INT 133: Importance of stepping up your technical skills in order to lead

The abundance of new tech out there can be overwhelming. It’s only natural for leaders to feel pressured to keep up, and with new products and services coming out all the time, it can get exhausting! In this episode of Int-HER-Rupt, your host Linda Yates meets with Julie Alig, the “Data Diva”. She shares the journey of how she went from being a voracious reader to a tech-savvy leader and offers tips to help inspire you to stay curious.

Becoming the Data Diva

• Growing up, Alig was a voracious reader who enjoyed reading in multiple languages. She wasn’t a “math person” until she started graduate school.

• She trusted her instincts and moved off the academic track into the administrative side of higher education, using her skills in forecasting and market research to support students.

• Her passion is working directly with clients and helping them use data to find solutions to problems.

How Do Tech Skills Move Your Career Forward?

• Whether it’s your first career or your third, when you think about what job you want, you have to think about what kind of technology you’ll be using.

• If you struggle with the kinds of tech available in your industry, you might be at a disadvantage. Learn what is useful and what is commonly used and work on upping your game in those.

Stepping Up Your Tech Skills to Show Leadership Skills

• It shows a willingness to try new things and models learning at all stages of your career.

• It also models a willingness to fail, think critically in new situations, and bounce back – and shows others it’s okay!

• Technology is always changing and we need to work on keeping up. We might need to take breaks from learning new tech but try to come back rejuvenated.

“Our economy, our world today is built on technology more and more… If you don’t have those technical skills, at least some level of them, you don’t need to be an expert… But there’s a certain level of expertise that you do need to have, a facility with those, to be able to really function. If you want to thrive, if you want to build your business, grow your business, get past that next plateau – you need to be using technology in some way.” – Julie Alig

Resources

Connect with Julie Alig on LinkedIn

Visit Julie’s Website: JLA Analytics: Turning Data Into Action (http://www.jlaanalytics.com/)

Check out the Int-HER-rupt Website at www.intherrupt.com! You can reach out to Linda and let her know how this episode relates to you. This podcast is produced by TSE Studios. Check out other podcasts by TSE Studios, including this episode’s sponsor, The Sales Evangelist, helping new and struggling sellers close more deals and achieve their sales goals. Subscribe to the IntHERrupt Podcast so you won’t miss a single show. Find us on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast,