Latest Posts - Page 122 of 198

May 1, 2019April 20, 2019 General

Creating a Podcast – Not Just a Lot of Talking

There are a vast number of tutorials for creating a podcast. These cover the technical issues and often include some suggestions to help you be successful. In this episode, I explore your attitude, desires, and whether a podcast makes sense for you. It often needs to be a labor of love. Thus, we start by examing that. Creating A Podcast Topic It is probably stating the obvious when I say a podcast starts with a topic. However, that does not always seem to be the case. A general concept or theme exists, but you will often see podcasts wander and even flounder in the early episodes. While it is usually recommended to launch a podcast with three to five episodes ready... Read more

April 29, 2019April 20, 2019 Become a Better Developer

Writing A Book – What You Should Know Before You Begin

One of the popular suggestions for passive income is writing a book. There are some pros to doing so. However, it is not a project to be undertaken lightly. Whether you are aiming for a fiction or non-fiction work, there is a lot of effort beyond putting words on paper. Here are some things that will help you decide whether this is something you genuinely want to do. Writing a Book Includes a Lot of Writing It will come as no surprise to you that a book requires a lot of writing. In my experience, this goes beyond what most of us experience. I have blogged for years, written white papers, produced a vast array of term and research papers, and produced... Read more

April 26, 2019April 13, 2019 Lessons Learned From Consulting

Habits, Roadmaps, and the Value of Career Momentum

When we think of our professional lives, the result is a marathon, not a sprint. Thus, there is a need to develop a form of career momentum that can get us through those long years. There are a variety of ways to accomplish this goal. That means we can look at several approaches to keeping our career on a forward path even in light of all that life throws at us. Career Momentum Is Key I have found that momentum is the most significant contributor to keeping my career on track. This has been the case even when things appear to go off the rails. There have been periods where all of my goals came to a complete stop. Nevertheless,... Read more

April 24, 2019April 13, 2019 Lessons Learned From Consulting

Adding Soft Skills To Advance Your Career

It is probably not going to shock you to find that soft skills are an essential piece of success in your career. Technical skills are your primary asset. However, soft skills will help you apply those technical ones is the most effective way. It also seems that the technical side becomes less a factor in advancing as you move into the advanced stages of a career. Oh No, Sales Skills The natural introversion of many technical professionals goes against the classic idea of sales. We tend to equate good sales skills with a big and extroverted personality. That is not the case. The best salespeople build relationships. That is not an area relegated to the extroverts. On the contrary, I have found... Read more

April 22, 2019April 22, 2019 Lessons Learned From Consulting

Advancing Your Career Through New Challenges

As you move through the years, you might find that advancing your career becomes a more significant challenge. There was so much to learn when you started. However, you now have a lot of knowledge under your belt. Never fear, there is still a world full of opportunities for you to advance to that next level. Expand Your Reach No one learns without stepping out of what they know. If you find yourself overly comfortable in your current position, it is time to move. That does not mean you have to move to another country or even change jobs. It does say you should look for new areas to explore. That includes new forms of interacting with your peers. There are ways... Read more

April 19, 2019April 20, 2019 Lessons Learned From Consulting

Giving Back As A Mentor, Coach, and Lead

We have looked this week at how to get the most out of mentors and teammates. However, we also should think about giving back. There will be opportunities to teach, lead, and even mentor others. I have found these situations are as much a blessing to us as they are the recipients. Therefore, we should embrace these sort of opportunities where we can. Learn By Teaching The first point to consider is how teaching someone is a way to learn. In the simplest form, we ask someone to say back to us what we just said. This is a test of whether they learned what we desired. If they can repeat it back to us, then they learned it at... Read more