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My official RANT on the value of Certifications 6
- Thread starter itcamefrommars
- Start date
- Status
chicocouk you might have noticed how i was using his own words to show how it can be seen from both directions, and how i felt his one-sided POV was very biased and lopsided.
you just might have, but i think your ego got in the way
"
As before, looks like you've some work to do on those soft skills
Pot, Kettle etc.
CCNA, MCSE, Cisco Firewall specialist, VPN specialist, wannabe CCSP
you just might have, but i think your ego got in the way
"As before, looks like you've some work to do on those soft skills
Pot, Kettle etc.
CCNA, MCSE, Cisco Firewall specialist, VPN specialist, wannabe CCSP
The Gartner Group assumes "power users" cause as many problems as "inexperienced users"... sort of a 4-wheel drive just lests you get farther away from the road before you get stuck" sort of situation...
My experience with calling the help desk for assistance is like everyone else's... some good, some bad...
JTB
Have Certs, Will Travel
"A knight without armour in a [cyber] land."
My experience with calling the help desk for assistance is like everyone else's... some good, some bad...
JTB
Have Certs, Will Travel
"A knight without armour in a [cyber] land."
Hello itcamefrommars. I've been using this site for a long time, and I never came across someone who can really make sense like you have. I mean I've come across good points, but you my friend have really make so much sense. I really can relate to your idea. It's good to find someone who can express the right ideas without crying about something. You got the right idea. I really enjoy your comments.
Stay cool; it’s not over yet!
Stay cool; it’s not over yet!
- Thread starter
- #27
itcamefrommars
IS-IT--Management
wavesg,
hey, thanks for the feedback.
I think my value to my prior bosses and current clients lies in the fact that I never really learned how to do things and then apply them...
I apply things... ask others for recommendations of those things and always look for better ways to do things.
I always learn of new solutions, but don't care to know everything about them.... I bring in others to do the things I don't specialize in. My specialties though naturally grow in number and evolve and solidify in strength.
The way I see it, as far as my work and my point of view goes,...
I can dream of a solution to a problem on a non-tech level.
Then I can establish a solution and find the tools/resources to accomplish the solution.
My most valuable resource set I have...
the human network!
Example... one of my clients... motorcycle dealer for drag ready motorbikes...(job acquired from recommendation of other client i was very "nice" to.)
of the many things im doing for them...
i recognized that the mechanic spends 20% of his time turning wrenches, 40% of the time on the phone, 40% of the time getting back in the flow of work or getting to the phone.
I bought him a wireless PBX capable phone with headset.
Let the client notice the difference.
Now they let me do what I want.
I also got him a wireless netcard for his diagnostic laptop and a wireless router for it.
setup a serial switchbox for all the cables he uses, etc.
he is >1000% more effiecient, accurate, etc.
the client is very happy. 3 hours of work. I've earned respect for full business consulting.
now im working on a 6 month plan for them to setup new POS system, new logo, new interior design(throwing a bone to my friend who just started, and uses me for largeformat imaging and printing), security system (help from my police friend in the false alarms dept.), video work for commercial advertising, and on the backburner I'm going to surprise them with a "VR"type of demo using stereoscopic video and basic oldschool VR goggles off of ebay for their big shows!..... it's just silly, I love it!
oh yeah.... the router/wireless card combo was $30 after rebates. My client is charged $30 buck plus tax/ and pays me really well for the work! The next person he recommends will pay even better, he understands I'm being nice to him. My going rate grows from client to client.
and old clients don't mind if i fairly raise their rates.
another Example.... I sat in a coffeeshop for 2 hours today just "dreaming" my solution to a client workflow problem.
I started to link together various applications using different scripting languages... and ran into my bud who is the network admin at a major university.
we were talking about the "dream" I was working/playing with... he said ... use VBscript.
I'm done 30 minutes later. now it's just some internal logic for the setup in the individual applications...
and it's finished!
the funny thing is.... my netadmin bud....
he introduces me as the only guy in town he knows who knows more about computers than he does!
I'm not tooting my own horn... I don't think I'm better...
My skillset is just coming up with solutions.
That involves programming concepts,
computer architecture concepts,
OS architecture concepts,
business solutions concepts,
etc... but as you see the pattern is concepts.
I took one Computer Science class in school,
dropped it after a couple of weeks.
I learned programming concepts at 11 on a atari 8bit computer.
I typed in code from "COMPUTE!" magazine and started changing the code. BASIC to PILOT to assembly to machine code!
Programmed at NASA at 19... hated it!
Quit because I didn't think I was good enough.
I also ate lunch cold out of a can under the stairwell at NASA because I was the youngest guy there by FAR and didn't fit in. (I also had a yellow mohawk! got funny looks from security!)
Worked at the university library and built a DB using Q&A (anyone remember that one?!?!??!)....
It wasn't fancy.... but did the job perfectly.
what I provided was tracking of lost books and status of search for them....
result.... recovered a few hundred books in a couple of months....
i got personal written thankyous from the dean and recieved faculty priveledges!
never finished college. I was a four year freshman.
was a physics major..... couldn't stand thinking only in a box.
anyhow.... that's just some of my profile....
no certs up to date...
but im working on a patent,
writing a book,
doing business consulting,
tech consulting,
security consulting,
design consulting, (graphics- just did a 12'x40' billboard)
video post work,
auto mechanic work(for friends.... prolly 3 - 4 a week!)
stereoscopic remastering of old films (currently working on rendezvous... check THAT out!)
web business consulting,
VR applications (Jaron Lanier is my 'hero'),
ADHD studies and software developement for ADHD specific problems using tablet PC's(yes... i'm ADHD)
web applications for sharedthought/brainstorming,
...
I'm now waiting for a friend to possibly partner with him.
His qualifications?
Presents well.
Is very honest
Has high morals
Communicates well
etc. etc.
No real computer skills, though.
why him?..... he's perfect except didn't know he had any computer interest!
He just started community college for "computers".
I just found out.
He can ask me for recommendations on ideas....
but he's capable of using google and can RESEARCH with no self-limiting ideas.
He's not MCSE.... he's more prone to consider non-microsoft solutions.
I'm a multitasking solutions consultant.
Remember the guy in PulpFiction who drove the NSX?
Harvey Keitel.
The solution guy.
That's me.... uh... just legal!
What I'm bad at?
time management(go figure, huh?)
so I turn down a lot of work.
I turn it to others I know.... hey... that's MORE networking.
Did I say networking is important?
think outside of the box.
don't watch TV
fini! and good luck to all!
I am Marshall ... I come from Mars ... I come in peace
first computer... atari 800XL
hey, thanks for the feedback.
I think my value to my prior bosses and current clients lies in the fact that I never really learned how to do things and then apply them...
I apply things... ask others for recommendations of those things and always look for better ways to do things.
I always learn of new solutions, but don't care to know everything about them.... I bring in others to do the things I don't specialize in. My specialties though naturally grow in number and evolve and solidify in strength.
The way I see it, as far as my work and my point of view goes,...
I can dream of a solution to a problem on a non-tech level.
Then I can establish a solution and find the tools/resources to accomplish the solution.
My most valuable resource set I have...
the human network!
Example... one of my clients... motorcycle dealer for drag ready motorbikes...(job acquired from recommendation of other client i was very "nice" to.)
of the many things im doing for them...
i recognized that the mechanic spends 20% of his time turning wrenches, 40% of the time on the phone, 40% of the time getting back in the flow of work or getting to the phone.
I bought him a wireless PBX capable phone with headset.
Let the client notice the difference.
Now they let me do what I want.
I also got him a wireless netcard for his diagnostic laptop and a wireless router for it.
setup a serial switchbox for all the cables he uses, etc.
he is >1000% more effiecient, accurate, etc.
the client is very happy. 3 hours of work. I've earned respect for full business consulting.
now im working on a 6 month plan for them to setup new POS system, new logo, new interior design(throwing a bone to my friend who just started, and uses me for largeformat imaging and printing), security system (help from my police friend in the false alarms dept.), video work for commercial advertising, and on the backburner I'm going to surprise them with a "VR"type of demo using stereoscopic video and basic oldschool VR goggles off of ebay for their big shows!..... it's just silly, I love it!
oh yeah.... the router/wireless card combo was $30 after rebates. My client is charged $30 buck plus tax/ and pays me really well for the work! The next person he recommends will pay even better, he understands I'm being nice to him. My going rate grows from client to client.
and old clients don't mind if i fairly raise their rates.
another Example.... I sat in a coffeeshop for 2 hours today just "dreaming" my solution to a client workflow problem.
I started to link together various applications using different scripting languages... and ran into my bud who is the network admin at a major university.
we were talking about the "dream" I was working/playing with... he said ... use VBscript.
I'm done 30 minutes later. now it's just some internal logic for the setup in the individual applications...
and it's finished!
the funny thing is.... my netadmin bud....
he introduces me as the only guy in town he knows who knows more about computers than he does!
I'm not tooting my own horn... I don't think I'm better...
My skillset is just coming up with solutions.
That involves programming concepts,
computer architecture concepts,
OS architecture concepts,
business solutions concepts,
etc... but as you see the pattern is concepts.
I took one Computer Science class in school,
dropped it after a couple of weeks.
I learned programming concepts at 11 on a atari 8bit computer.
I typed in code from "COMPUTE!" magazine and started changing the code. BASIC to PILOT to assembly to machine code!
Programmed at NASA at 19... hated it!
Quit because I didn't think I was good enough.
I also ate lunch cold out of a can under the stairwell at NASA because I was the youngest guy there by FAR and didn't fit in. (I also had a yellow mohawk! got funny looks from security!)
Worked at the university library and built a DB using Q&A (anyone remember that one?!?!??!)....
It wasn't fancy.... but did the job perfectly.
what I provided was tracking of lost books and status of search for them....
result.... recovered a few hundred books in a couple of months....
i got personal written thankyous from the dean and recieved faculty priveledges!
never finished college. I was a four year freshman.
was a physics major..... couldn't stand thinking only in a box.
anyhow.... that's just some of my profile....
no certs up to date...
but im working on a patent,
writing a book,
doing business consulting,
tech consulting,
security consulting,
design consulting, (graphics- just did a 12'x40' billboard)
video post work,
auto mechanic work(for friends.... prolly 3 - 4 a week!)
stereoscopic remastering of old films (currently working on rendezvous... check THAT out!)
web business consulting,
VR applications (Jaron Lanier is my 'hero'),
ADHD studies and software developement for ADHD specific problems using tablet PC's(yes... i'm ADHD)
web applications for sharedthought/brainstorming,
...
I'm now waiting for a friend to possibly partner with him.
His qualifications?
Presents well.
Is very honest
Has high morals
Communicates well
etc. etc.
No real computer skills, though.
why him?..... he's perfect except didn't know he had any computer interest!
He just started community college for "computers".
I just found out.
He can ask me for recommendations on ideas....
but he's capable of using google and can RESEARCH with no self-limiting ideas.
He's not MCSE.... he's more prone to consider non-microsoft solutions.
I'm a multitasking solutions consultant.
Remember the guy in PulpFiction who drove the NSX?
Harvey Keitel.
The solution guy.
That's me.... uh... just legal!
What I'm bad at?
time management(go figure, huh?)
so I turn down a lot of work.
I turn it to others I know.... hey... that's MORE networking.
Did I say networking is important?
think outside of the box.
don't watch TV
fini! and good luck to all!
I am Marshall ... I come from Mars ... I come in peace
first computer... atari 800XL
marshall, with the skillset you obviously show in here and the ability to think through a problem like that...
combined with the ability to assemble a 'virtual' team of the right people to solve that problem...
you're going to get very very far. good luck to you, and hopefully you spread some of those skills to others!!
combined with the ability to assemble a 'virtual' team of the right people to solve that problem...
you're going to get very very far. good luck to you, and hopefully you spread some of those skills to others!!
- Thread starter
- #30
itcamefrommars
IS-IT--Management
Ah.... but the skill sets I lack are
time management
memory problems about time management
stress management
workaholism
giving enough time to my loved ones
taking care of myself (health, time for myself, etc.)
all ADD stuff.
but getting better all the time!
learning to master myself!
But... it's thinking out of the box and recognizing who you are, how others view me, and making gradual and evolving self growth... NOT self improvement but growth.
recognize yourself
believe in yourself, but question yourself also!
help others
but mostly help yourself!
be selfish, not greedy, and you can grow.
take care of yourself and you can help others do the same.
help others and you help yourself. it's a cycle of ups and downs, backs and forths, but I'm always getting better.
it's sounds like I'm into alot of stuff... I am.
I'm also 30 and interested in the same things i was when i was 11! self evolution and growth.
got a new client today.... factory in Korea
controlling office here in the states...
time to hire....
honestly... I might turn it down.
P.S..... biggest influence in my life?----
Life Coaching.... kind of like practical therapy.
learn to control your life, and let go of some things you just can't control right now.
think of it like a canoe trip.
ever been canoeing?
if you try to control too much... you overstroke the water.
your canoe goes back and forth.
with some simple lessons, you can stroke on only one side of the canoe and barely put forth any effort, the canoe glides straight ahead.
then you can enjoy the ride,
and make better desicions of where to go when the bayou/river forks.
if you try to control too much and are pinballing your canoe back and forth... you'll prolly find yourself on one side of the river's fork and have to paddle upstream if you want to go the other way!
there you go... that's life.
learn to canoe.
j-stroke and hook-stroke your way through life!
enjoy the ride and be able to look forward to the forks in the river!
row row row your boat...
gently down the stream....
merrily merrily merrily merrily...
LIFE IS BUT A DREAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
P.P.S. read Sidhartha by Hermann Hesse.... excellent!
also... read HighLife 24/7.... it's the owner's manual to your body's psychological chemical system. Should be required to be alive.... actually.... it is required to be really ALIVE!
yall have a nice night.
and I wish you all the best tommorrow!
I am Marshall ... I come from Mars ... I come in peace
first computer... atari 800XL
time management
memory problems about time management
stress management
workaholism
giving enough time to my loved ones
taking care of myself (health, time for myself, etc.)
all ADD stuff.
but getting better all the time!
learning to master myself!
But... it's thinking out of the box and recognizing who you are, how others view me, and making gradual and evolving self growth... NOT self improvement but growth.
recognize yourself
believe in yourself, but question yourself also!
help others
but mostly help yourself!
be selfish, not greedy, and you can grow.
take care of yourself and you can help others do the same.
help others and you help yourself. it's a cycle of ups and downs, backs and forths, but I'm always getting better.
it's sounds like I'm into alot of stuff... I am.
I'm also 30 and interested in the same things i was when i was 11! self evolution and growth.
got a new client today.... factory in Korea
controlling office here in the states...
time to hire....
honestly... I might turn it down.
P.S..... biggest influence in my life?----
Life Coaching.... kind of like practical therapy.
learn to control your life, and let go of some things you just can't control right now.
think of it like a canoe trip.
ever been canoeing?
if you try to control too much... you overstroke the water.
your canoe goes back and forth.
with some simple lessons, you can stroke on only one side of the canoe and barely put forth any effort, the canoe glides straight ahead.
then you can enjoy the ride,
and make better desicions of where to go when the bayou/river forks.
if you try to control too much and are pinballing your canoe back and forth... you'll prolly find yourself on one side of the river's fork and have to paddle upstream if you want to go the other way!
there you go... that's life.
learn to canoe.
j-stroke and hook-stroke your way through life!
enjoy the ride and be able to look forward to the forks in the river!
row row row your boat...
gently down the stream....
merrily merrily merrily merrily...
LIFE IS BUT A DREAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
P.P.S. read Sidhartha by Hermann Hesse.... excellent!
also... read HighLife 24/7.... it's the owner's manual to your body's psychological chemical system. Should be required to be alive.... actually.... it is required to be really ALIVE!
yall have a nice night.
and I wish you all the best tommorrow!
I am Marshall ... I come from Mars ... I come in peace
first computer... atari 800XL
- Thread starter
- #31
itcamefrommars
IS-IT--Management
actually my first computer was the VIC 20 in sears....
sucked.... used the display model in the store for a year before I got my atari of my own!
I am Marshall ... I come from Mars ... I come in peace
first computer... atari 800XL
sucked.... used the display model in the store for a year before I got my atari of my own!
I am Marshall ... I come from Mars ... I come in peace
first computer... atari 800XL
ArtistRhetta
IS-IT--Management
To All,
Thanks for the notes of advice and the Life Stories are great!!!! I am really new to the field going on four years, but I have already experienced practically all of your complaints. I have only one thing to say, no matter what area of work you are in you will always experience similar situations. It is just one of those things that are going to have to be dealt with sooner or later. So, take a deep breath, and smile because nothing is perfect, if it were then your job isn't very secure. Laughing at the situation can really be quite rewarding.
ArtistRhetta A+/Cisco Track/IT Assistant
Thanks for the notes of advice and the Life Stories are great!!!! I am really new to the field going on four years, but I have already experienced practically all of your complaints. I have only one thing to say, no matter what area of work you are in you will always experience similar situations. It is just one of those things that are going to have to be dealt with sooner or later. So, take a deep breath, and smile because nothing is perfect, if it were then your job isn't very secure. Laughing at the situation can really be quite rewarding.
ArtistRhetta A+/Cisco Track/IT Assistant-
1
- #33
There are some programmers who are really good and make upwards of $100K. There are many who barely make $30K.
There are Plumbers, Electricians, Automobile Repairmen, and other "tradesmen" who are making upwards of $100K. There are a lot of others who barely make $30K.
The point is not what you do as much as how you do it.
The best programmer may not know all of the latest technical gimmicks; but he or she does know how to market his or her skills...
YMMV; but certs have helped me. The same certs, experience, and skill might have gotten me more money (or laid off!) at a different company or with different marketing.
Make a plan. Read "Don't Send A Resume". See your future. Be your future...
Setnaffa is an MCP-W2K (working on MCSE-W2K) with a few other certs, too...
There are Plumbers, Electricians, Automobile Repairmen, and other "tradesmen" who are making upwards of $100K. There are a lot of others who barely make $30K.
The point is not what you do as much as how you do it.
The best programmer may not know all of the latest technical gimmicks; but he or she does know how to market his or her skills...
YMMV; but certs have helped me. The same certs, experience, and skill might have gotten me more money (or laid off!) at a different company or with different marketing.
Make a plan. Read "Don't Send A Resume". See your future. Be your future...
Setnaffa is an MCP-W2K (working on MCSE-W2K) with a few other certs, too...
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