The IT Career Builder's Toolkit By Matthew Moran Publisher : Cisco Press Pub Date : December 31, 2004 Print : 1-58713-156-0 ISBN Pages : 312 Your complete guide to building your information technology career in any economy The IT Career Builder's Toolkit features market-focused skills and proven methods you can use to jump-start and advance your career While other books cover just the mechanics of preparing your resume, writing a cover letter, and interviewing, this book provides all that plus additional insight from IT career development expert, Matt Moran, to help you plan and create a rewarding IT career over the long term The toolkit approach allows you to use this book to suit your unique needs: Table of • Contents • Index • Examples Are you new to the IT field? Benefit by reading the book cover to cover Just need to fine-tune your IT career? Choose a topic and dive in Understand and prepare for the various and changing factors that affect your career in both positive and negative ways Learn how to Present the value of your technical skills in the job market Position yourself as the primary commodity of your career Remove the guesswork out of job searches Highlight on-the-job skills and gain meaningful professional exposure The companion CD-ROM includes career management tools such as resume and cover letter templates, forms to track important contacts, and self-assessment tools Start or further your consulting career with sample proposals, opportunity tracking forms, and a time-tracking and billing database Financial tools, including budget and cash-flow summary worksheets, help you gain financial well-being Use the Value-Added Technologist presentation to gain a clear understanding of the career-building process and how to use the toolkit to build a dynamic career Most of all, have fun! Every year, people advance along the path to career stardom Let Matt help you to be one of them through his career philosophy "Do not accept mediocrity as a career objectivedemand more of yourself." The IT Career Builder's Toolkit By Matthew Moran Publisher : Cisco Press Pub Date : December 31, 2004 Table of Print • : 1-58713-156-0 Contents ISBN • Index Pages : 312 • Examples Copyright About the Author About the Technical Reviewers Acknowledgments Introduction Who Should Read This Book? How to Use the Toolkit What Is the Toolkit Approach to Career Development? How This Book Is Organized Part I: An Introduction to Career Building Chapter 1 The Toolkit Approach to Career Development Justifying the Need for an IT Toolkit Actions & Ideas Chapter 2 Career Building Defined The Danger of a Tool-Driven Mindset A Job Is Not a Career Career Building Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 3 Information Technology: A Great Career Why IT Is a Great Career What About Outsourcing? Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 4 Defining Yourself: Aptitudes and Desires Considerations in Your Career Choice Beware: Analysis Paralysis Conclusion Actions & Ideas Part II: Filling Your Toolkit Chapter 5 Self-Assessment The Power of Self-Assessment The Dangers of Self-Assessment Four Questions of Self-Assessment Conclusion: Making It Personal Actions & Ideas Chapter 6 Attitude The Effect of Attitude on Your Career Positive Mental Attitude Beware: Two Pitfalls of Attitude The Role of Attitude Attitude Checks Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 7 Communication Skills Defining Communication Skills The Benefit of Communication Skills: An Effective Communicator Is Viewed as More Intelligent Written Communications Verbal Communication Presentations and Training A Brief Note on Listening Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 8 Technical Skills Your Technology Skills The Role of Learning The Fear of Obsolescence Another Perspective: Transcendent Skills Reducing the Parts Tips to Speed Up the Learning Process Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 9 The Cover Letter The Purpose of Your Cover Letter Three Vital Ingredients in Your Cover Letter Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 10 The Résumé Your Ambassador to the Professional World The Purpose of Your Résumé Determining Who Is Looking at Your Résumé Résumé Basics Conclusion Actions & Ideas Part III: Putting Your Toolkit to Use Chapter 11 Breaking into IT Correcting Perception IT Happens Outside of IT Other Avenues into IT Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 12 Building an Active Contact List Enjoy People Develop a Personality Have Other Areas of Interest Engage in Conversation Track and Remember Your Contacts Share Opportunity Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 13 The Job Search Getting What You Want Requires Wanting Something Defining the Job Search Remember: Looking for Work Is Work The Toolkit Approach to Finding a Job Job Search Outline A Job Search Comparison Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 14 The Interview Practice Your Interview Skills After the Interview Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 15 Salary Negotiations and Employment Agreements Start Early Know What You Want Understand the Employer's Perspective Be Creative Be Firm Your Worth to the Company Negotiations Never Fail Be Flexible Employment Agreements Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 16 On-the-Job Promotion On the Job Maintaining and Building Your Network Identifying Areas for Success Attitude Working for a Tyrant and Other Joys Determine Whether Your Boss's Actions Are Personality or Personal Understand That People Are "Where They Are" Take an Objective Path to Evaluating What They Say Handling Criticism Conclusion Actions & Ideas Part IV: More Options to Build Your Career Chapter 17 The Boundaries and Benefits of Working at Home Careers That Lend Themselves to Telecommuting The Benefits for the Employee The Benefits for the Employer The Concerns for the Employee The Concerns for the Employer Conclusion: Next Steps Keys to Successful Telecommuting Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 18 The Toolkit Approach to Consulting The Consulting Life The Benefits The Pitfalls Resources for the Consultant CD-ROM Materials for the Consultant Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 19 The Move to Management Leadership Process and Time Management Critical Skills You Need Now Conclusion Actions & Ideas Part V: The Value-Added Technologist Chapter 20 Make Yourself Indispensable A Word About Value Being Proactive Understanding Technology's Role in the Organization Maintain a Business-First Mentality Create Standards, Automation, or a Programmer's Toolkit Create a Peer Knowledge Network Be Known As the Go-To Resource Be Ready and Willing to Take on the Necessary Responsibility Have Experts You Call On for Your Organization Be Passionate About Something! Never Blame, and Always Have a Corrective Plan Adopt Concept Over Process Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 21 Concept Over Process What to Expect What Not to Expect COP Objectives COP Origins What Is a Process-Driven Mindset? Moving from Process Driven to Concept Driven Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 22 The Role of Mentoring Mentor Characteristics Mentoring Others Conclusion Actions & Ideas Chapter 23 Financial Control The Impact of Finances on Career Building Financial Control Creates Options Financial Control Is Largely Mental Money Is a Tool Debt and Spending Some Basics of Financial Planning and Stability Conclusion Actions & Ideas Index Copyright The IT Career Builder's Toolkit Matthew Moran Copyright© 2005 Matthew Moran Published by: Cisco Press 800 East 96th Street Indianapolis, IN 46240 USA All rights reserved No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review Printed in the United States of America 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 First Printing: January 2005 Library of Congress Cataloging-inPublication Number: 2004108671 Warning and Disclaimer This book is designed to provide information about preparing for and entering into a career in information technology (IT) Every effort has been made to make this book as complete and as accurate as possible, but no warranty or fitness is implied The information is provided on an "as is" basis The author, Cisco Press, and Cisco Systems, Inc shall have neither liability nor responsibility to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damages arising from the information contained in this book or from the use of the discs or programs that may accompany it The opinions expressed in this book belong to the author and are not necessarily those of Cisco Systems, Inc Feedback Information At Cisco Press, our goal is to create in-depth technical books of the highest quality and value Each book is crafted with care and precision, undergoing rigorous development that involves the unique expertise of members from the professional technical community Readers' feedback is a natural continuation of this process If you have any comments regarding how we could improve the quality of this book or otherwise alter it to better suit your needs, you can contact us through e-mail at feedback@ciscopress.com Please make sure to include the book title and ISBN in your message We greatly appreciate your assistance Corporate and Government Sales Cisco Press offers excellent discounts on this book when ordered in quantity for bulk purchases or special sales For more information, please contact: U.S Corporate and Government Sales 1-800-382-3419 corpsales@pearsontechgroup.com Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] magazine articles, getting published maintaining a positive attitude maintaining professioal contacts management avoiding negative attitudes toward leadership necessary skill sets meeting skills team-building skills process management time management maximizing earning potential employment agreements assumptions deliverables salary negotiations meeting skills mentoring and humility characteristics of a mentor mission statements money as a tool impact of finances on career building myth of the self-made man Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] necessities determining career path commute and travel time future growth potential insurance pay training working conditions need for IT toolkit nervousness, overcoming during interview networking building professional contact list introversion as hindrance to tracking professional contact list nonlinearity of careers nontechnology relationships, developing Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] objectives of COP out-of-town job searching outsourcing ownership of job responsibilities Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] paragraphs lack of ineffective resumes writing passive job searching 2nd versus proactive peer knowledge networks performance as criteria for advancement skill assessment, questions to ask perks available to IT professionals personal accomplishments, incorporating into cover letters personality traits, introversion pitfalls of consulting billing compensation ongoing marketing periods of downtime scheduling taxes PMA (positive mental attitude) maintaining pitfalls of post-interview tips practicing for interviews presentations pride as hindrance to working relationships proactive job searching versus passive searching proactive work ethic process management process-driven mindset, moving to concept-driven professional contacts maintaining sharing professional experience section of resumes professional networking building contact list introversion as hindrance to tracking contact list project management, COP concentric view of defining conceptual mindset developing proactive solution ideology mission statement objectives of project definition role of technology in understanding the industry workflow analysis project-based mindset as prerequisite for telecommuting publishing your articles purpose of cover letters purpose of resumes pursuing alternate avenues into IT Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] reach and frequency reacting to criticism reacting to difficult personalities requesting advice requirements for IT jobs, experience resources for consultants resumes [See also cover letters] ideal length of identifying audience for lists, including professional experience section purpose of writing guidelines Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] salary negotiating setting reasonable expectations searching for a job job search outline out-of-town searching passive job searching 2nd proactive job searching when to begin seeking opportunity over position segmentation of IT field self-assessment dangers of performing questions to ask sharing professional contacts skill sets assessing dangers of performing questions to ask categorizing communication e-mail listening paragraphs, writing verbal writing letters written for management meeting skills team-building skills soft skills communication e-mail listening paragraphs, writing verbal written conceptual knowledge COP transcendency of versus technical skills solutions-based approach to technology specialty areas in IT specifying intentions in cover letters standardization, impact on technology Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] team-building skills technical skills avoiding trends categorizing continuing education importance of learning core functions technology telecommuting benefits to employee benefits to employer careers lending themselves to concerns to employee concerns to employer developing project-based mindset discipline, applying to work establishing clear expectations with employer resources technologies used IM services VPNs time management tool-driven mindset, danger of tracking professional contact list traits of bosses transcendency of soft skills Tulgan, Bruce 2nd Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] under-management undertaking additional projects "us versus them" mentality user-level automation Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] verbal communication conversations engaging in conversation interviewing answering difficult questions interviewer style, identifying overcoming nervousness post-interview tips practicing for presentations volunteering for additional responsibilities VPNs, telecommuting applications Index [A] [B] [C] [D] [E] [F] [G] [I] [J] [L] [M] [N] [O] [P] [R] [S] [T] [U] [V] [W] Waitley, Denis working from home benefits to employee benefits to employer careers lending themselves to concerns to employee concerns to employer developing project-based mindset discipline, applying to work establishing clear expectations with employee resources technologies used working with a difficult boss modifying reactions to pride as hindrance to reacting to criticism writing resumes, guidelines written communication ... ASIST, BPX, Catalyst, CCDA, CCDP, CCIE, CCNA, CCNP, Cisco, the Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert logo, Cisco IOS, the Cisco IOS logo, Cisco Press, Cisco Systems, Cisco Systems Capital, the Cisco Systems logo, Empowering the Internet... The Boundaries and Benefits of Working at Home Careers That Lend Themselves to Telecommuting The Benefits for the Employee The Benefits for the Employer The Concerns for the Employee The Concerns for the Employer Conclusion: Next Steps... presentation provides a framework for the entire toolkit It offers a clear understanding of the career- building process and provides you with a greater understanding of the industry and how to use the toolkit to build a dynamic career