ITCareerCoach Training - Coaching » highest paying jobs http://www.it-career-coach.net How To Take Your Career To The Next Level Mon, 06 Feb 2012 01:09:27 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 This Type Of Hands-On Experience Can JumpStart Your Career! http://www.it-career-coach.net/2012/01/17/this-type-of-hands-on-experience-can-jumpstart-your-career/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2012/01/17/this-type-of-hands-on-experience-can-jumpstart-your-career/#comments Tue, 17 Jan 2012 06:52:54 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3379

This Type of Experience Will JumpStart Your Career!

This Type of Experience Will JumpStart Your Career!

Not all experience is created equal. Some types of project experience count as being more relevant than others simply because employers place a higher value on them. Here is why:

Getting experience in areas that require innovation or cutting edge skills for example counts more because that is where a lot of money is being spent and where there is more exposure or risk!

Employers hire those with experience in the types of projects they are financially vested in, so they can increase their chances of success or mitigate risk, makes sense right?

Here is some common sense advice … “Go Where The Money Is“!

The Web & Software Development Industry employs / hires a lot of web oriented professionals because companies are constantly investing in their web / software development projects

Information Technology / Software Development projects are funded with the belief that they can reduce costs, increase efficiency, streamline operations or business processes and increase sales.

In the article titled: How To Get Extensive Hands-on Experience In Information Technology I discussed the make / break role that hands-on web / software project experience plays in your career regardless of whether you are a business analyst, project manager, software developer, software tester, technical writer, database developer or data analyst.

In part 2 of the article series, I will discuss the types of hands-on project experience that are likely to jump-start your career!

Get Leadership Experience

You may be aware of the need to get hands-on experience in technical skills (UML, Use Cases, Object Oriented Design, Manual Testing, etc.) but are you aware of the need to get leadership experience?

Even if you are technically qualified, without demonstrating or showing some leadership experience, you may still fail to impress hiring managers.

Here is an example of a question that you may get at a job interview about your leadership experience:

“When was the last time you demonstrated initiative and how did your actions significantly or positively affect the outcome of your project?”

Get Database Experience

Enterprise software development projects incorporate a significant amount of database functionality.

Regardless of whether you are a business analyst, project manager or software tester, database experience will stand you in good stead in your career.

For Example, As a project manager assigned to Information Technology (IT) projects, your role may be that of a Technical Project Manager (TPM), which means that you are expected to get your hands dirty, especially with databases.

As a TPM, hands-on database skills will help you supervise the completion of important software features, troubleshoot data migration issues or research ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) problems.

Database skills are now regarded as sine qua non, an essential ingredient of your job description, regardless of whether you are a business analyst, project manager, data analyst or software developer!

Get User Interface (UI) / Design Experience

The User Interface (UI) is key to the success of software development projects because customers typically care more about how their software or websites look than how it is constructed.

However, it takes a diverse set of skills to create the right user interface design / experience.

As a salesperson, you can help the web design / user interface team adhere to your organizations marketing goals while achieving their aesthetic goals.

As a business analyst, you can be intimately involved in the design of screens and page flows used on a website / software development project.

Web Business Analysis / User Interface (UI) Business Analysis is a real-world job / specialization for business analysts who cater to or specialize in front-end, user experience / user interface requirements.

As a project manager, user interface testing experience will look good on your resume and as a software developer, user interface design / development should be part of your core skills.

Get Software Testing Experience

Since the success of software projects sometimes depend on defects or bugs discovered by customers after a walk-through, your project will do well if all team members and not just software testers, take part in hands-on User Acceptance testing.

I am not saying that you must become a professional software tester. I am saying that some level of software testing experience will help you look like a well-rounded candidate regardless of whether you are a business analyst, project manager or computer programmer.

In closing, try to work on software / web development projects because there is typically a lot of work for professionals with experience in those sectors.

Regardless of your professional background (business analysis, project management, data analysis, computer programming, etc.), work on getting leadership, database, software testing and user interface (UI) hands-on experience so that your profile will be that of a well-rounded candidate who has taken the time to align his / her career with the current hiring needs / trends in the Information Technology industry.

Thanks & Best Wishes, IT Career Coach

This article is #2 of a 2 article series. The first installation of this article (part 1) may be viewed here …

You may review the references for this article series below.

References

  1. Learn more: The Most Important Thing on Your Resume
  2. Learn more: Which Courses or Certifications Guarantee A Job?
  3. Learn more: Can Certifications Take The Place Of Experience?
  4. Learn more: How To Get Computer Programming Experience
  5. Learn more: Stuck in a College Mindset After Graduation
  6. Learn more: Which Software Development Life Cycle Is Best?
  7. Learn more: Can You Perform? Prove It!
  8. Learn more: How To Get Extensive Hands-on Experience In Information Technology

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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2012/01/17/this-type-of-hands-on-experience-can-jumpstart-your-career/feed/ 0 How to Tap Into Magical Hiring Powers http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/08/18/how-to-tap-into-magical-hiring-powers/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/08/18/how-to-tap-into-magical-hiring-powers/#comments Thu, 18 Aug 2011 20:28:09 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3269

Tapping Into Your Magical Hiring Powers

Tapping Into Your Magical Hiring Powers

As a Career Coach, I come across questions or discussions from job seekers “looking for recruiter who can get them a job“.

From the way these statements are worded, it seems that all it takes for the job seeker to get a job is finding a recruiter with magical hiring powers.

But, is it really true?

Do recruiters have hiring powers and how much of the success or failure of the job search depends on the recruiter’s magical hiring powers?

In this post, I will clarify the recruiter’s role and show you how to tap into the magical hiring powers available to job search candidates!

  1. Recruiters Are Gatekeepers

    Recruiters, staffing agencies or placement services simply screen and then forward resumes to employers / clients.

    A placement service will forward your resume to the client / employer if you have performed jobs in the past related to the job posting.

    If the employer is picky about resumes or complains about the quality / number of job candidates, the staffing / placement service will raise the requirements for submission.

    But keep in mind that recruiters do not exclusivity to job postings in a broad sense because you can always forward your resume to employers, have a staffing agency do it for you or do both.

  2. Recruiters Are Lie Detectors

    Generally speaking, many recruiters in the Information Technology (IT) industry do not have a technical background.

    They have not worked with or used the tools listed on your resume / job posting and cannot really say whether you are qualified or not.

    So, what they do is check your resume to see if it will pass a very basic, unsophisticated lie detector.

    Recruiters want to know such things like: where you have worked, what titles you held and whether you are eligible t work for the client.

    Note: when working with recruiters, take the extra step of convincing them that your resume and background is a good fit, because they may not be able to tell the difference!

  3. Can Staffing Agencies Claim Exclusivity?

    Generally, employers will use multiple staffing agencies and then use their own internal hiring team to narrow the pool of resumes down to a few candidates who would be interviewed or hired.

    An Employer may also decide to be discreet about the hiring process and use only one staffing agency.

    But even in this case, the staffing agency does not make a hiring decision. All the placement service can do for you is forward your resume to the employer.

  4. Who Makes Hiring Decisions?

    In all cases, it’s the employer’s internal hiring team / manager that makes the hiring decision and not the placement / staffing agency.

    Recruiters do not have magical hiring powers and you cannot base your job search on claims of exclusivity by a recruiter.

    Remember that the job search process is a democratic process and that you, the staffing agency and the employer all participate or play active roles in the process.

Discover Magic In A Law Of Numbers

One of the most important laws in the hiring process is the law of numbers.

This law says that “the more resumes you submit and job interviews you take, the greater your chances of getting hired!”

The law of numbers gives you magical hiring powers because the more recruiters, staffing or placement agencies you submit your resume to … the greater are your chances of getting hired.

So, my advice is, don’t look up to recruiters, staffing / placement agencies instead, look-up to yourself by tapping into your own magical hiring powers!


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/08/18/how-to-tap-into-magical-hiring-powers/feed/ 1 Learn How to Make Knowledge or Skills Work http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/03/24/learn-how-to-make-knowledge-or-skills-work/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/03/24/learn-how-to-make-knowledge-or-skills-work/#comments Fri, 25 Mar 2011 01:55:38 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3147

Make your Knowledge or Skills Work

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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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/03/24/learn-how-to-make-knowledge-or-skills-work/feed/ 0 Live Up To Your Potential in 3 Steps http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/03/20/live-up-to-your-potential-in-3-steps/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/03/20/live-up-to-your-potential-in-3-steps/#comments Sun, 20 Mar 2011 16:28:39 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3144

Live Up To Your Potential

Live Up To Your Potential

This question was submitted by a very young, exceptionally gifted and talented top performer who wants to know how he can live up to his potential.

Hello,

I am very young (23) and was radically accelerated through college \ graduate school.

By next year, I will have a BA (Math \ Religion), MBA (Management Consultancy), MSc (Business IT), PhD (Computing & Mathematics), and PhD (ABD), in IT from leading universities, as well as 9+ years IT experience, with 5+ years BA experience with stellar recommendations.

I do not want a career in university teaching or research … could you suggest a few viable directions to move my career forward in IT business analysis?

I feel “painted into a corner” and now am not certain which way to go at this point, as a Senior Analyst.

Just a few alternatives would be helpful.

Best regards and thank you.

How To Fulfill Your Potential

The first of the three most important challenges facing talented people is that of identifying their passion.

This is a big challenge because talented folks can do almost anything and succeed at it.

Another challenge facing talented folks is not doing what they love and / or following the money trail!

Because talented people can easily get high-paying jobs and get paid a lot more than their colleagues, they can be easily derailed from their true objectives.

Following the money trail is bad because it eventually leads to mediocrity.

Regardless of how talented one is, it is not possible to achieve your deepest potential if you do not identify your passion and do what you love.

The final challenge that talented people face is not taking their passion to market.

They pick vocations where they are unable to serve their community or their world because of money concerns or because of poor career recommendations.

Discover Your Passion

The first and most important thing that you have to do: “is to discover your passion“.

Your passion is something that you are deeply interested in doing because you love it, you have strengths in it, you enjoy thinking, dreaming or even speaking about it.

Your passion is not necessarily what promises you job security or what promises you lots of money.

Money and Job Security are used as the primary basis of making career recommendations and yet, they don’t truly matter because … guess what?

If you do what you truly love, the money will surely follow!

Discovering your passion is an exercise of the heart and not of the head.

You must be able to dream or envision your passion in your heart first and then use your head to figure out what to do.

Good folks get this heart and head mixed up all the time! Your heart is your instinctive, sensing personality and your head is your rational, logical person.

Do What You Love

The second thing that you must do on the path to self actualization is to: “Do What You Love”.

Doing what you love means working very hard at something that you love.

But it also means more than that … it means training yourself the way that world-class athletes do!

Though you can do several things exceptionally very well, you should concentrate on a few disciplines and hone your abilities in those alone.

You want to become so good in your chosen field, that your work in those areas will stand out in comparison to that of any others in your chosen field.

Think about this for a moment: world-class athletes have to invest considerable amounts of time into just training and honing their skills.

They understand that even through they may be exceptionally gifted, they cannot win unless they are much better than the competition or other equally gifted and talented folks.

And also get this … no world class athlete depends on their exceptional talents or giftedness alone!

Instead they put themselves through the most rigorous, skill-advancing training that they can find so that they can live up to their potential.

The issue is not really whether you are gifted. The true issue at stake is whether you will live up to your potential? I will advise that you read these two books:

  1. Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
  2. Talent Code by Daniel Coyle

Amongst other things, these two books point out that to become a world class player, you will have to invest a solid amount of time into just doing nothing else but honing your skills and abilities!

Take Your Passion To the Market

Starting a blog and getting on Social Media is the starting point for taking your passion to market.

The next thing that you have to do with your passion or the work that you love is: “Subscribe to the Publish or Perish” mantra which you are already used to coming from academia.

The main purpose of your blog is to create a market for your passion or connect your passion with an existing market on the internet.

Your market is the readers or subscribers of your blog and what you must do is: help them, talk to them, connect with them using your blog as your premier publishing or speaking platform.

Without sharing your passion with other people who love the topics that you care about, your passion dies with you … which is the definition of being boxed in!

Not having a blog means that you are not others learn or grow. It also means your own growth is incomplete because you are closed off from the feedback of your industry … and no one can develop your passion in isolation

Starting a blog does not mean that you must offer a service or sell a product.

Starting a blog does means that you have decided to make your world a better place by serving humanity with your gifts and talents.

The lesson here is that being wired or connected to others using blogging and social media is now considered essential for success!

One person that comes to mind in that regards is Jacob Nielsen, the world’s numero uno usability expert!

For several years, he has been conducting researches on usability and publishing his findings online.

From those findings, he has written books and he conducts training seminars around the globe.

You can see that Jacob is deeply passionate and extremely knowledgeable in his field and that he publishes more than most people in his field.

Do these 3 things (discover your passion, do what you love, take your passion to market) and you will succeed.

Jonathan, when you break into stardom, don’t stop telling people how I helped you, ok :-)

P.S. I am sending you my new ebook titled “Discover Your Passion, Do What You Love, Take Your Passion To Market“.

Best Wishes and Lots of Success in your Career

This question was published using [Ask IT Career Coach].

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

If you have a question about your career that you will like me to answer for you, go ahead and submit it using the [Ask IT Career Coach] Career Advice Service.


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/03/20/live-up-to-your-potential-in-3-steps/feed/ 0 Success Principle: Learn the Most Marketable Skills http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/28/learn-most-marketable-skills/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/28/learn-most-marketable-skills/#comments Tue, 01 Mar 2011 01:47:21 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3126

Learn a Top 100 Most Marketable Skill

Learn a Top 100 Most Marketable Skill


As a career coach one of the challenges that many of my clients face is that of learning the most marketable skills in the current job market.

An example is a client that I will call John who has been looking for a while even though he has an advanced management degree (MBA).

He wonders why he’s constantly getting turned down for business analyst jobs even though he is certain of this: most of those getting hired are less educated than him!

John is having a hard time seeing why despite his impressive educational qualifications, his skill sets are still not in alignment with business analyst job postings.

John’s problem is that he is still viewing the job market from his perspective and not from the employers. If he can just change his perspective, his situation will improve dramatically!

John is not alone in this regard because just like him, we also hold on to our cherished opinions until a personal crisis forces us to objectively evaluate them.

However, if John does not confront his personal beliefs or change how he approaches the job market, he may not fulfill his potential career wise!

He will have to either leave his traditional way of thinking for a more modern, objective view point or remain in his comfort zone with nothing to show for his beliefs!

New Research Data On the Top 100 Most Marketable Skills

I start off my career coaching for some clients by asking them to take an objective look at the demand for their skills in the current job market.

This is because the constantly changing face of culture or technology causes a misalignment of skills in the employment market.

So market research is needed to highlight those skill gaps which must be bridged for one to become an in-demand professional again.

In today’s career defining post, I will show you how to research the skills that are most currently in-demand so that you can get back into your game.

Did you know that the last recession and resulting layoffs was a big boost to the online job market?

To survive the financial downturn, both employers and job candidates turned to the online employment industry in record numbers at a time when the traditional employment market was grinding to a standstill.

In the fourth quarter of 2010, a report produced by an online employment agency shows that the four (4) biggest industries employing online workers were:

  1. The Information Technology (IT) / Software Development Industry

  2. The Creative / Web Design Industry

  3. The Internet Marketing Industry

  4. The Office Administration Industry

Which Jobs Are Most Indemand Online?

This report is important because it shows the most indemand skills that employers are hiring for in the fourth quarter of 2010.

This type of report will help you make decisions based on real-world data and not based on opinions or subjective interpretation of the job market.

Here are the jobs that are most in-demand based on an analysis of hiring in the fourth quarter of 2010.

#1 In-demand Job: Information Technology Industry

The information technology / software development market is the biggest employer of labor.

Fifty-nine percent (59%) of online job postings are in the Information technology / Software Development industry which primarily employs web developers, web designers, computer programmers, sql query writers, database developers and mobile phone developers.

Keep in mind that this industry also traditionally employs Information Technology (IT) business analysts, project managers and software testers who are charged with the success of software development / information technology projects.

The online employment market is weighed in favor of the Information Technology (IT) Industry and of computer programmers with PHP, MySQL, C#, ASP.NET, .NET Framework, Sql Server, Sql, HTML/XHTML, CSS, Javascript skills.

#2 In-demand Job: Creative / Web Design Industry

Creative jobs are the second most popular jobs (24%) posted by online employers.

Creative jobs may require skills in web design, illustration and graphic / web design software packages like Adobe Photosho, Flash, ActionScript, Adobe AfterEffects, etc.

The creative or web design industry traditionally hires professionals who can create logos, banners, website themes, illustrate comic books or websites, create cartoons, comic characters, interactive elements of web pages, animations or even movies.

The web design industry also traditionally employs web business analysts, project managers or software testers with strong handson domain experience in the web design / web development industry.

#3 In-demand Job: Internet Marketing Industry

While the software development / information technology industry is the highest employer of labor, the online internet marketing industry is experiencing the highest growth surge because of the increasing investment in social networking projects for Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn.

What this also means is that the marketing department in many organizations are employing or spending money on social networking / social media platform projects.

So strong skills in this sector of the indusstry can put your career back online because that is where the marketing dollars are going right now!

The combined spending on online branding, media and customer acquisition, affiliate marketing, search engine marketing and social networking places the Internet Marketing Industry in the third position in the list of the biggest online employers of labor.

#4 In-demand Job: Office Administration Industry

The Office / Administration industry provides about six percent (6%) of the jobs posted in the online employment job market.

This industry hires for data entry, general office and computer skills, customer service and telephone services amongst others.

So How Do Begin To Learn A Marketable Skill?

You have read my analysis of the online employment job market based on the 2010 fourth quarter report from one of the online employment agencies, right?

My Free Report which you may download below contains more of my analysis of the top 100 most marketable skills and how to position your career to take advantage of them.

Next, practice the first of three (3) success principles that will align your skills with the online hiring needs of employers.

Success Principle: Learn a Marketable Skill

You may have your own ideas about which industries you want to work for ... but it is better to consider the industries that are most likely to hire you!

This is sometimes a question of whether you want to stay idle until your perfect job opportunity opens up or do what it takes to align your skills with the current job market and start earning an income?

Here is something to consider: learn skills that closely matches your personality, background, interests, education or training from the list of the top 100 most marketable skills online.

Download and read the FREE Report below … and if you need help with learning one of the top 100 most marketable skills, get in touch with us here.

For example, if you learn skills that align you with the software development / information technology industry, internet marketing, creative or office / administrative industry, you are making an informed decision based on data.

If your goal is to start earning an income in the shortest possible time, then learn a marketable skill from an industry that is hiring, OK?

For example, though the Information Technology (IT) industry is the highest employer of online labor, learning a computer programming skill like perl, which is not currently in top demand by employers, puts you out of the hiring game.

Whenever you learn a skill that is not marketable, you make it harder for yourself to get hired … and the less marketable your skills are, the harder you will have to work to get a job.

The Law of Numbers: Don’t put yourself out of the game by doing your own thing.

Make a data based decision by learning one of the top 100 most marketable skills today!

Download the FREE Report below and read my three (3) principles on aligning your skills with job market by learning.

When you download and read the FREE Report below, you will also learn about the top 100 most marketable skills in the online industry.

Click Here To Read the Newly Updated FREE Report

Click Here To Get A Top 100 Online Marketable Skill


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/28/learn-most-marketable-skills/feed/ 0 Is College Worth The Money? http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/22/is-college-worth-the-money/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/22/is-college-worth-the-money/#comments Tue, 22 Feb 2011 06:00:30 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3109

Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses

Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses

The answer to the question: “Is College Worth The Money?” is YES … so please go to the best college you can afford because there are doors in life that will be easier for you to open if you have a college degree.

That being said, there are pros and cons to attending college and a right / wrong mindset that you need to be aware of.

In a new book, “Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses,” sociologists Richard Arum of New York University and Josipa Roksa of the University of Virginia, are of the opinion that “College Students in the US are not learning Much“

Reporting on a study of more than 2,300 undergraduates they discovered that 45 percent of students show no significant improvement in the key measures of critical thinking, complex reasoning and writing by the end of their sophomore years.

Based on the findings of the report, it looks like students who work hard, drain their personal or parent’s savings and take on a huge debt to go to college … are not getting what they paid for!

Click here to read the article titled: College Students Not Learning Much

I believe that college is worth the money, if you know how to get the best out of it.

Here is my advice on the matter:

  1. Go to college to expand your mind: Study a topic that you are really curious about and intellectually invested in.

    While you are at college, seek to understand or learn or acquire knowledge as a means to personal enlightenment and not as a means to making more money or finding a job.

  2. Go to college to study your passion: Study a science or art that you genuinely want to make a heartfelt contribution to.

    The process of trying to make a contribution to your industry will let you know if you are passionate enough about it or if you have the goods to succeed in that industry.

    If you can’t think of a way to improve the industry while you are surrounded by volumes of books and some of the smartest folks in the world, then you may be studying for the wrong career!

  3. Go to college to connect with your industry: Use your time in college to connect with or network with potential employers.

    Get a real-world part-time or full-time job and do something practical along the lines of your career regardless of whether you get paid for it or not.

    The feedback that you get from a real-world job is invaluable! It allows you to get the type of handson experience or practical skills that results in a good offer after graduation.

  4. Do not go to college to get a job: Going to college solely for the purpose of getting a job is a waste of your time and money.

    You will not learn any real-world skills from college and you will probably not learn much from your college studies either as the authors:p Arum and Roksa point out.

  5. Going to college does not entitle you to a career: I have hired, worked with and advised college graduates who are basically adrift in their careers because they assume that they are entitled to a career because they have for example a computer science college degree.

    These group of people find it very very hard to empty themselves of their preconceived notions of what society owes them and they typically have too high an opinion of themselves to start from the bottom or build their career up!

    They are typically very opinionated, very low in practical skills or experience and very high in expectations of what they will earn or what their skills will command in the market.

Going to college can be worth the money, if you have the right set of expectations about what it offers or will not offer you.

While in college, endeavor to widen your mind, your horizons and your vision.

Finally make the best use of your time in college by working on real world projects so that you can build the relevant skills or experience before you graduate.


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/22/is-college-worth-the-money/feed/ 1 Oracle Or Microsoft Access, Which Is Better? http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/17/oracle-or-ms-access-which-is-better/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/17/oracle-or-ms-access-which-is-better/#comments Thu, 17 Feb 2011 23:14:10 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3105

Oracle Or Microsoft Access, Which Is Better For Me?

Oracle Or Microsoft Access, Which Is Better For Me?

Are you matching your strengths to your opportunities or are you just being ideological … interested only in following your own ideas even when they won’t get you any results?

Here is a situation that illustrates the challenges of being ideological versus being results oriented. It is a situation that illustrates the challenges of learning an enterprise software like Oracle compared to a poor man’s database like Microsoft Access.

Are you wondering about who this situation involves? You are safe my friend because today, I will mainly be talking about me :-)

When I started out in the industry, my first priority was to get my foot into the door.

My goals were:

  1. To transition my career without incurring a lot of additional debt
  2. To learn a marketable skill so that I could get a job quickly
  3. To get myself into a position where I would be in high-demand by delivering excellent results

There were a number of career paths that looked promising and I looked into them all. Here a few of them:

Business Analysis

The business analyst career path was mostly available to systems analysts or management consultants people or poorly defined.

By poorly defined, i mean that it depended on the whims of hiring managers (it was subjective and depended on the employers needs or definitions) and so, there was no very clear or direct path to becoming a business analyst (this was in the ‘90s).

Network Administration

I had worked in network administration in an internship job right after college. My duties entailed helping support a Lotus CC:Mail/ Novell Netware Network

Based on my own first-hand experience, I ruled out computer networking primarily because I realized that I was not passionate about that industry.

Systems Programming

While in college, I had tried to learn C/C++ and I also decided that it wasn’t my thing because it took a long time to develop a fully functional software using C/C++

Based on experience, I knew that I wouldn’t be able to master C/C+ in a few months or get a job easily.

My finding was that it would take a number of years to become really expert or highly skilled at C/C++.

I was also certain, that even when I became highly skilled, I still won’t be able to deliver stellar results based on C/C++.

In case you’re interested, read my thoughts on choosing C/C++ as a programming language here…

Enterprise Database Software

I investigated getting an entry level job in SAP / Oracle / IBM or some other enterprise software since that is where it seemed that the big bucks where being made. In the 90’s, the major database players included IBM, Oracle, Microsoft.

Oracle was very popular in the enterprise database computing circle. However, learning Oracle was no small feat.

I mean that installing Oracle on your own local computer for learning purposes was not an easy proposition even for experienced oracle professionals because companies hired senior / experienced Oracle consultants just to install and setup Oracle correctly on their servers.

In addition to that, Oracle was targeted at the enterprise buyer which meant that purchasing a full-featured Oracle license for an individual like me without corporate sponsorship … was simply beyond my budget!

In addition, even if I raised the money to buy an Oracle License, I would have to spend additional weeks installing Oracle correctly by myself or else hire an Oracle database consultant to install it (Oracle database consultants billed anywhere from $60/hr. to $120/hr.)

And assuming that I overcame the hurdle of buying an Oracle license and then installing Oracle, I would still have to figure out one more thing about Oracle … how to learn Oracle!

You see, Oracle was one of those complex enterprise software application that had a really high learning curve.

The chances that I was going to learn or master Oracle in time enough to get a job was very low because professionals who had been working with Oracle for years where still struggling to understand it … it was that complex!

So, tell me, what will you have done if you were in my shoes?

Did I fixate on learning Oracle … even though I knew professionals that worked with Oracle for years were still struggling to get to a comfort level with it?

Absolutely not! One of the Oracle professionals that I was personally acquainted with had started working with or learning Oracle while we were still in college.

By the time I was evaluating learning Oracle, this professional (a lady based in the United Kingdom) was just getting comfortable with Oracle … and that is after working with it for 8 to 10 years!

So, I decided that the Oracle database and many of the other popular enterprise software applications available at that time had too high a learning curve!

Yes, I know that everyone’s situation is different and yes I understand that “what is good for the goose is not always good for the gander“.

But my situation was that I was married and I had to pay my bills.

Even though my wife was willing to support me, I wasn’t okay with asking her to take care of all the bills while I went on a multi-year learning trip.

Not only that,I had been out of college for a few years and didn’t want to risk taking another 8 to 10 years to learn a new career!

And I definitely didn’t want to start a career that would require such an expensive re-training that I would have to go deeply in debt!

Put yourself in my shoes and tell me what you would have done if faced with my situation keeping in my objectives which were:

  • To learn a marketable skill in a short time: I had to learn a marketable skill so that I could easily get a job and get out of unemployment.

  • To be prudent or save money: I had to pay my bills and account for all sorts of living expenses, while paying for my own re-training.

  • To get into a line of work where I could easily become competent: I needed to learn a skill that I would become an expert at in a reasonable short time.

What will you have done in my shoes … because I choose Microsoft Access!

In those days, a lot of professionals looked down on Microsoft Access as a sort of poor man’s relational database even though Microsoft Access had a lot going for it at that point in time.

Low Cost of Learning

Microsoft Access was available as part of the Microsoft Office family of products.

The cost of a Microsoft Office / Access license was as low as $300. And I budgeted an additional $100 for buying Microsoft Access textbooks from the local seller … Barnes & Noble. I would never forget the price that I paid for my very first Microsoft Access Book … just $49.50.

So, for less than $500, I was guaranteed that I would learn or master Microsoft Access … which was great news for me as an unemployed newbie IT professional!

Low Learning Curve

It took me between 30 and 60 days to study or master Microsoft Access from textbooks. After which I spent my remaining time, taking Microsoft Access practice tests and building relational databases.

In my first job interview test administered by a local staffing agency in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I scored above 90% and got hired into the systems / data analysis department of a local e-commerce firm with a starting salary of $15/hr.

Accelerated Time To Market

By my third month of working with Microsoft Access, I had completed a project that was estimated to last about 6 weeks in 2 weeks.

Because I could achieve those sorts of results, the IT Manager called a recruiting firm without my knowledge or permission and advised them to find more challenging work for me … which they did!

By my third month, I was billing $76,000/yr. and my billing rate continued to increase with time!

Dear Friend,

What I have learnt is that the only thing that stops us from achieving the results we want is our limiting belief systems or self-imposed mental boundaries.

So, what works and what doesn’t?

  1. Don’t hang your career on getting a recognized certificate or diploma

    That is so old school! The only thing that matters is your ability to perform on the job … and no accredited degree or diploma or program can confer that to you.

    In other words, you either learn or know how to get the job done or you don’t.

  2. Don’t get stuck learning any vendor’s software

    Because I got my foot in through the door, I have since had the chance to learn or work with Oracle and IBM enterprise databases at the employer’s expense!

    Learning Microsoft Access first actually made it easier for me to learn or work with SQL Server, Oracle and IBM databases later on.

    Remember that you are the one that makes the job work and not the software, vendor or qualification.

    I have seen professionals who want to become business analysts get stuck on learning an enterprise requirement management software like IBM Rational RequisitePro.

    These good folks forget that many employers can’t afford the licensing costs of the same software that they are hung up on and they also forget that requirements management is first and foremost a set of principles or techniques and not a software!.

    If you learn requirements management techniques you can for example document requirements using Microsoft Office or your employer can purchase any of the myriads of requirements management software in the market.

    So why are you so hung up on learning IBM Rational RequisitePro as if that makes you a business analyst?

  3. Learn a marketable skill

    One of the biggest challenges facing professionals is the right choice of a career. I know that because I get asked that question every day

    I’ve seen professionals get stuck with programming skills that are not marketable like mainframe programming or C/C++.

    In one instance, a C/C++ programmer with a computer science college degree after being unemployable for 3 years got the very first job he interviewed for … after I coached him on C#, ASP.NET and .NET Framework.

    His mistake that of failing to learn a marketable skill. The good news is that it only cost him a few months to rectify that mistake. And, once he fixed that, his career was back online again!

Here is my last advise to you on this point, make sure that you are pragmatic and not ideological about your career choices.

If it is looking like you are getting stuck on the path you are on, carefully evaluate all the other alternatives available to you.


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/17/oracle-or-ms-access-which-is-better/feed/ 6 The Survivors Guide To Overcoming Unemployment http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/13/the-survivors-guide-to-overcoming-unemployment/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/13/the-survivors-guide-to-overcoming-unemployment/#comments Sun, 13 Feb 2011 11:46:02 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3098

The Survivors Guide To Overcoming Unemployment

The Survivors Guide To Overcoming Unemployment

Several years ago, I had a conversation with a lady who had a computer science degree but was unable to get hired for any type of Information technology (IT) job.

I realized right away, that what she lacked was an understanding of how the IT job / career market works. The sort of information that is generally omitted in schools because no one thinks it is important enough.

So, after she shared her story with me, I did some research and came to the startling conclusion that she was not alone.

I discovered that there was a big gap in our educational system and I am not just talking about schools, but staffing / recruiting / training agencies as well.

The problem was that all the players were in a hurry to make ends meet and no one really cared about the professional whose career or job was at stake.

For example, recruiters / staffing agencies will only work with you when your skills and experience matches that required on a job posting.

They will not think of helping you bridge the gaps in your skills, resume or experience or advancing your career further through coaching and mentoring.

So I started educating people on how to thrive or succeed in the Information Technology (IT) world and as a result this website (www.it-career-coach.net) was born.

Today, I have been giving another unique opportunity to help because a number of you are talking to me about their unemployment situations or asking for my advice or suggestions along those lines.

I want to say, thank you to everyone who has been talking to me about their unemployment situations.

I appreciate the trust you place in me and more importantly, your courage in talking about it!

I am dedicating the “FREE Survivors Guide To Overcoming Unemployment” below to those of you who are out of work..

Please download and read this career guide and learn how to survive unemployment or get productive by earning an income again.

I retain all the copyrights to this career guide. However, you have my permission to distribute it or share it with anyone (friends, strangers, colleagues, etc) or post it anywhere.

Download The Survivors Guide To Overcoming Unemployment Below


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/13/the-survivors-guide-to-overcoming-unemployment/feed/ 2 How To Start Programming for Mobile Phones? http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/25/how-to-start-programming-for-mobile-phones/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/25/how-to-start-programming-for-mobile-phones/#comments Tue, 25 Jan 2011 22:35:58 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3084

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

Here is a question that illustrates the challenges facing us as we try to find a worthwhile career.

I am a recent college grad who has come to the realization that I wasted time and money in a psychology degree with nothing to show for it.

I have always had an interest in computers, and recently developed a strong desire to possibly move into the computer industry (mainly b/c of google android and my passion for cell phones).

The problem is, i have no formal background, I don’t know where to start, and most articles I’ve read say don’t ruin your hobby by making it your job.

I respectfully seek more information about how to transition into this industry (really into cell phones) regardless of time, money or energy (seeing all I do at work and home is play with roms on my cell phones and dismantle them to discover their contents).

What I have though of so far is going and getting another bachelors (i love to learn; actually what I do best), going to a trade school (ITT, DeVry, etc.) or getting some type of certification, but I don’t know whats best. Any help would be appreciated.

Do You REALLY Need a College Degree to Get a Programming Job?

Congratulations, you have just made an important discovery; which is that it is more important for you to discover and develop your passion than to postpone it for a college degree.

However, don’t lose heart because your time has not been completely wasted.

While you do not absolutely need a college degree to get a computer programming job, some managers will view your college degree as proof of your ability to set a goal and achieve it.

According to Esther Schindler, having a major in a non-computer science discipline can actually work in your favor.

Read more about this in this article titled “Do You REALLY Need a College Degree to Get a Programming Job?“: http://bit.ly/2XKgEM.

The real issue here is not that you have a college degree but that you postponed doing what you love.

You should never put off following your passion for something else … at the very least, you should have worked hard at getting a college degree and also getting handson learning in cell phone application development at the same time.

Is A Computer Science Degree Worth It?

Is a formal background in computer science required for a career in mobile phone application development? The answer is absolutely not!

Again, you are making the mistake of looking for a solution in a college degree.

Don’t you see the trap that you are again falling into? You’ve already spent a number of years in college and all you got is a degree that you consider worthless … though I disagree with you on that.

And again, you are hoping that investing time, money and effort towards another degree will fix your career situation!

You are caught in a maze and it is time for you to wake up or get yourself out of it!

The problem is that most computer science colleges, trade schools or diploma providers will not teach you how to program on mobile phones.

They will most likely teach you just pure computer science and all the theoretical stuff, which is why you won’t be helped.

Even if you hit a homerun and you find a college where you can learn mobile phone programming, by the time you graduate, whatever you will have learned will have become ridiculously obsolete and you will be back at the starting point again!

Should You Turn Your Passion Into A Career?

Absolutely yes! The best career you can have is the one that you love, the career that interests you, the one that you do as a hobby or for fun.

Yes, I am asking you to do what you love and turn your passion or hobby into a full-time job.

The best reward you will get out of work is not the income that you make but the pleasure you get from doing your job.

Tell me, if you are not going to have much fun at work, why on this green planet will you do it?

How Do You Become A Mobile Phone Programmer?

You will become a mobile phone application developer by continuing along the path of getting your hands dirty with real-world mobile phone application development … and this is how you do that:

  1. Look into the cost of developing for each of the mobile phone platforms (Android, iPhones, Windows Phones) and then choose one of them to begin with

    .

  2. Get a good number of books on the platforms that you’ve chosen and start learning everything that there is to know

    .

  3. After you learn how mobile phone programming works on any of these major platforms, start building at least one mobile phone application project.

  4. If you find yourself being overwhelmed by all the information on mobile phone development technology, find a training provider or a course that you can subscribe to and learn mobile phone development in under a year.

And regardless of whether you are learning mobile phone development through self-study or through a training or coaching provider, keep building real-world mobile phone applications.

The biggest challenge that you will face with any Information Technology Career regardless of whether it is mobile phone programming or business analysis or project management is that of finding practical, real-world knowledge.

For overcoming that challenge, I would recommend that you read the book listed here: http://www.it-career-coach.net/book/

Are you facing a challenging career or job situation?Submit your Question to [Ask IT Career Coach] and we will answer it for you.


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/25/how-to-start-programming-for-mobile-phones/feed/ 1 What Is Your Personality Type? http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/22/what-is-your-personality-type/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/22/what-is-your-personality-type/#comments Sat, 22 Jan 2011 22:43:20 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3075

What Is Your Personality Type?

What Is Your Personality Type?

One of the reasons why professionals struggle with their careers or under-perform at their jobs is that their work or career does not match their personality!

When hiring someone to do job, it’s easy to see what skills and training they have acquired or what types of jobs they’ve previously performed from their resume.

What is not so easy to see is how that same person’s personality traits will fit in with that of other employees or how their personality will thrive on a daily basis after you’ve have hired them.

That is why you need to take a personality test … an instrument that is used to measure or assess the characteristics of your personality.

Personality tests are sometimes more accurately referred to as a personality inventory since the use of the word “test” implies a right or wrong answer must be given.

However when it comes to personality test, there is no right or wrong assessment but rather an objective, independent assessment of suitability for a career or a job.

Personality tests are simply a series of questions designed to gather information used in assessing general personality characteristics.

When administered properly, personality tests are effective for building successful teams.

The results from a personality test can give you good insight into what personality types work best together and what type of work is more effectively done by certain types of people.

Please note that: personality tests are not guaranteed to be accurate and people can change or adapt overall personality … even though that is not easy!

So, Is there a personality test that is accurate?

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) personality test was first developed in 1943.

During the more than 60 years it has been used, it has been perfected as an accurate personality indicator and when the more accurate, complete version of the test is administered, the results can be alarmingly accurate.

The MBTI groups uses 4 Type letters to distringuish16 unique and different personality types based on the answers to a Myers-Briggs personality test.

What are these 4 Type letters and what do they mean?

  • (I)ntrovert/(E)xtrovert
  • (S)ensing/(I)ntuivite
  • (T)hinking/(F)eeling
  • (J)udging/(P)erceptive

The idea that someone is an introvert vs. extrovert does not necessarily mean one is extremely outgoing and the other extremely shy. But rather, it implies from which perspective they tend to view situation: From within, or from without.

Sensing vs. Intuitive is similar to the introvert/extrovert in that it implies whether decisions are made based upon the physical senses or an intuitive knowing from within.

Thinking vs. Feeling suggests the process of thought and decision making as to whether it is done by concrete thinking or logic or based upon a feeling.

Judging vs. Perceptive describes if a person comes to conclusions based upon a logical criteria or based upon an inward perception.

Here are the 16 personality types based on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator for use in determining how suited you are for a career or job:

ISTJ Personality Type – Introvert Sensing Thinking Judging

To the ISTJ personality type, order and schedule is of utmost importance. and no sacrifice is too great to an ISTJ when it comes to keeping unity.

Even though they tend to have difficulty expressing emotions and what they think and can come off as being uncaring, they tend to develop strong and loyal relationships with others.

The ISTJ easily takes on responsibility. Because of this, they fit in well with any aspect of the IT profession in planning and inspecting, management, scheduling, auditing or accounting.

Spontaneity and abstract thinking is not a plus to the ISTJ personality and the ISTJ will remain consistently strong in everything they attempt.

ISFJ Personality Type – Introvert Sensing Feeling Judging

To the ISFJ, work is very important.

In terms of the IT Professional, they effectively fill the roles of protecting and supporting though they will work hard at any position as they have a strong sense of duty.

They may even remain silent or let others take advantage of them just to avoid conflict. This can be beneficial in business as they tend to put up with complaints for the sake of harmony.

INFJ Personality Type – Introvert Intuitive Feeling Judging

Inspiring and insightful, the INFJ personality tends to do well as a developer.

INFJ often inspire others and tend to succeed in creative situations.

This personality type does not enjoy tension and can come off as quiet or even disinterested. But, don’t be fooled. Beneath this unassuming exterior is a ton of ideas waiting to come forth and when these ideas are properly tapped, they come alive.

They will also jump at any chance to learn and broaden their horizons.

INTJ Personality Type – Introvert Intuitive Thinking Judging

The INTJ is very independent and may be perceived as being arrogant.

They may even appear to be argumentative, but this is the way they learn.

They like to see change for the better and can be intolerant of stagnation.

They do well in work environments where systems are set up to achieve maximum output.

They do well in management, consulting, computer programming and as Directors.

ISTP Personality Type – Introvert Sensing Thinking Perceptive

The ISTP personality may take charge in fixing a problem.

They are ready to try anything at least once.

They are spontaneous and do not like others to control them.

They do not enjoy routine work such as that of an administrator or researcher.

They shine in problem solving spontaneously with a tangible goal such as Analyzer or Operator.

ISFP Personality Type – Introvert Sensing Feeling Perceptive

The ISFP personality tends to be non-imposing.

They fear standing still and enjoy a challenge when working with people.

They do well when they can produce new thought patterns.

They do well in fields that involve composing and producing.

INFP Personality Type – Introvert Intuitive Feeling Perceptive

The INFP Personality type tends to bring harmony and clarification to the table.

They do not like conflict at all. In fact, there’s very little an INFP won’t do to avoid conflict.

They do have a desire to help others. Teaching and training is an excellent position for the INFP.

They also do well with research, design and human resources and they tend to crave working hard in whatever position they are placed.

INTP Personality Type – Introvert Intuitive Thinking Perceptive

The last-minute planner, the INTP adapts well to fast changes.

They need to find a challenge in their work. If they don’t find a challenge, they will grow discontented and depressed.

They are excellent at problem solving and theorizing.

They are excellent at strategic planning, writing, computer programming and design.

ESTP Personality Type – Extrovert Sensing Thinking Perceptive

The ESTP Personality thrives on being the center of attention.

They have a lack of order and tend to never plan as they see planning as a waste of time.

They love daily changes and refuse to get stuck in a rut.

In terms of the IT profession for the ESTP, they do well as an executor or in a role where they can be the promoter.

ESFP Personality Type – Extrovert Sensing Feeling Perceptive

The ESFP personality lives in the moment and does not make plans easily if at all.

They can be viewed as hyper or shallow as they push for excitement.

They do not like confrontation. They do, however, make great motivators or presenters or any position that provides instant gratification.

ENFP Personality Type – Extrovert Intuitive Feeling Perceptive

The ENFP personality tends to be extremely loyal and will look for the best in others along with always looking for new possibilities.

They can appear to be over positive or insincere.

They have a need and a desire to work with people and they want to have fun in their work.

They make for great human resource development trainers, designers, and advocates.

ENTP Personality Type – Extrovert Intuitive Thinking Perceptive

The ENTP personality thrives on enthusiasm.

Though they will become excited enough about ideas to promote them, they don’t always follow through on these ideas.

They like to be challenged and stimulated in their work. Computer science, financial advising, teaching, computer or systems analyst are great career choices for the ENTP.

ESTJ Personality Type – Extrovert Sensing Thinking Judging

The ESTJ personality is a born manager.

They are dependable but tend to volunteer for more work and responsibility than others.

To an ESTJ, everything must have a plan.

They tend to fix what is broken and do a job correctly.

They tend to be loyal to the company. They make great managers as well as supervisors.

ESFJ Personality Type: – (Extrovert Sensing Feeling Judging):

The ESFJ is seen as a scheduler.

They are usually neat and enjoyable to be around.

They do well where organization is involved and they also make great listeners and are loyal.

They like to serve, facilitate and be the caretaker. Jobs in computers, science or consulting can be stressful to the ESFJ personality.

ENFJ Personality Type – Extrovert Intuitive Feeling Judging

The ENFJ personality tends to be known as a communicator and have an understanding of other people.

They are drawn to situation where they can interact with others who will challenge them.

They do not do well in careers that involve a great deal of detail or paperwork.

They do, however, make great mentors and envision well.

ENTJ Personality Type – Extrovert Intuitive Thinking Judging

The ENTJ is a natural leader.

They even enjoy confrontation and they tend to be the classic corporate type of personality.

They are not afraid to challenge old ways of doing things with more successful methods.

Business consultants and network integrations as well as strategists are careers where the ENTJ thrive.

My Final Thoughts:

Each of these 16 personality types will fit better into some Information Technology careers than others and that it’s where the Myers-Briggs personality testing can help you.

Regardless of how much you want a career or a job, you will find it hard to succeed if your personality does not match that required for the job and you don’t change your personality to match it!

  • If you choose to change your personality for a career or job, you can hurt yourself in the process, which will negate the benefits of doing that job!

    so you may be better off choosing a career that suites your personality than forcing your personality to fit in.

  • As a manager, director, project manager or human resources professional, you can place people in roles where they’re most likely to succeed alongside based on results from properly administered Myers-Briggs personality test.

    In the end, the proper use of personality testing can lead to more productive work place.

So, What Is Your Myers-Briggs Personality Type?

If don’t know the answer, follow this link to take your Myers-Briggs personality test..


What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?



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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/22/what-is-your-personality-type/feed/ 0 Take Your Career To The Next Level! http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/18/take-your-career-to-the-next-level/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/18/take-your-career-to-the-next-level/#comments Wed, 19 Jan 2011 03:05:39 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3073

STOP, if you’re about to register for our training and read this post now because we are only interested in the right type of participants for our online bootcamp courses.

In many ways, we are not like traditional classroom classes or most training schools.

For example, we focus more on experiential learning in the sense that we want you to perform well on the job and not just have a certificate that you can show-off on your resume.

Click here to read our thoughts on experiential learning.

Do You Want To Build Handson Experience?

Finding the handson experience required to move up the ladder, transition into a career or find a new job is critical to career success.

Several years ago, just having a college degree was enough to get you hired and once you got a job, you worked for that employer, for a really long time!

Employers felt responsible for providing handson experience to students in college through internship programs or training for those who had a job.

But today, internship programs are hard to get because employers don’t want to take on the burden of training and a college degree no longer guarantees finding or keeping a job!

What employers are now looking for is proof of performance and not more diplomas, degrees or certifications.

When it comes to proof of performance, employers are of the mindset that your previous performance is the best proof of your future performance.

Please click here to read the article on “why employers want proof of your performance“.

So you have to supplement your training and professional development through personal initiative, traditional classes or online training bootcamps

Traditional classes do not help you develop skills or experience using tasks or assignments because that amount of work will be too much for a traditional school to handle.

In a traditional class, students have to start and complete their tasks within a set amount of time or that school loses money because the next class is delayed from starting!

But our online training bootcamps are not designed like traditional training classes.

Our students are given practical tasks or assignments which requires them to perform assigned activities with the knowledge or skills they’ve acquired.

Do You Want To Have Your Questions Answered?

In a traditional class, you may not want to ask questions that someone else thinks is dumb or you may not ask questions because your manager wants you to keep quiet or because the instructor just doesn’t have enough time to answer all the questions from all the participants!

Why can’t traditional classes entertain, encourage or answer all the questions from all the participants in a course?

Traditional classes can’t because they have a set start and end date and a limited amount of time within which the instructor must go over the course materials.

We do not have the limitations of a set starting time and a set closing time facing traditional classes!

Our online course participants may start their courses at any time or complete it earlier.

There are no limits to how many questions that you can ask and you don’t have the problems of someone judging your conversations or the appropriateness of your questions.

Because we use a learning management system, none of your questions is lost by the instructor in a bid to answer everyone else.

Do You Want To Be Personally Involved?

Unlike traditional online or classroom training, where you get a certificate regardless of your personal efforts, our assignments require your personal time and effort because they are reviewed and graded by us!

Our online training bootcamps requires non-trivial hard work which may be an issue, if you’re only interested in a passive learning experience.

When you enroll in our online boot camp training, you will watch videos, take practice tests, write assignments, perform research activities or perform any practical tasks assigned to you … all of which are required!

Our online courses are quite unlike traditional classes where you’re not given the chance to get your hands dirty!

Do You Want To Ace Your Job Interviews?

Have you ever been in a situation where you knew the answers to the interviewer’s questions but were unable to form an answer in your mind in good time?

What happened is that you weren’t able to form an effective verbal response because you hadn’t practiced recalling answers to similar questions until it became second nature.

That is exactly why we give you practice tests or quizzes in our online training bootcamps … so that you will be practiced at recalling or formulating the correct answers to interview questions in a timely fashion!

Click here to read this post on: how to ace job interviews using practice tests

Do You Want To Be A Top Performer On The Job?

Becoming the top performer is one of the best ways of securing your job because employers no long hire for keeps.

In other words, the moment an employer thinks that your performance is falling or that your skills are not as good as that of someone else, you are marked for firing!

Being knowledgeable about your job is not enough to protect or secure it!

You also need to be skilled at responding with the right answers or solutions in a timely manner because that assures your managers that you know what you are doing.

This is where our practice tests can help you.

You will retain, remember or recall answers or solutions easily … so that you’re always ready for the next challenge!

Do You Want To Take Your Career To The Next Level?

Regardless of where you are in your career: whether you are a beginner versus an expert, looking for a job versus working on your next career promotion, learning a new skill or refreshing the knowledge you already have … we can help.

Our help is not restricted to paying clients or customers only! We will help any of our readers by answering their most pressing career questions.

To get your questions answered promptly, post them as a response to any of our blog posts or Submit a question to [ASK IT Career Coach] here …

What Do You Want From Your Career?

We do not just provide you with the knowledge needed to get your job done, we also provide the real-world, practical education or skills required for your professional success!

So, if you are only interested in theoretical knowledge and you don’t care about building skills or learning how to perform tasks, then a traditional college or diploma course may be good for you.

On the other hand, if you want to build your knowledge, skills and experience using an interactive coaching or mentoring experience or if you are looking to apply your knowledge in a real job, then our online training bootcamps may be what you are looking for!


What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?



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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/18/take-your-career-to-the-next-level/feed/ 0 Which Courses or Certifications Guarantee A Job? http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/13/which-certifications-or-courses-guarantee-a-job/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/13/which-certifications-or-courses-guarantee-a-job/#comments Fri, 14 Jan 2011 01:11:22 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3070

Which Certifications Or Courses Guarantee Jobs?

Which Certifications Or Courses Guarantee Jobs?

This question is frequently asked by job candidates searching for certifications or training courses they can put on their resume, present to an employer and get a job.

However, the answer to the question: which online courses, certifications, college degrees or classroom courses guarantee a job is NONE!

This type of question is seriously flawed because it assumes that there is something out there … a college degree or online course or certification program, that you can put on your resume and hired fast!

But what really guarantees you a job is the depth of your handson experience, skills and knowledge or your ability to convey, present or market your career competency in a job interview.

Yet many job candidates read a job posting and then immediately say to themselves: “regardless of the requirements for this job, who or what can endorse me?”

Instead of addressing the gaps between the job posting and their “skills, knowledge or experience”, they try to short-circuit the employment process with the rubber stamping of a course or certificate!

Listen, don’t try to game the employment system. The only way you can guarantee yourself a job is by giving employers what they want … which is typically stated in your plain view on the job posting!

Dear Friend,

Start your job search by first placing yourself in the employers shoes and not with pre-conceived, mis-leading or half-baked ideas on how the job market works!

In this post, I will help you understand how the job market works because this knowledge will keep you employable for years regardless of your chosen profession.

WHAT DO EMPLOYERS WANT FROM JOB SEEKERS?

The first and most important question that you have to answer before you begin a job search is the question: “What Are Employers Hiring For?“

At a minimum, 80% of the jobs out there have these basic requirements:

  1. Knowledge Requirement – the comprehension or understanding of the practical facts needed to get the job done.

    This knowledge may be gained from an online class, traditional classroom course, coaching, mentoring or self-study program.

    Employers don’t care how you get the knowledge … they just want to be assured that you have it!

  2. Skills Requirement – the ability to recall knowledge and apply the right solutions to problems.

    Skill is developed by rehearsing the answers or solutions to common problems using practice tests, quizzes or certification programs or by repeatedly solving a problem on the job.

    Most employers will probe your skill-level at the job interview regardless of what you claim on the resume.

  3. Handson Experience Requirement – the quality of exposure to real-world projects where your skills and knowledge are used to solve practical problems.

    Note that handson experience is not given by certification programs.

    Handson experience is developed over time by performing the roles, responsibilities or duties associated with your career.

  4. Personality Match Requirement – employers want you to have the right personality for a job and the right personality for their corporate or organizational structure.

    You may be a well-qualified job candidate and still fail at a job interview because the hiring manager perceives a clash or mis-match between your personality and the company culture!

  5. Marketability Requirement – the probability that you will get a job is also dependent on the demand for your skills.

    If you want additional guarantees that you will be hired … pay attention to the job outlook for your career!

    The less your skills are in-demand, the more aggressive you must be with your job search and the more your skills are in demand, the more you are guaranteed a job.

Now, let’s review the responsible actions you may take to guarantee yourself a job.

BRIDGE THE KNOWLEDGE GAP

Learn everything you can about your career or job using self-study, coaching, mentoring or training programs.

Don’t make up educational requirements thinking that it will move your employer to hire you.

Employers care less about your endorsement from an educational institution but they care most about the relevancy of your knowledge, training or education to their job!

BRIDGE THE SKILLS GAP

Your skills measure how practiced you are at solving problems or your competency.

Skills are developed by taking lots of practice tests or by repeating quizzes until you can answer questions or solve problems without thinking.

Expect an employer to test your skills by asking open-ended questions at a job interview …. which you have to answer promptly, comprehensively and confidently.

BRIDGE THE EXPERIENCE GAP

You can only develop handson experience by working on real-world problems.

So, the more tasks, duties, roles, responsibilities, assignments or projects you take on … the more experienced you become.

Be creative and find ways to get experience even without a job because your getting hired depends on it!

MATCH THE PERSONALITY

Employers want you to have the right personality for a career and also for their corporate culture.

Here are a few personality mis-match situations for your consideration:

Computer programmers are expected to be more geeky than business analysts and project managers are expected to be more assertive than either software developers or business analysts.

If you’re an introvert or shy of developing relationships or weak at verbal communications, you may fail at convincing hiring managers that you are good fit for their business analyst or project management jobs!

So, now you have it … THE GUARANTEED WAY OF FINDING A JOB.

Do not abandon these FUNDAMENTAL LAWS OF HIRING for endorsements of any kind because that would be like chasing your own shadow!

With all this in mind, here is how our online courses, coaching, training programs or step-by-step bootcamps will help you:

  1. Knowledge – You may get the knowledge needed to do your job through our online video training or coaching courses.
  2. Skills – You can use our quizzes or practice tests to boost your skills or even ace certification examinations.
  3. Experience – You can use our in-built, handson assignments or coaching advice to jumpstart the experience needed for your career.

This how we (IT Career Coach) help … by aligning you with the requirements of your career or job.


What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?



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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/13/which-certifications-or-courses-guarantee-a-job/feed/ 2 What Is the Toughest Challenge Facing your Career? http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/11/the-toughest-challenge-facing-your-career/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/11/the-toughest-challenge-facing-your-career/#comments Wed, 12 Jan 2011 04:30:35 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3062

What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?

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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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/11/the-toughest-challenge-facing-your-career/feed/ 53 Pros and Cons of Business Analysts vs Computer Programmer Careers http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/08/pros-cons-business-analysts-computer-programmers/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/08/pros-cons-business-analysts-computer-programmers/#comments Sat, 08 Jan 2011 16:48:08 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3060

Pros and Cons of Computer Programming vs. Business Analysis

Pros and Cons of Computer Programming vs. Business Analysis


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

I get a number of questions from computer programmers or software developers looking to change their careers to business analysis or project management.

I also receive questions about the suitability of business analysis, project management or computer programming as a career.

If you sent me a question along these lines, please use this post to evaluate your choices or decide on the best career for you!

This post highlights the pros and cons of “ business analysts careers compared to computer programmer careers or jobs“.

  1. Market Demand for Skills or Careers

    Finding a Software Developer Job is easier than getting hired for a business analyst or project management job because there is a lot of demand for software developers.

    As a matter of fact .NET Developers are in a class of their own because they get hired more easily than other computer programmers and definitely more than business analysts or project managers!

  2. Job Satisfaction

    A business analyst or project manager job spends a lot of time interacting with people (customers, stakeholders, management), projects, processes.

    The advice presented by a business analyst or project manager has a much better chance of being accepted by management than those of computer programmers who spend most of their time tinkering with computers and software products.

  3. Salary, Wages or Compensation

    Software Developers (especially .NET computer programmers) get paid more than business analysts or project managers in many projects.

    It is not untypical for good .NET computer programmers to bill more than $50/hr. or earn from the upper 90k to six figures even with junior to mid-level experience!

  4. Stress & Lifestyle After Working Hours

    Project Managers or Business Analysts are less affected by the pace of technological change than software developers.

    As a business analyst or project manager you may end up having more leisure or personal time after work unlike a computer programmer who is always learning new technologies after work (in the evenings and weekends)!

    Computer Programmers sometimes lose their jobs or burnout because of the stress associated with always learning new software tools or the rapid pace of technological change!

  5. Stress & Lifestyle During Working Hours

    Project Managers or Business Analysts are always bridging gaps between opposing or conflicting points of views or in-meetings helping different interest groups buyin to a common goal or strategy.

    So a business analyst or project manager’s day job is more challenging or stressful compared to a computer programmer’s who is given specifications or specific tasks and then left alone to get their job done!

    Business Analysts or Project Managers sometimes lose their jobs or burnout because of the stress associated with the high degree of conflict on their day job.

  6. Big Picture Thinkers

    Business Analysts or Project Managers tend to have a more comprehensive view of their projects or organizations.

    They are more exposed to the big-picture, organizational goals and objectives, strategy sessions, upper or senior management and they can influence things from that perspective.

    Computer Programmers are more likely to be focused on the minutiae or details.

    Computer programmers tend to obsess over small things and they are frequently on a need to know basis with their management team.

    In some organizations or projects, they spend all their time hunting down bugs, fixing them or improving the quality of their product one defect at a time!

  7. Portability of Skills

    Computer Programmers (especially .NET Software Developers) have very portable skills.

    They can switch industries easily (insurance to banking), migrate their skills to new software development platforms or jobs (mobile applications, internet applications, database applications, desktop applications) or even move to a new country and get a job easily!

    On the other hand, a lot of people want to be business analysts or project managers because of the hipness, coolness, job satisfaction and big-picture benefits.

    Finding a business analyst job may be harder because you have to stand out from this crowd of wannabes!

    Click here to read the post titled: 8 Tips for Business Analysts: How to Stand Out in a Crowded Job Market.

    Finally, a lot of business analyst jobs require domain specific business or industry knowledge which limits the ease with which a business analyst can migrate to a new industry or find a job!

  8. Authority & Control

    Computer programmers are frequently micro-managed.

    Their exists in many organizations an adverse relationship between the management team and the software development team.

    It is so bad that outsiders like me are hired to mediate or resolve the conflict which is what I was tasked with doing as an IT Director for a company in the Mid-Western, USA.

    The genesis of this distrust is that management often cannot see the progress made by software developers or understand their challenges because they are typically big-picture thinkers.

    On the other hand, Business Analysts or Project Managers are more likely to give directions software developers directions or supervise the work that computer programmers perform!

    Besides all this, the work performed by business analysts or project managers is highly visible to stakeholders, management or business teams!

  9. Soft Skills vs. Hard Skills

    Software Developers depend more on technical or hard skills to get their job done.

    Software developers are always learning new software tools or creating them using a number of technologies, platforms, tools or software development environments.

    Business Analysts or Project Managers depend more or soft skills or people skills to get their job done.

    They are always meeting with people in a one on one or group setting. They are skilled at presentations, communications, inter-personal relationships, conflict resolution, writing or speaking tasks.

    Answer this Question:

    What is your greatest asset, is it your hard skills or your soft skills?

  10. Career Security

    Software developers tend to have more career security than either business analysts or computer programmers because of the following reasons:

    • High Portability: Software developers can port their skills or careers easily across domains, industries, countries or jobs.
    • High Demand: Software developers are in high-demand because of the demand for internet, desktop, mobile applications or services.
    • High Salary: Software developers are amongst the first crop of professionals hired in startups and many of them have gone on to start their own companies and become wealthy in the process!
    • Intellectual Property: Software developers are more likely to patent or copyright their inventions, products or services! They tend to lead the pace of innovation and are more likely to take ownership for their products or services.

    Click here to read more about the job prospects for software developers in 2011.

Here is how to quickly find which career you’re better suited for.

Are you more concerned about finding a job quickly or getting paid very well than you’re about job satisfaction and do you like working with technology? If so, choose the .NET Software Developer Career Path.

Are you more concerned about the prestige, control, hipness, coolness or likeability of your job and are you good at resolving inter-personal conflicts or working with groups of people? If so, choose the business analyst or project management career path!

So there you have it, A review of the suitability of software developer and business analyst jobs.

What do you think of my advice? Do you agree or disagree? Do you have Any questions or rebuttals?


What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?



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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/08/pros-cons-business-analysts-computer-programmers/feed/ 2 Breaking News: Software Engineers Have The Best Jobs In 2011 http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/05/software-engineers-best-job-2011/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/05/software-engineers-best-job-2011/#comments Wed, 05 Jan 2011 23:12:33 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3056

I dedicate a considerable amount of time to debunking myths and half-baked truths. And one about the future prospects of software developer careers has just been ratified!

According to a survey of the best and worst jobs in the United States, Software Engineers will have the best jobs in 2011.

For this survey, 200 professions were analyzed based on their pay, environment, hiring outlook, stress and physical demands using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Census Bureau and trade association studies.

According to this survey, the high-demand for Software engineering jobs is fueled by the desire for high-tech gadgets, iPods, tablets and other devices.

Click here to read more about the survey by CareerCast.com on MSNBC, titled: “Software Engineers Have Nations Best Job …”

Software Developers Have The Best Careers

The survey agrees with what I have been saying on this website: which is that web programmers or software developers are in high-demand because of the demand for technology and internet products or services.

Here are two our of several articles on future prospects for software developers / computer programmers:

  1. Reasons for Becoming A Computer Programmer
  2. Benefits Of Becoming A Computer Programmers

I Like Debunking Myths

I have been debunking myths about software developer careers including the following:

I’m not just interested in debunking myths about computer programmers. I’m also rebutting half-truths or misconceptions about business analysis, databases, project management and other careers in Information Technology.

In my opinion, too many smart people have wasted their lives or taking long, expensive detours because they accepted a half-truth, lie or misconception about their career!

I hate mental limitations because the worst prison is that which exists in one’s mind!

So, work with me as I help you identify or remove self-imposed limitations. Have an Awesome Year!


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/01/05/software-engineers-best-job-2011/feed/ 0 A Day In The Life Of A Data Analyst http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/12/14/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-data-analyst/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/12/14/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-data-analyst/#comments Tue, 14 Dec 2010 21:30:05 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3035

Data Analysis: Profiting From Numbers

Data Analysis: Profiting From Numbers

Data Analysts have the opportunity to work in several different domains or sectors, for example as banking data analysts, retail data analysts, telecommunications data analysts and as marketing data analysts.

The marketing data analyst role is one of the more common ones and a marketing analyst may be found analyzing databases of prospects, leads and customers for the marketing department.

In this post, we will take a peak into the day of a marketing data analyst…

First – Collect and Store Data

Your first challenge may be to collect and store your data so that you can analyze it. However, if you are lucky, your Information Technology (IT) Department will collect the data for you in a database.

If that is not the case, you may be able to get them to build you a data entry form otherwise, you will have to enter the data yourself or perhaps build a desktop client for collecting data using Microsoft Access or a web-based database data-entry form using a software development environment like ASP.NET and SQL Server

Second – Analyze Data

Perhaps your marketing department just finished a campaign where they advertised on three different channels (Billboards, Direct Mail, Radio and Internet Blogs). You may be tasked with finding out how each of your segments responded.

To accomplish this, you may use a relational database like SQL Server or a spreadsheet like Excel to find the top performing marketing groups, for example, your best customers may have been referred from blogs that are based in Western Europe.

Third – Report Data

You typically have to present your findings to your manager or marketing department in a form that they can digest easily.

This will usually be in the form of a report but bear in mind that your reports must be customized for the target audience and that there is no one-size fits all solution.

For example, your marketing department may prefer tracking statistics in the form of ratios or as pie charts / bar charts or they may prefer that you compare one group to another or one time period to another.

Regardless of their preferences, go over your results and make sure that they are accurate. Ensure that you understand what is causing the results or trends and make sure that your recommendations are as actionable as possible.

Last – Execute or Take Action

Finally, you may summarize your analysis and make clear recommendations or calls for action. Granted that not all your findings are actionable but after a while, if no-one is taking action then something may be wrong.

Either your organization is paying for insight which they are unwilling or incapable of executing or no-one believes you or your calls for action are not clear enough.

However, if you are detail oriented, you like to working with numbers and you have logical /critical thinking skills required, it may not be long before you have the ears of management and a good ride to the top!


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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/12/14/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-data-analyst/feed/ 1 Don’t Worry Get Married: How to Cope With An Ever Increasing Workload! http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/09/16/how-to-cope-work-life-conflicts/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/09/16/how-to-cope-work-life-conflicts/#comments Thu, 16 Sep 2010 20:59:10 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3002

don't worry get married

don't worry get married

This post is written for professionals looking for ways to cope with conflicting or demanding work and life commitments.

How to cope with an ever increasing workload? Tech workers are under increasing pressure to get more work done during office hours, vacation time, weekend time or even away from the office at home.

How to keep up with the demands of our careers? And IT professionals are worrying about how they can learn new technologies or sharpen their current skills because of the constantly changing face of technology.

So, we are going to address the increasing pressure on IT workers to get more work done in less time or keep up with the fast pace of market and technological change.

Let me tell you a story

In January, one of the business analysts attending our training from the United Kingdom, (UK) asked us for help on how to deal with a conflicting personal situation.

You see, she had enrolled in the Business Analyst Boot Camp, a few weeks earlier but was now in a dilemma that proved to be an eye opener for us.

A few weeks earlier, when she started the training, she knew exactly what she was going to do with her life. She was going to attend our business analyst training, pay serious attention to her studies and carry on with her work or professional duties.

But as we’ve all experienced at one point or the other, life happened to her and she fell in love and decided to get married!

So, this was her dilemna, “how to get married in January, take time off for her wedding and at the same time avoid disrupting her business analyst training schedule!“.

Here is the good news: in-addition to getting married, our priceless scheduling & time management feature built into our learning management / training system (LMS) allowed her to achieve a work-life goal without adding to the stress of her hectic wedding preparation.

How We Can Help You Achieve Work or Life Balance More Easily

You can manage or schedule the demands of your workplace, life or personal commitments using the scheduling or life-management features built into our learning software.

  • What happens if you miss a lesson?

    When you’re assigned a practice test, assignment or video training and you don’t complete it for any reason including work or life scheduling conflicts, you will start receiving late reminders.

    However, these late reminders are sent without any penalties because our learning system will keep your course active and waiting for as long as it takes you to get back on track!

  • What happens if you are unavailable?

    Assuming that you will be unavailable for a longer period of time or you simply don’t want to get late e-mail reminders, simply PAUSE the training from your learning software with no penalty.

    What this really means is that you may RESUME or PAUSE your training at-will and the learning management software will keep a track of what you’re working on now or what you’ll be learning next!

Every part of our training is designed for professionals living in the real-world. We understand that dealing with life or work scheduling pressures is important to you, so we’ve provided you with tools that allow you to take control of your schedule.

A Recap Of How To Cope With Life Or Work Scheduling Conflict

  1. You may take your training during office hours or at home or from any location that fits your schedule as long as you have a computer and a high-speed connection.

  2. You may submit your late assignments or watch your training videos at any time of the day or late … after they are due. There is no penalty for late assignments.

  3. You may PAUSE or RESUME your training because you’re going to be unavailable for longer periods of time This feature may also be used by you at-will.

  4. You can complete the training on time or late. There is no pressure from us or system constraint that forces you to get out of the training after a certain number of weeks or days.


What Is The Toughest Challenge Facing Your Career?



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]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/09/16/how-to-cope-work-life-conflicts/feed/ 0 Is Tunnel Vision Killing My Career? http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/04/06/is-tunnel-vision-killing-my-career/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/04/06/is-tunnel-vision-killing-my-career/#comments Tue, 06 Apr 2010 10:18:30 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=2887

Is Tunnel Vision Killing My Career?

Is Tunnel Vision Killing My Career?

Medically speaking, Tunnel Vision is a visual impairment that results in the loss of peripheral vision.

It is characterized by the inability to see objects outside one’s center of gaze even though they are still within view.

But tunnel vision also refers to a frame of mind where one is either fixated on a specific answer or unable to see alternatives.

Consider that many Information Technology (IT) professionals evaluate their career options as though there a few choice careers mainly:

  1. Computer Programming
  2. Business Analysis
  3. Project Management
  4. Data Analysis
  5. Software Testing
  6. Computer Networking
  7. Database Development

    8. But is this really true? Is the list of hot, fashionable or rewarding careers restricted to this list or are there alternate, better or even more promising careers for those willing to peek outside the box?

    Web 2.0 Careers For Smart Professionals

    Except if you have tunnel vision, you will have heard mention of the word WEB 2.0, at some point in the last year. Conversations on WEB 2.0 websites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are taking on an expanded role in our lives and you also have a role in this, if you’re willing to keep an open mind.

    Facebook

    With over 300 million total members or more than 100 million US users, Facebook has overtaken the USA in population growth and is on track to overtake China’s one billion+ in the near future!

    Twitter

    In January of 2010, 75 million people visited Twitter representing a 1100% population growth in one year.

    However these statistics or explosive growth are not limited to Twitter and Facebook. Other WEB 2.0 websites including LinkedIn are also experiencing a surge in demand or usage.

    What this means for the rest of us, is that careers that help websites become more interactive, converse with customers using blogs, video and social media or distribute information, products or services online are taking center stage.

    The good news is that I have compiled a list of those careers for your benefit and I will devote the rest of the article to them :-)

    Web Usability Specialists

    Usability engineers measure or improve the quality of a user’s experience when interacting with a website.

    Web Usability specialists help customers perform actions that are valuable to the business like placing orders on their websites. Their job is to make websites more intuitive or friendly so that web visitors can find or get that they are looking for.

    Web Data Analysts

    Web Analysts measure, collect, analyze and report on traffic to a website. They typically track or monitor the number of visitors, page views and popularity of the content published on a website.

    Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialists

    Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialists improve the ranking of websites or web pages on search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing.

    Because of the competitiveness and the ever changing nature of internet businesses, SEO experts are always in demand.

    E-Commerce Business Analysts

    The WEB is a fast paced, constantly evolving business environment which makes it challenging for most businesses.

    So companies hire e-commerce business analysts to help align their business, marketing or production processes with the requirements for doing business on the WEB.

    IPhone / Mobile Apps Developers

    The release of the IPhone by Apple and Steve Jobs in 2007 has resulted in a new job market for developers who can release IPhone apps directly on Apple’s App Store.

    With more than 100,000 apps, including productivity and games apps, the IPhone Application Developers career path is an alternative to more traditional software developer career paths.

    Web Copywriters

    Sometimes the writing career is overlooked because of a misconception that writers are underpaid.

    However, web copywriters are a different breed of writers as they are more like salesmen on steroids!

    Web copywriters are responsible for writing the actual words that sell products or services on the web and yes, some of them do make six figures!

    Social Media Specialists

    I have mentioned the explosive population growth of sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Guess what, businesses and organizations want in on that action and Social Media specialists make that happen!

    Organizations are hiring Social Media workers to help nurture conversations with their customers and ultimately influence sales … and just in-case you are squeamish, it is completely legal :-)

    Internet Marketing Specialists

    Most businesses have to sell on the web which is a big challenge because selling on the web is complex, difficult and not as easy as it looks!

    Not realizing this, many businesses owners spend a small fortune on Internet Marketing before they realized that they need to hire professional Internet Marketing help!

    This list is by no means exhaustive and there are more lucrative, rewarding careers for the web savvy, information technology professional who is willing to look outside the box of traditional career choices.

    This list of careers is also helpful to those wondering about “How To Break The Unemployment Cycle“ as there are freelance, part-time or full-time job postings for those who are qualified.

    Finally, the question on your mind may be, who is qualified for any of these careers?

    My answer is anyone who has as open-mind, is web savvy and is open to learning or reading a lot of new information.

    Contrary to what you may think, the barriers to these careers are low, and there are no examinations, certifications or degrees that you must obtain before you can get hired as a WEB 2.0 professional.

    The universal rule or principle that applies to all WEB 2.0 careers is; “You Must Be Good At What You Do“, as the WEB has little tolerance for incompetence!


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    ]]> http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/04/06/is-tunnel-vision-killing-my-career/feed/ 5 #3 Success Principle: When It Comes To Experience, Beggars Can’t Be Choosers http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/01/07/3-success-principle-when-it-comes-to-experience-beggars-cant-be-choosers/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/01/07/3-success-principle-when-it-comes-to-experience-beggars-cant-be-choosers/#comments Thu, 07 Jan 2010 11:17:52 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=2753

    Beggars Can't Be Choosers

    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.

    Now internships are hard to come by because employers are refusing the burden of hiring or managing interns. And here is the reason why:

    1. Productivity: interns need to be managed by experienced employees meaning that productive time will be lost to employers.

      Productive time is lost when experienced workers have to show interns the ropes, supervise or assign work to them.

    2. Risk: employers are unwilling to invest in interns because they are more likely to fail at completing their assigned tasks or duties.

      There is also the added risk of redoing the work done by interns when it fails to meet expectations!

    3. Money: employers hesitate to pay interns because there aren’t sure of the immediate economic benefits and they refuse to hire unpaid interns because unpaid interns also cost money and time to supervise or train!

    How To Build Experience From Scratch … Without A Job

    The challenge facing those that fixate on getting experience through internship programs or full time jobs is that of becoming stumped … when they can’t get either.

    Really, when it comes to getting experience, the key is to stay flexible, creative or open minded because full-time jobs and internship programs are getting harder to come by.

    How To Build Experience From Scratch By Keeping An Open Mind

    • Focus on Smaller Projects: don’t fixate on finding big projects because you are more unlikely to get big project exposure with little or no experience.

      Start with smaller projects first, because that is where your current background, skills or experience is likely to be needed or appreciated.

    • Build Up Experience Gradually: don’t expect to get a ton of experience in a short time. Instead, spread your efforts at building experience over a longer period of time.

      Overtime, the cumulative effect of all your project based work will begin to show and you will be rewarded for your hard work.

    • Don’t Fixate on Money: don’t be too picky about your income when you’re still building up your experience because the ticket to getting paid more money is more experience!

      Start by building your experience first and then work towards a better compensation afterwards!

    • Don’t Think Too Highly of Yourself: don’t be looking down on smaller projects because you’re thinking they’re beneath you and don’t be fretting over the size of your role, task or opportunity either!

      Always put your best foot forward and build up your experience at every turn. Because that is how to ensure that you qualify for bigger projects or even a full time job!

    • Stay Flexible, Creative and Open Minded: be on the lookout for experience building opportunities that don’t fall under traditional internship or full-time jobs.

      For example, you may signup for unpaid, volunteer work or start your own consulting business (yes, you can consult on almost any subject) or register for Hands On IT Career Training (click here for more information)

    Expect that you will always be learning new skills or transitioning careers because of the constantly changing face of technology.

    Understand that staying open minded will help you discover more ways to build handson experience without a job or an internship program.


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    ]]>     http://www.it-career-coach.net/2010/01/07/3-success-principle-when-it-comes-to-experience-beggars-cant-be-choosers/feed/ 1     How To Become A Rockstar In Your Industry http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/01/15/how-to-become-a-rockstar-in-your-industry/ http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/01/15/how-to-become-a-rockstar-in-your-industry/#comments Thu, 15 Jan 2009 13:00:57 +0000 ITCareerCoach http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=498

    How To Become A Rockstar In Your Industry

    How To Become A Rockstar in Your Industry

    Top performers, rockstars or successful professionals have a mindset or a way of thinking.

    They practice a code or follow a set of principles that helps them achieve the best results in their industry.

    Read the rest of this post to learn more about their philosophy and other actionable strategies for becoming the best at what you do.

    Always Be Learning

    According to the Japanese Kaizen philosophy, consistence and commitment to studying, getting more information or improving your skills is better than sudden bursts of efforts.

    So become a lifelong learner and not someone who learns solely to get a job or or achieve some other short term professional goal.

    Read this post titled: “Always Be Learning”.

    Become An Expert In Your Industry

    Acquiring knowledge is not enough. You must strive to become the best that you can be by sharpening your skills.

    Improve your skills or become an expert by using practice tests to remember, learn more effectively or understand new material.

    Keep taking practice tests until you become highly skilled and then gain a lot of handson experience by solving the problems or challenges facing others in your industry.

    Remember that you can get experience outside the boundaries of an 8 to 5 job and note that becoming an expert does not mean that you know everything or that you have become the smartest person!

    Read this post on How To Become A Technical Expert.

    Become Inspired

    There are skills or attitudes that can’t be passed along to you except by working with more experienced professionals.

    So go find a mentor or coach who believes in you and is willing or able to work with you one-on-one towards your professional goals.

    Make a habit of reading the blog posts or books of written by those that inspire you.

    Read this post on How To Become Inspired.

    Read Professional Books In Your Industry

    Audio coaching is good and Video training is even better but books are still the most universal and widely accepted format for passing information across.

    So, supplement all your video training with some good, old-fashioned textbooks!

    Though many technical textbooks are boring or hard to understand, they are an indispensable part of your career development.

    And do not hesitate to spend a lot of money on professional textbooks because the best investment that you can make is in yourself.

    A long time ago, I formed a habit of spending Saturday evenings in Borders or Barnes & Noble Bookshop. While my kids are playing, I would survey or read the latest books in my industry and buy those that presented new or interesting information.

    I would spend as much as 200 hundred dollars in one visit and I reckon that I made back the investment by getting top paying jobs usually offered to those that stay ahead of developments in their industry!

    Read this post titled: How To Self Study Effectively.

    Stay Ahead of Developments In Your Industry

    Don’t bury your head in the daily grind of your 8 to 5 existence and become extinct like the Dodo!

    The world around you and your industry is constantly changing, so you have to change too!

    Be the first to learn new skills, processes, technology or tools and you will never lack a dull moment in your career!

    Read this post on How To Stay Ahead of the Technology Curve.

    Experience Is King!

    In the Information Technology (IT) world, hands-on experience is King!

    Experience counts more than certifications or college diplomas and degrees because experience is the currency of the Industry.

    Experience matters because hiring managers are of the mindset that your past performance on previous jobs is the best predictor of your future performance (if hired for the job).

    So, trying to convince a hiring manager of your suitability for a job without providing the experience to back it up is doing things backwards.

    Give hiring managers what they want by getting handson experience with your current employer or building experience outside your 9 to 5 existence through working on leadership projects.

    Read this post on How To Get Handson Experience At Your Current Employer.

    Connect With Other Professionals on Social Media

    Don’t look inwards until you implode into nothingness … Network with other professionals online!

    There are tools like LinkedIn, Twitter or FaceBook that make it easy for you to create completely new relationships with total strangers, so get to know other people!

    The success of LinkedIn, Twitter & Facebook proves that we are transitioning to a world where new jobs, opportunities or clients will be increasingly referred to us by our Social Media Network.

    You may start by connecting with me on Twitter.

    Success Comes By Helping Others

    You will never know a skill like you should, until you teach it to someone else.

    The questions that you have to answer and the extra research you do to be sure of your facts, will in the end help you as much as it helps the person you are mentoring.

    Besides, when you help others, some of the them will reciprocate by referring opportunities that you won’t have gotten by keeping your knowledge to yourself!

    Becoming a leader by helping others improves your standing, value or reputation in an increasingly networked online community as a leader which means that you will find it easier to get full-time jobs or consulting offers.

    Read this post On How To Become A Leader In Your Industry.

    Work On Projects Beyond Your Comfort Zone

    Accept responsibilities, projects or tasks that stretch you beyond your comfort zone.

    There is really no safety in the comfort zone because that is not how life works.

    Cultivate a mind that is willing to try new ways of doing things and you will never have to be afraid of the unknown!

    In your Quest For Knowledge, Get Certified

    Get some professional certifications. The process of getting a certification will improve your skills and stretch you beyond your comfort zone.

    It will also ground you in the facts you need to know for your job. However don’t be like those who desire to get certified so much that … they are willing to cheat their way to through.

    The true goal of certification is to make you a smarter, better, more knowledgeable person, so if you cheat your way to a certification, you have gained nothing!

    In your Quest for Knowledge, Take Practice Tests

    Use practice tests to boost your skills or get to your knowledge to expert level quickly.

    Repetition in training is the key to skill mastery. So, to master any new skill just repeat the same set of tasks multiple times until it sinks in and becomes second nature to you!

    And guess what? That is the same conclusion reached by “Daniel Coyle in Talent Code” and “Malcolm Gladwell in Outliers” in their ground-breaking, best-selling books!

    These authors discovered that the top performers in any industry put in hours of practice into sharpening their skills and that constant skill-sharpening, passionate practice is essential for world class performance.

    Read this post On How To Boost Your Skills Using Practice Tests.

    Do it NOW!

    The real purpose of knowledge is action.So take a pen and write down on paper, actions that you will take based on the information I have given you in this post.

    Then, DO IT NOW!

    I wish you the best in your career.


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