248: Own Your Career Use a Mentor Set Goals and Make a Plan with Bob Belderbos

Phil's guest on this episode of the IT Career Energizer podcast is Bob Belderbos. He is a software developer at Oracle, co-author of the 100 Days of Code in Python course and co-founder of PyBites, a community for those wanting to improve their Python skills. To date, Pybites has hosted 50 code challenges, published more than 100 articles and built a Python exercise platform. In this episode, Phil and Bob Belderbos discuss owning your career and how to choose the right skills to acquire. They also talk about how to turn a mistake into a positive situation. Bob also covers how the CoVid crisis, AI and automation are going to change the industry. He and Phil talk about why you need to push yourself and learn how to market yourself effectively and share what you are doing.   KEY TAKEAWAYS: (2.30) TOP CAREER TIP You have to own your career. It is a mistake to rely on your manager or superior to be in charge of your development. Choose the skills you learn strategically. It is not enough to just focus on things that you feel passionate about. (3.35) WORST CAREER MOMENT In his first role, Bob made an error that caused invoicing issues. It was a serious mistake. Fortunately, he was able to quickly solve the issue. Taking ownership of his mistake and quickly finding a solution enabled Bob to turn a bad situation into a positive one. In the podcast, he explains how that can be done. (5.46) CAREER HIGHLIGHT Bob´s career highlight has been developing his blog, which led to him and his business partner, launching courses, developing a coding platform, and building a huge community. It has opened a lot of doors for him. In the podcast, Bob explains how he gained traction and shared everything with the world.   (7.54) THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN I.T The CoVid situation has demonstrated that working from home is viable. So, there is likely to be much more of that in the future. Bob also talks about automation and how that is likely to change the industry. As well as the role AI is going to play.   (9.25) THE REVEAL What first attracted you to a career in I.T.? – When Bob saw how things could be automated his interest in programming was sparked. What's the best career advice you received? – Success leaves a clue. At this point in the podcast, Bob explains what that means and how it helped him. What's the worst career advice you received? – When you find a job you are comfortable in, stay put. What would you do if you started your career now? – Bob would study marketing as well as coding. If you cannot market your skills, you will not get the most out of your work. What are your current career objectives? – Becoming an even better developer and doing more Python coaching. What's your number one non-technical skill? – Being a good communicator especially when working with people in virtual spaces. How do you keep your own career energized? – Bob makes sure that he sets career goals that stretch him. Doing that pushes him to learn and keeps him interested. What do you do away from technology? – Bob enjoys reading, in particular, mindset, business, and marketing books. He also loves spending time with his family.   (20.19) FINAL CAREER TIP The best way to grow is to write out your goals and plan out what you need to do to achieve them. This keeps you focused. But it is important to look to the long-term rather than only having short-term goals. In the podcast, Bob explains how to be consistent so that you can make big changes.   BEST MOMENTS (2.33) – Bob - "Own your career and choose the skills you learn strategically." (3.53) – Bob - "If you make a mistake, don´t become a victim. Instead, step up and solve the issue quickly." (11.33) – Bob - "When you want to achieve something, look at the people that have done it before and model what they did." (12.34) – Bob - "Use mentors, pay somebody to show you how to save a ton of time and money by avoiding common mistakes." (13.39) – Bob - "To grow, you need to step outside of your comfort zone. It´s scary but essential." (17.55) – Bob - "Learn to network. Plant lots of seeds, later many of them will result in new opportunities for you."   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/philburgess Facebook: https://facebook.com/philtechcareer Instagram: https://instagram.com/philtechcareer Website: https://itcareerenergizer.com/contact Phil is also reachable by email at [email protected] and via the podcast's website, https://itcareerenergizer.com Join the I.T. Career Energizer Community on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/ITCareerEnergizer   ABOUT THE GUEST – BOB BELDERBOS Bob Belderbos is a software developer at Oracle, co-author of the 100 Days of Code in Python course and co-founder of PyBites, a community for those wanting to improve their Python skills. To date, Pybites has hosted 50 code challenges, published more than 100 articles and built a Python exercise platform.   CONTACT THE GUEST – BOB BELDERBOS Bob Belderbos can be contacted through the following Social Media platforms: Twitter: https://twitter.com/bbelderbos LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bbelderbos/ Website: https://bobbelderbos.com