It’s Alive! It’s Alive!
Many times we have opportunities to make changes in our careers. Several times in my IT career, for example, I made decisions that allowed me to grow beyond what I was doing at the time. I went from Main Frames to Mid-Range to Client Server to Networking based on interest and a hunch about the future. When I look at the many developers and programmers on the market now due to the economic upheaval in the world I think these IT professionals might make great Network Engineers. Given the demand I see every day for CCIEs and Network Engineers I have decided to try and persuade some of them to make a career change. After all mastering the IOS and CLI for Cisco boxes is not too far removed from coding right? Ok, it’s a little bit of a stretch but think about it. Is it really? I was talking to Narbik recently about Dan (my big brother) and how he was recently laid off from his job as a test and design developer. Now here’s a guy with real smarts not those Sears smarts I haul around. His grey matter even at his advanced age is still working pretty well. So I convinced them to do an experiment with me. Yup Narbik and I are going to retool Dan (my big brother).
Like Dr. Frankenstein and Igor we want to rebuild another human being (sorry Narbik but you’re Igor). I will stick him into Igor’s I mean Narbik’s R&S CCIE Bootcamp and see how he does on the written! Then if he passes I will send him to the lab. Yes without even going to the CCNA and CCNP courses, heck he’s old and might expire if we take too long!
Oh yes I feel like a kid about to experiment on a frog or lizard! What will we find in the entrails of Dan (my big brother) as we push him to his limit? Will he faze out or freak out and quit? I will write about every detail so his reputation could be damaged forever here in the ether of the vast internet!!! What a chance to get him back for all those years when we were kids. He hit me with a rock in the eye once and then he dropped a huge flower pot on my head from a tree house we built once. This will be the ultimate geek revenge! How to replace Dan’s brain?
Seriously though I think this is a good idea for experienced IT professionals like Developers, Server Engineers and others to consider. We work in an IT world where our skills overlap and our responsibilities often call upon us to be knowledgeable in other areas. Who in IT is not aware of how data travels from place to place? Building on that knowledge is not a stretch really and if there is interest in networking then taking that next step is not a real stretch at all. The CCNA exam is a great litmus test to start with. Then taking a step at a time maybe CCNP or CCVP and who knows in a year or two (or three) maybe CCIE certification can be a reality. It is kind of like the blind leading the blind but where there is a will there is a way!
So in Dan’s case we are going to set him up to try out the Eman and Narbik experiment. We will see how far he gets. Wish us luck and if you are interested in trying a career change like this give me a call!
Eman +1-302-438-1681
Thanks
Hello folks I will spare you a personal bio by using my LinkedIn page http://www.linkedin.com/in/danconde.
Eman and I were discussing how to survive the current job market. I took the time to compare how today's market is similar in many ways the first time I was laid off. During the 80's folks were laid off from many industries. For me this meant losing a position as an Inspector with Boeing Aerospace, a job which I really enjoyed. I was fortunate that the existing administration had a philosophy of retraining folks to improve their marketability. My brother was then, as he is still, keen on telling people where to go and how to get there. His advice was the best even then.
Computers....hmmm. The first time I took any computer courses was in the early 70's. Floppy disks were either ten or eight inches back then. It was soon after dropping a stack of punch cards for my "Hello World" program that I shifted gears and changed my major to Music Ed. This time though I found a technology that was both satisfying and challenging.The Workforce Commission placed me in a MCST program in Richland College to learn state of the art computer hardware (does anyone remeber ISA or MCA), DOS/Windows operating systems, UNIX, software applications, networking, with both Pascal and C programming(without the ++). I still remember launching WordPerfect from the command prompt to be rewaderd with the blue screen workspace. Workgroups, Lantastic, and Novell were the the industry standards way back then. The end result being I was trained to do something new, someting rewarding, but best of all I was introduced to a new career.
Fast-forward to today.... I have been laid off. What are my options? What worked for me so far?
Well I credit my success to a simple philosophy. Always learn something new. After having completed the MCST there were additional classes in Systems Analysis, design, (R)DBMS, Java, PMP, HTML,CTS, just to name a few. So why not learn something new?
Like everyone else I have had phone interviews, face to face interviews, and offers contingent on relocating elsewhere. So this job search may take a while. The point is if I have the time to re-invent myself, then I shall. I am somewhat intimidated by the goal. There is a LOT of hard work ahead. Wish me luck, and please feel free to offer any advice, suggestions, and comments. Believe me, I am very interested in hearing from you.
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