Anyone else burnt out?

kremit

Related to the section, related to applying for work or looking? just curious.

Essendon

Count me in, feeling the heat with being very busy at work with a major migration and studying for the VCP 5.

techdudehere

It gets a little old if I see people working very hard and not receiving any credit.

At a particular place of employment, I discovered people were better off coasting. Certain employees would screen issues and only take on the things that were not likely to result in conflict. Meanwhile, I would be working at a frantic pace to keep things under control and often working with the more difficult personalities. I would only hear from the manager when things went wrong, but I never received credit for doing up to twice the amount of work as my coworkers. I ended up leaving, so I don't know how the situation played out. I probably should have went to the manager with all of the facts, but I am not sure how he would have reacted to that. After all I would be telling him that he did a poor job managing!

In my current situation, I don't feel burnt out at work at all, I just wish I had more time, energy, and funds for continued education outside of work experience. I also recognize the need for a balanced life, though. The anti-social guy with 50+ certs probably won't do as well (or enjoy life as much) as balanced guy who stops reading long enough to shower and learn how to make small talk, come across as likeable, etc. The only complaint I have with my current employer is that I wish they would pay for Masters programs. I feel a Masters would give me some additional resume fodder. It's also very difficult to survive on current IT salaries, so I've been thinking recently about how an advanced degree in business or management might fit into meeting my long term financial goals.

quinnyfly

techdudehere wrote: »

The anti-social guy with 50+ certs probably won't do as well (or enjoy life as much) as balanced guy who stops reading long enough to shower and learn how to make small talk, come across as likeable, etc.

I couldn't agree more, I have worked with several of these types both in aviation and IT. Many recommend they take a holiday or time off to recollect and this is a bandaid at best. Some of these types have no social life at all, and it seems their only escapism is via online gaming or tinkering at home. I have particularly noted that these types are more susceptible to burnout because they have the stress of social withdrawal to deal with first, let alone their work.

When demands are placed on them which may exercise the boundaries of their tolerance, they become even more withdrawn and may even interpret an extra work load as an insult. I once had a student pilot in the simulator who broke down in tears after failing an instrument review, I took him out of the sim and gave him a coffee asking him what was wrong. He proceeded to tell me that where he worked, he was constantly being loaded up with more and more work because they, (his employer and work collegues) viewed him as a loner who did not mix very well with others, and hence was happiest doing extra work.

I had to make a distinction between bullying and burnout with this one, and I could clearly see this young fella had a history of working himself to the bone in order to gain acceptance. I also noted that his place of work did not credit him for any extra work he had done, nor did they provide any positive feedback on his work ethic and attributes.

Without telling you too much about him, he worked for an IT department and from what I could tell <at the time> he knew his stuff. I asked him if he thought maybe he was on the road to a state of burnout that was seriously beginning to hinder his flying training. He agreed, and I should comment on his lack of concentration in the sim which drew me to one or more conclusions about this kind of behaviour.

I felt sorry for this lad and almost had an inkling to ring his employer and have a stern chat with his boss, I knew in reality this would only worsen the cause and it was up to him to sort it. But in terms of burnout and not to mention the ignorance of mangers and the like, I feel they need to be educated on such phenomena and offer praise and positive feedback where credit is due, and recognise what a valuable contribution their employees are making for the business.

We are not machines and unlike computers we need rest, <adequate rest that is!> but like a computer our brains need to reboot every night before we tackle the next day. It would also be nice if management offerd some and incentive and recognition for what we do in our work environment, and also offered some time out that is commensurate with our work load. Even a little appreciation goes along way, it must be remembered that managers are poeple too, and just like any of us, they have stresses and pressures to deal with!

I believe we all need to be educated on the syndrome of burnout, its symptoms, ramifications and consequences all need consideration, management and employees are better equipped to deal with burnout if they know something about it. Family must also be considered as they can suffer if the main bread winner is in a state of burnout. Education and training are just small starting points on the road to prevention and avoidance of burnout, you are absolutely correct when you imply the need a for a work/life balance.

Sorry for the rant and rave, but I know we can all relate to this one!!

dead_p00l

Where im at and the particular position i'm in I pretty much exist in a constant state of burnout. Since i'm the senior network engineer four our region im oncall 24/7. It wears you down pretty quick.

tpatt100

I am not burnt out, just not sure what I want to be when I grow up lol.

kremit

hahaha i like that.

mikedisd2

Think I've been burnt out for over a year now, maybe which is why I haven't done any study or bothered to get onto TE. My japanese learning has also dried up since there's virtually no chance now of working in Japan.

It's a vicious cycle; I now see good jobs on Seek and I go "arrgh, if only I had been studying!" Still not motivated though.

ptilsen

Getting there. I'm trying to study of 70-643 and I'm three months behind my goal. To top it off, I'm regularly working 50-60 hours in a week on top of my commute (4-12 hours round trip weekly, averaging right around , and I'm now going back to school to complete a four-year degree. I've just spent over 30 hours cramming algebra in the hopes of doing well on placement (and in turn not having to do Algebra, or at least not having to restart at the very bottom). It's tough, but I know in the end it's going to be worth it.

As far as applying for jobs, I know back when I was unemployed for over a month, I got discouraged fast. That's not a lot of time, but sending resumes and not getting interviews is rough. My advice for anyone who's gone more than a month without an interview that's looking is to get your resume and cover letter styles evaluated. If you're getting interviews but no offers, do a practice interview with someone you know who gets involved in the hiring process. No matter how good your skills, knowledge, experience, and credentials are, if your resume, cover letter, or interview are not good, you are not likely to get hired.

tpatt100

mikedisd2 wrote: »

Think I've been burnt out for over a year now, maybe which is why I haven't done any study or bothered to get onto TE. My japanese learning has also dried up since there's virtually no chance now of working in Japan.

It's a vicious cycle; I now see good jobs on Seek and I go "arrgh, if only I had been studying!" Still not motivated though.

I am the same way about putting off some studies and seeing a job I know I can do and getting ticked off. What I did last week was find a posting for a job I know I can do sort of and I know I would like and print it out. I took the print out and hung it on the wall next to my monitor at home with the goal of steerig my studies towards that job so if something along the lines becomes available I can go for it.

N2IT

Major burn out on certifications.

Currently downgraded from the PMP to the CAPM for this very fact. I've been studying for 4 months straight and now I have neck issues again. My test is the 30th and after that who knows when I'll get another certification. Maybe never.

powerfool

I am certainly burned out. Going into my current job, I had barely touched certifications in the past eight years, having just completed my CCNA about a year prior (had MCSE 2000 from long ago). I came upon this job and it was definitely a good opportunity, but it required my to update my MCSE to 2003 and then upgrade to 2008, all after doing the CISSP... and that was for a senior network engineer position... so I followed by by going down the Cisco Security track and did the CCNA Security and CCSP/CCNP Security. In between that I did the CEH, as it was another DoD 8570 cert. I am sitting and waiting for my two-year review hoping that I get the promotion that I want. If I don't get it, I think I am going to start lining things up for a job move, but since I have been using tuition reimbursement funds, I will have to wait until December 2013 if I stop taking new money, now. That will mean that I will pass my third year, which has its perks and another opportunity at a promotion. By then, we will be deep into re-competing on our contract and it will be close to my fourth year... so I may as well stay. So, if I am going to stay that long, I guess I should keep taking tuition reimbursement funds... If I take the rest of this years funds, I will have only until April 2014 to stay, so why not...

It is a never ending cycle. And that doesn't account for any certification updates/upgrades I will have to do. Windows Server 8 will be out and it will be a good idea to refresh that. I will need to complete another professional level Cisco exam to renew... Exchange Server "15" will be out... What about cloud computing stuff and "Big Data?" (Thinking more about Apache Hadoop, lately).

tpatt100

I am way behind on my Microsoft certifications. Mostly I just want the Server Administrator cert because that is basically all I really need skill/career wise. I want to hurry up and finish this term in WGU so I can start working on them but the CISA deadline for early registration is coming up in a couple of weeks and that is a cert that actually helps my career. I do find myself wanting to get back into the tech side of things though because I am more of a hands on type of a person.

Zartanasaurus

Definitely burnt out on certifications. I had plans of getting CCNP: Voice this year, but I just don't feel motivated to do it. Plus I'm not sure I want to go down that path anyway. Of course, when I do a job search for CCNP or CCIE in Atlanta it seems like 70% of them are voice/UC jobs.

It's been almost a year since my last cert, which isn't a long time I suppose, but I really get into it. I definitely want to do MCITP: VA this year though. I think one of my problems is my eyes are bigger than my stomach. I see eleventy certs I want to get then get overwhelmed thinking about them. Just gotta take it a little at a time.

Roguetadhg

I agree. There's a lot of information I want to know. There's so much I want to know. But when it comes down to doing it I just don't have the time to do everything I want.

Take a little bit of a break. I know I had to complete my Mass Effect 3 game. Been a fan of the first and second.. mm. good story. I bought it, been staring at me, bothering me - making me not study because i'd be tossed between studying and gaming. I finally broke down and went into the game, and now im content. I still don't know what the big deal about the ending was - I liked the tear jerking "We're all going to die". It was... beautiful. I wish more games had stories like this.

I said I'd study for the Linux+ after the CCNA. Well, not it's after CCNA, and I find myself deeply enjoying the CCNP Route (When I can gather the balls to read Odom's chapters. I now know forever that Type 3 LSA is a summary, not a full topology! Thank you repetition.)

I want to get:
Security+, Linux+, Project+, C|EH, 9L0-407 (Mac Integration), 9L0-410 (Mac Support), Windows 7

Do I see these happening? Nope!

Claymoore

Not burnt out on certs, but there aren't any MS certs out there that have value to me right now. Last exam I passed was the 693 to complete my MCITP:VA almost a year ago. I did take the 321 and 323 Office 365 beta exams in January, but the results haven't been posted yet, and if I fail either of them I am not sure I will retake them. I don't really have anything on the horizon until the Windows 8 / Server 8 beta exams are announced.

I am burnt out at work. All the travel over the last 12 months - especially the last 3 as I have only worked from home for 2 weeks this year - has really taken a toll. I am scheduled to be home for a project in April and then I have a vacation planned the first week of May, so that may help recharge me for a while.

Some positive has come out of the time on the road. I have started going to the gym regularly and I have started writing again. Both beat staring at the hotel room walls or drinking all night for long term health and sanity.

demonfurbie

ohh soo much

i plan on taking a break after wgu

jmritenour

Very much so, right now. Work is killing me lately, and I've been working on some cert at nearly every time the past 2 years now. Once I'm done the MCITP:EA & WGU this summer, that's it for me for the foreseeable future. Unless an employer is paying for it (both the test & training) I'm not going after anymore certs. I might entertain the thought of going after an advanced VMware cert next year, but as of now, I doubt it.

chopsticks

I got burned out by work lately too. So I decided to jog every night except on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday

the_Grinch

tpatt100 wrote: »

I am not burnt out, just not sure what I want to be when I grow up lol.

Amen to that! I am getting tired of the same issues always cropping up, but more tired of not knowing what direction I want to go in. A higher salary would be nice, but what can you do?

Hypntick

Maybe not yet, but it's rapidly approaching. 5.5 months of WGU left, increase in work load due to promotion, wanting to try and get back into some semblance of shape. I know when I finish WGU i'm taking a good 3-6 months of time off to regularly go fishing/boating/camping and decompress.

N2IT

Hyp

That sounds pretty nice!

swild

I'm feeling it at my job. I'm mentally past the JOAT stage of my IT career. I will be changing jobs after graduation from WGU. Just not sure if I would rather go for a hands-on tech job or a policy admin position. Either way, I'm headed towards IT Security, at least I've decided that much. I've moved so fast through WGU. I will have 43 CUs complete by the end of this month, meaning that I have completed 3 traditional semesters of college in only 3 months. I have missed studying and didn't even realize how much. I like it so much that I would really like to continue my education full-time at a B&M university in a serious research position. I never thought I would get to this point, but I have got to get out of tech support or at least move to a level 2 position. I'm so sick of these users. My supervisor is at a corporate training event for the week, so I am really just coasting while she is gone.

techdudehere wrote: »

... After all I would be telling him that he did a poor job managing! ...

I have only walked off of one job and that's because of the poor choice of management. They chose a business person to manage the tech team when there was a more than qualified person filling the interim role. An MBA doesn't mean you can manage people, even though it should.

jamesleecoleman

mikedisd2 wrote: »

Think I've been burnt out for over a year now, maybe which is why I haven't done any study or bothered to get onto TE. My japanese learning has also dried up since there's virtually no chance now of working in Japan.

It's a vicious cycle; I now see good jobs on Seek and I go "arrgh, if only I had been studying!" Still not motivated though.

I'm not trying to get into your business but I think you should keep going with the Japanese. You might come across another position or something.

petedude

techdudehere wrote: »

The anti-social guy with 50+ certs probably won't do as well (or enjoy life as much) as balanced guy who stops reading long enough to shower and learn how to make small talk, come across as likeable, etc.

Thanks for bringing up my last four years LOL.

Actually, I did shower. :O I got more burned out on people than I did on certs-- moved to another county for a new job where the demographics and cultural bent are a little different, and got soured on the "anything goes" or "winner take all" attitude many people in the area seem to have.

But, my earning a bachelor's degree and looking into a master's has informed my approach to certs a bit. I'm less likely to go all out, killing myself to earn a pile of papers every year. I'll be more selective-- finding things that will have more impact on the CV and/or be more fulfilling.

BoneSpur

To say I'm burned out is an understatement. Within the last two years I have: finished BS degree, got married, moved 2 hrs away from current job, had a little one and now workload has doubled. I need a system re-boot. I am certified burnout.

paul78

I admit that hanging out on TE inspires me. Its great to see people who are dedicated to their craft. And who continue to learn and forward their career.

For me, I am just plain old tired all the time. My fantasy is to be able to spend a week away and just sleep.

quinnyfly

chopsticks wrote: »

I got burned out by work lately too. So I decided to jog every night except on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday

That made me laugh, so it's every other day that ends in "Y".....funny stuff, I might have to try it because this bike riding and WII thingy makes me feel old the next day!!

newmove

I'm more than burnt out after failing PRINCE2 Practitioner exam for the 2nd time. The exams cost me £800 of my savings and I'm out of work since January. The only consolation was passing the CISA. Oh well, it can only get better!

tpatt100

The other evening after dinner I just enjoyed going for a walk with my son and wife. I think I am coming out of my "winter depression" phase.

Zentraedi

I'm burnt out after spending all my free time and lots of money on certifications only to be told that getting any actual hands-on experience with that stuff is off the table.