Is it okay to be content with working 9 to 5 and making 50k a year at the Help Desk?

BTX8383

Just curious I mean I been doing this for quite a while now.
But how will it affect my career in the long run if I stay comfy like this for quite some time now? Been at the same company for 8 years now.
Like I always wonder what happens if I ever get laid off ( not likely) but still possible.
Or if I will ever get paid the same somewhere else or even get another IT job?
Pros and cons of staying at the same company or same job?
Anyone know

--chris--

removed unnecessary quote from reply

I have been laid off (not in IT, former career) and unemployed for 5 months. I never want to have that happen again. That is my primary motivator to get better, do better and be better.

To answer your question; there is nothing wrong with being content in one position. If you are happy there, stay...just keep your skill set expanding, work on certs, a degree, read books (on leadership, project management, etc...).

scaredoftests

What does your gut say? Personally, if the position lets you learn etc, instead of stagnant, or lets you move up..stay.

JoJoCal19

--chris-- mirrors exactly what I feel on the situation. It's fine to be content with where you are, but NEVER let your skills and knowledge get stale. Even if you don't have an interest in other positions, keep gaining new knowledge and learning new skills. Keep up with the current state of technology. I'm super comfy where I'm at in a cushy job making six figures, but I'm still reading, still learning, keeping my skills sharp because no matter where someone is, there is always a chance to be laid off.

Danielm7

Everyone else is dead on. What you want for yourself is fine, but you should always consider the future. When you've worked yourself into a position you don't think you could get anywhere else, then there is something to be concerned about.

I have a similar coworker, he's been in the same company for 28 years, and no, they don't have a pension plan. There are a few people in his dept, new hires straight out of college or Best Buy make as much or more than he does. He tells everyone frequently that he just wants to keep quiet so he doesn't get noticed. He started at the company at 18, so he's not in any way old. I've overheard other people say they fear for what would happen if he was laid off. Never really picked up new skills, does a few proprietary, but very simple, tasks daily.

thomas_

I don't know what you do on a day to day basis, but anytime someone can get rid of you and for the price of your salary hire two(or more) people to do your job with minimal impact to the business then that is cause for concern. Why pay one person when they can get two people for the same price?

There's nothing inherently wrong with wanting to stay in the same position. You just have to know if the jon you are doing can be easily replaced with cheqper labor. If so, you might want to consider developing skillsets and getting jobs that aren't so readily replaceable.

Kreken

Eight years is a very long time. I would move.

1. You are still making 50K after all this time. I was in a similar position, 7 years in one company, but I doubled my salary in that time from 60K to 120K. The reason I stayed that long was because I was finishing my Masters, had first and then second kid born and needed flexibility.

2. I don't think you are really progressing. You need to step out of your comfort zone and take on the projects new to you.
2a. Have you taken any certification exams?

3. You will be asked on the interviews about your eight years in there and why did you finally decide to leave. You better have a real good answer.

kohr-ah

There is nothing wrong being at one company if you are happy and if you were let go you could always look for a higher tier help desk role if you enjoyed doing help desk. I dont know if you'd keep the same pay level but I know people who have worked at the same company and worked up from HD Level 1 up to Level 3 and they enjoy it still.

But you have to make sure that you are always growing if something would happen so you could find another job easy. The main benefit of when you hop jobs if you get more of a challenge. You get a new environment so you learn the way other people do something and a lot of times people hop for better pay, or better benefits, etc.

NOC-Ninja

its all up to you. Let me tell you that the economy is not stable. I would NEVER put myself in a situation that I lean on the company.
I got laid off before and that was a wake up call. Now, I make sure that I have degree, and certs. This puts me in a situation that I can be laid off today and then find a job tomorrow. Here's the catch: Its a lot of hard work.

networker050184

If you're content with that role then there is nothing wrong with it. Not everyone's ambition in life is to make it to the top of the tech ladder. Staying at the lower level for a long time, especially in a single position, will certainly hurt your chances in the job market. So just keep that in mind in your decisions.

ThomasITguy

just to add to what others have said..... The day you stop growing, is the day you can be replaced.

You should NEVER feel so comfy at a job that you lean on the company. Anyone can be replaced. And the fact that you have not added to your salary is a major red flag.

Questions......
Have you gotten any new certs?
What is the newest thing you have learned?
How can you apply what you learned to your job now?
What are your long and short term goals?
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?

The Help desk is like a revolving door.... new people come, learn, then go onto something different. Its ok that you like the Help desk... but if you can, try to move up within the help desk. Like to tier 2 or 3.

I have been unemployed as well and that was my wake up call... I learned to never rely on any company but always be learning, growing and grinding...

cyberguypr

There's nothing inherently wrong with staying at any role/company for many years. The problem is that you lose resiliency. Let me paint a scenario that happened to my buddy recently. He was doing support for a specific application. He was at the company for almost 20 years with at least 10 of those working on this one app. He never bothered to expand his skill set outside that one specific platform. Given his seniority he was at a very high pay scale compared to everyone else. Then the time to cut personnel came. He was one of the very first ones to be dismissed. Now he is without a job, without a fresh skill set, being an expert in a niche app that no one uses. He could get a job doing low level support but it would be without a doubt for 1/4 of his last salary.

The scenario I described is just an example of the price to pay for staying put and not evolving. As networker050184 said, if you understand this, realize the implications, and are willing to accept it, then there is zero problem.

Plantwiz

No one needs permission to be happy. Do what you love.

However, since the OP is not involved in the discussion, my guess it is merely someone looking for blog fodder.

TechGromit

BTX8383 wrote: »

Or if I will ever get paid the same somewhere else or even get another IT job?

This is the main question you should ask yourself. In the days of outsourcing, off shoring and cloud computing, can you find another job and maintain you standard of living should yours disappear tomorrow.

Once upon a time I worked at a Casino in Atlantic City, over 15 years I was a computer operator, hardware tech, and the networking guy. I had a very secure position, they looked to me when something had to get fixed when no one else could, a big fish in a little pond you could say, the pay could have been better, but for the most part I was content, hey I had 5 weeks vacation a year. If the company hadn't been brought out by another and forced me to go from a salary position to shift work I conceivably would still been there. That was my motivator (and my Wife nagging me to get something better) to look for something better. And i did, over the last 9 years I almost doubled my salary and work in demand field of cyber security. And the company I used to work? They went bankrupt and closed in 2014, (after a long series of pay cuts and layoffs) another victim of too many of something and not enough customers.

So being content is a very dangerous position to be in my opinion.

cyberguypr wrote: »

He was at the company for almost 20 years with at least 10 of those working on this one app. He never bothered to expand his skill set outside that one specific platform. Given his seniority he was at a very high pay scale compared to everyone else.

Same thing happened to a contractor co-worker at the FAA. He was an expert with the Tandem system, but my department engaged a multiyear project to transfer the applications off the Tandem to server based computers. Over the course of the project he never really applied himself learning the new hardware, a few months after the transfer was completed, he and his 100k a year job was gone.

powerfool

Everyone's thoughts on this are going to be shaded by their own perspective... mine included, so take it with a grain of salt:

Move. Now.

Seriously. You need to challenge yourself. Whether it is a new skill set or interviewing. Don't be stagnate. You don't want to be cruising along and hit a career landmine. I would say... even if you stay with your job, or move to the next one... always be interviewing. It helps to keep your interviewing skills sharp and it helps you remain comfortable in those situations... and it is infinitely easier to be comfortable in an interview when you don't need a job.

Also, more commentary that is biased: if you are working for money, and I presume that you are... can you afford a stagnant salary? I say until you can afford to retire, the answer is always no. Plus, everything else is based on your salary, at some point... retirement savings match, company sponsored life insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability... And then there is inflation... if you aren't at least keeping pace with that, you are losing money.

kohr-ah

For those wondering why little to no response, I saw the same post is on Reddit in /r/itcareerquestions last night.

He/she responds there.

kiki162

After working between help and retail jobs (this was 10+ years ago), I decided to make a drastic move and attend a 2 week boot camp. Doing just that got me from making less than $10/hr to over $50K within a few months. I decided that I couldn't slack off anymore, and HAD to keep my skills current. I've made a personal goal to do at least 2 certs per year. I'm about to exceed that this year by starting my Masters, and will probably have 2 additional certs plus one I had to do an upgrade exam on. Regardless, if you have a good employer they will foster that type of growth and support you in it.

To answer your question. YES...this is hurting you by staying so long. You need to be doing the back work in order to get yourself ahead, and that may mean stepping outside of your comfort zone to get there.

However, if you like that kind of work. Go get yourself a gov't job.

TechGromit

kohr-ah wrote: »

For those wondering why little to no response, I saw the same post is on Reddit in /r/itcareerquestions last night.

He/she responds there.

He's casting a pretty wide net, I seen the same message posted on City Data Forums, employment forum and he's responding to advice there too.

johnnyqt25

I am in the same position as you OP. I remember an ex co-worker in his late 50's still crawling under desks daily in a desktop role. Pay is getting lower and lower for this role too and he's got kids to feed. He's always complaining and looks miserable. Don't be this guy OP. Get more certs and keep moving up. That's what I'm doing.