How did you find your passion?

XiaoTech

I know TechExams is full of passionate users. I'm just wondering what made you passionate for what you are doing now, and what makes you passionate now? I'm trying to get an idea where a lot of you are coming from. I know I've lurked in a lot of threads and read about people getting passionate about networking, programming, sql, administration, etc.

I feel like there is not much I'm passionate about in my life. If you were to give me a million dollars and I didn't have to worry about money, I'd either go back to Japan and improve my Japanese and try to start my life there. Or I would stay here in the states and try to get into acting. There's a lot of auditions where I live if I had more time and less debt to pursue it.

I feel I'm in IT now (front line help desk) is because I knew someone and I tend to learn things quick, but I never really have been passionate about IT. I've always been the one in the circle of family and friends to be relied on help for computers, but I normally dreaded helping them fix stuff. The thing that gets me through the day at work is treating all my calls like I'm a radio announcer. My managers think I have a radio voice and I try to stay in character to make calls interesting (and of course, professional). My previous job as a English teacher in Korea was pretty much the same thing, except all acting all the time for grade school students. I had fun acting out stuff for my lessons, but honestly didn't care for teaching kids. If it was college level, it may have been a different story.

I know I've made posts about this before (in different ways). I'm probably repeating myself again. I want to try to find something to be passionate about again. Ever since I got graduated three years ago, I kind have lost a certain passion for life. I'm trying to find it again. If I could hear your story, maybe it could give me (and others) something to reflect on. I know I can't make a career off watching movies, reading manga, and playing JuBeat...so I'm really trying to find how I can be useful for the world. Right now, I'm doing a job I can stand. I know there has to be more to life than this.

Iristheangel

I can only speak for myself. I found my passion from years of fumbling around and trying other things that I found I didn't enjoy. Sometimes it's a matter of putting yourself out there and trying new things until it "clicks" for you

KenC

Similar to Iris, I never got as much of a buzz out of other paths taken as I do with IT. Personally, I'm not a fan of this word passion when it comes to my job / career - always seems like a HR phrase to me.

it_consultant

If I had a million bucks I would start a school smack dab in the middle of urban Denver (where I live) that focuses on the technical sciences for grades 5-12. I have no real "passion" for IT, but it pays the bills and is sufficiently interesting and diverse to keep me engaged and focused throughout the day.

Vik210

I have tried few different career options but I must say I like working on technology.
I was a keen athlete for years and being a son of a sports man, I started young and never looked for other options till I started collage. That was the first time I realized that Information Technology is so much more than assembling computers and installing windows and I loved it. Everything I studied made a lot of sense and I was happy to be in technology. I do think there are better things in technology to work on/ with then what I do but I don’t look at other career options anymore.
If I am in a situation where earning money is not a need, I will travel and take photos! I think it will be more entertaining to be on a beach in south of France than reading a CISSP book over a weekend. Having said that, if I have to pick one career for rest of my life; it will be in IT (followed by photography).

varelg

I was the first to bring an external 25 kbps modem in my hometown, hooked it up to a PC and a phone line and showed people how to check that thing called email and join bulletin boards.
Later learned to troubleshoot the poor thing, all dark screen and commands that you had to know by heart. And then, when windowed OS took over, cable connections came along with wifi and the web became banal, I gave up on IT.
Then I stumbled upon the Asterisk VoIP project, where I needed to deal with this thing called Linux, which worked best by punching in commands at the shell, and suddenly it was back to the 90's...

XiaoTech

In the end it sounds like most of us do the job because it's what we can stand the most. I've been trying to be an optimist for awhile, thinking that finding a job that I'd like to do has to be somewhere. If I'm going to dislike my job, maybe it's time I packed up, take some PTO, and head off to North Dakota for those high paying oil jobs everyone says that's out there. I would not be happy my life just like I am now, but at least I could try to erase my debt faster for I could pursue something where money did not matter.

paul78

It sounds like you are having a tough time with your current career. It does happen. I don't really have any pearls to share but I do wish you the best of luck.

I was fortunate in that I always had a passion and a knack for IT. I started working with computers in the very early days of microcomputers.

But that said - there have been jobs where I disliked or did not fit in. But for me, it was the job and not the profession or the career. When I ran into those situations, a job change remedied the situation.

You mentioned an interest in teaching and acting - perhaps that could be something you could explore....

KenC

XiaoTech wrote: »

In the end it sounds like most of us do the job because it's what we can stand the most.

I think you've made an incorrect assumption there buddy, at least that's not what I've got from reading this thread. I do think YOU are unhappy and need to re-evaluate things. Are you guilty of following the money (that turned out not to be there)? Did you get into IT because it was the "high paying oil job in North Dakota" the last time you were at a career crossroads?

XiaoTech wrote: »

for I could pursue something where money did not matter

We'd all like that and if I was in that position I would not be working (in IT or any other area).

We've all had thoughts like yours running around in our heads from time to time, part of life. I suggest talking to a career counselor for starters. Might give you some ideas as to where you want to go and how to do so.

XiaoTech

You are right. I am unhappy where I am and have been trying to re-evaluate my life the past month. I got this job and my A+ because I had a contact who put in a good word for me, plus I had some interest in the technology. If I look at it objectively, my job isn't bad. I work a four day week, get a three day weekend, and the job is pretty simple to execute with some decent management. Outside of the low pay, I think anyone trying to break into IT would be happy with this job. I have no real problems with the job outside of being bored to tears and the pay (well, even if they paid me $10k more a year, I would still be bored to death).

I think you are right. It is time I saw a career counselor and try to get some direction in my life. I forgot they even existed. I want to feel like I'm moving forward in life for once, instead of remaining stagnant.

Hypntick

it_consultant wrote: »

If I had a million bucks I would start a school smack dab in the middle of urban Denver (where I live) that focuses on the technical sciences for grades 5-12. I have no real "passion" for IT, but it pays the bills and is sufficiently interesting and diverse to keep me engaged and focused throughout the day.

We actually ask the million dollar question during our interview actually. Some of the answers are actually kind of interesting. If money were no concern, i'd probably help a non-profit out doing what I do now.

As for my passion, it comes from being in third grade and writing BASIC code in my gifted class. Realizing what you can make a system do, amazes me. I've had that desire to know how things work, and how to make things do what I want them to do for over 20 years now. It's just a part of me I guess.

dave330i

I'm passionate about life, not work. To me work is a means to achieving my goals in life. I choose work that'll help me achieve my goal the quickest. It doesn't hurt that I get to work with cool technology.

DevilWAH

for me its about finding what you enjoy doing. I have been a sheet mettle worker, bowling lane maintenance, built a night club, Scientist, and IT help-desk and now a network engineer. While I have enjoyed to some degree them all, it was not until i got in to networking that I found a job that I enjoyed as a hobby.

So for me my job and my hobby happen to over lap which makes work something I look forward to, although as others have asid its important to keep a good balance. So being married and having a daughter I am strict with my self and don't work late, am always home to eat dinner with my wife and daughter and put her to bed (daughter that is, not so much the wife . The hobby side of my work I do when my wife is watching "her" programs on TV, or asleep her self.

But the bottom line is you wont find passion for some thing you don't enjoy, and you can't make your self enjoy some thing. And lastly if you don't have passion for you job / IT, you will find it hard to move on and up the chain. You can get certifications and learn theories, and all the rest, but if you don't enjoy your job, and have some passion in it, you will always be fighting a catch up game to those that do.

her.yang

I chose IT because frankly, I'm a computer nerd. I used to be "that kid" who always tinkered with things and sometimes ended up breaking them. I remember ruining a perfectly good tape player because I was trying to figure out how it works. I thoroughly enjoy working with technology and I figured if I could do it for a living, why not? I started out in my IT career working directly with customers at the service desk level. Then I realized that doing that was really just time-consuming, tedious, and it was frustrating working with end users. Luckily I landed a networking position which involves less customer interaction and more planning and designing so I stuck with it. I got my CCNA and now I'm going all out with it. The other factor with IT is that I like knowing that what I'm doing is making a difference for my company and my end users. I'm providing them with a vital service which allows them to accomplish their mission-related tasks and I'm using my nerd skills to do it. Can't say that about many other jobs.

Repo Man

It was the only thing I knew how to do that would make me decent money.

Now my passion is to develop my skills to be the best employee at any future job I take.

jmritenour

I'm in IT because I like problem solving, building, and fixing things. If I were into cars, I would've ended up a mechanic. But I like computers, so here I am.

I'm not really passionate about IT in and of itself. I am driven to go above and beyond and be the best at what I do, but that's just me. If something is worth doing, I give it everything I have. But once the work day is over, I put it away and spend time with my family. Well, except for an hour or two a day for studying for certs or whatnot.

It's a fun way to make a living, and I find myself still learning something new every day after nearly 15 years in the business.

RomBUS

I found my passion when I first got my first operable home PC and started tinkering and researching individual computer parts. I found my passion that I wanted to do it professionally and have it as my career when I realized that I liked troubleshooting other people's IT issues and helping them in any way I can to make their computer experience a better one. Long story short there.

drkat

I dont honestly think I've ever been passionate about anything. I know I started off with computers at a very early age and tinkered around with programming - which was really inspired by IRC.

That happened for a few years but I was never a great coder or anything, just kind of a hobby. I dropped out of school when I was 16 after my parents divorced and I was somewhat forced to help pay for things around the house, so I took a job as a jr. programmer at an ISP and realized I hated it - I eventually quit and ended up working odd jobs (fast food...) until I went to tech school for GM Apprentice program. I did 2 years of that and working in a bunch of garages and learned quite a bit, but I couldnt make any money so in 2005 I said sh*** if I could just make $13/hr 40 hours a week on a helpdesk I'd be good.. (I was making $13/hr flat-rate in the garage turning 30-32 hours a week)

End of story is I took a deployment position and started my IT career. Now was every job great and exciting? No but I kept jumping contracts trying to find what suited me. I ended up finding I really enjoyed Telecom/NOC type work so I try to stick to ISP's/MSP type roles but I'm currently a Network Admin for a company local (on contract for right now...err) and it's boring as HOLY hell.. like f me to tears boring. It's really a Tier 3 helpdesk role if you want to be honest... except I dont answer phones. I do get to suggest new network stuff and I make over 65K a year but guess what?? I'd take a 50K NOC/ISP job if it came up.. so money really isn't everything.

Find something you like to do and do it.

veritas_libertas

My interests in college took this path: History --> Criminal Justice --> Information Technology

History doesn't pay well, and it's hard to find a job As far as CJ I've lost a lot of trust in the system and I decided I didn't want to be involved. I had always enjoyed working with computers and networks. The reason I didn't get involved earlier was a fear of computer programming combined with the fear that if I worked with what I liked I would begin to hate it.

Roguetadhg

I'm in IT for the chicks.

Passion? I don't know. I'm passionate about a lot of things. I'm a very passionate man. I've spent all night working on HTML/Javascript codes. I've spent all night and days doing video editing for music videos. I've spent weeks and months grinding Router commands into my noggin.

Webdesign (Yes, Even using Adobe and 'gasp' Macromedia when Flash didn't suck) couldn't make me read it's material. I found it boring to read about, no flair for a larger picture. After a while I got sick of the design, toss it out and remade a new one.

Video editing. Reading not required. Mostly. Except for trying to encode videos with codecs that changed over time. I've dabbled in the art of Animated Music videos - then went to WoW music videos. I was more interested in matching the music with the video. Not so much the fancy effects.

Trial and error. I guess the only thing I'd be more passionate about would be driving cars fast, and fast cars faster. :P But I find less risk with tossing packets around a network!

drkat

how about riding fast chicks faster? idk just a thought

paulgswanson

I have yet to find my passion...I'm just really good at whatever it is I do. Although if i was to really identify a passion for myself it would be my search for a way to finally destroy that pestilence that...just...won't die....Apple.

DigitalZeroOne

Video games (Nintendo and Sega at the time) are what brought me here, I enjoyed playing video games, and I thought it would be great if I could make them. My parents then purchased my first computer, and it had Windows 3.1 on it, it was the coolest thing in the world, but I didn't know anything at the time. To make a long story short, I simply liked working on the computer, years later I tried programming and didn't like it (mainly because I didn't catch on quick enough), but powershell has made me love scripting. Overall, I just like knowing how to do things on my own, I still enjoy new technology launches, I enjoy buying a new tech book...overall it's still very fun.

rsutton

If you really want to understand your passions (and how to leverage them), I recommend reading two books: Good to Great & Go put your strengths to work.

yoshiiaki

Well I would say my love for ITs probably stemmed from my father as an engineer. When I was young, he had lots of cool gadgets and we were the only ones in "town"(i was young, I'd say more like the block) that had an SNES. Growing up I loved to play video games and work with electronics, however I always said I'm not working in the electronic industry. I'm not sure why, but I think it was because I didn't want to work in the industry I had so much fun with and have it take out all the fun. Going through college I pretty much made friends only with CS majors as I could click with them the best. I would love to "help" them on their homework, often times I just did it for them. All the while, I was busy switching majors constantly and unsure of where I wanted to go with my life. So pretty much I made them worse programmers but I learned to code. Anyways, I ended up taking a CCNA course advertised as "networking" at my local Junior College one semester. I thought "Hey, maybe if I take this course I won't have to just click the troubleshoot button or reset my router." I didn't realize the intensity involved and including that course I was taking 20 units that semester. While normally I get As with a few Bs here and there, This particular semester I got straight Cs and an A in the CCNA. I ended up devoting all my time to the course, and not because of necessity. Even when I had a firm handle on the subject I just kept repeating the tasks, then would go "oh noes, there is a test/hw due tomorrow for x class." quickly put something together, and then go back to CCNA.
That was really my turning point. Since then, I've talked with a few of my CS friends, and even gamer friends who decided to jump to IT. I find that to be an IT you really have to have a special mindset. I have yet to really figure that out, but these people are good with the computer, and yet they can't handle IT. There's something that clicks, and it's something I would say to anyone looking for a job. Find something that you can see yourself waking up to every morning 25 years from now, and still enjoying to go. It's hard and certainly not everyone finds that special job, and sometimes you may not like the job duties, but the company and people that go with it make up for that. Perhaps IT isn't for you, or perhaps the fields of IT you have studied aren't for you. "IT" is very vast and you shouldn't group it together. You can work for a small company and be the "jack of all trades"/generalized IT, or work for a bigger company and specialize in something. I would try taking a look at all the fields you can think of, then look up more. See if any catches your eye even the slightest and try to study it a bit. Rinse and repeat, and see where it takes you. If you have a passion for acting, perhaps move to Hollywood? Or perhaps do the JET program, Japanese Exchange Teacher(teaching?idk...). You go to japan for a year-ish,and teach the japanese kids english. You don't need to know japanese and you'll certainly learn on the job. Gets you to go to japan, learn the language, and help people learn. Plenty of opportunities inside or out of IT.

Cpl.Klinger

IT has always been a hobby, and for the past 10 years I've been in retail. Retail sucks. Big time. When my wife changed careers to go into nursing, I figured I could change up too, so I have been working on my IT degree. I have fun with what I do and with what I learn, and I feel like I actually accomplish something when I do the hands on work. I'm about to complete my home networking project next week (well, phase one actually) and I'm really excited to get it up and running. I can't wait to run Wireshark after I turn on the switch and watch the magic happens as everything sorts itself out and configures (running an HP unmanaged 12 port switch and a Cisco 802.11a/b/g/n AP). I've done some side jobs and have gotten my hands on things I never would before, like fiber optic runs for an apartment buildings, specialized retail servers and the like. I love to learn and figure out, and IT lets me do that often. That's my passion in it I guess.

darkerz

I like making a network talk to itself, and networks talk to each other.

The first day I set up a 3 way router setup with my 1721's with T1's and configured static routes, the first thing I thought in excitement was how can I make this easier, more efficient and more powerful.

Before this, I was lost and had no career passion at all. Networking clicked for me.

I also name my routers and refer to them in conversation-mode form.

veritas_libertas

darkerz wrote: »

Before this, I was lost and had no career passion at all. Networking clicked for me.

I hear ya. I'm certain I wouldn't be happy doing anything else.

traceyke

drkat wrote: »

how about riding fast chicks faster? idk just a thought

^^^ and THAT is why I love the TechExams forums.

mackdieselx27

IT started out as a hobby for me and didn't really take off until a few years ago when I got into "consulting" work - fixing machines for friends, tutoring sessions on privacy and other topics, etc. Then I landed my first professional gig thanks to a friend teaching both programs and running a computer lab.

My knowledge was all self-taught.

XiaoTech

It seems like a lot of people here are big on problem solving and trying to figure out how things work. Or having enthusiasm on helping people out with their problems. I'm really glad I started this thread. Gives me some insight on why others chosen this profession. I'm not a blind optimist where I think I should love the work I do, but it should be something I have some good parts to look forward to. Maybe I can get some ideas with the career counselor that I will see this Friday. I know I need to get out of this job someday. I knew I would hate a "call center" type job before I took it. The job I had before this one was a call center as well (only for two months), but I took it since really couldn't find anything else and I know how to troubleshoot.

@yoshiiaki- I do plan on applying for CIR position with JET. If I can get that, it would be great. I can't afford to move to Japan any other way if it's not JET. Any other method to get back to Japan is out of my financial scope, at least until I can get all of my debt (minus student loans) paid off. Still another 3 years at the rate I'm going.