Problem: Develop Your Career Potential

Learn to Talk Tech Most people are intimidated by technology. But like many things, technology becomes easier if you familiarize yourself with the basics. One way to learn to "speak geek" is to subscribe to PC Magazine, the premier magazine about personal computing. Depending on your budget, it may be more feasible (and possibly more productive) if you spend a set amount of time each week perusing technology web sites and flipping through a selection of magazines dedicated to technology. The important thing is to be patient, however. After several issues, you should begin to understand what they're talking about. After that, it's easy to stay current. Subscribe. You can also sign up for the "Term of the Day" e-mail newsletter. Each day, Webopedia will e-mail you a new technology term and its definition. Either way, you'll soon be able to talk tech. Why is talking tech so important? Information technology (IT) is an integral part of nearly every business, whether it's simple e-mail applications or more complex networking, e-commerce, and operations software. Very few companies are able to get by without using IT regularly.

This being the case, managers need to understand this critical component of their companies' operations. That's not to say that managers (other than IT managers, of course) need to know every last technical detail, but as a manager, you will need-and want-to know what your tech staff is talking about when they bring problems, concerns, or suggestions for improvement to your office. Computers are becoming an integral part of all kinds of work, so you need to do more than just understand the terminology. You also need to be able to use technology effectively. The reason is that people with basic computer skills earn 15 to 30 percent higher lifetime incomes than those without them. What should you do to learn about computers? Subscribe to PC Magazine, PC World, or Macworld. Buy a book about Microsoft Office and then take tests to be Microsoft Office User certified (see the Microsoft website for more information) in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Access. Take more than the required computer classes for your degree. Unless you want less job security and earning power, start learning more about computers today.

Activities: 1. If you are completely new to IT, you might be more comfortable reading about it in the context of your favorite business publication. Walter Mossberg has a regular technology column in the Wall Street Journal, as does David Pogue, see Pogue's Posts, in The New York Times. Articles in both publications are on the shorter side, so take an hour and read through a few weeks' worth of each.

2. The U.S. government operates a career website. Go there to learn more about the IT field, see which jobs are in demand, and to get an industry overview. There are also industry videos and links. This will give you a wealth of ideas about where and what kind of IT training you may want to pursue in conjunction with your business degree.