What Skills Are Most Valuable?

Hey guys, I'm from the UK.

I'm currently working in a dead end job that isn't IT related.

In my spare time I'm learning web design, but I've started that a few months ago and have just finished learning the basics of HTML and CSS.

I want a job in IT but realise I need to learn the most valuable skills before I can realistically get a job.

What skills would you say are most important and in demand? Baring in mind I'm working in a dead end job at the moment I'd be happy to master any skills that earns 15k+.

Thanks Joe

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Comments

jamesleecoleman

People skills, patience and communication are really important. You have to know how to talk to people and be patient with them. Sometimes they don't know the technical talk so you have to know how to explain it to them so they can understand it.

The IT skills that are in demand will depend on where you live.

rcsoar4fun

Everyone in IT needs project management skills. The further up you move the more you need it.

5ekurity

My $.02 on web development - while it is cool and can be fun, depending upon your customer base, it can get very grueling with a lot of "I wanted this, but now I want that" and "how do you charge X when I can create a website for a few dollars a month?". Skills needed will depend on where you live as previously mentioned; generally speaking, InfoSec, cloud computing and "big data" are in demand at least from what I am seeing. If you really know your stuff, you can write your own ticket.

Asif Dasl

Specifically what IT skills that are most valuable depends on what you like to do, day-in day-out. Have a look a Pluralsight or CBT Nuggets and try out the Microsoft, VMware and Cisco videos to find out what interests you the most. Web design is a different sector of IT, not as well paid as IT support or security it has to be said.

I get the sense that you just want any IT job, but you need to know where you are going before you can get there. So, find out what interests you most and start learning whenever you can, before work, after work, during lunch, weekends, whenever you can... It's not easy, going by the number of posts this forum gets from people trying to break in to IT, but then you see posts from people who finally made it. Keep at it.

Good Luck!

Preflux

If you're looking for a £15k+ job and want it soon. Get ready for a helpdesk job.

TONS of them available and if you mention you're asking for less than others, you'll get it easily.

Definitely take this route if you have great communication skills.

Comptia A+ will help you land that job and also expand your knowledge.

ImYourOnlyDJ

#1 desired skillset would be people skills. I've seen it time and time again that a person with great people skills will get the job over those with great technical skills. Other than that look for what you really like doing. Help desk is a good starting point for IT but web design is also a great option.

For web design you are off to a good start by learning HTML and CSS. I would focus on getting some good sites designed to show potential employers. You could also learn Javascript and PHP if this is the path you would like to follow. If you are just looking to set started in more technical work then taking the A+ and maybe Network+ certs would assist you getting into a help desk position.

ratbuddy

Joe_7, if you want to continue on the web development track, you will be best served by gaining some backend and scripting skills. Install a few flavors of Linux in virtual machines, and get webservers up and running. Learn PHP and Javascript. Create some demo pages using complex scripts and forms. Also learn what responsive design is, and learn how to implement it.

If you can do all that, you'll be able to land a job in the field for sure, and for better money than a basic help desk job.

Joe_7

Thanks for all the replies. I wrote a long post but it got deleted when I tried quoting two people at once

Basically because I pissed university up the wall a few years ago I'm now working part time in a dead end job. I've tried some internet marketing stuff (writing content + building a list), affiliate marketing etc. The problem I've always encountered though is not been an 'expert' in a field and therefore not been able to provide genuine value.

I therefore decided to start learning web design from scratch because I felt I'd enjoy it. I've enjoyed it so far and in the 2 months I've been learning and testing my skills I feel I've learnt some solid basics with HTML and CSS. I also realise to master any field that you need time and it isn't a quick fix solution.

This is why I created the thread. I spend my free time learning web design but at the same time I'm stuck in this dead end job. I know it could take years to start making $$$ from web design which is fine but it still leaves me in this job I despise.

I don't see much point in applying for any old job trying to get full time because it's more than likely to be another dead end job I won't enjoy and could take years to move up to the point I can leave home (Just my opinion).

So my idea was to learn skills in IT (something I would enjoy) and then try a get job in that field once I'd learnt the relevant skills. I'm not bothered about getting a great job because I know I can work on web design and other projects in my spare time and further down the line make money from that. My idea was to learn some basic skills that were good enough to get a basic job that could give me enough money to rent somewhere.

If you disagree with anything I've said or have better ideas of progressing then please give me feedback.

Just my thoughts at the present time, thanks again.

Joe

Asif Dasl

Joe_7 wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies. I wrote a long post but it got deleted when I tried quoting two people at once

Happened to me on more than one occassion over the years!

Joe_7 wrote: »

I don't see much point in applying for any old job trying to get full time because it's more than likely to be another dead end job I won't enjoy and could take years to move up to the point I can leave home (Just my opinion).

Do you know what you want to do? or are you still undecided? I couldn't see anything in your post which definitely says web design is the path you want to go with. It seems it's a part-time thing until something better turns up, but you have to decide for that better thing to turn up and follow through on that decision too. Help-desk can be another dead-end job if you don't have a path in mind, that suits some people but if you want to earn more then having a plan in place for the next step is crucial.

fredrikjj

If I had no IT background and no IT related degree that could open doors for me, I would without a doubt go for programming. What sets it apart from other aspects of IT is that it's possible to directly demonstrate proficiency by showing your work. No matter how much I learn about BGP and MPLS and configure it in a lab environment, no one is going to let me build a service provider network with no previous experience. However, as a programmer you can build fully functional applications despite no formal credentials.

bobloblaw

All good advice from everyone.

BradleyHU

depends on your role. if you're client facing, you most important skill will always be soft skills...

Joe_7

Asif Dasl wrote: »

Happened to me on more than one occassion over the years! :DDo you know what you want to do? or are you still undecided? I couldn't see anything in your post which definitely says web design is the path you want to go with. It seems it's a part-time thing until something better turns up, but you have to decide for that better thing to turn up and follow through on that decision too. Help-desk can be another dead-end job if you don't have a path in mind, that suits some people but if you want to earn more then having a plan in place for the next step is crucial.

You have a point.

I wouldn't say my aim is to become a web designer and simply do that and nothing else. At the same time, I didn't spend 2 hours of everyday of the last 2 months learning basics to just give up.

In my mind I want to start my own online business in the future. I don't have any experience or skills in one field so I decided I needed to learn something and become adept in that field.

I enjoy learning web design and feel I can progress within that.

I'm not really sure how else I would go about it.

Thanks Joe

Asif Dasl

I have a mate who used to do IT support and then began to hate it and now wants to do web design, but in truth neither is an easy choice. Web design is full of competition and there is a lot of back and forward with customers and chasing money if you are doing it yourself. Nobody says spending the time for web design has been a complete waste. Remember if you were doing a degree you would be spending a lot of time doing stuff that may not be relevant to your career either but in the end you end up smarter than you were before.

But maybe if you want to move out that bad you need to sacrifice setting up the business for now? Maybe it's only a part-time business for now? The main thing is to choose something which you are interested in, in the long term because if you do something you love the money will come afterwards. That's why I would investigate other paths in IT to see if you are interested in them enough, and if it's web design that really does it for you then go all out then.

It's a tough decision and only really you can make that call - good luck whatever you decide to do...

ehnde

Web design can be very difficult to break in to. Owning your own company could be very satisfying, but I urge you to gain practical working experience in I.T. before doing this.

Web design work is more easily found by connections & references. Having a portfolio of your own online for others to see is a must.

I recommend you seek out a job working for an MSP (managed services provider). These types of companies do many different things, and you can get started with as little as a CompTIA certification even if you do not have a degree. I would dare to say that web design is not a sought after skill. If you want to cultivate skills that others find valuable, consider some of these things: microsoft engineer, linux engineer, DBA, network engineer, virtualization, storage. Those are all good long term goals. The easiest first step would be the A+.

If you really want to start picking up some $$$ asap, look for a helpdesk position. Study hard working towards what you ultimately want to do, and then get out of there and pursue your dreams. Any job you could possibly do in IT will only help you later on, even if that means working for yourself.