Quality is a term generally associated with high value which allows us to separate and elevate the extraordinary from the ordinary. Most people want quality in every area of their lives whether it be eating quality food at Michelin star restaurants or deciding what type of milk to buy from the supermarket. We want the best when it comes to products and services but what about the service we offer when carrying out our duties within our respective professions? Do we invest enough time and energy into developing the level of our knowledge and expertise? Is there too much emphasis on output statistics at the expense of quality service and customer experience?
When transitioning into I.T. a number of people decide to take certain certifications in order to enhance their CV’s but take an approach to passing these exams which doesn’t allow them to retain the knowledge learnt very well. This may help in the short term via obtaining the desired role but can affect the quality of service provided within that role. To set yourself up for a successful career in most fields you must focus on the fundamentals. This can be done by identifying the key entry level areas and really focusing on practicing regularly.
One of the best actions I have incorporated is consistency in learning and developing an ability to self teach. The ability to methodically research and learn from a variety of resources aligned to my preferred learning styles has been life changing. I am in a work environment that places more of an onus on quality over quantity and feel this is the perfect scenario for me to progress and solidify the fundamentals of my profession. You can’t beat experience but you can certainly replicate it and with so many freely available resources its very possible to simulate production environment scenarios to sharpen your sword on.
When working in banking I would go on job descriptions and see what the entry level roles were asking for and then I would go on YouTube and find content that explained these areas in a way I would understand. An example would be when learning about virtual machines I practiced downloading different Operating Systems with virtual machines and then used them for different tasks I was already familiar with doing such as browsing, creating word documents etc. I quickly learnt that the RAM on my PC wasn’t sufficient enough to run a virtual machine so I upgraded it!
Instead of buying a new PC for thousands of pounds I spent roughly £60 on some new RAM and learnt how to take my machine apart and modify it successfully. These are real life investments that are often overlooked but something doesn’t need to be complex to be effective. Get the basics to a level where you can teach them, train them to the point where they become your instincts. When looking to progress you won’t find yourself having to return to the foundations because you would’ve laid them perfectly already. In the reign of quantity choose quality and set yourself up for a more productive, successful career!