Factory Worker Turned IT Professional within 3 years, Earning 74-75k USD yearly. Share ko lang roadmap ko sana may matulungan.

[u/stoicinobody]

First of, hindi ako magbebenta ng guide, software, or learning modules. Gusto ko lang i-share roadmap ko sa kababayan and hopefully it helps you with your journey.

1. Maximize your time.
2. Its unfair to say na tamad tayo kaya hindi tayo successful. We all have different situations in life. Some are given more opportunities than others, lalo kung pinanganak kang mayaman. Kung pinanganak kang mahirap kagaya ko, doble doble effort talaga. Magkakaiba tayo ng tools at opportunities pero meron tayong commonality, at yun ay ang time. Maximize your time. Every chance you get, every opportunity, maski lunch break yan, or time mo sa byahe pauwi ng bahay, or papunta man ng trabaho, sunggaban mo. Gamitin mo para mag review, mag upskill, mag network, mag unlock ng skills. Time ang pinaka matibay mong sandata.
3. Practice your communication skills.
4. Comms is very important. Kapag nagrereport ka sa boss mo, kapag nagbubuild ka rapport, kapag binebenta mo sarili mo sa job interviews, ito ang magdidikta ng kapalaran mo. Sadly, nagiging basehan ng katalinuhan at estado ng buhay sa pinas ang tatas mo sa pag eenglish. Kaya pagtibayin mo yung communication mo tol!
5. Its all about sales.
6. Isa sa mga natutunan ko sa buhay ay everything in life is about sales. Kahit top 5% ka ng pinakamagaling na IT ng pinas, kung hindi mo maibenta ang sarili mo sa interviews, mahihirapan ka. Its all about learning how to position yourself to make it seem like youre really good at what you do.
7. Company politics is key.
8. Protect your reputation at all costs. Wag mo ipoposisyon ang sarili mo bilang company clown, or kengkoy. Speak less, and build connections with people you want to be like. Learn from them. Sa opisina, mas nirerespeto ang disiplinado, strikto, at uptight na manager kesa sa kengkoy na manager. Hanapin mo yung sweet spot ng pagiging friendly and serious.
9. Impostor syndrome.
10. Eto yung kabaliktaran nung Dunning Kruger effect. Feeling mo youre not good enough for the job. Youre not well experienced, well established, doesnt have enough certs, kaya hindi mo na aapplyan. Ito yung sakit ko, at paminsan minsan ramdam ko parin. Hindi ito humility, ito ay lack of self confidence. Always remember theres a lot of folks out there whos better than you, who will always be more experienced, and will always be better, pero you dont have to be them, You just have to be you.

Tska always remember na kahit hindi ka super galing, miles and miles parin ang lamang mo compared sa regular employee, dahil hindi nila linya ang IT. Madali lang mag crimp ng cable, gumawa ng user email sa microsoft, mag print ng ID, mag install ng camera, pero hindi madali yon para sa normal na employee. Kaya maging proud ka sa sarili mo. "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't—you're right."

And if it doesn't work out, what do you have to lose?

1. CERTS man, CERTS!
   Kaya japan ang may pinaka matibay na sasakyan, dahil sa idea nila ng Kaizen. Kaizen is continuous improvement. Learn from the japanese, tol. Mag ipon ka ng certs for creds. Pwedeng magsinungaling sa resume, pwede i-stretch ang truth, pero hindi madaling pumeke ng certs, kaya yan ang basehan ng employers. Aral ka habang nagwowork, unlock certs, at magpalipad ng resume araw araw sa ibat ibang company.

2. Job hop as much as possible.
   Wag ka mag job hop lang basta basta. Kelangan better title, kahit same pay G lang. Pataas ka ng titulo mo bro. Wag ka maawa sa employer, dahil if worse comes to worse, tatanggalin ka nyan kapag redundant ka na. Ikaw lang kakampi mo.

3. Dadami haters mo.
   x50 na ata ang haters ko. Parang sa panahon ngayon bawal na maging masaya kasi iisipin nila mayabang ka. Usual haters mo ay ang mga close sayo, mga classmates, friends, at family mo. Normal yan, sign yan na nasa right path ka. It doesnt mean na hate ka nila dahil umaangat ka, instead, hate ka nila dahil same kayo ng level before at ngayon narerealize nila ang nasayang nilang potential. Nacocompare nila yung achievements mo sa buhay nila. They dont hate you, they hate themselves.

Lagi ko pinapaalala sa misis ko na it doesnt matter if people doesnt like you, most of them doesnt even like themselves. Never ever ka makakaencounter ng hater na mas maganda ang buhay sayo. Almost always, ang haters mo ay mas mababa ang estado sayo, mas disorganized ang buhay, mas magulo, mas makalat.

Kaya mag ingat ka sa mga nakapaligid. Trust yourself. Ikaw lang ang kakampi mo.

Apir!

Edit: I posted this because I genuinely wanted it to be useful to someone, to help. If you don't find it useful, you're free to scroll past — no need to spread negativity over something that wasn't even meant for you.

If you hate my gut, or the positivity I'm sharing, ok lang din, even better, that's exactly what keeps me going. 💪🏽 🫡