand-out and be noticed!

First, Disover Your Strengths

The answer to the questions: what career should I go into or what should I study in college or how do I get a job is “first, discover your strengths“.

Choosing a career just because it pays well, is not good enough because it may stop paying well when it becomes flooded with fortune seekers.

Not choosing a career because it doesn’t pay well, is not good enough because you are judging by the average pay reserved for average performers.

Choose a career by evaluating your answers to some of these questions:

1. What truly motivates or inspires you?

2. What do you love doing?

3. What are you good or exceptional at doing?

4. What do you do efficiently or what do you produce easily?

5. What do you like to read, research or study on your own time?

6. What are your hobbies and what do you do with your spare time?

7. What work will you do if money wasn’t an issue?

8. What work will you do if you weren’t trying to please anyone in you life?

9. What do you get paid to do?

If you are not building your career around your strengths, now is a good time to stop and re-evaluate because it is never too late to do the right thing!

Develop Your Strengths By Constant Practice

You need to develop your strengths through constant practice.

Your strengths needs to be developed and improved by conscious practice otherwise you stand to lose them!

You lose the benefits of having strengths when you neglect to exercise them repeatedly until they become a competitive advantage.

Remember that no one hires for under-developed strengths. Employers prefer to hire workers who have developed their strengths versus those who are hoping to do so after they are hired!

Developing your strengths helps you take advantage of opportunities discovered along the path of doing what you love or what you are good at.

Not developing your strengths means you won’t be able to take advantage of opportunities that further what you love doing or what you are good at.

Not developing your strengths also means that you are building your career or life around your weaknesses.

When you don’t develop or play to your strengths, you are likely to get burned-out, unhappy, depressed and earn lower wages because you can’t work as efficiently or as productively as your colleagues!

Not developing your strengths puts you at a competitive disadvantage in a global economy because you will lose out to someone, somewhere, someday who will do a much better job than you!

Building your career around weaknesses instead of strengths puts you in a situation where ultimately, you won’t be able to keep up with the demands of your job!

Dedicate Your Strengths To Serving Others

Your strengths are for you to use in serving others. Seek out opportunities to serve with your strengths because “what you use becomes stronger” and “what you don’t use becomes obsolete!“

Your first reaction shouldn’t be to quit your day job. Begin by finding opportunities to use your strengths within or outside your day job!

If you are a business analyst and you discover that your strengths are in requirements documentation and not Use Cases for example, then ask for more requirements documentation tasks at work.

If you are a computer programmer and you discover that your strengths are in database development, and not coding for example, then ask for more database development tasks at work.

It more practical for you to utilize your strengths at work because that is where you spend the majority of your active working day. But if you can’t then do something with your strengths after work or as a hobby!

Whatever you do, don’t go overboard and quit your day job because you can’t use your strengths at work and don’t neglect to use your strengths because of work or family committments either!

Regardless of your situation, discover your strengths, develop your strengths and dedicate your strengths to serving others!

Use SWOT Analysis to Plan Your Career Around your Strengths

Use SWOT Analysis to elicit your strengths and position it for your benefit at work or in the job market!

It is not enough to know your strengths, you also need to take advantage of your strengths in a competitive manner.

Why, because competition is a fact of life. Your strengths are not evaluated in isolation but in comparson to others!

1. Michael Phelps is not just a strong swimmer, Michael Phlelps is the Greatest Swimmer of All Time!. Michael Phlelps is the “Top Olympic Gold Medal Winner of All Time” with 14 career Olympic gold medals!
2. Michael Jackson is not just a great singer, Michael Jackson is or was the “King of Pop!. The Guinness World Records holds him as the “Most Successful Entertainer of All Time” and his 1982 album “Thriller” is the “World’s Best Selling Record of All Time“!
3. Michael Jordan is not just a good basketball player, Michael Jordan’s biography on the National Basketball Association (NBA) website states, “By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the Greatest Basketball Player of All Time.“

Do you get the picture? Your strengths are always compared to others … that is just how the world works!

To succeed at work, you have to pursue opportunities while defending against threats by playing to your strengths.

Use SWOT Analysis to plan your career by factoring in your competitive strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.

Remember that failing to plan your career is the same as planning to fail at your career!

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As hiring managers are cutting costs and reducing staff size they are also hiring hiring professionals with a broader range of skills

As workers are laid off, the lucky ones left behind are asked to work longer hours or work on a broader range of tasks

IT Managers are now hiring for a broader range of skill sets. Business Analysts are being asked to perform light programming jobs and software developers are being asked to perform light business analysis tasks

As the job market gets more competitive, IT Managers are hiring workers who have the mindset, training and inclination to work on a broader range of tasks. Gone are the days when it was okay to say “I can only do this” or “please, don’t make me do that“. Nowadays if you are asked to work on a task that is not aligned with your core competency … it may better to do the job or get trained on how to do it!

Business Analysts With Programming Skills Wanted!

IT Managers are hiring for business analysts with light computer programming skills

Business analysts are not expected to learn the full suite of programming languages that software developers need. They are expected to LEARN LIGHT PROGRAMMING SKILLS including HTML, XHTML, CSS, SQL, Data Analysis or Reporting

Business Analysts who’ve learnt a range of light programming skills in addition to the traditional, business analysis skills will find that they are more marketable. These business analysts will also be able to match a wider range of candidate profiles sought by an increasing number of hiring managers. One thing is for sure, showing your IT manager that you are willing or flexible enough to accept assignments outside your core competencies will help you get hired or keep your current job

Should Computer Programmers Learn Business Analysis?

Computer Programmers also need to be ready in today’s job market to acquire a broader range of skills in other to get hired or retain their jobs.

Computer programmers need to be ready to have or demonstrate LIGHT BUSINESS ANALYSIS SKILLS including UML, Use Cases or Requirements Analysis skills.

Because firms are cutting costs, computer programmers should also expect to start seeing more traditional data analysis or reporting tasks assigned to them.

What Extra Skills Are You Getting?

Business analysts are reporting an increase in the number of job postings requiring light programming skills in-addition to the core business analysis skills

Industry wide, there is an increasing trend to cut costs and retain tech workers who have a broader range of software development (project management, data analysis, business analysis, computer programming) skills.

What about you? Do you plan to learn any new skill or stay competitive in today’s job market?

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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.

1. 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.

2. Follow a Strategy

   Then you need to have a strategy for achieving your career goals. Your strategy is the “how to achieve your goal” part. So without a good strategy, you are not going to achieve your goal, no matter how hard you try at doing so.

   Your core career strategy needs to include: “gaining the requisite knowledge, skills and experience” needed to advance in your career as well as soft skills like “technical presentation / interviewing skills”.

3. Execute your Strategy

   You need to define the specific tactics that would allow you to achieve your strategy. Your tactics is more like a day to day plan that you would carry out that aligns with your strategy. Your tactics is the execution part of the plan and if you don’t execute your strategy well, all the goal setting and strategizing in the world won’t help you.

How to Follow Through On Your Career Strategy

How do you ensure that on a daily or weekly basis, that you will get the knowledge, skills and experience required to succeed in your career?

To ensure that you succeed in your career, you need to define:

• How you will gain the requisite knowledge

• How you will gain mastery and turn your knowledge into skills

• How to gain hands on, real-world, experience. Note that without experience, you won’t get be able to transition to new roles or get hired or get promoted

Here is some more information on how to gain more knowledge, skills and experience … which is required for IT career success:

• How To Improve Your Knowledge:

  Would you use books, free website content, onsite technical training, online training, coaching or mentoring services, newsletters, etc. You need to come up with what works best for you based on your work, family and budget

• How to Turn your Knowldege into skills:

  Note that knowledge and skills are not the same. Knowledge is theoretical and skill is practical. You must turn theoretical knowledge, education, certifications, etc into practical skills to succeed in your tech career

• How To Gain Hands On Experience:

  The most valuable asset in your career is your hands on, real-world, experience. IT careers unlike careers in law, medicine and some other professional disciplines put more emphasis on experience than accrediattion.

So, before you do anything, you need to make sure you have defined the specific steps you will take to get your hands on experience. Also, not every experience is equal. Employers give more weight to experience gained in some specific ways compared to experience gained in other ways.

TO CERTIFY OR NOT?

This is a hot topic. Tech workers are worrying if their certifications, degrees, education, would hold up in the current economic climate.

There seems to be two schools of thought. One school asserts that certifications and educational degrees are everything. The other school asserts that certified tech workers may not necessarily have the experience to back it up and that certifications don’t matter anyway.

There may be a better way to answer this question. Instead of worrying about your certifications, educational qualifications, etc. focus on a developing complete, end to end career plan. In a complete career plan you may get additional certifications and educational qualifications as long as you do not neglect the core essentials needed for information technology career success: knowledge, skills and experience.

So, I want to know hear from you. Was this post helpful? Do certifications, degrees and educational qualifications matter? Does knowldege, skill or experience matter? If you have a question or concern I can address, post it as a comment at the end of this post and I will answer it for you.

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How To Become A Web Programmer

The post which you are just about to read answers the question of:“what is the most compelling thing on a web programmer’s resume or how do you gain the type of resume that will make you standout in the web development industry!“

Let me begin by saying that, the key thing that hiring managers are looking for on your resume is not your programming certifications or your college degrees or computer science education but your handson web programming experience.

It is only after software development managers are satisfied that you have the required experience that they will start considering other things like your training, certification, degrees, education or qualifications.

So the real questions here are:

• How do you get strong, hands on web programming experience?
• How do you document web programming experience on your resume?

How To Gain Compelling Web Programming Resume

• Build ASP.NET Applications for you own personal use: Begin by developing asp.net web applications that have some real world, practical and personal benefit.

  An example would be a web application that stores and catalogs links to useful ASP.net articles that you find on the web

• Volunteer for open source ASP.NET projects: There are several open-source ASP.NET projects on sites like http://www.CodePlex.com.

  Some of these open source projects need help from volunteer asp.net developers like you, who can design or develop new features or fix existing bugs in the open source project.

• Volunteer for non profit projects: Find a non-profit organization close to your heart and volunteer to help with creating or improving their websites or software applications.

• Work on freelance projects on websites like Elance or ODesk. Don’t get hung-up on trying to win the big bids, instead work on winning the smaller bids because you are still looking to build your skills, experience and clients and not to make a lot of money.

  Working on real-world projects will help you get used to communicating with clients or managing project scope, deadlines or deliverables.

How To Document Web Programming Experience On your Resume

• Go back and document all the projects or tasks or features you wrote or completed.

• Describe the technologies you used, the business processes you supported, the type of project you worked on, the positive reviews giving by your clients or project managers or colleagues.

  One of the biggest mistakes that computer programmers make on their resume is that giving too little credence to the tasks they perform on a project.

  This is sometimes due to them because of low self-confidence or self-esteem.

• Don’t have to wait until you complete a big project before you document your work or results.

  Give a lot of time, attention and effort to documenting the smaller victories (tasks, features or software applications) you either created from scratch or completed.

  Trust me, your resume would look much better than the other folks that don’t do use this highly effective technique.

One of the folks in our online training bootcamps applied the last technique to his business analyst resume and saw the activity on his resume jump by 300%.

A coaching participant did the same thing and started getting pulled into business analyst job interviews that he wasn’t even qualified to attend.

When he saw that recruiters were taking him seriously and that he was getting a lot of calls for business analyst consulting jobs beginning at $30/hr., he decided to run back and complete his training … that is how powerful the techniques posted on this article are!

Though this article is written for computer programmers, you can adapt these techniques or use them to improve your resumes or get hand on experience for business analyst, data analyst, database or any other information technology (IT) jobs and careers.

This post is an answer to a question asked by Talibah Coleman on “How to put together a compelling ASP.NET programmer resume from watching ASP.NET software developer videos“.

You may click here to add your own No Holds Barred Questions, Comments or Discussion on challenges, problems or issues facing your career and i will respond to your question just as I answered Talibah’s question in this post!

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This post is an answer to a question asked by Tom Moore about how To Get A Good IT Job. You may click here to read the original question or add your own question or comment to the discussion.

The original post is a No Holds Barred Discussion on challenges, problems or issues facing my readers. If you have a Burning Question or Challenge you need help with, be sure to add your question to that page and i will answer it fully just as I am answering Tom’s question below!

Is College Education Enough?

College is part of the preparation for the real-world, but if you read my past articles, you will see me say often that college is not real-life.

What Are The Critical Tech Skills

There are two critical skills needed to succeed in today’s Information Technology (IT) Job Market:

1. Your Technical skills

2. Your Marketing skills

Let’s look at these skills in detail:

TECHNICAL SKILLS:

You need to learn technical skills that are in high-demand by hiring managers. It is not enough to like your skills or to be good at what you do! You need to be passionate about, like or learn tech skills that are in high demand by hiring managers. It may not be apparent to you that you need to update your current skills while you still have a job. But what happens when you lose your job and can’t get job interviews?

Here is a reality check: If you are very good at what you do and you lose your job and can’t find interviews … then your skills are not in demand and you need to re-invent your career.

MARKETING SKILLS:

Some tech professionals are very good at what they do and they may even have technical skills that are in high demand but they committ the sin of not marketing their skills, resume or profile.

To succeed in the current tech Job Market, you need to start looking at yourself as a business. A business sees marketing as a core vital activity that needs to be performed on a daily basis.

So change your strategy from marketing your resume when you are out of work to marketing your profile at every opportunity!

What I have said so far is the background or prelude to what I am about to say next:

WHAT SKILLS SHOULD YOU LEARN?

1. SQL / RELATIONAL DATABASES

   I would say that you start updating your skills by learning and becoming an expert at SQL and Relational Databases. I recommend SQL because you can learn or master it in a shorter time than the other skills like business analysis or computer programming or data analysis or software testing or computer networking skills.

   Also by mastering SQL, you have access into other professions including “Data Analysis” or “Business Analysis” or “Computer Programming”. The way it works is that if you are an expert at one thing, then you have proven that you can be an expert at other jobs if given the chance.

2. HTML / CSS / WEB SKILLS

   Look into mastering HTML, CSS and some web development after you master SQL and then choose a specific software development career path … along the lines of “Data Analysis” or “Business Analysis” or “Computer Programming”

Whatever skills or career you pursue, remember that:

You need to master a skill that is in high demand

You need to market your skills intensively. Don’t assume that your technical mastery alone is enough to get you a job, go sell yourself to hiring managers

If there is any other question or challenge facing your career, go ahead and challenging career or job questionpost it as a comment on this link and I will address it for you.

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Hello,

What is the “Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career Right Now”?

Your challenges may be about how to get a job or how to improve your skills or how to get promoted on the job

Perhaps your challenges are about how to transition out of or into a business analyst or computer programming or database developer career. Whatever they are, go ahead and post your comment and we will deal with them for you.

Post your challenging issues as a comment on this post and I would be glad to answer it for you. I may answer it by writing a new article that addresses your concern or by posting a comprehensive reply to your comment

The concerns or challenges facing you are important to me, so go right away and post your comment

Thank You,

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It’s not news anymore. We are officially in a recession and people are being laid off everywhere. At first, it looked like the IT sector was going to come through this relatively unscathed, but that is no longer the case. Microsoft, IBM and Intel all announced job cuts this week.

In 2008, the US economy shed 1.2 million jobs. 10% of those jobs were Information Technology jobs. As of December, over 100,000 IT jobs had been lost and it doesn’t look like the situation is going to get better any time soon.

If you haven’t been laid off already, there is a real possibility that it may happen to you. It’s time to hunker down and prepare for the worst. The good news is that even in a recession, there are still jobs out there.

To offer you some hope and prepare you to be successful in the economic downturn, I will be writing a series of articles packed with tips to help you get through the current recession/depression.

These articles will help you prepare to sail right through to your next position if you’ve been laid off and prepare to not miss a beat if you do get a pink slip.

In addition, I am scouring the web to bring you the best of what’s been written about surviving the current tough economy.

Here are two great articles from Robert Scoble chock full of tips for holding on to your job and getting a new one right away if you do get laid off.

If You Are Laid Off, Here’s How to Socially Network

What to Do If You’re Laid Off in 2008 recession

And on a more humorous note:

7 Essential Steps to Surviving a Post-Layoff Existence

Check out the ‘IT-Career-Coach’ Resume, Job Search and Interview training program that walks you through the process of finding a new job immediately.

You’ll Learn Step-by-Step

• How to Run an Accelerated Job Search
• How to Find Unadvertised Jobs
• What Employers Want to See on Your Resume
• How to Be the Best Candidate in a Technical Interview
• Advanced Techniques that 98% of Job Searchers Don’t Know (This Means You’ll Be Ahead of the Game)

How the Coaching Works

• You Get Step By Step Video Training that Shows You How to Get Hired Fast!
• Your Resume and Cover Letter are Reviewed to Ensure They Match the Positions You’re Applying For.
• You are Coached on How To Be the Top Candidate by Selling Yourself During Your Technical Interviews.

Click here for more information

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• Data Analysts Boot Camp - Online, Web Based, Instructor Led, Hands On, Data Analyst Video Training


• Get Hired Fast - Online, Web Based, Resume + Job Search + Interview Video Training


• Become A Leader Coaching - Develop hands-on experience, gain domain expertise, solve industry problems, Stand Up and Be Noticed, market your career using PULL instead of PUSH techniques!

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You Need People and You Need Information

Are you missing out in information at the office that could be critical to your career? You may be a hard working employee who eats lunch at your desk and prefers reading another IT book to attending company parties.

However, knowledge is power. Networking within your company prevents you from being the one who is always the last to know about major changes that may impact you, your team or the organization.

The current economy makes it a bad time to be isolated at work. Many job cuts are being announced every single day, making it critical that you build your network of co-workers, colleagues and acquaintances up to provide a safety net if your job situation is ever in jeopardy.

By networking within your company, you will pick up on the organizational culture within your company. You’ll learn about job openings within the company and in other teams, organizational changes, information on mergers and sales, new technology strategies and software purchases.

7 Ways to Build Your Network and Get in Loop at Work

1. Go to Lunch with Your Team: Invite a co-worker out to lunch, or join other co-workers who regularly go to lunch together. The relaxed atmosphere at lunch is a great place to pick on tidbits about what people are working on.
2. Attend Company Functions: Company parties are great places to strike up friendships with people in other departments and find out what’s interesting on their teams.
3. Read Company Newsletters and Reports, Research Industry News: Read about the organizational changes and industry trends that may affect you or bring about new opportunities.
4. Help Others: Look for opportunities to do someone a favor within and outside your team. You’ll need to have started talking to others, first. As you begin to get information, find ways to solve problems. If your boss mentions that the higher ups plan to move to another software platform, do some research for her to help her impress her bosses.
5. Stay in Touch With Ex Co-Workers: When you leave a company, or someone leaves your company, ask for their contact information. Stay in touch. Send a card at Christmas. You never know when you’ll need a job reference or a job referral.
6. Tell or Teach People What You Know: Share the information you have. Give tips, ideas and suggestions to others. Giving is a great way to get in the loop.
7. Ask Questions: Become curious about what’s going on in the workplace. As questions about the direction your company is moving in. Your performance review is a good time to ask your boss the same questions he asks you: Where do you see this team going in five years? What goals do you hope to achieve this year?

As you begin to interact regularly with people on the job, you will find that you are slowly building a network of people who like and rely on you, thus expanding your options for moving ahead in your career.

Check out the ‘IT-Career-Coach’ Resume, Job Search and Interview training program that walks you through the process of finding a new job immediately.

You’ll Learn Step-by-Step

• How to Run an Accelerated Job Search
• How to Find Unadvertised Jobs
• What Employers Want to See on Your Resume
• How to Be the Best Candidate in a Technical Interview
• Advanced Techniques that 98% of Job Searchers Don’t Know (This Means You’ll Be Ahead of the Game)

How the Coaching Works

• You Get Step By Step Video Training that Shows You How to Get Hired Fast!
• Your Resume and Cover Letter are Reviewed to Ensure They Match the Positions You’re Applying For.
• You are Coached on How To Be the Top Candidate by Selling Yourself During Your Technical Interviews.

Click here for more information

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• Data Analysts Boot Camp - Online, Web Based, Instructor Led, Hands On, Data Analyst Video Training


• Get Hired Fast - Online, Web Based, Resume + Job Search + Interview Video Training


• Become A Leader Coaching - Develop hands-on experience, gain domain expertise, solve industry problems, Stand Up and Be Noticed, market your career using PULL instead of PUSH techniques!

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Pink Slip

Being laid off usually comes as a shock to most people that it happens to. This is even more the case if your company does not make a public announcement of its intentions to cut jobs.

However, the layoff decision is rarely made the morning you get your pink slip. Managers are often given weeks within which to select the people who will be laid off from their teams.

While it is always difficult for a manager to let an employee go, sometimes it is an opportunity for them to weed out those people who have been dragging the team performance down. If you’ve had trouble with your manager or co-workers in the past, that’s a sure sign that you may be one of the first to go.

Other times, there’s no good reason for you to be chosen as the sacrificial lamb. You’ve worked hard and been a team player; however, you still get the boot. There are signs that can give you a heads up that this may happen.

Here are the warnings that you are being considered for a layoff:

1. Your workload suddenly becomes very light. If there are no new projects coming your way, it may be a sign that your employer plans to let you go.
2. You have consistently been an underperformer on the job. You miss deadlines and your work is under par. Your lack of energy or application of commitment and creativity to the tasks your team faces will make you a sure pick for a layoff. If you’ve been hovering around the fringes of productivity, this is the time to do a 180 degree turn and start contributing in major ways to your team. Get to work early, stay late, stop surfing the web during work hours. Go over and beyond the call of duty. You may just save your job.
3. You don’t get along with your co-workers or with your boss. In a downturn, your manager is more likely to keep his or her favorites around. It’s just the way life is. Most organizations value a team player over a star player. If you’ve had problems in your interactions with co-workers in the past, this is a good time to patch up. Reach out and be likeable.
4. Your manager starts to micro-manage you. He requests status updates on all of your projects and tasks. In this case, you may be scheduled for a layoff and your manager is trying to get a handle of what’s on your plate.
5. You only perform one task or one function for your company. You need to evaluate how much value you are creating for your company. The junior business analyst who only works on documentation is less valuable to an employer than the mid-level business analyst who interacts with the customers, gathers requirements and performs requirements analysis. Make yourself indispensable to your employer by gaining new skills fast. Find out the functions needed in your area that you currently don’t have the skills for and read a book, go for training or get certified.
6. Your boss gets laid off. This usually happens when a company plans to get rid of a division or department altogether. I heard from an in-house software developer for an IT staffing company whose boss got laid off. She was kept on to complete her project and was laid off the day after she wrote the last line of code. Keep your eyes and ears open and start working on your resume and job search plans if you see any hints that your company is cost-cutting.
7. Your company or company division gets sold or merged with another. Mergers and division sales always create an at-risk situation for jobs. The new company may choose to replace all the employees from the former company with their own people. If your company is in the middle of a merger or sale, try to find out as much as you can about the terms of the deal. Either way, get your resume ready to find a new job if you need to.

Check out the ‘IT-Career-Coach’ Resume, Job Search and Interview training program that walks you through the process of finding a new job immediately.

You’ll Learn Step-by-Step

• How to Run an Accelerated Job Search
• How to Find Unadvertised Jobs
• What Employers Want to See on Your Resume
• How to Be the Best Candidate in a Technical Interview
• Advanced Techniques that 98% of Job Searchers Don’t Know (This Means You’ll Be Ahead of the Game)

How the Coaching Works

• You Get Step By Step Video Training that Shows You How to Get Hired Fast!
• Your Resume and Cover Letter are Reviewed to Ensure They Match the Positions You’re Applying For.
• You are Coached on How To Be the Top Candidate by Selling Yourself During Your Technical Interviews.

Click here for more information

What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?

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ABOUT TRAINING & COACHING COURSES

• Business Analyst Boot Camp - Online, Web Based, Instructor Led, Business Analyst Video Training


• SQL Boot Camp - Online, Web Based, Instructor Led, Hands On, SQL + RDBMS Video Training


• Software Developer Boot Camp - Online, Web Based, Instructor Led, Software Developer Video Training


• Data Analysts Boot Camp - Online, Web Based, Instructor Led, Hands On, Data Analyst Video Training


• Get Hired Fast - Online, Web Based, Resume + Job Search + Interview Video Training


• Become A Leader Coaching - Develop hands-on experience, gain domain expertise, solve industry problems, Stand Up and Be Noticed, market your career using PULL instead of PUSH techniques!

Visit our Shopping Cart