Why is Mike Learning Tech?

My Career Change = Link to heading

In June of 2016, my wife Kristin received an amazing position working with young adults with autism, and I had was offered a choice. Stay at my current job, or jump ship. My then employer had a history of letting people telecommute, so that was one option, but I wasn’t sure what I wanted.

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I was nearing my 4-year anniversary with my then employer. I spent much time over the previous year trying to figure out what was next for me. My employer had few options for a lateral move and even less for promotions. In fact, the majority of my co-workers had been doing the same job for years, with no real growth options. I say “real growth options” because while there were pieces of training and workshops, it never equated to upward mobility.

It was time to take the leap. I quit.

I hate job hunting. It’s the worst. There is a lot of rejection, and you will probably never learn why another candidate was selected. About a month before I left my job, I received my A+ Certification through CompTIA. This was an effort keep myself engaged by learning new skills to help me move forward in my career. With this certification in hand, I decided to switch careers. I was going to find an entry level IT job. It took a while, but I finally found something. I found a placement agency who was able to look at the sum of my resume, not just my lack of IT experience. This brought me to where I am now. A stable job where I am picking up some first-rate experience to get me where I want to go.

My lessons here? Don’t settle. I wasn’t satisfied with where my career was going, so I took charge. I tried to make it work where I was at, but after I exhausted those possibilities, I moved on. Even when looking for work I didn’t’ settle. I was fortunate enough that my wife was making enough to support our family, allowing me to ensure that I took the right job, not just the easy job.

Many of the projects on this website come from my attempts to learn more about networking, programming, and how computers work. It’s been a long, fun journey, and I can’t wait to keep going!