Should I quit my job after 6 months?

I'm in a stressful dilemma. I was recently hired by a tech firm as a jr. project manager straight out of college. After I was hired, I got trained on Oracle. The training was ineffective as the topics they started us off with here quite advanced and the instructor had a very thick accent. The company's goal was to have me be both a project manager and an Oracle DBA, although I was never told that I would be an Oracle DBA when I interviewed for the position.

At first I liked this approach, as I can work on my insufficient technical skills. After I was put on Oracle operation shifts however, my job became a nightmare. I am having so much trouble picking things up and always looking for help from my colleagues, which most of the time are unavailable to help me. This makes it extremely stressful for me as it's not something I can control or use best judgement on. I have brought this up before and people have just recommended me to get practice when I'm not on shift, but it's usually impossible to find people to help me as they're all busy/not interested/bad at teaching. I've honestly tried...

I'm 6 months in and am still having trouble grasping the basics with troubleshooting Oracle issues and it seems everybody is much smarter than me. I'm now very discouraged and absolutely HATE being on Oracle shifts.

I now want to quit my job because I never signed up to be an Oracle DBA. I am willing to learn, but it seems the company wants me to learn at a faster pace, which I cannot do. I hate my job more everyday because of this.

What should I do? Quitting is difficult because I do not currently have another job lined up (although I can survive for a 4-6 months if I move back home) and I invested quite a bit on moving to another city for this job. There are plenty of jobs available in my hometown if I move back, although finding the right one might take a while.

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Comments

Plantwiz

I would not quit.

If they are not giving up on you yet, then do not give up on yourself.

Figure out (quickly) how you learn and get to it. Video, books, hands-on, etc... but you need to step up your pace as well. Growing pains never feel good, if you are not getting written up for lack of performance, then make EVERY effort to gain all the knowledge you can gain.

Make note cards, search the Internet for 'tricks' and 'tips' and make your own FAQ list to survive a shift. It may take you a month, but you'll find that the problems you are troubleshooting will start to fall more into your quick FAQs and fewer will be anomalies. Learning takes time and effort. Sounds like you need a bit more effort and a lot more time.

Don't give up so quickly.

thomaslb

It seems most of my effort is in finding someone to help me. Not everybody learns the same nor learns at the same pace. I can put 8 hours a day looking into an issue and still not understand what is going on. It seems that I am asking for help so much that people are now more hesitant to help me.

I believe the only way I can effectively learn is to have a mentor during the 9 hours I am on an Oracle shift, exclusively helping me the whole time, which my company wont do, understandably. I've tried "their way" and it is not working. I dont feel I am learning nearly as much as I should and because of this, I feel more and more incompetent every day.

Nemowolf

Thomas. I say this with the wisdom of having made job hops for the same reason, hating your job, that if you leave a job because you can't face the challenges presented to you then you have to make two statements to yourself.

1. Are you going to regret failing?
2. Are you going to regret not trying hard?

My point is that no one here can make an argument for or against with any merit because in the end, you have to make that choice and any advice to sway you one way or another should not be the reasoning behind a decision entirely. Its only advice and suggestions...

My advice would be to have a serious sit down talk with your boss. Be frank about your situation and how you regard the job as you were not prepared for an Oracle DBA position. Ask to have them do additional outside training, internal training, or be assigned a mentor to specifically be available to assist you with your questions. Ask for feedback on your performance so far, have you been doing good in their eyes and meeting or exceeding their expectations for being thrown in the deep end? Do they think your doing a good job? Express your frustration in a non-negative way, indirectly indicating that your not happy and have plans to leave perhaps. The idea is to be open and honest about your "ordeal" and try to work it out before you accept defeat and move on.

You will force yourself to build your communication skills and since your already thinking about leaving, it doesn't hurt to get some additional training or time to improve.

effekted

Like others are recommending, stick with it. What is it that you're having problems with? Also try and start labbing scenarios you're seeing at work to get a better understanding.

And instead of quitting, if you're doing as poorly as you feel (which unless management has been getting onto you about things you're probably being too tough on yourself) then you'll get fired and maybe you can get unemployment until you can land another job

thomaslb

Ive never had so many issues learning something at a job before.. but Ive never had such a technical job. Lab environments wont replicate the issues Im having, which are mostly backup failures that can have many culprits. If I have somebody show me how to fix an issue and I have the same issue again in the future, the method that I used the first time NEVER works.

I will speak to my boss about this. It's very disappointing because Ive never felt so incompetent at a job. I've always been a quick learner at my previous jobs but not this.

edit: My manager does not point out my poor performance because Im still learning, but I feel I should at least know how to do basic troubleshooting at this point

edit: Im a very structured learner. I want clear directions that will work every time. That's why I did well in school since I can read the material from the book and understand the concepts. In the real world, Oracle databases have too many variables that come into play that throw me off.

Essendon

You want to take notes, jot down every problem and its solution. Learn as much as you can, there's no other way. Stick it out for another 6 months or so, so you'll have something to show when you got for your interviews.

Polynomial

thomaslb wrote: »

Im a very structured learner. I want clear directions that will work every time.

IT is a ton of improvisation you know.

coralreefguy

Polynomial wrote: »

IT is a ton of improvisation you know.

So, so true. Most of IT is fuddling through things yourself and using your 'google-fu'. In fact, it's more or less the signature piece of being in IT. Being able to improvise.

thomaslb

Essendon wrote: »

You want to take notes, jot down every problem and its solution. Learn as much as you can, there's no other way. Stick it out for another 6 months or so, so you'll have something to show when you got for your interviews.

I do take lots of notes. Often times, my notes do not transfer over for a similar problem because of any of a number of different variables. Also, when people are helping me, it's very difficult to take good notes. Notes dont always help when using it in practice because of the variables mentioned.

Polynomial wrote: »

IT is a ton of improvisation you know.

Absolutely. Im not bad at improvisation necessarily, as I am very good at using it for desktop support. But I havent been able to improvise with database support unfortunately.

Legacy User

One thing I learned when it comes to the real world you really have to resourceful and mastering your googlefu as others mentioned is key. May I ask what did you graduate in MS, MBA, BS since you stated you were picked up straight from school. The fact that you were hired straight out of college is to your benefit you need take advantage of this opportunity and become whatever they need you to be. Consider whatever you learn and use at work as something to add to your resume.

If I'm not mistaken don't Oracle DBA's make some good money? You should do some outside learning and find a online resource to bring you up to speed on stuff you don't know. Don't ruin this opportunity learn how to be a jr. project manager and a DBA those two skills will provide with more options when it comes time to look for work. Better believe if you keep complaining that you can't do the job they will find someone who can.

instant000

I don't know what to tell you, if you believe that you need someone to exclusively help you throughout your shift, in order to learn the technology. That might be something you can get from a trade school, but I have never had an IT job that provided training. I've always had to train myself. If I was missing something, I had to pick it up myself.

Maybe you're so unfamiliar with the technology, you don't even know where to start to look for documentation to get going. Is that the case?

1. Goto this page:
Oracle Documentation

2. Then, you want to choose the appropriate release of Oracle that you're working on.
3. Next, review all the 2-day courses, for an overview.
4. Next, you want to probably review the administrator's guide
5. Review any other applicable guides

The technology shouldn't be that complicated, after you see how it breaks down.

Another thing, is that there are tutorials and what-not on their site, here:
Tutorials

Hope this helps.

instant000

Your improvisation skills will increase, once you understand better how things work.

Resourceful and possessed of an encyclopedic knowledge of the physical sciences, he solves complex problems with everyday materials he finds at hand, along with his ever-present duct tape and Swiss Army knife. He prefers non-violent resolutions and prefers not to handle a gun, but will if necessary.

Source: MacGyver - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It could be several things.

In addition to knowing Oracle itself, you may have to understand networking, storage, and servers. There is nothing wrong with reviewing those areas, also.

Hope this helps.
.

JoJoCal19

thomaslb wrote: »

edit: Im a very structured learner. I want clear directions that will work every time. That's why I did well in school since I can read the material from the book and understand the concepts. In the real world, Oracle databases have too many variables that come into play that throw me off.

And that's the problem with school, particularly state universities. The education doesn't prepare you for the real world. Too often you get classes with these long tenured professors that love to drill you with theoretical bs, rather than how things work in the real world.

Don't be so hard on yourself. You CAN do this job and take advantage of the opportunity you have. You've been put in a position that a lot of people starting out in IT wish they could have. As has been mentioned, first you need to master your Googlefu. Trust me when I say that the problems you're seeing on a day to day basis have been experienced by others, so you should be able to find answers by Googling.

Also start reading Oracle, DBA and other forums daily. Like I said, people have had the same issues pop up, so reading forums will expose you to not only the answers to those issues, but others you're likely to face. Second, pick up some Oracle and DBA books and start studying. Lastly, as has been mentioned, find videos or other education and study up some more. IT project managers and DBAs make good money and you've been given a chance to accelerate your IT career faster than people normally are able to do by starting at the bottom. Become good at what you're doing now and you'll be set for future positions in IT PM or DBA.

Danielm7

I think someone we're missing here is, what did you actually go to school for? I mean everyone is looking at it as he needs to just dig into it to be in IT, but if he's hired as a PM, maybe he never wanted to be in IT in the first place?

Were you a business major or something and this tech company decided they needed double duty so they shoehorned you into being a DBA too?

I could be completely off base but it is something to consider. If so I'd just look for another PM job while working there and doing your best to learn and stay afloat for as long as it takes you to find something else.

BGraves

Seems like a win/win situation to me?
You either "sink" and go find some other job you feel comfortable with, take away a valuable learning experience and move on with life....
or you "swim" and start learning outside of work, improving your technical knowledge in a challenging field, hopefully make baller $, and have a real sense of accomplishment when you are done.

dave330i

thomaslb wrote: »

I now want to quit my job because I never signed up to be an Oracle DBA. I am willing to learn, but it seems the company wants me to learn at a faster pace, which I cannot do. I hate my job more everyday because of this.

If you're willing to learn, why aren't you picking up a book?

DoubleNNs

instant000 wrote: »

But I have never had an IT job that provided training. I've always had to train myself. If I was missing something, I had to pick it up myself.

I think the real problem is lack of experience - this is probably hsi 1st job, directly out of college. He's probably used to teachers holding his hand and force feeding the info to him -and if he needs extra help, they're available during their office hours for individualized help.

I don't think the problem is learning the material itself, but the fact that he's in over his head and never had to teach himself something this far and needs to learn how to get acquainted w/ material outside of the classroom.

Maybe the fact that he's right out of school is why the job hasn't been too hard on him. In this instance, I think he should take full advantage of this opportunity. Even if it does't work out in the end, he'll have gained valuable knowledge - both on the tech used on job as well as the "real world" and corporate IT environments. He can also use this time to experiment on the best way to get self-teach IT subjects w/o a structured classroom model.

pitviper

I guess the real question is... Do you want to be a Oracle DBA? Because quite honestly, if you have no interest in the technology you'll never completely understand it.

When I was first thrown into voice I had 0 local resources for assistance - It was my drive to want to solve the problem that eventually brought me to the solutions.

N2IT

One of the worst things that can happen is being promoted or given to much to early (like in your situation). It can hurt your confidence and stunt your career growth. Not to mention the bait and switch they pulled which is complete crap. @OP I feel your pain this could lead to something great or it may lead to a dead end. I hate to see anyone hurting so much at work, it's not supposed to be that way. My recommendation is to TRY to get one year of experience if you can squeak it out, but if you are getting physically ill and not feeling good about yourself well I think you know what you have to do. Just remember it's never as good as you think it is nor as bad. Have you went to management about this? Maybe they can help, my thoughts are probably not. The skills you are learning can be a great thing and can lead to a lot of money, but databases are not for everyone. I'll be honest I've been working with them for a while now and I am not a natural, there are people who are. I wish you the best, I wouldn't quit without having another job though, holing up in your moms house is only going to make you feel worse in the long run. @PitViper exactly - does the OP want to do this type of work.

blargoe

If you want to be an Oracle DBA (or a DBA of any type), you are in a great spot to make that happen. You should be picking up some entry level books/guides and gain some foundational understanding outside of work.

If you have no interest in being a DBA, then this probably isn't the job for you, but you still shouldn't just quit without having something else lined up.

thomaslb

dmarcisco wrote: »

If I'm not mistaken don't Oracle DBA's make some good money? You should do some outside learning and find a online resource to bring you up to speed on stuff you don't know. Don't ruin this opportunity learn how to be a jr. project manager and a DBA those two skills will provide with more options when it comes time to look for work. Better believe if you keep complaining that you can't do the job they will find someone who can.

Money isn't that important to me any more. I earn a decent salary but I would take 25% less to do something more enjoyable and closer to 40 hours a week. I currently work 50 hours a week.

instant000 wrote: »

I don't know what to tell you, if you believe that you need someone to exclusively help you throughout your shift, in order to learn the technology. That might be something you can get from a trade school, but I have never had an IT job that provided training. I've always had to train myself. If I was missing something, I had to pick it up myself.

Maybe you're so unfamiliar with the technology, you don't even know where to start to look for documentation to get going. Is that the case?

1. Goto this page:
Oracle Documentation

2. Then, you want to choose the appropriate release of Oracle that you're working on.
3. Next, review all the 2-day courses, for an overview.
4. Next, you want to probably review the administrator's guide
5. Review any other applicable guides

The technology shouldn't be that complicated, after you see how it breaks down.

Another thing, is that there are tutorials and what-not on their site, here:
Tutorials

Hope this helps.

The problem is, these tutorials don't teach me how to troubleshoot the issues I deal with

instant000 wrote: »

Your improvisation skills will increase, once you understand better how things work.

Source: MacGyver - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

It could be several things.

In addition to knowing Oracle itself, you may have to understand networking, storage, and servers. There is nothing wrong with reviewing those areas, also.

Hope this helps.
.

I hope so, but I HATE the ambiguity when there is no help. Sometimes the people helping me are also trying to find the root cause. In this case, I dont learn anything because the person helping me does all of these things that I dont understand. He doesnt have the time to break it down because it would take hours.

Danielm7 wrote: »

I think someone we're missing here is, what did you actually go to school for? I mean everyone is looking at it as he needs to just dig into it to be in IT, but if he's hired as a PM, maybe he never wanted to be in IT in the first place?

Were you a business major or something and this tech company decided they needed double duty so they shoehorned you into being a DBA too?

I could be completely off base but it is something to consider. If so I'd just look for another PM job while working there and doing your best to learn and stay afloat for as long as it takes you to find something else.

I went to school with the intention of being an analyst after I graduate. I was never good at programming but understood the SDLC and requirements gathering concepts and processes very well, at least during my studies.

If I were to go the technical route, it would probably be as a Windows system admin.

If I had known that the position required me to also be a DBA, I probably would not have taken it

dave330i wrote: »

If you're willing to learn, why aren't you picking up a book?

As mentioned earlier, a textbook won't teach me how to troubleshoot a performance or backup issue. I have a hard time applying the concepts in the book to my everyday job.

DoubleNNs wrote: »

I think the real problem is lack of experience - this is probably hsi 1st job, directly out of college. He's probably used to teachers holding his hand and force feeding the info to him -and if he needs extra help, they're available during their office hours for individualized help.

I don't think the problem is learning the material itself, but the fact that he's in over his head and never had to teach himself something this far and needs to learn how to get acquainted w/ material outside of the classroom.

Maybe the fact that he's right out of school is why the job hasn't been too hard on him. In this instance, I think he should take full advantage of this opportunity. Even if it does't work out in the end, he'll have gained valuable knowledge - both on the tech used on job as well as the "real world" and corporate IT environments. He can also use this time to experiment on the best way to get self-teach IT subjects w/o a structured classroom model.

I did not asked for help very often as everything I needed to know was usually in the textbook or on the professor's slides.

The books covered the questions on the exam, but there are no exams at work. We have to troubleshoot database issues.

pitviper wrote: »

I guess the real question is... Do you want to be a Oracle DBA? Because quite honestly, if you have no interest in the technology you'll never completely understand it.

When I was first thrown into voice I had 0 local resources for assistance - It was my drive to want to solve the problem that eventually brought me to the solutions.

Not really, although I would rather be a DBA than developer. The technology I love is the PC and troubleshooting hardware/software issues. I exceled quite well at this during my internship in college.

N2IT wrote: »

One of the worst things that can happen is being promoted or given to much to early (like in your situation). It can hurt your confidence and stunt your career growth. Not to mention the bait and switch they pulled which is complete crap. @OP I feel your pain this could lead to something great or it may lead to a dead end. I hate to see anyone hurting so much at work, it's not supposed to be that way. My recommendation is to TRY to get one year of experience if you can squeak it out, but if you are getting physically ill and not feeling good about yourself well I think you know what you have to do. Just remember it's never as good as you think it is nor as bad. Have you went to management about this? Maybe they can help, my thoughts are probably not. The skills you are learning can be a great thing and can lead to a lot of money, but databases are not for everyone. I'll be honest I've been working with them for a while now and I am not a natural, there are people who are. I wish you the best, I wouldn't quit without having another job though, holing up in your moms house is only going to make you feel worse in the long run. @PitViper exactly - does the OP want to do this type of work.

Bait & Switch is what I believe happened. I am still trying to stay here for one year but I know the next 6 months will likely be more dreadful. I get a lot of anxiety the day before I start an Oracle shift.

Ive approached management but it they seem to downplay the situation and tell me it's a process. But I genuinely feel I should be able to do more at this point.

networker050184

I'll ask you this. How do you think the other guys at work learned how to do this? I can tell you they weren't born with the knowledge.

I will say though it sounds like you have already made up your mind that this isn't what you want to do. Polish up the resume and start looking. No point sticking with a job you hate and are ready to leave.

dave330i

thomaslb wrote: »

As mentioned earlier, a textbook won't teach me how to troubleshoot a performance or backup issue. I have a hard time applying the concepts in the book to my everyday job.

How are you going to troubleshoot if you don't understand the basics?

UniqueAgEnT

Oracle DBA is not an easy job. If you do not want this career path, it will be very difficult. I would suggest starting to look for new positions to apply for while you have a job. It is a lot easier to find a job while you are employed.

N2IT

@Networker

I'll ask you this. How do you think the other guys at work learned how to do this? I can tell you they weren't born with the knowledge.

This is true but natural ability plays a huge role in certain positions. If you aren't highly analytical and good with mathematics you probably won't make a very good actuary. Same goes with technical roles in IT. If you aren't able to quickly learn different technologies you will find IT hard and difficult more so than someone with these natural skills. You are who you are no matter how hard you try you will always have strengths and weaknesses and there is very little you can do about them. (JMHO)

@UniqueAgent - Take their advice they working in a BI environment. It's extremely difficult and not for the faint of heart.

networker050184

I agree level of natural abilities differ, but no one has ever learned without trying and I think it's fairly obvious the OP is not interested in trying in this situation.

N2IT

I wouldn't want to be an Oracle DBA either for the record. Yuk! It's stressful enough developing reports in my sandbox environment. I can only imagine managing that whole environment. It's takes a pretty special person.

Networker - just for the record without trying you never know if you are good or not, but there is a point and time where you know if you are good, bad or average. Maybe that's 1 year maybe 2, but eventually you will find out.

Year 10 on the golf course and I am still shooting 95 with lessons and 3,000 dollars worth of clubs. I'll never be a good golfer lol

thomaslb

Sometimes I think I chose the wrong degree (MIS). I love the theoretical side of IT, OOP, RDBMS, but Ive never excelled in those classes. Ive always excelled more in the less technical courses.

networker050184 wrote: »

I'll ask you this. How do you think the other guys at work learned how to do this? I can tell you they weren't born with the knowledge.

I will say though it sounds like you have already made up your mind that this isn't what you want to do. Polish up the resume and start looking. No point sticking with a job you hate and are ready to leave.

I've asked myself this question. I do believe this stuff comes quicker and more naturally to some people than others. I've never been a technical wiz; the people in my organization are some of the smartest in the industry. I guess I shouldnt use excuses though.

N2IT wrote: »

@Networker This is true but natural ability plays a huge role in certain positions. If you aren't highly analytical and good with mathematics you probably won't make a very good actuary. Same goes with technical roles in IT. If you aren't able to quickly learn different technologies you will find IT hard and difficult more so than someone with these natural skills. You are who you are no matter how hard you try you will always have strengths and weaknesses and there is very little you can do about them. (JMHO)

@UniqueAgent - Take their advice they working in a BI environment. It's extremely difficult and not for the faint of heart.

Im very good at mathematics, but I SUCK at OOP. I enjoy the theoretical side more.

A lot of it has to do with the way you learn too. I took the same calculus class twice with different professors, I was failing one (which I dropped) and earned the 2nd highest grade in the other.

networker050184 wrote: »

I agree level of natural abilities differ, but no one has ever learned without trying and I think it's fairly obvious the OP is not interested in trying in this situation.

I don't think it's fair for you to say that. I've been doing it for 6 months and there has been a lack of progress. Should I waste another 6 months with the same result? I believe I could have learned at least 4 times as much at this point if I had someone to mentor me every time, but this would be costly for my org.

networker050184

I don't think you should do the same thing if it's not working. Have you picked up a book outside of work to try and learn?

thomaslb

Honestly, no. I'm making excuses here but I don't want to read about databases after working on them for 10 hours.