Find your dream role
Author: Stefan Waldvogel
Find your career in five steps
As a mentor, I get many questions, and one question is: What should I do? This question reveals a bigger problem. People do not have a specific goal, and I cannot help much without a plan/goal.
Usually, I help people in Cybersecurity, but the approach is always the same. The first step is the big picture.
Usually, I help people in Cybersecurity, but the approach is always the same. The first step is the big picture.
IT has many options, and people like different things, but do not focus on one thing except it is your passion. Before you start your career, do a lot of research. Remember: Switching a career is possible, but it might hurt your wallet or costs time.
The first focus is the salary, but this should not be your primary concern. Think about employers and how you can reach them. If you are looking for network jobs, but the local job market is empty... it is not an excellent choice. A 100% remote job is possible as a beginner but not common.
Open many matching job ads to get an idea of what an employer wants and what you can offer. You can apply if you have 70% of the US's requirements and you are a suitable candidate.
A word about certs: You need some, but work experience weighs a lot. Some job offers are ridiculous, especially in security( entry-level), five years of experience, and CISSP. HR departments love copy-paste, including adding impossible certs, but you can see excellent job offers vs. insufficient offers. Reasonable job offers are unique and tailored to a specific job. You want to look for such jobs and employers because you can tailor your CV, resume, and LinkedIn profile...
The next step is, find your best path, do intense research, and create a table to compare each option:
Open many matching job ads to get an idea of what an employer wants and what you can offer. You can apply if you have 70% of the US's requirements and you are a suitable candidate.
A word about certs: You need some, but work experience weighs a lot. Some job offers are ridiculous, especially in security( entry-level), five years of experience, and CISSP. HR departments love copy-paste, including adding impossible certs, but you can see excellent job offers vs. insufficient offers. Reasonable job offers are unique and tailored to a specific job. You want to look for such jobs and employers because you can tailor your CV, resume, and LinkedIn profile...
The next step is, find your best path, do intense research, and create a table to compare each option:
This picture is for the cloud, but you can do this with every job. The question is: Can you do the job, and if yes, what do you need? Maybe you have to move to do your dream job, and perhaps you can add some certs, perhaps you have to add some skills, etc...
Numbers: Availability is crucial, and LinkedIn can help you a lot. If you are a beginner, pay attention to open apprenticeship positions. One example: In Austin, TX, you picked “cloud” and “security.” A quick LinkedIn search will tell you one thing: You have 4x more cloud jobs than in Cybersecurity. In the cloud, you have hundreds of apprenticeships available... in security few. In your area, this is different.
Getting professional help for free is the next step:
Numbers: Availability is crucial, and LinkedIn can help you a lot. If you are a beginner, pay attention to open apprenticeship positions. One example: In Austin, TX, you picked “cloud” and “security.” A quick LinkedIn search will tell you one thing: You have 4x more cloud jobs than in Cybersecurity. In the cloud, you have hundreds of apprenticeships available... in security few. In your area, this is different.
Getting professional help for free is the next step:
Find a mentor and talk to him. Ask him/her about what he/she is doing, if he/she likes the job, typical interview questions, salary, certs....
If you want to add certifications and need a course, find the free things first.
LinkedIn is powerful if you use it right:
If you want to add certifications and need a course, find the free things first.
LinkedIn is powerful if you use it right:
The most important thing is: LinkedIn and networking needs time. Build your profile long before you are looking for a job and interact with people.
© 2021. This work is licensed under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license