Six tips to my aspiring former self
By: Nathan Magyar
Tags: System Administration, Careers, Career Advice, Automation, It

Starting out in any industry can be scary and challenging — take it from someone who’s been there and done that!

I’ve been working in IT for a little over six years now. As the above picture suggests, difficult roads can truly lead to beautiful destinations. This isn’t just another cheesy phrase. I’ve been to the beautiful Amalfi Coast — can confirm, the roads are terrible! In all seriousness; starting out in IT was difficult. The pay was poor, the work was unfulfilling, and regardless of how well my peers treated me.. I honestly felt worthless at times. I promise you though, that these trying times are only temporary if you put in the work.

Crawl before you walk

I know, you don’t want to get up tomorrow and do another day of box-swapping, another day of port-patching or another day of keying IP addresses into printers. You don’t want that PA upstairs to call you and ask why their screen isn’t working only to find it unplugged. The reality is however; that this will never stop being a function. You are a vital cog in keeping your company productive. Keep showing up, putting in the hard yards and show some initiative and the work that excites you will slide your way.

2. Pick a path (You don’t have to stay in it though)

Six months into my first job, I was adamant on becoming a Network Engineer. I learnt all about our native switching technology and a year in, after consistently demonstrating that drive to my boss, I was trusted with configuring Network Switches. Shortly thereafter, I was offered a promotion and became a Technical Project Coordinator and fell in love with the process. Now, I’m a Senior Systems Engineer with a passion for Automation and Public Cloud technology.

My point is, if you get passionate about something — anything; pursue it! My knowledge of networks has served me well in the latest part of my career. Working as a Project Coordinator gave me broad, high-level exposure to a variety of technological concepts which ultimately allowed me to make an informed decision as to what I wanted to do in IT. Choosing that initial path and deciding what you want to do will fast-track your development. Remember, it doesn’t have to be your forever. It certainly wasn’t mine.

Get passionate! Dive in!

3. Embrace change!

I was terrified of change. I was always afraid of taking that leap, I was convinced that the grass was never going to be greener on the other side. What I’ve found however; is that sometimes it is. As a fresh-faced 23 year old with under three years of experience under my belt, I decided to pack my bags and move to the United Kingdom. This was probably the best decision I ever made. While my confidence and wallet took an initial hit, it all just fell into place. After weeks of cold-calling recruiters and kindly asking if they’d take a moment to read through my CV with me — I began receiving offers. Before I knew it, I had three contracts presented to me, all better paid with work that excited me. Not only did I get to start doing the work I was interested in, I was earning more and fulfilling my lifelong dream of seeing Europe.

My point? While the grass isn’t always greener on the other side, it just as often is! If it feels right, it probably is.

4. Ask questions

You don’t know everything. You have to be willing to drop your ego and learn from those around you. The next time you see your colleague do something interesting, or hear about someone working on an interesting project — ask them about it. If they haven’t got the time to talk to you about it, have a look through the ticket notes. Your co-workers are oftentimes walking encyclopedias, almost every one of them could teach you something that you didn’t know.

Don’t be shy, ask away!

5. Ignore that Imposter Syndrome

While you’re never going to know everything, you will know enough to do your job. After all, you’ve impressed that recruiter, your resume landed on the HR Executives desk and you aced that interview. You got the job. YOU did that. You’re amazing! You aren’t Leo as Frank Abagnale in Catch Me If You Can (at least I hope not, I’m quite impressed if you are) so don’t listen to that voice in the back of your head that says you can’t do it. Sure, you’ll have days where you didn’t know something you felt you should’ve — that doesn’t make you a bad engineer; that makes you human. We make mistakes, we live and we learn.

6. Learn a programming language

This is huge. It was only two or three years into my career that I really picked up PowerShell. Had I started earlier, I would’ve learnt a lot more a lot sooner. Programming languages grant you a deep understanding of the technology you’re writing for. Writing a PowerShell script to create new AD Users? You’ll learn what exactly goes into an AD User. The same concept applies to any programming language. Not only will you use your time to a far higher degree of efficiency, you’ll inherently gain a deep understanding of what it is you’re writing for. It’s not hard, I promise you. If Windows is your cup of tea, check out my PowerShell related articles below.