Tips to Power Up and Soar beyond the Clouds of 2016

Looking for ways to boost your mind, become empowered, and soar above the clouds of digital transformation in Information Technology (IT)? If you feel that you are ready to wrap your mind around the deluge of information, the convergence of our daily lives with the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and Virtual Reality, then embracing these tips will provide you with the focus and direction that you need to excel and venture into Space-2016 and return to Earth intact.

Three Tips to Power Up and Soar …

1. Stay Connected and Informed

There is a fantastic quote by Kofi Annan (Ghanaian diplomat) which states “Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.” Oh how true those words ring in today’s digital economy.

The days of remaining “heads down” in your cubicle are long gone since the world has become globally flat and we are all connected, literally.

One way of staying connected and informed is to set up ‘Google Alerts’ on specific phrases, key words, or technology that are breaking news and setting trends for tomorrow and beyond.

Below is a list of important topics and key technologies in 2016 that I feel may be of importance for anyone in the IT industry whether in Manufacturing, Transportation, Retail, Healthcare, Aerospace, Automotive, or Energy industries:

• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Strategic Partnerships
• Politically driven Cyber Warfare
• Cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin / Ethereum) Blockchain
• Security (data breaches)
• Data Protection / Backups / Object Based Storage
• Cloud Computing / Virtualization
• Big Data Analytics
• Internet of Things (IoT) / sensors
• 3-D Printing
• Robotics or Autonomous agents
• Virtual Reality
• Hyper Convergence
• Software Defined
• Mobile (wearables, consumer and home electronics, automotive, and environmental or sensor devices)

2. Develop a Plan (Self-Journey Map)

Use the information and ideas from current events to invoke your passion for creating a plan on how to propel yourself to the next level of your career or life.

This will further differentiate yourself from those that are still “heads down” content with performing the same old job functions and role.

You will need to create a plan and strategy that displays how you will create value in your micro world and the macro world as a whole. Understand how “the business” works and especially how the digital economy is driving new business models.

One idea is to create a Self-Journey Map by drilling in on the information or technology that you feel speaks to your soul with passion and razor sharp truth. You will know which direction to go based on the energy that radiates from you. Ideas will stream into your mind prompting you to want to make a difference or enhance an existing product or service or create an entirely new one.

A Self Journey Map is similar to a Life Map where you spend time visualizing your strategy and mapping out step-by-step what your end game should be in your career or life in general.

3. Study, Train, Act, and Yearn (STAY)

The acronym that this tip creates is not one to take literally. I am suggesting that you do the complete opposite of “STAYing” where you are especially mentally.

I believe that change is constant and growth is the rocket fuel that takes you to your next level, not someone else’s.

Study

Use your Self-Journey Map and list of important topics and key technologies that I feel may be of importance for you in the IT industry to stay connected and informed. Gain a deeper perspective and begin to study and devote your time and attention to the ones that you have chosen.

Train

You must train to be in fighting shape in order to begin to hone your skills. Register for training classes whether web-based sessions or in-person classroom instructor-led. This will not only build your knowledge and skills, but provide you with the confidence and staying power for the long haul.

Act

Now it is time to put your hard work and training to action. Whether you build your own home based server and storage cluster, create that new product or service, purchase that 3-D printer, or start your own business, now is the time to put all of your studying and training into action.

Yearn

This is the most important step which will provide you with the longevity and craving to hang in there when the going gets tough. You can study, train, and act; however, an intense passion will reinvigorate you to push beyond those days when you feel you no longer have the time or strength to carry on.

I hope this provides you with another angle in how to position yourself and excel in the exciting year that 2016 is promising to be.

In the spirit of keeping my fellow Data Protection cohorts informed, please

‘Follow’ me on Twitter and for more creative content on Backup & Recovery please listen to my podcast Data Protection Gumbo. 

Here are some other recent posts I have written on LinkedIn:

• The New AA of Big Data
• Running with the Big Data Bulls…
• Wake Up & Smell the Big Data!
• The Medical Big Data Race is on…
• Straight Outta Transcendence
• Hungry for Knowledge: Try Data Protection Gumbo
• Data Protection Man v Big Data Billionaires: Passion Ignites Storage

Demetrius Malbrough is an expert in solving Data Protection challenges for small, medium and enterprise companies. He holds multiple Backup and Recovery certifications with major software leaders represented in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Backup / Recovery Software. Demetrius is passionate about providing solutions to help companies meet demanding data protection objectives in the face of data’s changing paradigm in the Copy Data Management market.