confidence

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Please excuse the random waffling again , but I guess this may be useful to someone as it kind of shows that, even if your job is reasonably technical, it is never a bad thing to go right back to the basics and build up a thorough understanding of things and your competence...


I've been feeling unconfident in many areas of IT recently and it probably has a lot to do with my change in jobs -there are a lot of new things to learn, ways and proceedures in which to do things and the network is quite old, and company has a tight budget to stick to so, rather than throw things out that break (last company did that a lot more) we have to fix everything including all the hardware (old company outsourced a fair amount of this)- very 'hands on'.

Anyway, although i've managed to meet every challenge the new role has thrown forth so far, It was a tad overwhelming, and, to get some confidence/ fill in any gaps in knowledge, I decided to go right back to the basics with both software and hardware.

That kind of started started with touch-typing, which I learned pretty quickly in-terms of the layout of the keyboard a fair while ago, but, speed wasn't too great...so I kept switching back to looking at the keyboard...decided a few weeks back that I was 99% there so really worked at it and now that seems to be finally paying off and speed picking up in the last few weeks due to perseverence.

Also, today I attended a course in MS Excel as it's one of those things that I can fix on with technical approach, but it's one of those applications I use very rarely so, when someone asks me how to use it in terms of formulas etc, I freeze (even if I know the answer - lack of confidence).
Anyway, I flew through it and was 'top of the class' (the geeky one ) with it all - the tutor even said that she reckons I should just self study as picked it up so easily. Got a little certificate for it, and feeling pretty pleased (and silly as I do actually know a fair bit).

I have now decided that in my own time, I am now going to go to another of these tuitions for advanced Excel, then do Access...

..then move onto hardware (I am learning an awful lot from 'hands on', and interms of career, my CV now has a lot of experience on it which was actually speaking out louder than my certificates when I got offered all those jobs earlier this year)...but again it will be good to get the certificate to prove it to myself... and do A+, network +...and then get back into the 'heavy' stuff. Thinking of doing a course in UNIX too as been using it to upload DNS records of new domains we are hosting and find it fun...

Feeling pretty pleased as kind of had a long gap since 70-270 and finally seem to be getting that 'passion' for it all back again!

 

:hhhmmm well it's good to see your keeping yourself busy, Leehaa. I think IT is one of the most difficult careers going, because of the constant need to keep upto date with IT!

I wouldn't worry too much about not knowing formulas or macro's in excel. Unless you use excel everyday then like most software applications you forget how to use them, even if you have been on a training course!

It's like what Arroryn stated on another thread That - in working in IT, you are expected to know everything! I get ask all sorts of questions about software I didn't even know was on the computer until someone logs a call with IT Help Desk. It annoy's a little but, heck can't know everything!!

Anyway goodluck with studies

 

Lol - thank you!

 

Thank you - though I bet you surprise yourself with what you can actually resolve out of the "all sorts of questions" when you put your mind to it !!

 

You'll do just fine, Lee.

 

Thank you!