Hello People!
I have recently got my foot in the door in the IT industry landing a support role. I have a very good self-taught experience with technology and college and building systems. I am also super keen with IT and want to make a career for myself doing what I love!
There is still definatley a knowledge gap towards things like networking and configuring complex devices. Do any of you amazing people have any recommendations as to what I should start with studying wise? I have just bought a CompTIA A+ book as I feel that’s what my skill set is at currently.
I work closely with my IT manager and it is literally just us who manage 4 sites IT needs which I feel is a good thing since I can learn from the best and not have the supervisor middle-man.
Any guidance to materials, practices and general advice would be greatly appreciated 
9 Spice ups
Any areas of specialty? Servers / Workstations / Networking (switches / routers / cabling)?
2 Spice ups
jimmy-t
(Jimmy T.)
3
In terms of certs, be prepared for a complex answer as opinions have a broad range. Know that A+ is a good start if you don’t have a good foundation on troubleshooting. It won’t hurt having, just know that it doesn’t go deep. What I would recommend is building up a lab at home. Try to find used hardware on eBay or places that may be tossing out equipment. That’ll give you experience with network and server management. It also shows that you have a drive to learn.
2 Spice ups
Learn on the SPICEWORKS community is a good resource. My favorite is Lynda.Com
2 Spice ups
I would say Workstations is what i’m most confident with as I have had most experience with it over the years. In this role networking plays a big part in what we do and it is also the thing that I know the least about. Especially configuring cisco devices.
I’m yet to figure out what path I want to take either which is why I went for support as 1. its a foot through the door and 2. I feel like you get to dabble with all subjects a little so I could get an idea of what I want.
1 Spice up
Yes I like the sound of building a lab. I actually spoke with my manager the other day and said we should do a mini network excersize as we have lots of desktops, switches and other hardware that are unused.
I was also thinking about building a home network like you said. You are correct in what you say, I do have a lot of drive to do well and learn a lot.
2 Spice ups
Ok thanks for the reply, I shall delve into the community and see what I can find.
1 Spice up
I was in the exact same position as you are in now. I didn’t know exactly which route I wanted to go in and found myself in a small two-man shop that serviced multiple sites. I worked closely with the IT manager and watched as he worked with networking and administration. Over time, I took on more of the tasks that he was doing so he could focus on other areas. I am now transitioning into a system administrator role. You need to take some time to think about which route you want to take with your career and focus on learning more about it. If you want to do more with networking, I would suggest taking some networking courses or going for a Network+ cert. It took me awhile to figure out exactly what I wanted to do but found that my daily tasks put me more in line with a system/network administration role than with a support service or engineering role. Good luck!
3 Spice ups
First, start by researching different areas and finding out what areas of IT you like and what you don’t really care for as much. If you have some sort of idea we’ll be able to advise a little better. But you said you’re just getting started so learning the basics to build a good foundation for any career. A+ will give you a pretty good idea on the basics. To help you fill in those knowledge gaps regarding networking, look into the Network+ exam. It covers from basic networking to intermediate knowledge which would be a good start to help with those concepts you aren’t familiar with.
4 Spice ups
You’ll be surprised at how much you’ll learn on the job. Don’t discount the practical knowledge you’ll learn with having a support job.
2 Spice ups
Oh cool it’s strange how small the world is huh? I do find myself looking in awe as he pulls up cmd’s and network configs and with the typing of a few commands I see floods of code and data running past my eyes haha. However like you and electric sheep said the daily tasks will help. I will make sure I read up on what paths there are as my first priority! Thanks for the advice & best of luck with your future endeavors and i’m sure ill hear from you again soon
jason7147
(Romo)
12
Based off of your post, A+, Network+, CCENT/CCNA.
3 Spice ups
Thanks for the help and advice everyone, you have really helped. I love this community already. Good luck to you all!
jason7147
(Romo)
14
Almost forgot, WELCOME to the community. Read, learn, grow, bacon.
1 Spice up
First off, congratulations on the position!!
You’re in a great place at the moment although you’re probably starting to feel the firehose. RELAX. You’ll get there. From your posts it sounds like your boss is willing to take the time to train and mentor you. You’ll learn a lot more from him than from most certifications out there. When your jaw hits the floor watching him, ask him to show you what he did in a lab environment. This isn’t to downplay certs - by all means pursue some but don’t get too carried away. Your boss will be your best guide as he is going to see your work day in and day out and have a better idea of where you should focus. Aside from all that, determine to go home at night having learned one thing you didn’t know when you got to work. It could be something as simple as the difference between a URL and a UNC. But that attitude will carry you farther than any certification
The biggest skills you need to learn aren’t part of any certification in existence. Customer service and communication are critical to your success now and in the years to come and particularly in a small shop. There is a great deal of trust and responsibility at all levels in IT and any employer needs to feel confident you can handle it. Attitude is far more important than knowledge it that regard. Give me someone with fair-to-middlin knowledge but great personal skills and a teachable attitude any day over a gee-whiz supergeek know-it-all with the social skills of an average doorknob. Learning to deal with the ID10T user who can’t be bothered to hit save every once in a while and blames you for not being able to recover his presentation that’s due in five minutes will prepare you for the day when the server fries out, the CEO is breathing down your neck because the company is losing money by the nanosecond and where the hell did they put the backups again?
Just to put some perspective on things, I have no more than an A+ and Network+ and I’m the IT Manager for a small company. I go to work in a big toy box, play with cool toys and they pay me for it! I mean seriously, how cool is that?
Welcome to the wide wacky wonderful world of IT.
2 Spice ups
Wow that was so interesting and influential to read. I think you have hit the nail on the head there! Attitude has always been something people praise me on and admire so inputting that like you said into each day to learn something new or deal with people in the best way possible. I will follow what you said my friend with regards to my manager I know your right! What you have is what I aim to have. I want my own big toy box to drive to work and do what I love for a living and also prove to myself I can push boundaries! Thanks for the advice, you helped more than you realise
1 Spice up
That’s an excellent attitude to have. Certifications have their value (some more than others) and will help get your foot in the door, but it is attitude and ability will keep you in the door. Pursue them when you can, but I think you’ll find that you’ll be better prepared for them and your career if you use them as a way to demonstrate what you’ve learned in the real world.
Good luck.
