Tag: career

Skill Acquisition

Carl Setzer

I was chatting with one of the baristas at my favorite local coffee shop earlier today. I like how she described her current, I guess I’d call it “focus”: the acquisition of skills. She’s gained barista skills, store manager skills, she’s now working on hair-dressing skills. There was far more to that, but you get the drift.

This describes much of my career life. I’ve loved learning, new skills, new business types, new business functions (you can see the range of work I’ve done over on my resume). I relish breadth of knowledge. However, I did get to a point where I wanted depth, to become an expert in something. Much of my mental effort over the past few years has been seeking that something.

As I love so much, and focus requires denying, saying “no”, this has been a painful challenge for me. But I’m making progress. I do have something of a focus now. Something.

When I started down this web-development path, I assumed that at the end I’d be good at making websites and, well, then I’d make websites. Oh, my goodness, no…it’s been far more than that. I’ve studied data systems, systems analysis and design, graphic design, programming, project managment…so many things, and I would argue I have explored databases and system analysis in more depth than I have HTML, CSS and JavaScript. So, even while refining my focus, my opportunities have expanded.

Back to my friend, and to anyone else out there in a similar place: there’s value in focus. Maybe, to start, just start compiling a list of what you want to study/learn. First, having a list is the first step in a plan. And having a written list makes it much more likely to happen. Also, you’ll start to see patterns. Within that will be the first inklings of a focus.

I’m working on the same. I’ve started journaling on paper again (I’m using a Leuchtturm 1917, if you’re interested). And that’s where I’m working on this sort of thing. Paper engages the brain differently, which I find important. It also slows me down (I type pretty darn fast). Right now, I’m focusing on the kinds of work I want to do. Do I want to code? Do I want to design? Do I want to dig into data? Manage projects? Figuring out these elements, I can then craft a plan to achieve them and build the next phase of my career.

Have you done anything like this? What do you think of this notion? Let me know!

Non-Traditional Backgrounds and Tech Careers

Carl Setzer

I just read this tweet, which got me thinking…

I thought “well, I’m pretty non-traditional” when I read that. My career has drifted over a number of roles and industries (go read my resume for more of the story). I feel, at this point, the central theme of my work-life is what I’d call communications. Whether crafting presentations and other correspondence, developing social media strategies, creating WordPress websites, creating content for said websites, editing video, running sound and audio for events, coordinating meeting/event logistics…well, I think you see the theme.

I really appreciated the encouragement. Though my grades are pretty darn good, it’s not been easy. I’ve had to work quite hard. This work doesn’t come naturally to me. So encouragement is really valuable.

I’m still not sure where I want to land once I’m done with my degree. I don’t expect to be feted with glee, but I believe I have a lot to offer. Perhaps directly in the tech sector, or perhaps in a tech role in a more traditional business. I’m still pulling that together.

Has your career been linear? In one sector or role/type-of-role? Or have you been all over the map like me? And what kind of career transitions have you made? I’d love to hear your stories and ideas. Leave a comment and lets talk!

My next steps

Carl Setzer

When I started this career transition, my vision seemed clear: at the end of this I’ll get a job managing websites. Well, my vision has evolved. This is standard in my life, at least. As I learn more, interact with people, expand my view, my understanding grows and new opportunities become visible.

I expected that I would come out knowing nearly everything about building and managing sites. The main thing I’ve learned is how little I know. There is so much left to learn. I expected to study html, Javascript and CSS far deeper, that I’d spend more than one quarter on each. I also didn’t expect the breadth I’d be exposed to. Things like the database theory and design classes, and the SQL classes I’m taking now. Nor did I think I’d dive deeper into project management, systems analysis and design, Visual Basic, or Amazon Web Services.

This range of classes opens up some career areas that I hadn’t considered. Analyst roles for one, data systems for another. Another area I see is project management. And there’s communications, with a focus on digital comms. So much to consider. And I want to launch my need stage of my career plan soon. So I have work to do.

An update on education

Carl Setzer

This is from one of my assignments this week, and it seemed like a great blog post. So, enjoy!

  • What was the most pressing issue(s) you had to deal with during this course?
    • My biggest challenge this quarter was time. All my courses took more time than my past ones. With that, I had a few side-projects that were more time-intensive than I was anticipating. I often was submitting assignments right on the edge of their being due. This, not something I like! I value proactivity and being solidly ahead, exceeding deadlines. With that, I like to have time for an in-depth review of my readings afterward. That was not easy to make happen.
  • How did you overcome it or remedy the issue(s)?
    • I dealt with this mainly by being more thoughtful. I made it a point to slow down as I read and take better notes at that point. I recognized that I might not have the time to re-read every chapter, but I could take the time to review my notes. So it was critical for those notes to be valuable. I also leaned heavily on things like Quizlet, a flashcard app, which I have on my phone and iPad, and I use this on my PC as well. That enabled me to review things at more random moments. A quick flip through flashcards while waiting at the doctor’s office, dentist’s office, bank, etc. In this time of Covid, I have spent a fair amount of time waiting in lines. Being able to squeeze every bit out of my days has been vital.

5 Jobs I’ve Had

Carl Setzer

On Twitter last week someone asked everyone to list “5 Jobs You’ve Had”. This is a random list of jobs, basically just what popped into my head.

  1. Construction permitting coordinator
  2. Media coordinator
  3. Executive assistant
  4. Church office manager
  5. Realtor

Just 5 of many (take a look at my resume if you want to see more). Each one a piece of who I am now.

Blogging, Twitter and Focus

Carl Setzer
red blue and yellow textile

If you’re engaged with me on Twitter, you might have noticed I have two Twitter profiles: CarlSetzer and SetzerDigitial. This is for focus. I read years ago that you should keep a blog focused as narrowly as possible. 

@CarlSetzer is my oldest Twitter profile, which I started in 2007. I rambled over different topics over time, but for the past several years @CarlSetzer has been focused on my poetry, and mainly my daily+ haiku and regular contribution to the @Baffled Haiku Challenge, and tied to my poetry blog. It is growing solidly and has a fair amount of engagement. When I experiment with posting non-poetry, the engagement is dramatically less, and I slowly start to lose followers. 

@SetzerDigital has been around since 2017, started as a part of my brief foray into geek blogging (you can see the remnants on my Tumblr page and this Facebook page), but I’m not engaged with that project at this point. (quick aside: I thought I LOVED geek things and was an expert. As I launched into this space, though, I discovered I wasn’t as deep into things as I thought.) I opted a few weeks ago to repurpose this for something tied with my new career focus. I felt that a new account made more sense than trying to shift gears with my main account. A big thing: I still love writing poetry and engaging with that community. Since I have at least another year of study before I’m trying to look for work, I have plenty of time to build out that community. And that work seems to be solidly underway. In the past 30 days, I’ve gone from 51 to 73 followers, which may not seem huge, but it is a >40% increase. I’m happy enough with that. I do, of course, reserve the right to nuke this whole thing and integrate my two accounts. 

Twitter is part of my growing marketing/branding plan. I know that my network will be key to landing my next role. I don’t think that dropping resumes on websites will be terribly effective, for me, at least. Twitter’s developer community is pretty awesome. Thus my community will be crucial in my work search. Having a group of people who know me, know my work, and understand this part of my passion. 

What do you think? Oh, if you’re on Twitter, I’d love it if you’d pop on over, say “hi” and give me a follow.

Glaciers, Coding and My Social Media Feeds

Carl Setzer2 Comments

So, earlier today this video appeared in my YouTube feed:

Then this popped up in my LinkedIn Feed:

Tracking the effects of glacial melting at the top of the world

I’m sure Jung would label this synchronicity, but I don’t know what the universe is trying to tell me with this. Anyway, I found the coincidence fascinating.

tweets, xkcd comics, dreams and sticking to your guns

Carl Setzer

As I expect you all know, early in 2020 I returned to school to study web application development (head here if you need an update). I’m not the youngest student. However, I’m not the oldest, either. I have had a few people mention that, as I’m older, I don’t have as much to offer the world and that I’m keeping the space from those who will contribute more. Bah! I have a lot to offer. I bring a lot to my classes, to my fellow students, and will bring a lot to wherever I land, career-wise, next.

First thing this morning I came across this tweet:

Motivates me hard! Who knows? Maybe I’ll go after a master’s (not sure I want to do a PhD…though, in my heart-of-hearts, I want to know EVERYTHING about computers).

This comic from xkcd gave me pause, too.

xkcd - Dreams

Ultimately, I need to believe in myself, in what I bring, in what I know. Don’t hold back! I’m investing far too much time and energy to be timid about all that.

Ah, to live a bold life! We’ll see, my friends, we’ll see.

Windows Programmer Calculator

Carl Setzer
Windows Programmer Calculator

It may be because I’m still pretty new at this whole programming/coding thing, but I was pretty stoked to discover this feature within the built-in calculator that comes with Windows 10 (it might be part of older versions of Windows. I just don’t know). I’ve built Excel sheets for these conversions to check my work. This is actually easier and less clunky. Sure, I can do these manually, and I’m getting better at doing so in my head, but it’s good to have the ability to check my work easily.

Along with this, a friend of mine let me know about HiPer Calculator for Android phones.  I look forward to trying it out. I downloaded the free version, but there is a “Pro” version for $3.49. I’ll see how the free one works. Trying to be frugal and all that.

Do you have any tools that you love and recommend to an up-and-coming developer? I’d really love to hear about them. Leave a comment!

 

Some Thoughts On Being A 21st Century Student

Carl Setzer
person writing on notebook

I have a few favorite tools that really make school more effective. One: I get my textbooks on Kindle. I have the Kindle app on my computer, plus I have it on my phone and iPad. Having my books wherever I find myself is great. Plus, I can hit ctrl+F and search the whole book quickly. This has been really helpful when I’m struggling to remember “that one command”.

Also, I have Grammarly’s app installed. Being able to spell and grammar check in the browser is a great time saver.

Lastly, I love using Evernote to take notes. I often use paper, and also the note feature within the Kindle apps. But I can scan the papers, and import the Kindle notes, so all of them are in Evernote. Again, being able to search is powerful, and being able to review whenever I have a few minutes of downtime is great.