Goal setting and advice for career path
zmoney14
Member Posts: 9 ■□□□□□□□□□
It's long, but I would appreciate any feedback or slaps across the face telling me to suck it up 
As the title says, I've been in quite a funk. I lurk the boards quite frequently, and very rarely participate. Basically, I'm at a point in which I don't know what I want to do with myself anymore. I see everyone so eager to get their degrees, complete certifications, and obtain gainful employment.
I guess I have been pretty fortunate. I was able to snag a job in the IT world right out of high school (IT operator for a hospital). I spent 6 years at that hospital ending as a Technical Specialist (System Administrator). During those 6 years, I obtained my AAS, A+, Network+, MCP+,Project+, Security+, and even began attending WGU during what would become my last 6 months of employment (I also took up a 6 month teaching gig for a local career and tech center). I made the tough decision to leave as the work began to become routine and mundane (Also, I was excluded from the newly formed IT Security team after receiving my Security+ certification...). It was a very tough decision to leave as I had practically grown up in the position establishing many of the processes and procedures that are still followed today. Ultimately, though, I left because of the lack of challenging work and what I felt was a low salary for the responsibilities required for the job. (Side note: It has been two years, and they still have not been able to get someone to fill the position due to lack of skills and low salary - unfortuante.)
I left for a job that had promise and potential. I would be a Regional IT Specialist managing and supporting multiple healthcare facilities. The salary offer was pretty substantial compared to my position at the hospital, so I took the position. The position did not turn out as portrayed in the original interviews. I became more of a middle man/coordinator/glorified bench tech. I wasn't doing much of anything except for relaying information or pointing people in the right direction or unboxing devices that were still setup by an outsourced IT company. I traveled to the sites, but I was basically just a face for the corporate headquarters - a body to the sites to show that corporate is addressing their needs. I soon begun to loathe this place. The corporate structure and the management made what little work there was tedious and brutal.
I left this position after 11 months to take an opportunity with a financial services firm as a Systems Admin. I wanted to get back into that type of roll, and this company had a need for someone with vmware and sharepoint skills so it felt like a good fit.
Well, it has been 9 months since starting and the same feelings of boredom are creeping up again. Since starting our IT manager quit after the new CIO was onboard for a few weeks (this was for the good. the manager was outdated and stuck in their ways). Days go by where there is nothing to do. We spend other days talking about what we can do in the future, but we never get going - always something getting in the way.
I just feel burned out to the point I don't want to be in the IT field anymore. I know people have suggested just studying for certs during all of the downtime, which is fine, but the experience doing the work would be far more beneficial to me by keeping me engaged.
I don't know what I'm really looking for with this post, maybe more-so to vent or see if anyone else has had similar experiences.
As the title says, I've been in quite a funk. I lurk the boards quite frequently, and very rarely participate. Basically, I'm at a point in which I don't know what I want to do with myself anymore. I see everyone so eager to get their degrees, complete certifications, and obtain gainful employment.
I guess I have been pretty fortunate. I was able to snag a job in the IT world right out of high school (IT operator for a hospital). I spent 6 years at that hospital ending as a Technical Specialist (System Administrator). During those 6 years, I obtained my AAS, A+, Network+, MCP+,Project+, Security+, and even began attending WGU during what would become my last 6 months of employment (I also took up a 6 month teaching gig for a local career and tech center). I made the tough decision to leave as the work began to become routine and mundane (Also, I was excluded from the newly formed IT Security team after receiving my Security+ certification...). It was a very tough decision to leave as I had practically grown up in the position establishing many of the processes and procedures that are still followed today. Ultimately, though, I left because of the lack of challenging work and what I felt was a low salary for the responsibilities required for the job. (Side note: It has been two years, and they still have not been able to get someone to fill the position due to lack of skills and low salary - unfortuante.)
I left for a job that had promise and potential. I would be a Regional IT Specialist managing and supporting multiple healthcare facilities. The salary offer was pretty substantial compared to my position at the hospital, so I took the position. The position did not turn out as portrayed in the original interviews. I became more of a middle man/coordinator/glorified bench tech. I wasn't doing much of anything except for relaying information or pointing people in the right direction or unboxing devices that were still setup by an outsourced IT company. I traveled to the sites, but I was basically just a face for the corporate headquarters - a body to the sites to show that corporate is addressing their needs. I soon begun to loathe this place. The corporate structure and the management made what little work there was tedious and brutal.
I left this position after 11 months to take an opportunity with a financial services firm as a Systems Admin. I wanted to get back into that type of roll, and this company had a need for someone with vmware and sharepoint skills so it felt like a good fit.
Well, it has been 9 months since starting and the same feelings of boredom are creeping up again. Since starting our IT manager quit after the new CIO was onboard for a few weeks (this was for the good. the manager was outdated and stuck in their ways). Days go by where there is nothing to do. We spend other days talking about what we can do in the future, but we never get going - always something getting in the way.
I just feel burned out to the point I don't want to be in the IT field anymore. I know people have suggested just studying for certs during all of the downtime, which is fine, but the experience doing the work would be far more beneficial to me by keeping me engaged.
I don't know what I'm really looking for with this post, maybe more-so to vent or see if anyone else has had similar experiences.
Comments
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Devilry
Member Posts: 668
What do you 'enjoy' doing?
Do you need constant problem solving? Maybe a specialized role with a busy MSP, internal can get boring once you get it stable.
Implementing new ideas? Maybe management or project management would be a good fit
Academia? Since you did this in the past, you'd always have plenty of busy work and be able to learn new technology to teach.
Maybe you'd be interested in government contract work overseas? High pay and i'm sure plenty of adrenaline -
Bloogen
Member Posts: 180 ■■■□□□□□□□
I have felt similar to you within my current job at times. My job has many positive perks and when I think about it there is not many things I can really complain about. You may want to evaluate if you are missing something from other areas in your life and hoping your career would make up for it. I do not mean to make any assumptions or suggest you settle for a non ideal job just expressing an idea based on my own experience. I feel I and likely others feel about their job how they feel in their life.
Also you may like me value control and direction in your career and might be interested in starting your own business, freelancing or moonlighting. -
BigMevy
Member Posts: 68 ■■■□□□□□□□
Has a new manager been hired to replace the one that resigned yet? It sounds like you're lacking direction from management. If there is a new manager, they're likely looking at the roadmap for the next year, and being new might appreciate some input. Maybe you can get involved in planning new rollouts/upgrades for next year.
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techdudehere
Member Posts: 164
Go to work anywhere else and you can expect to be worked like a piece of equipment and you'll be lucky if you can take a bathroom break lol
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Devilry
Member Posts: 668
techdudehere wrote: »Go to work anywhere else and you can expect to be worked like a piece of equipment and you'll be lucky if you can take a bathroom break lol
I don't think this is true in many, many places. Out of the many jobs I have had, only one was like that.
Didn't mean to hijack, I just don't want people to think this is a bad sector. -
RouteThisWay
Member Posts: 514
Has a new manager been hired to replace the one that resigned yet? It sounds like you're lacking direction from management. If there is a new manager, they're likely looking at the roadmap for the next year, and being new might appreciate some input. Maybe you can get involved in planning new rollouts/upgrades for next year.
This.
Talk to your new manager. And if there isn't a new manager, talk to whomever you report to now/for the time being. Explain you want to get some of the things you guys talked about rolling. If you have nothing to do, take the best idea you like on the list of things you guys want to do. Come up with a plan/strategy for it. Identify the business need it fills and bring it to whomever you report to. Push for it.
I found in my experience sitting around and talking about it doesn't make it a tangible project. Putting it on paper, writing up a strategy/action items makes it tangible. It gives it a physical presence. You say things come up- what comes up? Is it budget? Other projects (although you say you have nothing to do)?
Good luck in your search for happiness."Vision is not enough; it must be combined with venture." ~ Vaclav Havel
