Is a Tech Career Right for You?
Jobs in the tech industry are expected to grow exponentially in the next few years. All companies, in one way or another, need to transform to keep up with the future of work.
Given the high salaries and growth potential in the tech industry, you might be wondering if a tech career is right for you. Sure, it’s a great idea on paper, but will you actually like working in tech?
A tech career is a good fit for anyone who is willing to work hard and stay in tune with the ever-changing landscape.
One good way to determine if a tech career is for you or not is to start by taking an audit of your skills and passions. Often, there will be a way to combine them with a tech career.
For instance, if you’re coming from a career in banking, you could move into fintech or even cryptocurrency jobs. Think about your other strengths. Great programmers are creative, detail-oriented, problem solvers, and team players. Does that sound like you?
A few good indicators that a tech career path might be right for you include:
- You like problem-solving
- You want to do creative and exciting work
- You’re ready for a career change
- You’re curious and a lifelong learner
- You want to work remotely or in a flexible work environment
- You’re excited by the world-changing potential of technology and curious to know more about how it’s created
- You want a career that will provide more long-term stability and growth
According to Skillcrush CEO Adda Birnir, knowing if you are fundamentally interested in and excited by the world-changing possibilities of technology helps you tell if a tech career is right for you.
What You Need to Know
Here’s what you need to know before considering a tech career path.
You need to be open to continual learning.
When you work in tech, your expertise may become obsolete in a couple of years. You have to be ready to jump into the next significant shift.
If you’re not interested in continuous learning or think exams are part of your past, then this is not the right path for you. But if you are excited about the role you will play in building the future, tech is definitely for you.
Remember that any skill can be learned, no matter what area it is.
You don’t need to be a "techie" to work in tech.
For instance, if you’re coming from a career in banking, you could move into fintech or even cryptocurrency jobs.
Your technology career options can also include design (visual design, graphic design, UX design, etc.), and tech-adjacent roles in niches such as tech support, digital marketing, sales, HR and more.
It can be about purpose.
As a tech expert, you can do so much to give back to society at large.
Many companies in the industry support charitable causes and ethical values—and some even work directly toward making the world a cleaner, safer, and kinder place.
For those interested in making an impact through innovation, this path might be one worth taking a look at.
Common Concerns of Tech Beginners
Let’s take a look at some common concerns beginners in tech have about working in the industry.
I'm not a computer graduate
There are multiple legitimate paths to a career in technology, and while a computer science degree can be helpful, it’s not necessarily essential.
What matters most is your attitude, logical thinking, curiosity and willingness to get upskilled. In fact, having a background in a non-technical field can be an advantage since it lets you offer a fresh perspective as well as a more diverse skill set.
I’m not a math person
While some fields of programming require you to have extensive knowledge of mathematics (such as game development and machine learning), you don’t need advanced math skills for most coding jobs.
Being good at math means that you can look at a problem, figure out what it’s asking and what kind of solution would it need. You don’t need to know the solution to every problem, but you need to know how to look things up, think about what you already know, and apply that.
I'm extroverted
You can get a job in tech without forcing yourself to change who you are and how you work best.
You’ll be discussing, defending, and developing your work with your co-workers and vice versa. Or you’ll be working with customers to understand their needs and keep them informed about what you’re doing for them.
In fact, your extrovert personality makes you even more qualified for a fantastic career doing what you love.
I'm more creative than logical
You might think you can only use your creativity for traditionally creative fields like editorial, marketing, and public relations—but tech is all about coming up with original solutions and unique ways to implement them.
For those who enjoy innovation, a career in technology might be exactly what you’re looking for.
Whether you want to develop products for companies or design new-age video consoles, there are many roles for creative people in technology–even ones that don’t involve math or extreme computer knowledge.
Switching to a Tech Career
Are you switching careers to technology?
Changing careers is far from easy. When faced with learning new skills, earning new certifications, and starting from the bottom again, it’s understandable to feel overwhelmed and perhaps a little discouraged.
But there’s no reason to feel like that – especially not when it comes to IT! Anyone, at any age and with any background, can dedicate themselves to professional development in IT and become incredibly successful.
There are thousands of online programs and courses you can apply to for pretty much any IT branch (from software development to data analytics to testing to cybersecurity to design and animation) under the sun.
All you need to do is take your pick and start working towards your ultimate IT goal.
Is Tech the Right Industry for You?
If you want to join an ever-changing field full of new discoveries and potential, one where you’ll never get bored, and have a chance to make an impact — then your answer may be "yes".
Tech will put you right where the growth and disruption are happening. It will take hard work, but if you are willing to adapt and learn, you will thrive.
So, stop worrying that you don’t have a computer science degree and stop worrying about the stereotypes.
Digital jobs are as diverse and dynamic as you are. Whatever your education, interests, or experience, there are opportunities that fit with your personality and your passions.
No matter what you’ve thought before, you can have a career in tech that’s right for you.