3 Steps to Making 6 Figures: Top Tech Jobs are in High Demand

Source – edgylabs.com

If you think that robots and AI are about to change your job, then you’re probably right. Here are three steps you can take to show how automation creates demand for new positions and new skill sets.

You may have someone warning you about the coming robot revolution, where those that own robots make all the money. In this dystopian nightmare, the rest of us are left unemployed. Quite frankly, we don’t see it that way.

Everyone here at Edgy will tell you that new jobs will arise for each job lost in the march of progress. You just have to know where to look for top tech jobs.

IT is a clear winner, for sure. After all, you will always need somebody to fix the robots when they break down. But expand your vision a bit and you can see what the future has in store for you (and it isn’t poverty, just to be clear).

Follow These Three Steps to Make 6 Figures, get top Tech jobs, and Avoid the Robot Revolution:

Step #1: Find out what DevOps is, and do That

A recent report on Fortune.com caught my attention lately because it mentioned a job that pays without even requiring a college degree. It’s called DevOps, and while it helps to have a degree in computer science, the demand for the work this position produces makes it hardly necessary.

But what is DevOps? DevOps is a term for the position that coordinates the various IT operations for a company into a single, organized system. We’re entering the era where IT is a much larger job than ever before, so think of DevOps as a sort of super-manager for an IT system. It is certainly one of our top tech jobs.

As I said before, the demand for this position is huge. Businesses around the world are seeing their IT needs grow exponentially, and that is why you can rake in some of that cash without the college degree. There is simply too much demand to limit the workforce to the eminently skilled. Of course, you should still go for that degree; the future isn’t set in stone and who knows how long this level of demand will last.

But if you can get the job before finishing college, you can start a career that’ll help pay for college, and I know from personal experience that graduating with no debt is about as sweet a state of affairs as one can get.

“But Sir!” you may say. “Now that you have mentioned it, everybody is flooding toward the DevOps jobs! What else can I do?”

And my answer is simple. Move on to step 2!

Step #2: Learn These ten Tech Things for top Tech jobs

We’ve compiled a list of ten things that can keep your boat afloat as you angle for one of those top tech jobs.

Java

Just like my exercise routine depends on coffee, the future runs on Java. I started with Java because pretty much every top tech company lists it as a requirement. And not for nothing, if you can’t use Java, you WILL be in over your head, whether the work is software development or social media programming.

Think of it as a sandwich. You can have meat, you can have veggies, but you can’t have a sandwich without bread, and that’s Java.

Learn Java.

Javascript

I listed Javascript separately because it is different, but I listed it at #2 because it is almost as important as knowing Java. It’s one thing to be familiar with the inner workings of IoT technology, but it is quite another to know how to write and develop said inner workings.

SQL

Knowing Structured Query Language may not be the most in-demand skill, but knowing your way around SQL is a valuable thing to list on your resume. This is a domain-specific language that everyone from developers to program managers use. Consider it one of those indispensable abilities that the modern world can’t do without, like air conditioning repair and industrial pipe fitting. But, y’know, for tech.

Management

Every workforce needs that person who is proficient enough with a desk and a whip to make sure that things get done, and the workforces that rise up in Industry 4.0 won’t be any different. If you know how to organize, motivate, and handle people, then you will be able to pull in a steady paycheck in the future.

You’ll still have to deal with your employees drawing devil horns and mustaches on your company photo, but that’s just the cost of being the boss.

C++

C++, like Java, is in everything. Or, more accurately, C++ very nearly IS everything. C++ has been the basis for computer programming for ages, and it likely will be until quantum computing becomes more prevalent.

Simply put, C++ is the basis for top tech jobs.

C++ is a complex programming language, making it a very difficult skill to learn, but that brings its own benefit. If you can hack it, not everyone is going to be able to learn C++, so proficiency with that language will give you a golden ticket to staying employed.

Python

Python is another programming language, but this one has a more specific, IoT related purpose.

You’ll mainly see Python used for server-side applications, and you’ll see it a lot because all of the pros swear by it. The bigger the business, the more server applications they’ll be using, so knowledge of Python may just make you the go-to person for keeping their network running smoothly.

Linux

Speaking of server apps, Linux is the best platform for company servers.

On the bright side, Linux has been around for a long time, and there are multitudes of tutorials and courses on how to use it. On the not-so-bright side, you need those tutorials to do the most basic things on many Linux setups. Learn Linux, and you’ll have the ability to access and use all of those nifty programs that the other IT professionals cook up to keep things stable.

Distributed Systems

With more and more IoT and big data applications floating about, somebody needs to be able to handle the pressing need for processing power and data storage, and that’s where the Distributed Systems specialist comes in.

And make no mistake, both big data and IoT apps are already huge in the business world, and they are only going to get bigger. If you can get tapped to handle these things, then you can put a heck of a good item on your resume.

Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is making advanced AI solutions possible, and while that is only one facet of this wondrous advancement in data storage, it outlines something important that relates to this article. If you are worried about AI taking your job, then working with Cloud Computing will be like becoming an AI’s landlord and high school principal. AI need the cloud in order to learn, and without a well-maintained cloud platform they cannot operate, so if you can keep your head in the cloud then you can keep your rent check from being late.

Agile Methodologies

Last but not least, Agile Methodologies (AM) is a skill that, when combined with some of the other programming and management skills listed here, will make you a valuable hire in Industry 4.0.

The term is applied to processes surrounding the implementation of software deployment. Basically, AM handles the distribution of that big project the programmers have been working on, which makes it a necessary part of releasing any big software product.

Step #3: When in Doubt, Check Your Local Library

Did you think libraries were going extinct like snail mail and newspapers? For shame; you should really check your local library out. They may just be offering courses that will help you get a leg up in the technology-based job market.

To give you an example, let’s look to the town of Rome, GA, where the local library is offering courses such as “How to use Overdrive,” and “Smartphone 101”.

At the risk of sounding like everyone’s mother or father: Public and private institutions have a responsibility to train the workers that they want, so if you find yourself on the side that is looking for workers, then consider volunteering some of your time to train them. The return you’ll get from those workers will far outweigh the time spent training them, and in my experience, educated people are usually pretty grateful to whoever taught them, so you’ll get some loyalty out of it as well.

For everyone else that finds themselves in need of training, put your feelers out there. The chance of finding free help is probably higher than you think.