Ah, it’s good to be back. My last post was over 2 years ago, and my last WGU post was 3.5 years ago! But I have news…
I’m going back for Round 3!
(After finishing the BS ITM degree – the one I blogged about – I got a MBA-ITM degree as well.)
On October 1, 2021, I start the BS Software Development program.
But Why?
Well the truth is, the BS ITM and MBA ITM weren’t really for me. They were for my career. And they served me well, and I’m grateful I had them. The MBA ITM degree enabled me to land a position as the IT Director at a national pharmacy!
Pretty snazzy, eh? But then something funny happened. COVID hit, and that Pharmacy went of business (the owner allegedly smuggled in COVID meds, mislabeling them on import paperwork as various types of vitamins).
On October 22, 2020 I was laid off. And, at that time, no one was hiring … the very next week my brother, who was one of my very best friends, was in a fatal motorcycle accident.
Those two experiences – happening so close together, really put a lot of things into a new perspective. One of those things was this:
I’ve been working really hard at something that I can sell (my skills, knowledge, and experience). But not at something that I want to do.
Now, that’s not to say that I don’t like IT. Of course I do, or I wouldn’t have pursued it in the first place. But I don’t spend my spare time performing risk analyses, preparing budget projections, or conducting performance reviews.
What Do I Want To Do?
What do I do in my spare time? I write programs.
That’s not the only thing I do of course, but it’s something I enjoy doing that’s also marketable.
When I was in the MBA-ITM program, there were a few things I didn’t like about Anki, so I wrote my own FlashCard program using DJango.
When I was the IT Director, my employees were spending hours every Monday modifying, comparing, and compiling Excel reports, so I wrote a Python program that automated that process instead. My employees ran the program, selected the report they needed, pointed at the raw data, and BAM! Instead of 3 hours, it was taking 15 minutes.
Can’t You Just Learn On Your Own?
Yeah probably. There are plenty of free/cheap resources. I might recommend that most people in my situation look into those resources first.
But here’s the thing: I learn best in a structured environment with plenty of accountability. That’s just the way it is. I’ve written several programs – that I learned to write on my own – but I want to do more and go deeper.
The way that WGU works really works for me. I learn a lot, I learn it quickly, and I have fun doin’ it…
So drop the beat cuz I’m goin’ back in…
Wow, very inspiring, All of your journeys have been something to learn from and I am on the same track and was even thinking of the MBA ITM track also.