How often do you think about leaving IT?

I'm just curious: How often do any of you think about leaving the IT field? It's been on my mind a lot, lately, seeing as the market where I am is pretty bad for entry- to mid-level IT folks at the moment. My problem is that I'm not sure what other jobs my skills might transfer to..

Sometimes I just find the job market and job search discouraging. Hence, my asking.

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FloOz

i think more so about how much it sucks to work everyday of your life until you can retire. as for IT i actually enjoy it and am glad i am at a job i can somewhat tolerate lol

FloOz

the_Grinch wrote: »

A lot of people are calling for law schools to be more like medical schools. Medical schools base the number of students they will accept on the perceived need of doctors in a given year. I have known a lot of people who went through law school and everyone has found a job making $60k a year. Now that's not to say their hours aren't hellish and that they get worked like dogs, but it is really a matter of what you specialize in and the area you are in. Plus, where you graduate from will very much be a factor in where you get hired. I think about law school from time to time, but it is a big commitment.

not worth it. i currently work in the IT department of a law firm and all the attorneys are always so stressed and angry (well most of them that is) and yes from what i heard starting out you get a salary of 60k. However the stress to me is not worth the money.

the_Grinch

I did support work for a few law firms and I agree most never seemed too happy. But I always tended to think that it was a matter of what type of law you practiced, but could be wrong.

Claymoore

Daily.

It's not because my job is terrible, the pay is bad, or I hate what I do. I like IT. I like learning new things and finding new ways to solve old problems, or any problems for that matter. It's really the problem-solving part of the job that I like the most. I work for a great company that pays me well. Well enough that I can cover all the bills while my wife stays home with our son. Losing her salary hurt, and we had to make some lifestyle changes, but she plans on putting her MBA back to work in a few years after we have another kid. My job does have some downsides. I get stuck doing some projects I don't enjoy, and I travel way more than I would like. But even that has some perks as I was able to take the 3 of us for a week vacation in Hawaii for less than the cost of a single round trip ticket from here, thanks to all the various reward points.

It's not that IT is bad, it's that I have found something else I would rather do. I have been working on implementing that plan for the last 2 years and there is still more work to do. More money is a possibility in the new career, but, more importantly, I would be working for myself and gain control over my own life. No more being at someone else's beck and call with all the extra time away from the family through either travel or the after hours support requirements. If I am not successful and remain in IT until I retire or die, I am OK with that, but I need to see this other plan through.

You only regret the things you don't do.

whatthehell

Anonymouse wrote: »

All the time. Having a hard time finding a new IT job that is actually an upgrade from what I am doing now at the new location I will be moving to. I'm thinking of studying something in the medical field 'cause that's just what Filipino's like me do haha.

Woot! I Heart the IT Crowd!

ptilsen

@Claymoore, would you mind sharing what career it is you're working towards switching to?

bermovick

Pretty much every day that I work, but I think that's just because of my current work environment.

Priston

I'd love to be able to leave IT for music, but I don't see music providing enough money at the moment.

MrBishop

I put in to many years of studying to get into IT to even think about stopping now! I'm more determined than ever to make a good living in this industry. I just stated my CCIE studies as of today and will have that number come next year sometime if time permits.

Claymoore

ptilsen wrote: »

@Claymoore, would you mind sharing what career it is you're working towards switching to?

I am writing my first novel. I wrote a screenplay a few years ago that didn't sell, but got a little attention and that was enough to serve as encouragement. I wrote the screenplay because I had a story I wanted to tell and I wanted to see if I could do it, and now I have more stories to tell. The novel expanded to a series of at least 5 books, and along the way I outlined a different novel, a graphic novel, and 3 other screenplays I want to write. That's enough to make a career - if they are any good.

Now it is more than just seeing if I can do it, in order to make this a career I need to put myself in a position to be successful and I have spent the last couple of years doing that. I read some books to improve my writing. Strunk and White's The Elements of Style is a classic, Truss' Eats, Shoots, and Leaves is good, but Stephen King's On Writing was my favorite - I am trying to live by the phrase "The road to hell is paved with adverbs". King also advised to read the genre in which you plan to write so that you know what works and what has been overdone. 15 books later, I appreciated how much fun fiction can be vs the non fiction I read so much. I also needed books on history, warfare, economics, and philosophy to fill in knowledge gaps to help make my world believable. Then came characterizations, plot outlines and world building. Now that the easy stuff is out of the way, it is down to the grind of writing the damn thing.

In the two years this was happening, the Kindle and Nook changed the publishing industry, making it easier for first-timers like me to publish their own work. This also gives us the freedom and responsibility to market and control our works, for better or worse. As long as I can provide for my family, I don't need to be rich or famous. I want the schedule flexibility to spend more time at home and less time on the road making money for other people.

geek12

I want to work at school as computer teacher.

kiki162

I thought about and did leave a few times, and always came back to it in some form or another.

I found that it pays better than retail, and I didn't wanna be a broke looser...LOL. Anyways about 10 years ago I started my AA degree and finished that PT around 5 yrs later, at that point I had stuck with IT and managed to have my MCSE at the time. 5 Years ago I managed to accomplish buying a house on my own, and living the dream...at least for a little while.

To be even more honest I hit rock bottom 10 yrs ago working in retail, so I had a "s*it or get off the pot" moment that if I didn't jump into college and the whole certification thing... that I wasn't going anywhere. So I went "balls to the wall" with it, and come to realize that if I wasn't doing SOMETHING with my time, whether it be another cert, or finishing up my BS degree, that I was gonna fall back...and bad stuff was gonna happen.

Bottom line is I make it a point to be doing something, and always learning no matter what.

MechaniX

I'm actually on my way out of IT now, doing it part time while transitioning. It was a difficult decision but, I had to step away for my own health/sanity.