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Phil\\u2019s guest on this episode of the IT Career Energizer podcast is James Ward. He is a software developer who shares what he learns with others through presentations, blogs, demos and code.\\xa0 He is a self-proclaimed Typed Pure Functional Programming zealot but often compromises on his ideals to just get things done.

And as well as being the co-author of \\u201cFirst Steps in Flex\\u201d and the creator of the first Java hosting service back in 1997, he helped to launch the Reactive Manifesto.

In this episode, Phil and James Ward talk, at length, about the best ways to get involved in the IT community, help others and grow your reputation within the industry. They also discuss how to be effective at influencing decision-makers.

James also talks about how to go back to basics when explaining things to beginners. A skill you need when building a team.

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KEY TAKEAWAYS:

(4.26) TOP CAREER TIP

Find a community you want to be a part of and work to improve it. Everyone benefits when you do that, including you. In time, you become well known and people start to recognise your efforts and what you have to offer.

You can contribute in all kinds of ways. Write blog posts, put together documentation, provide code samples and more besides. Use forum and social media to uncover what people are struggling with, and then provide something to help them to meet those challenges.

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(7.10) WORST CAREER MOMENT

James worked at Adobe, in particular on Flex. When HTML, CSS and the web started growing, he realised that it would have a significant impact on how relevant Adobe Flex was. At that stage, James wanted to develop Flex in a way that enabled people to port their applications easily to the web.

Unfortunately, he was unable to convince the management of the need to do this. It led to him leaving a job he loved because he knew the tech he was working on was going downhill. The experience taught James that he needed to work on his influencing skills.

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(11.34) CAREER HIGHLIGHT

James\\u2019 career highlight was TypeSafe the company behind Scala. He enjoyed being able to simplify things to the point where people could actually get started with using the tech.

First, they created activator which made everything easier to install and provided templates. Later, they provided hundreds of pieces of sample code, which made things even easier.

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(15.46) THE FUTURE OF CAREERS IN I.T

There is so much happening right now. It is almost overwhelming. But, this is a good thing because it means that the possibilities are endless.

James has a lot of fun learning the new technologies and playing around with the latest tech gadgets. He shares details of his rocket related project with the audience.

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(17.29) THE REVEAL

What first attracted you to a career in I.T.? \\u2013 James describes himself as being a nerd, even as a young kid, so for him taking up a career in I.T was a natural step.

What\\u2019s the best career advice you received? \\u2013 You need to work on your dependability.\\xa0 In the podcast, James explains how he overcame his own flakiness.

What\\u2019s the worst career advice you received? \\u2013 James has been lucky with his advisors, so did not have a worst piece of career advice to share.

What would you do if you started your career now? \\u2013 Get involved in machine learning, AI and data dynamics.

What are your current career objectives? \\u2013 James really wants to improve developer journeys and experiences. Right now, he is focused on using Java Spring in Google Cloud to do this.

What\\u2019s your number one non-technical skill? \\u2013 His desire to learn. At this stage he talks about a couple of his side projects he is involved in, including WebJars.

What do you do away from technology? \\u2013 James loves spending time in the mountains in Colorado. He is a keen hiker, biker and skier.

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(25.21) FINAL CAREER TIP

Share what you know. Everyone has something unique to share with their community, so make sure you do. You never know how many people you can end up helping by doing so.

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BEST MOMENTS

(4.29) \\u2013James - \\u201cFind a community you like and participate. Working to make that community better will get you known.\\u201d

(11.20) \\u2013James - \\u201cTake people on a journey when trying to influence them. Build your arguments slowly over time.\\u201d

(18.22) \\u2013James - \\u201cBe dependable. When you say you will deliver something, make sure that you actually do.\\u201d

(19.33) \\u2013James - \\u201cLearn not to over commit. If you are a people pleaser, learn to say no a little more.\\u201d

(25.22) \\u2013James - \\u201cShare what you know with your community. Everyone has something unique to share.\\u201d

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ABOUT THE HOST \\u2013 PHIL BURGESS

Phil Burgess is an independent IT consultant who has spent the last 20 years helping organisations to design, develop and implement software solutions.\\xa0 Phil has always had an interest in helping others to develop and advance their careers.\\xa0 And in 2017 Phil started the I.T. Career Energizer podcast to try to help as many people as possible to learn from the career advice and experiences of those that have been, and still are, on that same career journey.

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CONTACT THE HOST \\u2013 PHIL BURGESS

Phil can be contacted through the following Social Media platforms:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/philtechcareer

LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/philburgess

Facebook: https://facebook.com/philtechcareer

Instagram: https://instagram.com/philtechcareer

Website: https://itcareerenergizer.com/contact

Phil is also reachable by email at phil@itcareerenergizer.com and via the podcast\\u2019s website, https://itcareerenergizer.com

Join the I.T. Career Energizer Community on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/groups/ITCareerEnergizer

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ABOUT THE GUEST \\u2013James Ward

James Ward is a software developer who shares what he learns with others through presentations, blogs, demos and code. He is a self-proclaimed Typed Pure Functional Programming zealot but often compromises on his ideals to just get things done.

And as well as being the co-author of \\u201cFirst Steps in Flex\\u201d and the creator of the first Java hosting service back in 1997, he helped to launch the Reactive Manifesto

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CONTACT THE GUEST \\u2013James Ward

James Ward\\xa0can be contacted through the following Social Media platforms:

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Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/_JamesWard

LinkedIn: \\xa0https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesward/\\xa0\\xa0

Website: https://www.jamesward.com/