I'm a Windows Server Administrator, have been for a very long time. And, if you'll permit it, I'll say I'm a damn good one. I think there are two things that have gotten me to where I am today: 1) Incessantly asking why, and 2) voracious reading and research in my lab.
I acquired some servers a while back, then got some switches, then a router, all enterprise-grade gear, and I set up some virtual servers, vswitches, etc... Basically, I made a ridiculously complicated home lab. To do so, I followed tutorials online, but at every step of the way, I asked "why is this necessary, what does this do, why do I do it this way". That gave me a great foundational understanding.
Then, I realized that certifications aren't restricted to a certain group of people, anyone can take them, so I started studying for certifications. The idea was, these large governing bodies think these are the kinds of things that experts should know, so if I learn these things, I should be an expert. Right? Not quite, but reading up on each of the features, etc, that are covered in the certification exams really expanded my horizons. Then of course, I started asking Why would I use that and things just snowballed. Hear about something, ask why it is what it is and why people need/want it, then read up on it.
My home lab has been one of my greatest learning tools. Everything I've read about I have set up, installed, configured in my home lab. Then, I usually ask my brother (who also does IT) to come break something in the lab. He of course doesn't tell me what it is, and I have to go figure out what my "junior admin" did wrong and repair it.
So, I guess the TL;DR version is this:
You need three things: 1) A home lab. 2) The question Why. 3) Tons and tons of reading.
I acquired some servers a while back, then got some switches, then a router, all enterprise-grade gear, and I set up some virtual servers, vswitches, etc... Basically, I made a ridiculously complicated home lab. To do so, I followed tutorials online, but at every step of the way, I asked "why is this necessary, what does this do, why do I do it this way". That gave me a great foundational understanding.
Then, I realized that certifications aren't restricted to a certain group of people, anyone can take them, so I started studying for certifications. The idea was, these large governing bodies think these are the kinds of things that experts should know, so if I learn these things, I should be an expert. Right? Not quite, but reading up on each of the features, etc, that are covered in the certification exams really expanded my horizons. Then of course, I started asking Why would I use that and things just snowballed. Hear about something, ask why it is what it is and why people need/want it, then read up on it.
My home lab has been one of my greatest learning tools. Everything I've read about I have set up, installed, configured in my home lab. Then, I usually ask my brother (who also does IT) to come break something in the lab. He of course doesn't tell me what it is, and I have to go figure out what my "junior admin" did wrong and repair it.
So, I guess the TL;DR version is this: You need three things: 1) A home lab. 2) The question Why. 3) Tons and tons of reading.