Getting experience is a great feeling

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Just thought i would share with you guys a touch of luck i had today...Recently I passed my A+ and have now moved onto studying my Network+ with the exam booked later next month. Since passing the A+ I have been looking for employment for that very first IT job to get me on the ladder. Haven't had much luck as of yet apart from just the one interview.

Fortunately I got speaking to a mate who hooked me up with his dad who runs his own IT business but he mainly deals with networking in offices etc. His dad knew of a friend who runs another IT business but more along the lines of just home user repair etc who might be looking for someone.

This morning I read chapter 6 of Mike Meyers book on the Network+ which is all about running cabling, patch panels/face plates and punching/crimping the individual UTP etc (Basically the structure of a network you would normally find in an office)

Mid day i finally got a phone call from this friend of a friend who had been given my details, he arranged to have a casual interview with me at his new office he was setting up. Got there and had a very long chat with him about what i wanted and what he wants etc (got on like a house on fire if im honest) then i found myself helping him set up the network in his new office and basically doing everything i had just read about in that chapter in the book, it was like it was fate lol. Spent about 3 hours there in the end, But i did admit to him that i was new to networking and if it wasn't for the fact that i had just read the chapter this morning i wouldn't of had a clue what he was going on about haha. It was great to have just read about it and then getting the hands on experience.

Besides the great experience i gained from this the only problem is that although we got on great he is a one man business who is just expanding from working from home for the last 8 years and just moving into an office to work from...So he wants to take someone on to help with the expansion and hopefully the extra work he can take on through having more space. But in the same way he is a really nice guy and doesn't want me to go quitting my current job incase things go quiet for him and there's not enough work for both of us....He has also said that he really wants to help me out and any spare time i have he would have no problems me coming to meet him and gaining more experience and he wouldnt have a problem then being a reference on my CV.

So was a great experience and have made a great contact it seems but unfortunately still no job just yet

 

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You have someone to give you a good reference. Priceless.
I was volunteering at a charity before I got my first IT job. I didn't know that they had asked the sys admin at the charity for a reference until much later.
After he told me what he'd said to them I'm pretty convinced that his words would have swayed them if they were in any doubt.

My advice would be to keep working with him. If there's enough work there for you full-time you'll both know within a few months, until then just do whatever hours you can fit in round your real job and soak up some hands-on experience (for some hands-on beer money).

 

Yea agreed and will be taking your advice, the only downside is that he doesn't work weekends and doesn't really do evenings unless there's a big job on so im going to find it quite hard to meet up with him and gain that experience as i work 8-5. All I can do is keep my fingers crossed that like you say in a few months he relises his got enough work for both of us. But he told me we would definetly stay in contact...maybe in the new year I will suggest to him that I take some holiday time and spend a few days with him...

 

I like your thinking.

 

Yes, getting an experience is a key to future success. It tells about your consistency as an employee.
I think you will get good opportunities to work with. best luck.