I read a lot.
Most of my work day involves reading the onslaught of business email, alert messages, text messages and instant messages, vendor documentation, knowledgebase articles, and many other types of documentation related to my job. However, as an I.T. professional I need to keep up with the latest tech news and tech training so my skills don’t become stagnant. I need to stay ahead of the game by developing my own personal learning plan not only for new software and new technology, but for personal growth in my capabilities as a leader, parent, husband, and community member.
Several people have asked me what I read on a daily basis and what I use to develop my own learning plans. Below are my own personal resources in several categories.
Community:
Spiceworks Community & Local SpiceCorps Groups:
SpiceCorps of Volusia County, FL -
SpiceCorps of Central Florida -
SolarWinds Thwack Community -
Microsoft Answers Community -
http://itprocamp.com/
I.T. Training:
Microsoft Virtual Academy - .
Microsoft TechNet Virtual Labs - .
Cisco Learning Portal - .
Links to Cisco training resources -
http://training.linuxfoundation.org/
Daily reading:
Hacker News @ Y Combinator -
Network World -
Farnam Street Blog -
Om Malik (GigaOM founder) -
Dave Ramsey's Blog -
Zig Ziglar -
Michael Hyatt -
Leadership Vacuum -
Equip your Life by Glenn Stewart -
Surface Geeks -
This Week In Tech a.k.a. TwiT (with Leo Laporte and friends) -
Re/Code -
www.engadget.com
Podcast Subscriptions:
The EntreLeadership Podcast -
This Is Your Life Weekly podcast from Michael Hyatt -
Zig Ziglar's Inspiring Words of Encouragement -
Surface Geeks Podcast -
This Week In Tech Podcast (TwiT) -
http://www.rzim.org/let-my-people-think-broadcasts/
Book List:
Dave Ramsey, "The Total Money Makeover" -
Dr. Henry Cloud, "Integrity" -
John G. Miller, "QBQ!" -
Michael Hyatt, "Platform: Get Noticed in a noisy world" -
Stephen R. Covey, "The 7 Habits of highly effective people" -
Dr. Henry Cloud, "Boundaries" -
You may notice that in my book list there is NOTHING technology related. The reason is because I have the gift of being able to consume tech learning resources online very quickly. But for the things that I cannot learn easily such as commitment… integrity… character... leadership… perseverance…and patience, I prefer to learn and grow by reading an actual hardcover book.
Well there you have it. Even though this list is fairly comprehensive, you will need to find your own resources that meets your own needs, your own learning plan, and your own personal growth plan.
Always remember that leaders are readers. I hope all of this helps you as it helps me every day!