Don't Let Your IT Career Dead End Texas

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Originally published at Internet.com

In my experience, the best secret to ongoing career success regardless of the workplace climate or next technology du jour is to adopt the mindset of being 100 percent responsible for the entity known as "You, Inc." That's right, you are in charge of and responsible for your own success or lack thereof. One of the best tools you can employ to be proactive is to conduct informational interviews.

As I define it, an informational interview is a chance to semi-formally speak with someone in your field (or a field you aspire to be in) and learn what you need to know to be successful. As an IT person you should already know the value of staying "in the know" about what's coming down the pipeline in terms of the next great application, framework, programming language, hardware, etc. An informational interview allows you to not only stay on top of the industry trends but more importantly keep on top of the non-technical aspects of your career.

As more and more jobs head overseas in this flatter planet trend, it is even more important for you to stay on top of more than just the latest optimized code. Unless you're planning to relocate with the off shoring trend, you need to understand what your strengths are and where you fit in with the ever-evolving versatile workforce.

Let me share with you the top 4 reasons why informational interviews are the key to successful transitions (even if you're not yet in transition).

1) You get to gather knowledge from someone who has "been there/done that."

Why recreate the wheel when you can learn lessons from someone already doing the type of work you'd like to be doing? You wouldn't hesitate to surf the net and learn best practices for coding something or configuring a piece of software, so why hesitate when it comes to the intangibles of your career aspirations?

Find someone in your organization or elsewhere that is doing the type of work you'd most like to do in the future. Approach them with the simple request of "Would you be willing to spend 30 minutes talking with me about your success and the work you do?" While some people may say no (don't take it personally, just thank them and move on), you'd be surprised at how many people at all levels of the organization will say yes. After all, at the core, most people like to give back and support others in reaching their goals.

2) It expands your network.

In today's professional environment it is about what you know and who you know. There's no skipping on competence, but all things being equal having connections is more likely to get you new opportunities. At least 60 percent of all jobs are found through networking (http://jobsearch.about.com/cs/networking/a/networking.htm) . An informational interview is about gaining knowledge and expanding your network in a way that benefits all parties involved. It is not all give or take, but a nice mix of both.

3) Gives you real-world knowledge about the work you'd like to do.

Dreaming about and doing are two different things. Wouldn't you like to know the real-world perspective of what it is like to do the type of work you aspire to before you work like a dog to make it happen? You don't want to climb a ladder only to get to the top and realize it was leaning on the wrong wall and you hate it up there. A lot of jobs look and sound more glamorous then they are. We've all seen technical experts get promoted to management and then stink at it (and hate it as well). Why? They thrive working with things and do not enjoy or are not good at working with people. Learn the real deal about the type of work you want to do early on from someone actually doing it so you can assure a good fit.

4) Enables you to plan and prepare knowledgeably.

Walk into any large corporation these days and you can hear the rumblings, grumblings, and rumors. People are uptight and worried if and when their position will be eliminated. In fact I just recently had lunch with two old IT colleagues and all they could talk about for an hour was when their jobs and departments might be eliminated. Nothing but fear and speculation. People burn energy on this every day. Energy that could go toward enjoying life and innovating at work. Adopting a mindset of conducting informational interviews and taking charge of your career before you "need" to will enable you to relax. If you have knowledge you can plan. If you have a plan you can relax knowing you are prepared, versatile, and marketable whenever you choose or are forced to change jobs or careers.

Convinced that you need to make informational interviews part of your regular ongoing work life? I sure hope so.

Here are some tips on how to make your informational interviews successful. Be respectful of the person who is graciously volunteering to spend time with you. That means you need to: * Show up for the appointment on time.
* Dress appropriately for the meeting. (if it is in person)
* Spend no more than 30 minutes with this person which means you need to end the meeting on time.
* Honor the business and personal confidential nature of the information they share with you.
* Remember it is not about "shopping the competition" but truly exploring and learning so you can grow personally and professionally. Prepare for the meeting. Come to the meeting prepared with good, open-ended questions. Do your homework and have a working knowledge of the area you will be discussing with them. Utilize a variety of questions that will elicit answers related to subjects such as: the industry, the company, personal experience, qualities needed to be successful, education and training, etc.

Be thankful and show gratitude. You are building your network here, so you want to leave a good impression and leave the door open for future contact. Take the time to send a thank you note.

Always ask for additional contacts. When you have your informational interview, always end it by asking the question "Could you provide me with the names of 2-3 people you know that I should be connecting with as part of my exploration?" Informational interviewing can be self-generating and you expand your knowledge and reach by tapping into the six degrees of separation that exists within everyone's circle of contacts.

Remember, only you can make your career successful. Book some time in your schedule at least quarterly to dedicate to strategic career thinking and informational interviews. Then, you are always ready regardless of what the industry or your company's situation throws at you.