Ask HN: As a Marketer which direction should I take my skills?

1 points by havoc2005 6 years ago | 2 comments

6+ years of marketing experience and a BS in IT.

Itching to become more technical or figure out what paths I can take my skills.

What are some of my options in terms of learnings that can help me stand out more ie: a masters degree, technical skills, online courses?

I know this is broad. Any thoughts are appreciated.

yigitcakar 6 years ago |

I have faced a similar decision myself, and instead of going fully technical I thought I might just have the urge to create something other than marketing what other people create. After months of thinking I decided to be a designer instead of a programmer. I still write code for enjoyment and automatizing simple tasks, but I also find graphic design feeds my itch, my urge to create while also using my marketing and sales skills. And at the company I am working for, I can see how my marketing skills and thinking patterns are adding value to everything we do. If I were you, I would seek the reasons behind that urge to go technical, and find a path that you can utilize your past all the while satisfying your itch.

havoc2005 6 years ago | |

This is a good approach. I think my urge comes from several areas.

1. Not feeling like I've done enough re: education. There's always a feeling that I need to have a graduate degree to gain some level of knowledge I can't self-study, to gain a network that might be closed to me without the credential, to feel like I tried harder.

And if I'm being honest, it's partially my ego that is driving this, ie: I want a degree from a top school just to know I was able to do it to not continue to have this regret lingering in the back of my mind.

2. I want to create. Your approach is great. I want to be more of a builder that way I can combine my marketing skills with building products.

3. I feel like I'm not accomplishing enough. So what are the levers I can pull to accelerate this? It seems like a graduate degree and a complementary skill set like coding would satisfy this itch.