EPISODE 021 - Career: How can I network effectively in the IT industry?

Michael Seidl: Welcome to a new episode of the Get Sh*t Done in IT podcast. My name is Michael Seidl and the question of the day is, how can a network effectively in the IT industry? So I might not be the perfect role model for this question, but at least I have to do it. I'm doing it. So I want to explain my

Michael Seidl: Welcome to a new episode of the Get Sh*t done in IT Podcast. My name is Michael Seidl and the question of the day is how can I network effectively in the IT industry? I might not be the perfect role model for this question, but I thought and I had some situations in the past. So I think it might make sense to at least talk about my hints and my ideas how you can network. in IT industry. The first question is, why should you do it? Why not just stay in your room, make it dark, and code, whatever? That might work, but I think not very long, maybe not your whole business life. So you have to stay in contact and keep in contact with your network, with your area, your IT. topics, so you have to stay in contact. When you're a business owner like myself, is very important to stay in contact and to create new contacts because you have to sell your business, you have to sell your product, you have to sell your consulting. Nobody will buy your product just because you drop it out and do nothing and sit and wait. that will not work very well or very long. So you have to stay in contact, to build new contacts and to build a network. Second is if you are an employee, you might just exchange with your community, with other people in the same area and the same topic and exchange your experiences or your problems and talk about, or you want to... Take your next career step and maybe see different next company, different managers, whatever, and want to stay in contact with them. You might want to change to different company. So I have three to four points I want to discuss. And the first one is visit IT conferences. We had an episode a few weeks, a month ago, one of the first ones. Why should you visit conferences?

Michael Seidl: An additional point for this is to get in touch with other people and to do it effectively. Don't rush in before the event starts and rush out when the events end. You should talk to other people. Otherwise you cannot connect to other people. So go out of your comfort zone and Maybe just share a table when the lunch is on or when you drink a cup of coffee. Go to a table with persons you don't know and maybe ask why they are here, what problems are they facing or maybe what solution are they looking? Because if you are on an IT conference, the topics are very, very, very straight or very, very focused. So there is a good chance that All the other people face maybe the same problems, have the same interest. So it's easy to start a conversation with them. So don't sit on the last seat in the row. Go out, drink your coffee, and join other tables and other people you don't already know. Second one is do community work. I do a lot of blog posts, speaking conferences, answering questions in mails or LinkedIn messages for my technical topics. do this podcast for free and without any purpose. So there is no purpose in the bag. I might get this or that. It's just I want to share my insight. For example, for this podcast, I really deal since more than 10 years with increasing how to increase productivity and everything. Long time ago, I wanted to start a podcast and someday it's all of those things come together. And that was the reason why I started the podcast. But it was not the purpose of selling anything, of getting any customers or something just to say something that might help any person out there.

Michael Seidl: The same is for my blog posts or my technical videos or my conferences, speakers, my sessions. Everything is planned to help at least a single person. And if a single person of this podcast, of this episode, if a single person of one of my blog posts was helped, if a single person of my next session in two days in Manchester enjoyed the session and learned something, then My goal was achieved and that's everything. Everything else is, is, is on top. Okay. And that's how you can build your community. So you get in touch with other people. They will ask you mostly very friendly and respectful. There are different examples, but mostly very friendly. So you can get in contact with them and maybe you have a question back and they will happy I think to, to, answer, of course, in every aspect in every area. black sheep, so persons who don't act very, very friendly, but just ignore them. Yeah. It's not the common use. So mostly the people are helpful and thankful when you help them. So they are also nice and helpful when you need help. Okay. The third one is of course LinkedIn. LinkedIn, and no, it's not no hidden advertising or anything. I really think LinkedIn is a huge. definitely LinkedIn is the hugest business network what exists. And I really think you can use LinkedIn to gain new contact and to stay in contact with your industry. But it will not work if you just do a profile, do a picture and say, okay, let's come. Okay, I'm here. That is not working the same like in conferences. So you have to go out. And in this case, it's just virtually not in person. But you have to go out and and command anything on other people. Maybe write people don't sell them anything. Yeah, that doesn't work. But write them, maybe ask them a question. Do you have that problem? Have you solved it? Maybe comment on any posts. Do your own posts. Don't worry. Try to be very active on LinkedIn. You don't have to be afraid that any shitstorm or something will come back. A little, I think.

Michael Seidl: last two years around 300, 400 posts on LinkedIn about technical topics, about private topics, about everything. No shitstorms. there is no, how to say, you shouldn't be afraid of what comes back or what they might think about you. It is such a huge network that it's very hard to be visual, to be recognized. But so many people, so don't be afraid. Nobody is kicking you out or anything. So be part of the community, be part of LinkedIn and be part and provide any information or stuff to the community. And the last thing is not really a special point. It's just maybe more mindset stuff. It's just to be respectful. And I have one example. I was at a consulting company before I got created my own company. And I saw there and different and many other customers, if someone quit the job, then the person will be ghosted. He will be badly, badly.

Michael Seidl: He will be badly treated. a lot of companies treat the person who quit the job very bad, just not as before. And I had an example that one of my team colleagues back then quit the job and we did a telephone call and it was very respectful and just open because he said it's not what he's looking for. He wants to do something else. I said, I cannot change, unfortunately, and so on. was not everything in my hand back then. So he decided to quit and go ahead to different company. No bad blood, nothing, all is good. And one and a half year later, I think half a year ago, we started together in separate companies to work for the same customers. So I helped him or his company to... gain customers, he brings me in and his customers. And so if you decided back then two years ago to react differently, to be pissed off of each other, this never would be happened. And that's something we say here in Austria, maybe for the whole German IT community, that's not very big, but it is true. And I'm now 41 years or 20 years in that industry. you will meet every person once again. Okay, so be honest, be respectful, be nice to each other because you don't know how you will meet that person in what role, in what connection again. So be nice, be respectful. So that's the end of this episode. I hope I made some points clear and they have been useful for you. If you have any questions for this podcast, would be happy to answer those in one of the next episodes. Please send me a text message or a voice message on LinkedIn with your question and then maybe your question will be on one of the next episodes. So for this, I want to wish you a happy week. Stay productive and bye bye.