Aspiring to be a Network Engineer in Cisco?
When you’ve chased your career rainbow and found that pot of gold, what would you do with it then? You could spend it, save it, use it or lose it. This choice and all of those options are available to all professional qualification candidates chasing the certification pot of gold and I am no exception. This article is aimed at network engineers, particularly those walking the CCIE road. However the article is generic enough to be applicable to most IT professionals.
Since I began my career in IT in 1992 I always hoped to be better than the next guy. I tried hard to learn and started to take professional IT exams to prove to myself that I did know that which I hoped I knew.
In the 90’s the dominant network operating system of the time was Novell Netware and I achieved my CNE qualification in Netware 4.1 in 1996 by passing 5 exams over 12 months. So why did I want to pass it? Well it was to prove I knew what I thought I knew. I also needed to get out of my current job and move on for better challenge and (fingers crossed) more money.
So when I found a new job did I move for the money? Well I got a fair pay rise but found I had moved mostly for the challenge. In the new place I got my hands dirty with networking and *nix rather than just as a hobby. After that exposure my next role was with NT and SGI Irix. I passed the MCSE and Solaris/Irix admin exams. Spin forward another 12 months and again a job move into full-time unix and networking. I sat and passed the CCNA and then I was promoted to a team leader role. I cherish those days. I had time to study and money wasn’t so necessary as it is today. The place I worked valued knowledge in it’s staff and invested well in our time.
So now we move onto my rainbow story, the Cisco CCIE. Ever since 1998 or so and certainly after 2001 when I met my first real CCIE it was my challenge to pass the ‘pinnacle exam’. I had always wanted to do my best in whatever role I found myself and so far things had worked out pretty well, but I always felt I could do better and had (have) little confidence in my ability. The CCIE felt like the ultimate challenge, my peers placed considerable kudos in those four letters and so I made it my ‘unrealistic goal’. I spent the next 5 years getting to grips with networking, I sat and passed the CCNP track then the CCIP and CCSP but I didn’t have the confidence in my ability to go for the CCIE for another 2 years.
In 2007 I sat the CCIE exam for the first time in Brussels. It was a great day and I loved every minute. I wasn’t ready to pass and I knew it before I went. The thing about the CCIE exam is when you’ve paid you can’t back out without paying the money anyway…when you write your name in the sand you need to be prepared to see it through. I resigned myself to enjoying the day and getting the most out of it. Apart from anything I hoped to have a day out of the office, doing something I loved with likeminded people and (this is the best part) get a damn good meal out of it.
I did fail, or course I did. I got a middle score and certainly more than I deserved. In the end I sat the CCIE practical exam three times before I passed and the day I passed I knew it was mine, indeed it felt a lot easier. The average CCIE candidate takes three times to pass the CCiE so I guess that makes me, well average. Certainly my children, wife, house, stressful job and 3hour commute owe something to my average score but then again, I am blessed and fortunate to have such ‘distractions’.
I chased the rainbow, found the gold, and had a great journey. So is it over for me? Not at all. The next challenge is just around the corner. Certainly Cisco believe so as they now have two even greater challenges than the CCIE for anyone who wishes to try. One thing is for sure though, in IT there are roads to travel and as one door closes another one opens. Certainly my story has lots of twists and I am thankful for the opportunities I have had. I like to think often that I am lucky, but my wife says “No, you make your own luck”.
Before we move on to the choices section I just wanted to cover off the ‘use it or lose it rule’. Certainly for me, knowledge has been hard earned so when I find that something I once knew has left my head by one of holes (usually the ears) I get annoyed with myself for forgetting. This however is one of the tragic rules in life and one which will follow you in your own career. As a Netware guy iI thought I knew it all. I could load a Netware 3.12 server without the startup files, I knew every module and even the arguments to get it working optimally. Could I do it now? Not a chance, but it doesn’t matter since Netware 2.12 is no more, time moves on. Don’t be afraid of change, try to embrace it and do not be scared to forget what you have learned. Do not be reticent of the knowledge you have lost. The books you once read are still with you, only the detail is less vivid. The information you processed into knowledge will echo on and serve you well.
Your career will move you around and that is a good thing. Do you want to start as a network engineer at 18 and work as a network engineer until you are 70? Get experience in lots of things, start out with a broad brush. As my old schoolmaster said “At the start of your working life be a do-er of all things and a master of none”. As you progress through the myriad of roles in your field you will naturally be attracted to certain things which will allow you to specialise and become an expert. As an expert you will become the ‘go to’ person within your sphere of influence which will give you confidence and get you noticed. Just remember to not become distracted by the things you are forgetting, as you learn new things the old things will become less clear in your memory. I find it frustrating and I am sure you will too but do not let it hinder progress, you cannot do everything. My consolation for many years has been my good friend Dave A who tells me often when I doubt myself, “Don’t worry, you’ve forgotten more than they know”.
I wish you all the very best of luck chasing your rainbows. – Rich
Choice #1 – Money
It makes the world go round of course but money is also what we need to survive. The cost of living goes up and our facility to spend also grows with time. One very common saying is “the more you earn, the more you owe”. As you develop in your career you ‘should’ earn more. It is a self fulfilling prophesy and your personal choice will be greed or satisfaction. As you go up the job ladder at some point you will out grow your pay scale as an engineer and the ‘manager’ in you may be exploited. If job satisfaction is your aim and you are technical then management should be the last resort ( see choice 4). If you find yourself being the highest pay grade you can be as a network engineer and need a fresh challenge then have a look for design roles or else move to a larger company with a larger network. Variety is after all ‘the spice of life’.
Choice #2 – Satisfaction
Moving up a grade in your current role is always satisfying. New levels of trust equals higher pay and (hopefully) a more fulfilling role. Technically and practically speaking a CCNP should be doing better work than a CCNA in the same team in the same company. It is fairly clear in most cases however that proving your worth with qualifications is not always an indicator of being a better engineer BUT it is clear that qualifications are necessary when it comes to getting a new job. To my mind job satisfaction comes from having busy and challenging days. Whether you are just at the start of a career or you have carved out your niche, if you are happy you are productive. Try not to settle for the mundane, mediocre or simple. To my mind, a slow day is a lost day. My Father-in-law tells me often, “Rich, on your death bed you will not look back on your life and wish you had spent 15mins longer in meetings each day”..a very sensible man I think you will agree. Be productive and efficient in your work by all means but be happy in your life. Since work makes up such a huge part of your life, you need to make sure you are doing the right job. I recall being in a job interview once where the HR director went nuts for saying ‘Work/life balance”. Why? Well because she believed saying it that way round prejudiced life in the equation. To paraphrase the conversation, “It should be Life first, I think you need to revaluate what is important to you”.
Choice #3 – Responsibility
So you want more responsibility and you’re studying hard so you get that next better role? That’s great. Of course you hope that the next role will mean more focus technically but it may also include a leadership responsibility. You will have responsibility for your own work and those working with you. You will now a mentor and so the personal development of the members in your team is your responsibility.
It is down to you that they know what they are doing and the buck stops with you if anyone on your team screws up. So it is in your best interest that your team are well skilled. This means you need to develop your team and give them responsibility…wait…yes that is correct…your team are developing and they want your job…time to work hard and move on.
Choice #4 – Management or Leadership
Most people don’t know the difference between these two roles but they are almost in juxtaposition. As far as I can remember a manager is someone who takes little to no responsibility for the delivery method but lives or dies by the result (sometimes). A leader is someone who takes responsibility for the delivery method and cares about the result but good or bad learns, grows and engenders a ‘team’. I have found in my experience that there are two types of engineers, frustrated managerial wannabes in it for the ladder ride and the others are students of knowledge. It is a personal challenge to decide if you are a manager or not. As you develop, especially in a larger company, it is likely the moment will come where you are asked to decide your approach. All I would add here is that the best engineers don’t necessarily make the best managers, they care too much about the product.
Choice #5 – Stagnate or Re-generate
Consider your role today and think of this, “The ‘Top 10’ most in-demand roles in IT today did NOT exist 5 years ago”. So if you want to move on in your career you need to keep an eye on what is going on and not be too precious about the past. I’ve worked in places where the dinosaurs still roam free. That old PBX guy that used to hard wire in the telephone extensions is probably still in your place but maybe he (she) is the odd job person. The role has moved away from them and through complacency or fear they are left behind. Do you want to be a dinosaur or worse still King Canute? Do not stand in front of the tide because the current can be strong and will wash you away.
In your business try to consider new approaches to old problems. No matter how hard you find it to change, at least consider it, do not be un-necessarily stubborn or the ‘No person’. Having said that read the word I used….’consider’. Sometimes it isn’t necessary to change or re-invent the wheel. I’ve personally seen millions burned on projects which deliver little or no more benefit than the old system. Change for changes sake is not good change.
To close here is the obligatory ‘Jerry’s Final Thought’.
Consider your challenges, consult on change with your peers, investigate best practice in other organisations and ultimately follow your own path. In the end I find happiness in the roles I have chosen to put myself in.
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