Five Years In - Lessons I Learned

the_Grinch

I was thinking about it last night and I realized I've been working in IT for five years now (six in June). Along the way I learned quite a lot and thought perhaps it will help some of the people making their break into the industry.

Experience trumps all - a degree and a few certs is just not enough to get in this field most of the time. Any experience is better then none.

You'll be on helpdesk, accept it and deal with it - I got out thinking I'd never touch the helpdesk and that seriously hurt me. You'll wind up on the helpdesk so accept that then press on.

If you have no plan, you are planning to fail (Ben Franklin) - I see it all the time, people start a project with no plan what so ever. These projects tend to never end and are complete disasters. Setup a plan, allot for changes along the way, and you will be golden. Nothing ever goes according to the plan, but if you think like a lawyer you'll be able to see some of the potential roadblocks.

Speak up - I've seen it too often in IT. No one wants to rock the boat and speak up when they see issues. There's always a correct way to say whatever you need to say so that it is received. And if they don't heed the warning at least you said something.

Acknowledge when you don't know something - There is nothing wrong with not knowing everything. People respect you when you say you're not versed in some technology. I tend to say I don't know it now, but I can figure it out.

Techguru365

very sound advice

coffeeluvr

That is great advice! Thanks for taking the time to share this.

N2IT

Applies to the majority however, I don't agree with the help desk piece 100%. IT is large and vast, however so to your point most of the time I agree. With the exception of CS majors who actually apply themselves and land internships for at least a few months. I find these "kids" can roll right into development roles. (UI Design, Software Dev, ETL, Database Management, and similar jobs).

If you have drive and a solid aptitude you can skip support altogether. JMHO

This is why I am pro CS degrees, and oddly enough most people don't get this degree.

Polynomial

I don't agree with the experience thing at all.

I've met plenty of IT professionals who have a lot of experience in doing things the wrong way.

olaHalo

Experience trumps all on a resume but not always in the field or on the job

psheehan5

@Polynomial...LOL! Thanks for that comment on experience! I am currently trying to break into the IT world with IT management experience, but everybody seems to want the "wrench turners". I'd be happy with a help desk job to get some experience.

the_Grinch

N2IT - you are correct as it relates to CS grads (who actually want to program).

Ploy - LOL nice

Forgot to add....

DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT! - Do it as you work because no matter what you tell yourself you won't go back and do it later. Also you won't remember what the heck you did if it breaks or if someone else needs to set it up. Save yourself from frantic phone calls when you're sick/on vacation/left the company.

networker050184

Polynomial wrote: »

I don't agree with the experience thing at all.

I've met plenty of IT professionals who have a lot of experience in doing things the wrong way.

Sure lots of people have lots of years of sucking under their belt, but that doesn't mean companies aren't first and foremost looking for experienced people. No one wants to hire someone that has never touched the gear in the real world.

aftereffector

the_Grinch wrote: »

DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT! - Do it as you work because no matter what you tell yourself you won't go back and do it later. Also you won't remember what the heck you did if it breaks or if someone else needs to set it up. Save yourself from frantic phone calls when you're sick/on vacation/left the company.

This. So much this...

Polynomial

networker050184 wrote: »

Sure lots of people have lots of years of sucking under their belt, but that doesn't mean companies aren't first and foremost looking for experienced people. No one wants to hire someone that has never touched the gear in the real world.

Completely fair. Experience definitely matters a lot when applying to jobs, but I think the value of experience gets nebulous once you're in the working environment. Its where things like communication, personality and soft skills contribute a lot more to your overall personal influence in the workplace.

TeKniques

Polynomial wrote: »

I don't agree with the experience thing at all.

I've met plenty of IT professionals who have a lot of experience in doing things the wrong way.

Yep - I just talked to an IT Manager with "18 years experience" and their production server with PHI on it is on his desk with the side open. The experience argument is over played as the deciding factor of one's ability to do a job.

stryder144

Besides documenting things, I think soft skills are too often overlooked. I've only been on one interview where experience and training were less important than soft skills. There needs to be a balance between experience, training (certs and/or education), and soft skills. There is, unfortunately, a tension between the three like there is between the components of the CIA triad. Put too much emphasis on one, the others suffer.

N2IT

Soft skills are huge no question about it. I've seen below average resources keep their job only because they were well liked. It means a lot, how much depends.

NetworkingStudent

the_Grinch wrote: »

I was thinking about it last night and I realized I've been working in IT for five years now (six in June). Along the way I learned quite a lot and thought perhaps it will help some of the people making their break into the industry.

Experience trumps all - a degree and a few certs is just not enough to get in this field most of the time. Any experience is better then none.

This is so true
I have volunteered, did a internship, fixed computers, did onsite computer repair, and did contract work for companies at Work Market.
All inspiring IT Pro's need to find a way to get experience outside of school and certs.

the_Grinch wrote: »

You'll be on helpdesk, accept it and deal with it - I got out thinking I'd never touch the helpdesk and that seriously hurt me. You'll wind up on the helpdesk so accept that then press on.

I'm not sure why, but there are sure a lot of inspiring IT Pro's on ths forum that refuse to work on a help desk.
Without working on the helpdesk, you won't know how fix common problems. Plus help desk builds your customer service and troubleshooting skills.
Just think of all the famous chefs that started their career by washing dishes....

I definitely agree about documenting things.
Everyone has their own style.
More is better, and some day someone will ask you about a ticekt, make sure you takes notes.

Here is what I learned in my first year of IT

1. Tech skills are just as important as people skills. You should be willing to improve both.
Always try to find a way to to explain technology to cusomers in a non geeky way.

2. There is always someone that doesn't follow the rules. It's ok to bring this issue up, but do it tactfully

3. Document everything, because one day someone will call you and ask you what's going on with a ticket, issue, or project.

4. Try to keep a positive attitude. You would be surprise how much your attitude can drive your day and attitude toward customers and teams. When working with others, even customers assume the best. It's far to easy to blame a co worker or customer for a problem.

5. Don't just fix issues, find permanent resolutions. Permanent resolutions help prevent the same issues from reoccurring. Think outside of the box.

6. It's ok to say I don't know to a customer or co worker. You can always say I don't know , but I will find out.
They will appreciate your honesty

knownhero

A Developer once told me this and I will never forget it:

"I'll look into it for you" - Even if you have no idea what they are talking about, just say it and get all information you can and get back to them with a response. I didn't know a thing about PowerShell last year. Someone asked if we can do something with it, I said "I'll look into it" and 3 weeks later I had a script that cut machine builds from 45 minutes manually to 6 minutes with the script.

earonw49

Excellent pieces of advice! Thank you very much for sharing!