"Mighty IT" - Hot articles and news you can use about computer training and IT issues, from PC Training Experts!

1.       Keep the ego in check. Nobody likes to be talked down to. Remember, the folks who are your bosses may not be as smart as you technically, but they are where they are, and you are where you are—that should tell you something. They aren’t as dumb as you think, or at least, they know something (or someone) you don’t. In any case, a little humility now and again goes a long way towards keeping on good terms with management.

2.       Do the simple common courtesies. Are you listening? I’ll say it again: do the simple common courtesies. No matter how busy you are, or how complicated the job you’re doing, remember that your peers and management deserve to know what is going on. A snide, “it’s too complicated to explain it” (which is probably the first thought in your mind, followed by, “why don’t you leave me the ^%$%^$ alone while I’m working anyway”) may not play as well as you’d like. Take a breath, and give the bigger picture. Instead of discussing the minutiae, just give a basic overview in simple terms without being condescending. They will pick up on your honesty and willingness to communicate, and this is a language they can understand. That way you don’t humiliate the bosses. Or, put it another way, that way you don’t bite the hand that feeds you.

3.       Become Likeable. People promote people they like. It’s that simple. If you’ve never heard it before, think about it. Are you a likeable person? Are you a likeable person at work? Now, I’m not suggesting you cow-tow to management and peers; I am the last person to suggest that you should compromise the core of who you are and suck up to management. I am simply asking you if there is a way you can be yourself, and yet be more compassionate and open to others on the job. This is one for you to think about; I don’t have your answers.

4.       Show Respect for your job. You work for yourself, not the boss. This is a concept that is difficult for some people to accept, but think about it. At the end of the day, you went to work for a paycheck and hopefully some good times. YOUR paycheck, and YOUR good times. While technically you may be working for ABC Company, in all actuality you are working for your own benefit, for yourself. That means, treat the job with respect, and show up on time. It is not your “right” to work; it is your privilege.

5.       Learn P.E.O.P.L.E. Now I’m speaking your language, right! That sounds like a programming language or something. Well, it is. It is as much a language as anything else, and you’ve simply got to master it if you want to be as successful as you’d like. Instead of looking on “people” people as lesser and incapable, try thinking of them as geniuses at the P.E.O.P.L.E. language, which you’ve yet to master. Study them, as you would a computer language. What commands are successful; what commands send you flying out into the streets at 3 a.m. with your clothes free-falling from the second floor? P.E.O.P.L.E. is most definitely a language that you can learn, and your classroom is every living being around you. You need to at least become conversational at it, if not fluent.

6.       Respect Your Superiors. Consider this final thought. Most IT people are detail-oriented people. While they can do well financially, the ones who really score are the big-picture people. Now, who is more important in steering: the one who is looking around and consulting the map, or the one who is changing lanes, shifting gears, checking mirrors, applying brakes, etc? Obviously both roles are important ones; you can’t get anywhere without someone actually driving (that’s YOU, in case you missed the analogy.). Yet where you drive is the big-picture, and you’ve got to develop some respect for the big-picture thinkers. In the end, they are just as brilliant at what they do as you are at what you do. I know it probably seems like what they do is easier, but then again, when Michael Jordan or Shaq throw swoosh shots, it looks pretty easy too. Just because your boss or manager seems to have it “easy” compared to you, remember they are potentially masters at what they do and they make it look easier than it is.

I hope I’ve given you some things to think about this week. In the end, your most important IT skills may indeed be your people skills.

Until next time, we’ll solve our problems Bit by Bit.