Nerd Journey: Career Advice for the Technology Professional
We are John White and Nick Korte, two technologists with experience in IT operations and sales engineering who started this podcast in 2018. Our mission is to accelerate the career progression of technical professionals, increase job satisfaction, and give listeners the career advice we wish we’d been given earlier in our careers. We find guests who either have experience in tech or with a perspective that would help the technologist or someone looking to get into the industry. Interviews with our guests are usually released in multiple parts to showcase career inflection points, point out patterns we’ve seen elsewhere, and dive deep into lessons learned along the way.
Episodes
What if the reason you aren’t completing the goals you start working toward is really a symptom of being a perfectionist? Maybe you don’t think you have a problem with perfectionism. Think again, friend.
According Jon Acuff, author of Finish: Give Yourself the Gift of Done, perfectionism is the villain we each have to overcome on our quest to complete more of the goals we start. In episode...
Why would someone return to a company referred to as “the hurt locker” after a stressful first experience? After moving on from “the hurt locker” to decrease his stress level, Justin Kelly, our guest in episode 271, received a unique opportunity to work inside the special operations division of his former employer as an automation developer. In contrast to his first stint at this employer, ...
What do drumming in a heavy metal band, achieving Cisco networking certifications, being part of a supportive technical community and family, and going back to school to study Windows and Active Directory have in common? All of these elements contributed to Justin Kelly landing his first role in tech. Justin, our guest this week in episode 270, is a CEO, a co-founder, and an advocate of cont...
What if you could increase your earnings potential based on the things you know and the things that interest you? Erik Gross, our guest this week in episode 269, shares the Most Valuable Knowledge Framework to help anyone identify the combinations of skills and interests which would be most valuable on the open market. Erik will share examples of using this framework when deciding to start ...
The entrepreneur, business owner, and people manager are faced with difficult decisions as a part of leadership whether it be deciding to abandon a goal or eliminate jobs through a layoff. Erik Gross, our guest this week in episode 268, highlights the importance of learning from our failures while also owning the decisions that led to those failures. Listen closely to the way Erik owned his ...
As a boy learning about computers, as a Nuclear Engineering student and instructor, and as a franchise owner and successful salesperson…the early career experiences of Erik Gross, a senior technologist and our guest this week in episode 267, contain a theme of learning. Erik learned resilience, adaptability, mental toughness, business operations, empathy for the beginner, how to teach others...
Sean Tolram, our guest this week in episode 266, became a people manager because he truly enjoys helping others. In this episode, Sean will describe the gaps he needed to fill after taking on the role of managing technical people, the mindset shifts he adopted, and the impact of mindfulness principles on his team’s performance which eventually led to becoming head of mindfulness. We will al...
This week in episode 265 we’re joined by Sean Tolram (a part 1 of 2). We’ll hear about Sean’s experiences studying biotechnology and his discovery of HTML, how he got into web design, interview tips and how we can connect with others during interviews, ways to collaborate with people from other teams through curiosity, and thoughts on communicating the results of our work.
Original Recording...
This week in episode 264 we’re joined by returning guest Brad Christian. In this discussion Brad shares how he selected the technologies on which to focus certification efforts, the story of getting laid off, how he determined working for a VAR (Value Added Reseller) was the right next move, and how we should be intentional in connecting with others in our industry.
Original Recording Date:...
This week in episode 263 we’re joined by returning guest Brad Christian. In this part 1 of our discussion with Brad you will hear why he chose to purse a role at a startup, what it was like learning FinOps as a cloud economist, thoughts on managers as both players and coaches, and Brad’s views on the benefits of technical certifications.
Original Recording Date: 01-15-2024
Topics – Welco...
In episode 262, we’re joined by guest Brandon Seymour. This week we’ll share part 3 of an interview with Brandon that begins with the genesis of a blog he wrote called “The Crisis of Loneliness.” Brandon will share his struggles with loneliness and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic, how he recognized it was a problem, societal expectations of strength, and what he’s done to help himse...
In episode 261, we’re joined by guest Brandon Seymour. This week we’ll share part 2 of an interview with Brandon detailing how he perceives failure and how it has changed over time, the decision to become a VMware User Group (VMUG) Leader, the importance of presentation experience, why Brandon started blogging, and how working in IT may not be so different from working in a consultative role...
In episode 260, we’re joined by guest Brandon Seymour. This week we’ll share part 1 of an interview with Brandon detailing his decision to join the Marine Corps and the experience of boot camp, the impact of a significant injury while serving, his transition back to civilian life, the decision to pursue a career in technology, and his shift in focus from networking to operating systems.
Orig...
This week we are releasing an updated trailer episode which explains the podcast, our vision, and how you can contact us to continue the conversation.
Original Recording Date: 01-20-2024
Topics – Restating Our Goal and Mission, Our Genesis Story, Show Format and Learning from Guests, How You Can Help
0:00 – Restating Our Goal and Mission
- The goal of Nerd Journey i...
Welcome to episode 259 of the Nerd Journey Podcast [@NerdJourney]! We’re John White (@vJourneyman) and Nick Korte (@NetworkNerd_) – two technology professionals with backgrounds in IT Operations and Sales Engineering on a mission to help others accelerate career progression and increase job satisfaction by bringing listeners the advice we wish we’d been given earlier in our careers. In ...
Welcome to episode 258 of the Nerd Journey Podcast [@NerdJourney]! We’re John White (@vJourneyman) and Nick Korte (@NetworkNerd_) – two technology professionals with backgrounds in IT Operations and Sales Engineering on a mission to help others accelerate career progression and increase job satisfaction by bringing listeners the advice we wish we’d been given earlier in our careers. In ...
Welcome to episode 257 of the Nerd Journey Podcast [@NerdJourney]! We’re John White (@vJourneyman) and Nick Korte (@NetworkNerd_) – two technology professionals with backgrounds in IT Operations and Sales Engineering on a mission to help others accelerate career progression and increase job satisfaction by bringing listeners the advice we wish we’d been given earlier in our careers. In ...
Welcome to episode 256 of the Nerd Journey Podcast [@NerdJourney]! We’re John White (@vJourneyman) and Nick Korte (@NetworkNerd_) – two technology professionals with backgrounds in IT Operations and Sales Engineering on a mission to help others accelerate career progression and increase job satisfaction by bringing listeners the advice we wish we’d been given earlier in our careers. In ...
Welcome to episode 255 of the Nerd Journey Podcast [@NerdJourney]! We’re John White (@vJourneyman) and Nick Korte (@NetworkNerd_) – two technology professionals with backgrounds in IT Operations and Sales Engineering on a mission to help others accelerate career progression and increase job satisfaction by bringing listeners the advice we wish we’d been given earlier in our careers. In ...
Welcome to episode 254 of the Nerd Journey Podcast [@NerdJourney]! We’re John White (@vJourneyman) and Nick Korte (@NetworkNerd_) – two technology professionals with backgrounds in IT Operations and Sales Engineering on a mission to help others accelerate career progression and increase job satisfaction by bringing listeners the advice we wish we’d been given earlier in our careers. In ...
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