What do you need to know if you want to work in IT? Beyond the practical skills that a candidate must have for a job as an IT support specialist, recruiters and companies are looking for specific skills that are not necessarily related to the work itself but rather to the attitude towards work, the people you interact with, and the IT field in general. Before thinking seriously about a career in computer service, find out if you meet some of the essential skills required in the industry and if you are suitable for a job in IT.
As an IT Support Specialist, You Have to Love Technology
You will quickly lose interest if you like computers and smart devices. In this case, you may succeed in getting a job in the IT field, but there is a high chance that you will stagnate at the same job or career level. On the other hand, if you are passionate about this field, you will constantly be updated with technological news and will continue to learn even after taking specialized courses. Passion for a segment of IT can turn into a passion for new technologies, which you can learn to apply and develop yourself as an IT support specialist.
Working in the Computer Service, You Must Be Patient
The advantage of those who are passionate is that they do their job with pleasure and that they can evolve from a professional point of view. When you work in computer service, you will face problems that need to be solved (troubleshooting), whether they are products or processes that no longer work. No matter what branch of the field you work in, you will need the patience to look for the source of the problem, eliminating the potential sources in turn, and then to receive confirmation that the solution you found works and restores the functionality of the product or process that had problems.
The ability to solve problems develops over time. The more diverse the skills of an IT support specialist are, the more quickly the ability to find solutions increases. You will also learn to deal with the stress involved in troubleshooting activities. Learning new things through individual study, reading, updating your certificates, or starting new training courses is essential in IT. IT specialists want to avoid feeling overtaken by new technologies, so you must always like to study, keep up to date with the field's evolution, and be able to apply the latest knowledge.
You will need help to stay behind to learn, so staying relevant in the industry is up to you. Staying up to date with technology is not only for having exciting discussions with your colleagues, but it can help you discover new opportunities and be a trailblazer in a new direction. You don't even feel time passing when you are highly passionate about your work, right? Once you enter the computer service, you must accept that there will be days when you will need to stay overtime, to work on weekends or holidays.
Problems Can Occur Outside of Working Hours
Solving problems can take longer than expected, and you have to ensure that everything always works under normal conditions. Whether you are an IT support specialist or a web designer, team spirit is essential in every project, and each person has their role in a team. You must know how to collaborate with your colleagues and share your ideas with the team. The industry operates based on the exchange of information, and there will always be someone who knows more than you or has information you lack.
In the computer service field, you have to be able to respect the deadline. To be able to respect the deadline for a project, you must know how to use the resources you have to the maximum. Each person has a different work style, so you have to find how you can complete a task in the allotted time: you call on the help of the team, use the practical skills applied in other projects, and divide your time so that you are productive, but have and relaxation time to resist stress.
Although important in any situation, the ability to create harmonious relationships between you and the people you interact with and to communicate effectively with those you work with is all the more important in IT. It is a field in which there is a lot of technical knowledge that you must be able to explain in a way that everyone can understand, whether it is the manager, the team, or the clients for whom you provide support. The attitude towards people is essential regardless of whether you are an IT support specialist, web designer, help desk, or customer service.
Do You Want to Become an IT Expert?
You have two options:
- Testers are professionals who implement the requirements for developing and operating an IT project to avoid errors and prevent new errors from appearing. Their job is to find problems with a website or app and pass the information on to developers so they can fix those bugs.
- IT designers are also IT people. They help developers visualize the project and define the future project's client interface.
- Remember, you don't necessarily need to be a certified, gifted artist or understand the intricacies of classical and contemporary art to start your computer service career.
There are other specialists in this field. For example, design participates in creating, testing, and maintaining applications or game developers. But precisely the three professions above are suitable for those who want to start a successful career in IT. Beginner needs to learn the basics of the profession and find a first job. Educational materials are available on the Internet, such as torrent courses, course leaks, and YouTube lessons, which are available to everyone. If you find a mentor – a professional who will help you understand the intricacies of the profession – the chance of becoming an IT support specialist will increase significantly.
Courses are a ready-made plan to acquire new knowledge and skills to start a new IT profession. All you need is:
- discipline, participation in courses and webinars,
- the desire to develop and realize your potential in a new profession,
- allocating 2-4 hours a day to the future – to learn the basics of your chosen IT direction.
Computer service work can be highly fulfilling as long as you love this job. Any job is the best as long as you like what you do because you will always want to evolve, which is a big step for a successful career.
