I am done with Government work…

Well I have finally hit a wall in my life and have done some very deep self-reflection on what it is I truly want out of a career and life.

To give you some background, I work for the gov and have been for about 10 years. I love IT and technology, but the government bureaucracy and lifestyle drains my inner soul. I am a very extrovert person who loves challenges and changing atmospheres. The government is a place where people go to die in my opinion. Not a flesh death, but a death of the soul. There is something terribly wrong about knowing how much you are going to make and when you are going to retire for the rest of your life that just does not sit well with me. So I have to start a change.

After a lot of thought I have decided to align my current goals with where I would like to be in the future. I would like to work on my own terms and I don’t mind having an office; but I want it to be my decision on where and what I work on. I don’t mind putting in 40-60 hours a week on projects, but they have to have meaning to me.

This is where I need your help…

My plan:

I have been a systems admin for the most of my career with roles in security here and there. The gov agency I work for is in the middle of transitioning into AWS architecture so I started to learn the platform. While learning AWS I realized the enormous opportunity for small and medium businesses to utilize the platform and I see an opportunity for me to break out of the government and start my own journey through this endeavor.

I have another friend who decided he has had enough of the government as well and is willing to start a business with me becoming an AWS partner. We have a website and LLC and actually have been providing MSP services to 2 very very small businesses, but we can both see the potential of AWS for these SMB's and want to try and fill that gap with amazon.

My goal is AWS: Associate Architect>AWS: Dev Associate> AWS: Architect Pro> AWS: Dev Ops pro.

At that point I feel that I would be comfortable enough to consult with companies on transition all or portions of their units into AWS. We will also be hitting backups and disaster recovery options for business. I don’t care about money as long as it’s enough for me to pay bills and heave my freedom. I have a military retirement and the 10 years and however more in the federal government as well.

I am looking for advice, opinions and anything that can help me understand or provide any more insight to my plan.

Thanks a ton and sorry for the ramble!

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Comments

Verities

I completely understand your disenchantment with the public sector. There are many "lost souls" where I work as well and they let everyone know it. Unfortunately for me I have such limited experience in my field that I can't get a job anywhere else, its always a senior position that I'm contact for, so I'm stuck in the public sector for a few more years.

AWS is freaking sweet and in my opinion one of the best routes you can go with your background. I'm a huge fan of centralized configuration management and deployment automation. What I do see fitting into your plan is some sort of programming language. Dev Ops requires some finesse which ends up being Python, Ruby, or Pearl. The most popular choice being Python.

Overall it sounds like you know where you're going and how to get there. I wish you luck, please keep us updated.

Chevel

Want to trade jobs?

I would love to work for the government. Plus as an introvert I perfectly content with routine.

Best of luck whatever you decide to do.

DDStime

Verities wrote: »

I completely understand your disenchantment with the public sector. There are many "lost souls" where I work as well and they let everyone know it. Unfortunately for me I have such limited experience in my field that I can't get a job anywhere else, its always a senior position that I'm contact for, so I'm stuck in the public sector for a few more years.

AWS is freaking sweet and in my opinion one of the best routes you can go with your background. I'm a huge fan of centralized configuration management and deployment automation. What I do see fitting into your plan is some sort of programming language. Dev Ops requires some finesse which ends up being Python, Ruby, or Pearl. The most popular choice being Python.

Overall it sounds like you know where you're going and how to get there. I wish you luck, please keep us updated.

I have some general knowledge in python as it was helpful using Kali and Back Track. I will definitely have to brush up on my skills though fort he dev portion of the certs. Thanks for the advice!

DDStime

Chevel wrote: »

Want to trade jobs? I would love to work for the government. Plus as an introvert I perfectly content with routine.

Best of luck whatever you decide to do.

Just imagine:

-Get up and go to work at 07:30
-Get in your cubicle and wait for something to break for hours
-Maybe get some work but most likely not so try and find ways of passing time
-Go to lunch at the same time
-Go to pointless meeting after meeting just to make the day go by faster
-Come back from meetings and go back in cubicle
-Find ways to make huge differences in the systems but get them all shot down because no one likes change
-Think of technologies that we could use to save millions of dollars and are way more secure, but... (see above)
-Leave work at the same time and go home
-Now repeat for 30+ years for a decent retirement

Chev Chellios

DDStime wrote: »

Just imagine:

-Get up and go to work at 07:30
-Get in your cubicle and wait for something to break for hours
-Maybe get some work but most likely not so try and find ways of passing time
-Go to lunch at the same time
-Go to pointless meeting after meeting just to make the day go by faster
-Come back from meetings and go back in cubicle
-Find ways to make huge differences in the systems but get them all shot down because no one likes change
-Think of technologies that we could use to save millions of dollars and are way more secure, but... (see above)
-Leave work at the same time and go home
-Now repeat for 30+ years for a decent retirement

That made me laugh more than it should

I had the opportunity of working for the government in the UK for a few years and I wanted to die for the reasons listed above. Good to get in early in career then jump ship- unless you are happy to do the same thing with the same colleagues for 30 years.

scaredoftests

Are you a contractor or a true government worker? As a contractor, it isn't that bad, it all depends on where... I worked at one agency, that was truly awful.

DDStime

scaredoftests wrote: »

Are you a contractor or a true government worker? As a contractor, it isn't that bad, it all depends on where... I worked at one agency, that was truly awful.

True federal employee here.

I can tell you that any and every contractor I work with feels underutilized and truly are.

Blackout

I assume your single, or you have no kids. I honestly would kill to have the Job Security and the Benefits lol. But thats just me.

Chevel

DDStime wrote: »

Just imagine:

-Get up and go to work at 07:30
-Get in your cubicle and wait for something to break for hours
-Maybe get some work but most likely not so try and find ways of passing time
-Go to lunch at the same time
-Go to pointless meeting after meeting just to make the day go by faster
-Come back from meetings and go back in cubicle
-Find ways to make huge differences in the systems but get them all shot down because no one likes change
-Think of technologies that we could use to save millions of dollars and are way more secure, but... (see above)
-Leave work at the same time and go home
-Now repeat for 30+ years for a decent retirement

Actually yes I'm fine with that as I pretty much do the same thing now. Remember my post had the words routine and introvert.

Chevel

DDStime wrote: »

True federal employee here.

I can tell you that any and every contractor I work with feels underutilized and truly are.

....Yeah. I wouldn't mind working at your position.

DDStime

Chevel wrote: »

Actually yes I'm fine with that as I pretty much do the same thing now. Remember my post had the words routine and introvert.

Lol, that's awesome! The gov is def the place for you then. Its a job and pays the bills, but I find my self wanting more.

Chevel

DDStime wrote: »

Lol, that's awesome! The gov is def the place for you then. Its a job and pays the bills, but I find my self wanting more.

That's understandable everyone has their own agenda.

I'm just a "plane jane" kind of person eve personal life is the same what some consider "boring", if change happens I just go with the flow but I'd be much more content in routine work.

si20

My 2 cents: i've worked for both private and public sector. Honestly, there isn't as much difference as people claim. Don't expect private companies to be any better. I'm about to move back to a Gov job (law enforcement) because private has been a bad experience for me in terms of job/job descriptions not being accurate.

scaredoftests

I have worked in both as well. Would rather be in the public..(even with that damn data breach and the chinese have my fingerprints!) LOL

the_Grinch

I work for the government and while I have a similar experience I do find it is very much what you make it. My agency is definitely a little different, but I am able to work on a handful of things. Currently, due to one of our units being short handed, I am handling a portion of the work they would typically take care of. Also, I've been able to help form process for other units with an emphasis on technology.

I also consider it a major advantage to know exactly what you will be paid. Every company of worked for on the outside never gave more then 2 or 3 percent. When you're making 40k a year that doesn't add up to a lot and if you were to stay there you know you won't be making much in 30 years. Where as with the government I know in 13 years exactly what I will be making. Could definitely be more on the outside, but I find that you don't get nearly the amount of responsibility you do in government. On a single day I could be briefing our Director or a Captain in the State Police then to be briefing a President of a major corporation. Don't find that too often in the private sector.

DDStime

the_Grinch wrote: »

I work for the government and while I have a similar experience I do find it is very much what you make it. My agency is definitely a little different, but I am able to work on a handful of things. Currently, due to one of our units being short handed, I am handling a portion of the work they would typically take care of. Also, I've been able to help form process for other units with an emphasis on technology.

I also consider it a major advantage to know exactly what you will be paid. Every company of worked for on the outside never gave more then 2 or 3 percent. When you're making 40k a year that doesn't add up to a lot and if you were to stay there you know you won't be making much in 30 years. Where as with the government I know in 13 years exactly what I will be making. Could definitely be more on the outside, but I find that you don't get nearly the amount of responsibility you do in government. On a single day I could be briefing our Director or a Captain in the State Police then to be briefing a President of a major corporation. Don't find that too often in the private sector.

Maybe it is because I come from a sales background before IT. In sales I always had an optimistic outlook because I could make huge bonuses if I kicked butt. In the gov its the opposite, we all get paid no matter what.

I am not thinking about going private, I am thinking about starting my own.

Robertf969

I totally understand where you are coming from. I was an IA Manager in the military and had to get away from the public sector. I was offered a bunch of contractor positions and encouraged to apply for GOV positions but I saw enough of how the GOV worked in my 8 years in the Army to know I would never go back to it. Good luck on your career change.

networker050184

Some people just want a job with a pay check. Other people want an exciting career in technology (queue the IIT Tech ad). I feel you OP, I'd never rot away in a job like that for a secure pay check.

Good luck!

tedjames

I've been working in state government for over 10 years and I've never felt that I was just there taking up space, collecting a paycheck, and waiting for retirement (though I've worked with some who did). I've also worked in the corporate world. What I like about working in the state is knowing that the work I'm doing is benefitting the citizens versus making the corporation richer. Also, in my current job, I've received nothing but encouragement from my boss to learn and grow in my career. Basically, when he hired me, he said that the sky's the limit. So far, that's been true. YMMV

DDStime

tedjames wrote: »

I've been working in state government for over 10 years and I've never felt that I was just there taking up space, collecting a paycheck, and waiting for retirement (though I've worked with some who did). I've also worked in the corporate world. What I like about working in the state is knowing that the work I'm doing is benefitting the citizens versus making the corporation richer. Also, in my current job, I've received nothing but encouragement from my boss to learn and grow in my career. Basically, when he hired me, he said that the sky's the limit. So far, that's been true. YMMV

I understand it really depends on where you work. I also understand that people enjoy the repetition and complacency of gov work. I just cannot wrap my head around having set schedules, set lunch hours, set working days/hours, etc...

I have tried and tried to accept it for what it is, but my personality needs variance. I am not saying that gov work sucks, it just does for my type of personality. I need to be involved in planning, projects and execution but without the constant hurdles of management.

I feel that the only way I can get the control and freedom that I am seeking is to attempt to start my own business. Who knows, it might fail and chances are that it will. But I cannot accept being content with confinement to a work space and rationed time for myself during the day, especially when I know I can do this job way better given the right freedom to do so....Life is to short.

tedjames

No feeling of complacency for me, and our hours are extremely flexible including the opportunity to work from home a percentage of our time. We even have a relaxed dress code (i.e., no dress code). I've worked at three state agencies, and the feeling has been the same. To be fair, some of the agencies here are a little more uptight. It may be different for city, county, university, or federal. You also have to get used to getting paid once a month. I like that part.

Really, it just depends on the situation. Good luck with self employment. A colleague at a university recently resigned to work his security business full time. These first few months have been tough, but he's trying to make a go of it.

the_Grinch

DDStime wrote: »

Maybe it is because I come from a sales background before IT. In sales I always had an optimistic outlook because I could make huge bonuses if I kicked butt. In the gov its the opposite, we all get paid no matter what.

I am not thinking about going private, I am thinking about starting my own.

Going out on your own would be private albeit without the secure paycheck (in the beginning). Don't take this as me downing on your plan, as you point out you had the chance for higher pay based on the work you put in (never can begrudge working hard and being compensated for it). Also, you are very much correct you get paid no matter what in the government.

Again I luck out in that I am in a unit that is built on hard workers. Definitely people in my agency who are collecting the check, but I would say all around that is probably about 30% which is what I experience in the private sector.

DDStime

tedjames wrote: »

No feeling of complacency for me, and our hours are extremely flexible including the opportunity to work from home a percentage of our time. We even have a relaxed dress code (i.e., no dress code). I've worked at three state agencies, and the feeling has been the same. To be fair, some of the agencies here are a little more uptight. It may be different for city, county, university, or federal. You also have to get used to getting paid once a month. I like that part.

Really, it just depends on the situation. Good luck with self employment. A colleague at a university recently resigned to work his security business full time. These first few months have been tough, but he's trying to make a go of it.

Awww, that might be the difference, I am fed not state.

DDStime

the_Grinch wrote: »

Going out on your own would be private albeit without the secure paycheck (in the beginning). Don't take this as me downing on your plan, as you point out you had the chance for higher pay based on the work you put in (never can begrudge working hard and being compensated for it). Also, you are very much correct you get paid no matter what in the government.

Again I luck out in that I am in a unit that is built on hard workers. Definitely people in my agency who are collecting the check, but I would say all around that is probably about 30% which is what I experience in the private sector.

I can literally work the AWS platform right now from where I am, that's the awesome part about it. I am not quitting, just formulating a plan and starting the first steps. AWS platform is all remote, so it enables me to do it from anywhere

Honestly I don't know if its the people or the concept of control that bothers me about my job? Maybe both lol

tpatt100

When I worked for the City advancement came when somebody died or retired. Nobody ever left for another job people were shocked when I put my notice in.

gespenstern

I personally approve. Go for a challenge and screw the gov. Bureaucracy eventually kills anyone's soul.

thomas_

For the certs I would recommend you get a subscription at LinuxAcademy. They have training covering those certs.

As far as your business goes make sure you have the proper business license and you keep on top of all the things that go along with having a business such as filing taxes

kiki162

I've worked on the contract and government side, and I can tell you that it all depends on what agency you work for, your position, and what you are allowed to do...or not do. There are a LOT of people in gov't riding the rails out till retirement. It's like a cross between groundhog day and Office space sometimes. However, on the flip side it can give you a lot of time and opportunity to study, earn additional certs or degrees, and so on.

I recently made the jump to the public sector, and I'm glad I did. Outside of AWS, and self-employment, what would be your ideal job? If you are looking at a system/security or sales engineer spot, send me a PM, as I have a few remote opportunities I can pass along.

jdancer

Good luck on your endeavor. As a previous freelancer, I suggest two things:

- Know how to handle cash flow (payroll, taxes, etc)
- Study managerial accounting (amazing what you learn)

philz1982

If you're going to be doing this on AWS I would go learn about AWS CloudFormation. That way you can build out a few templates and then you can sell them on your website.