255: Share What You Know and Be Willing to Have Your Views Challenged with Bret Fisher
06/22/20 • 33 min
Phil’s guest on this episode of the IT Career Energizer podcast is Bret Fisher. Bret is a freelance DevOps and Docker consultant, Udemy Instructor, trainer, speaker, and Open Source volunteer. He teaches courses on Docker and Container technology and often does live training workshops.
He’s also a volunteer Docker Captain and has been blogging about tech for more than 15 years.
In this episode, Phil and Bret Fisher discuss the importance of holding strong opinions on things that are fact-based. While still listening, with an open mind, to what others have to say on the matter and not being afraid to change your view when appropriate.
They also discuss how to effectively use even short online courses to greatly improve your career prospects. Bret also shares why employers now want to employ people who are willing and able to help others.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
(4.43) TOP CAREER TIP
Here Bret talks about the importance of having “strong opinions that are weakly held”. It is important to know why you hold the opinions you do, but you also have to be prepared to discuss other possibilities. Even change your opinions should someone make a strong argument that proves you need to do so.
This approach ensures you become a decisive person who is also able to move with the time and use other people ́s ideas to improve things
(9.36) WORST CAREER MOMENT
Bret ́s worst moment happened when, for a blog he was working on, he forgot to tick the AWS auto-scale box. So, when one of their posts went viral and was number one on the Reddit homepage, the site went down. As a result, they missed out on a ton of traffic. It was fixed within an hour, but it was an awful mistake to make.
In the podcast, Bret explained how he changed the way he works to make sure it could not happen again.
(13.32) CAREER HIGHLIGHT
Bret describes what he is doing now as being his career highlight. In particular, being able to reach and help a huge audience through his courses and how that has helped to turn him into a popular public speaker.
In this section, Bret explains how he keeps everything fresh. As well as how he keeps up with the changing needs of his audience.
(17.21) THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN I.T
Bret and Phil discuss how the implementation of tech automation is changing the job market. As well as how people who work in the IT field can take advantage of this by seeking out and learning new stuff.
Bret also discusses how you can use low-cost training to change direction and boost your career. Sometimes you only have to spend the equivalent of a few days taking a course and implementing what you learn to equip yourself to land a fantastic new job.
(23.26) THE REVEAL
What first attracted you to a career in I.T.? – Bret always liked computers, so it was a great fit for him.
What’s the best career advice you received? – Share everything you can. Be a fountain of knowledge for your colleagues.
What’s the worst career advice you received? – Go get a college degree to get your promotion.
What would you do if you started your career now? – Bret would still bootstrap and learn everything from the ground up.
What are your current career objectives? – Currently, Bret is focusing on how to use automation, metrics, and infrastructure as code as an effective way to manage change.
What’s your number one non-technical skill? – Being comfortable standing up in front of a group of people and talking about something.
How do you keep your own career energized? – Helping others is what keeps Bret ́s career energized.
What do you do away from technology? – Bret enjoys spending time with his wife cycling, going to the beach, and exploring local eateries.
(28.51) FINAL CAREER TIP
Regardless of where you are on your career path, stop and think about what skills you are going to need. Then address any deficit you find.
Also, do everything you can to help others and share what you know. The people who are willing and able to do this are now seen as important assets by most employers.
BEST MOMENTS
(6.57) – Bret - “Hold strong, fact-based, opinions. But also listen to what others think and be prepared to change your stance, when appropriate.”
(13.19) – Bret - “Learn how to use Q&A processes to prevent human errors from causing problems and improve workflow.”
(17.40) – Bret - “Seek out new stuff. When you do you will always be able to find new opportunities.”
(19.20) – Bret - “Take advantage of training online. It is cheap. Yet, provided you follow through, it can change your career.”
(23.46) – Bret - “Share everything you can. Be a fountain of knowledge for your colleagues.”
(29.51) – Bret - “Your value is now directly tied to how much you can share and help others.”
ABOUT THE HOST – PHIL BURGESS
Phil Burgess is a...
Phil’s guest on this episode of the IT Career Energizer podcast is Bret Fisher. Bret is a freelance DevOps and Docker consultant, Udemy Instructor, trainer, speaker, and Open Source volunteer. He teaches courses on Docker and Container technology and often does live training workshops.
He’s also a volunteer Docker Captain and has been blogging about tech for more than 15 years.
In this episode, Phil and Bret Fisher discuss the importance of holding strong opinions on things that are fact-based. While still listening, with an open mind, to what others have to say on the matter and not being afraid to change your view when appropriate.
They also discuss how to effectively use even short online courses to greatly improve your career prospects. Bret also shares why employers now want to employ people who are willing and able to help others.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
(4.43) TOP CAREER TIP
Here Bret talks about the importance of having “strong opinions that are weakly held”. It is important to know why you hold the opinions you do, but you also have to be prepared to discuss other possibilities. Even change your opinions should someone make a strong argument that proves you need to do so.
This approach ensures you become a decisive person who is also able to move with the time and use other people ́s ideas to improve things
(9.36) WORST CAREER MOMENT
Bret ́s worst moment happened when, for a blog he was working on, he forgot to tick the AWS auto-scale box. So, when one of their posts went viral and was number one on the Reddit homepage, the site went down. As a result, they missed out on a ton of traffic. It was fixed within an hour, but it was an awful mistake to make.
In the podcast, Bret explained how he changed the way he works to make sure it could not happen again.
(13.32) CAREER HIGHLIGHT
Bret describes what he is doing now as being his career highlight. In particular, being able to reach and help a huge audience through his courses and how that has helped to turn him into a popular public speaker.
In this section, Bret explains how he keeps everything fresh. As well as how he keeps up with the changing needs of his audience.
(17.21) THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN I.T
Bret and Phil discuss how the implementation of tech automation is changing the job market. As well as how people who work in the IT field can take advantage of this by seeking out and learning new stuff.
Bret also discusses how you can use low-cost training to change direction and boost your career. Sometimes you only have to spend the equivalent of a few days taking a course and implementing what you learn to equip yourself to land a fantastic new job.
(23.26) THE REVEAL
What first attracted you to a career in I.T.? – Bret always liked computers, so it was a great fit for him.
What’s the best career advice you received? – Share everything you can. Be a fountain of knowledge for your colleagues.
What’s the worst career advice you received? – Go get a college degree to get your promotion.
What would you do if you started your career now? – Bret would still bootstrap and learn everything from the ground up.
What are your current career objectives? – Currently, Bret is focusing on how to use automation, metrics, and infrastructure as code as an effective way to manage change.
What’s your number one non-technical skill? – Being comfortable standing up in front of a group of people and talking about something.
How do you keep your own career energized? – Helping others is what keeps Bret ́s career energized.
What do you do away from technology? – Bret enjoys spending time with his wife cycling, going to the beach, and exploring local eateries.
(28.51) FINAL CAREER TIP
Regardless of where you are on your career path, stop and think about what skills you are going to need. Then address any deficit you find.
Also, do everything you can to help others and share what you know. The people who are willing and able to do this are now seen as important assets by most employers.
BEST MOMENTS
(6.57) – Bret - “Hold strong, fact-based, opinions. But also listen to what others think and be prepared to change your stance, when appropriate.”
(13.19) – Bret - “Learn how to use Q&A processes to prevent human errors from causing problems and improve workflow.”
(17.40) – Bret - “Seek out new stuff. When you do you will always be able to find new opportunities.”
(19.20) – Bret - “Take advantage of training online. It is cheap. Yet, provided you follow through, it can change your career.”
(23.46) – Bret - “Share everything you can. Be a fountain of knowledge for your colleagues.”
(29.51) – Bret - “Your value is now directly tied to how much you can share and help others.”
ABOUT THE HOST – PHIL BURGESS
Phil Burgess is a...
Previous Episode
254: Get Out of Your Comfort Zone and Learn Soft Skills with Chani Simms
Phil’s guest on this episode of the IT Career Energizer podcast is Chani Simms. She is an award-winning cybersecurity leader and keynote speaker with more than 17 years’ experience in the IT industry. Chani is an advisor and a specialist in helping organizations to understand, implement, and manage information security and privacy requirements.
She is also the founder of the SHe CISO Exec. Global platform.
In this episode, Phil and Chani Simms discuss how to ensure that you are always learning and why being dropped in the deep end is often a good thing. They also talk about workplace bullying and what to do about it.
Chani explains how being afraid to fail holds most people back and how to overcome that fear.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
(9.13) TOP CAREER TIP
Try to push yourself out of your comfort zone all the time. It is the only way to ensure you are always learning new things
(11.34) WORST CAREER MOMENT
At one stage, Chani was bullied in the workplace by her program director. It had never happened to her before, so she did not know how to react. She was afraid of the consequences of standing up for herself, so she finished the project.
In the podcast, Chani explains what happened next. She also shares some advice about what to do should you find yourself in a similar position.
(15.46) CAREER HIGHLIGHT
Founding Meta Defence Labs with her friends and colleagues is Chani ́s career highlight, to date. They set up the company because they realized that for every project security came last, which meant that they were never able to do things properly. Setting up their own company enabled them to work the way they wanted and do things the right way.
For Chani, that experience was a springboard into what she is currently doing. In the podcast, Chani shares more of her entrepreneurial journey and how she ended up providing training for others.
(18.52) THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN I.T
The industry is changing faster than ever before, which is something that Chani expects to continue. Chani enjoys training people so that they can keep up and continue to succeed within the industry.
(19.55) THE REVEAL
What first attracted you to a career in I.T.? – Chani knew that she did not want to be a lawyer, accountant, or doctor. So, for her, a career in I.T was a great way to avoid having to take one of those jobs.
What’s the best career advice you received? – If you are not sure about something, don’t be afraid to ask questions.
What’s the worst career advice you received? – Over the years, people have advised Chani not to try things because they thought she was going to fail. Most of the time they have been wrong.
What would you do if you started your career now? – Chani would spend a bigger percentage of her time learning soft skills instead of just focusing on tech skills.
What are your current career objectives? – Right now, Chani is focusing on security research and hacking.
What’s your number one non-technical skill? – Being able to communicate well using multiple formats.
How do you keep your own career energized? – Staying super busy and having lots of projects on the go keeps Chani energized.
What do you do away from technology? – Chani enjoys spending time with her family and cooking. She also likes swimming and snorkeling.
(30.21) FINAL CAREER TIP
Don’t stand still. If you stay in a single position for too long you will end up stagnating. Keep challenging yourself and be sure to learn some soft skills as well as new technologies.
BEST MOMENTS
(8.47) – Chani - “Be creative and try new things. Even when you make mistakes you will still learn.”
(14.35) – Chani - “If you have a workplace issue that cannot be resolved, move on. Your sanity is more important than a big salary.”
(24.45) – Chani - “Learn soft skills. You will need them regardless of what technologies you end up learning and using.”
(30.22) – Chani - “If you are stuck in one job for many years, you're not progressing. Change jobs regularly to learn new skills.”
ABOUT THE HOST – PHIL BURGESS
Phil Burgess is an independent IT consultant who has spent the last 20 years helping organizations to design, develop, and implement software solutions. Phil has always had an interest in helping others to develop and advance their careers. And in 2017 Phil started the I.T. Career Energizer podcast to try to help as many people as possible to learn from the career advice and experiences of those that have been, and still are, on that same career journey.
CONTACT THE HOST – PHIL BURGESS
Phil can be contacted through the following Social Media platforms:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/philtechcareer
LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/ph...
Next Episode
256: How to Make the Best Career Decisions and Work on Impactful Projects with Nyari Samushonga
Phil’s guest on this episode of the IT Career Energizer podcast is Nyari Samushonga. Nyari is the Chief Executive Officer of WeThinkCode_ where her primary responsibility is to gear the organization up for growth. She also co-founded FoldLeft, a digital consultancy that uses hypothesis-driven models to design and deliver impactful software solutions.
Her expertise lies in bridging the divide between business executives and tech innovators to maximize the value of software.
In this episode, Phil and Nyari Samushonga discuss the best way to make complex decisions, especially those that relate to your career. They also talk about how to successfully handle the politics that exists in most workplaces.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
(4.55) TOP CAREER TIP
Get good at making decisions. It is easy to be overwhelmed by the many different things that could happen as a result of your decision. You need to learn how to understand and make sense of all of that complexity. During the podcast, Nyari shares 4 important questions you need to ask yourself when making decisions that will help you to do that.
(5.53) WORST CAREER MOMENT
Some time ago Nyari found herself working on a project that had big issues. She realized there was no way what had been promised to the client could be delivered. So, she spoke up. When she did, everything she was doing was called into question and she was frozen out.
For her, it was an awful time. In the podcast, she explains what she did about the situation and how she managed to come out the other side of it.
(11.23) CAREER HIGHLIGHT
Finding effective ways to enable someone who has been struggling to learn how to code to breakthrough and finally succeed has been a career highlight for Nyari.
(13.25) THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN I.T
It no longer matters what business you are in, you need IT. A fact that makes this a great time to be working in the industry. The opportunities are endless.
It also means you can find work in any industry that interests you. Whether you enjoy finance, architecture, teaching, or agriculture you can work on transformative IT projects that are relevant to that field. Better still it does not matter where in the world you are based.
(15.22) THE REVEAL
What first attracted you to a career in I.T.? – Nyari wanted to create things and make a real difference in the world.
What’s the best career advice you received? – Learn to let go. Stop worrying about how the world perceives you and just try things. If you fail, let go and move onto the next thing.
What’s the worst career advice you received? – Don’t be so argumentative. Nyari thinks it is important to be authentic and open, which sometimes ruffles feathers.
What would you do if you started your career now? – Nyari would have started coding at an earlier stage in her career.
What are your current career objectives? – Right now, Nyari is focusing on scaling WeThinkCode and ensuring gender parity within the company.
What’s your number one non-technical skill? – Her accounting skills. They have enabled her to drill down and look at the bottom line to make sure there is a good reason behind everything her company does.
How do you keep your own career energized? – Nyari finds that constantly reinventing herself keeps her career energized.
What do you do away from technology? – Nyari enjoys road cycling, especially when she does a 100k ride and really pushes herself.
(23.59) FINAL CAREER TIP
Focus on being impactful. You want everything you do to count and make a difference. To succeed at doing that you need to be clear about what you are trying to achieve and only opt to work on those projects where you can have a positive impact.
BEST MOMENTS
(5.29) – Nyari - “Don ́t take decisions for granted. Make sure you are aware of what you are giving up and what you are gaining,”
(9.19) – Nyari - “Even when you strongly disagree with something, display empathy. It helps to keep the communication channels open.”
(14.11) – Nyari - “Take advantage of the fact that working in tech means that you can reinvent yourself more times than Madonna.”
(16.46) – Nyari - “If you fail, let go of that moment, then reach out and start something new.”
(26.03) – Nyari - “Focus on being impactful. Think about what you want to achieve, then work out how to succeed at making that change.”
ABOUT THE HOST – PHIL BURGESS
Phil Burgess is an independent IT consultant who has spent the last 20 years helping organizations to design, develop, and implement software solutions. Phil has always had an interest in helping others to develop and advance their careers. And in 2017 Phil started the I.T. Career Energizer podcast to try to help as many people as possible to learn from the career advice and experiences of those that have been, and still are, on that ...
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