How do you know if a tech career is right for you?

Popular stereotypes exist about people who work in the technology industry—and all of them are false. Most people with successful tech careers are not introverted perfectionist nerds in their 20s with tape on their glasses who live to code, drink caffeine all day, and do their best work when they are drunk at 2AM. Successful tech workers are often people who love to create, solve problems, collaborate in teams, communicate, and live happy, healthy, balanced lives filled with family and friends. You do not have to fit some weird personality mold to enjoy a job in tech. You do, however, need some technical skills, an interest in solving problems, and an affinity for logic and order. Consider the following questions as you determine whether a move to a job in technology is right for you:

Where am I in my career? 

You may be just starting out in your pursuit to make a living. You may or may not have a college degree, but your investment in a life-long career is not heavy. You wouldn’t lose much momentum with a job change in the near future. 

Or perhaps you have been working at a job for a while, you don’t hate it, but you want something better. You want to feel more fulfilled by the work you do every day and more excited about the product you produce. A change could bring new motivation and a better outlook to your life.

Have you taken a break from a full-time career but are ready to jump back in? Maybe all the kids are finally in school or you have just emerged from a life situation that was all-consuming. Rejoining the workforce would be financially, emotionally, and socially advantageous. 

On the other hand, you may simply be burnt out from many years of the daily grind, punishing commute, and mind-numbing monotony. To keep your sanity, you want to get a fresh start in something new.

These are just a few of the scenarios that prompt people to consider pivoting to a new career. You want to make a move that will satisfy your desire for change and put you in a better position for life, and you don’t want to take four years and mortgage the farm to get a college degree to qualify for an entry-level job. The Information Technology sector offers many opportunities to people from every walk of life and with varied backgrounds to build a successful new career without a Computer Science degree.

What’s one thing I want to change about my career?

Being your own boss is a liberating concept. Self-determination is highly motivating to most people. It’s about making choices with what you do with your time and energy.

Most people do better work and feel more fulfilled when they care about their work and what they produce. Some love a particular activity or using a highly developed talent, regardless of the output that results from their work. Others would be just as happy doing menial labor as sitting in a corner office so long as the result of their work has high social, emotional, or financial value. When you can love both the work itself and the results you produce, you are in the best possible position.

You may be looking to ditch the commute and work from home. Remote work has many advantages for both employers and employees. With proper self-discipline, you can experience a much better quality of life when you can choose when and where you perform your daily tasks. 

More money may also be a motivator to make a career change. Money may not buy happiness, but it can buy groceries and pay the rent. 

A career in technology has the potential to satisfy all of these needs. For those who want to run their own show, freelance and contracting opportunities abound in the IT sector. In today’s Digital Transformation period of the Information Age, literally every company in every industry employs technology to grow and thrive. With marketable technical skills, you can find opportunities in every sector of the economy, from enterprising start-ups to giant conglomerates. Remote jobs are more popular in tech than in practically every other industry. And tech professionals command some of the highest average salaries in the workforce.

What characteristics best describe you?

You may be a born leader. You intuitively see how to organize people and tasks to achieve optimum results. Project management may be a natural fit for you. 

Perhaps you are a confirmed extrovert who draws energy from interacting with people. You enjoy helping people solve problems. A role as a Help Desk Engineer or Business Analyst may be right up your alley.

If you label yourself as a “nerd” because you prefer to work alone in a quiet, focused environment, a career in IT can provide you with just what you are looking for. Many tech jobs require concentration and high-level cognitive skills.   

Some IT jobs are tailor made for perfectionists. Attention to detail, accuracy, and consistency are particularly important in Software Engineering and Quality Assurance. 

If you are the creative type, many IT tasks are surprisingly creative. Designing innovative solutions, developing new user interfaces, and teaching people new ways to accomplish objectives call upon the highest forms of creativity and innovation.

Regardless of the type of person you are and what characteristics comprise your strengths, a tech career can be a rewarding and enjoyable way to spend the precious days and years of your life. You get only one shot at life—you should receive joy in how you use it. 

Conclusion

However you picture the perfect workplace—whether it’s a bustling office filled with creative people, leading a team of innovative coworkers, being a member of a collaborative team that has fun, shifting between working in a team and working solo, or working from home on your own schedule—a career in tech can be ideal. 

If you have the desire to make a change at whatever stage of life you are in, RemoteMode’s training program can launch you into the tech career you want. At RemoteMode, you learn at home at your own pace. And their full-cycle service does more than just give you knowledge. Built by industry experts and consultants, the RemoteMode system prepares you in every way to land a high-demand remote tech job, from filling your portfolio with practical projects that solve real-life problems to polishing your resume that lands you at the top of every hiring managers list, from building a social media network of industry professionals to preparing you to wow interviewers with your experience and personal presentation.
Contact a RemoteMode career counselor today to learn how quickly and affordably you can be ready to land your first remote tech job and launch yourself into an exciting career.