Help Desk Copeing Advice

I think I'm going crazy. Like my mental health is slowly decreasing. In my position, we are first line...we get everything from lights are out to how do I setup voicemail on my phone (which I can't do anything about as it's another department). Customers are jerks. Co-workers are strange. Boss has no backbone. Have certs, experience, and decent resume still can't get out of here.

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jvrlopez

Just try and remember that the customer's can't really reach through the phone and choke you. That helped me deal with the angry callers a lot. Just deal with their attitude and problem and they will go away.

Have fun with your coworkers in between calls and try to make light of the situation.

Hammer80

My advice is to get out even if it means getting a lower paying job. Tech Support and Help Desk are career black holes once you're in it's almost impossible to escape, take if from a person which spent 5 years in Tech Support/Help Desk. Many companies even blacklist the Tech Support/Help Desk folks from moving up to IT from within, i know it sounds crazy but I have seen it happen on more than one occasion. I know a lot of folks say that the best way to get into tech is to start at Tech Support or Help Desk but the reality is that very few actually ever end up doing real IT work later on. To use an analogy yes it's a good idea to play college football if your dream it to play in NFL but how many college football players actually make it. Majority of folks who work in Tech Support/Help Desk after a while are so mentally destroyed that they lose all faith in humanity (to this day I still jump every time i hear the phone ring and my blood pressure spikes, it drives my wife crazy), its almost like suffering from PTSD many never recover enough to actually get the education and experience to do real IT work. My advice is to get a cert or two and try to get a job somewhere where they are willing to teach you and let you touch actual production equipment even if it means longer commute or/and lower pay, it will pay off in the long run. Take a step back so you can make two steps forward. If you must stay then do the absolute minimum, just enough to stay off the management radar and focus your efforts on education in order to get out.

logisticalstyles

I can totally relate. I'm in a call center doing 'tech support' for printers and it's starting to get to me as well. I haven't even been doing this for a full year yet. Actually over the past year I've done phone support for a couple of companies. I'm so ready to get off of the phones. I know what you mean by dreading the sound of the phone ringing. I used to do desktop support in a corporate environment. I miss that job so much. The hours kind of sucked and sometimes dealing with the end users was frustrating but at least I got to move around the office and touch equipment. The old job also used to encourage me to get certs. Where I'm at now is the black hole that was mentioned earlier. I'm stuck at my desk and there is very little physical activity. I'm studying during my down time and am considering on loading up on some certs so I can move on. Right now I'm spoiled because the job is 5 miles from my house and the pay is enough to get by. I just have to fight complacency in order to move on.

cloudyknight

Is helpdesk really that awful? I'm at a small company handling all IT functions from desktop support to SQL DBA work, but they don't pay me for what I do. I've been looking to move into a helpdesk to make more money and have a chance at moving up from within a better company.

Should I aviod helpdesk at all cost and go straight for sysadmin?

ande0255

Helpdesk really can be that awful, and usually is. I'd suggest applying for every job you can.

I was working at a hell desk myself 6 months ago, applied non-stop with all my PTO I had, and landed a job that is in my field of networking which has given me enough experience as of now that the only calls I get from recruiters are for network engineer positions and not help desk positions which is really nice.

I would stress to all of you stuck in that rut to make a really nice looking linkedin, and network with as many recruiters as possible. I found that at least moving help desks every 3-6 months working contracts at least made it easier, recycling coworkers every once in awhile.

logisticalstyles

It depends on the companies definition of help desk. My old job was considered help desk but it involved a lot more. I was resetting password, changing the backup tapes, setting up workstations, repairing laptops and desktops, pretty much anything technical.
This current help desk job I have is in a call center for a printer company. All I do is answer the phone, document problems and solutions, order parts and dispatch technicians. That's it. Very mind numbing work.

Hammer80

Another thing to watch for is many times companies will have Tech Support/Help Desk folks which are supposedly not good enough to be in IT do IT level work. Yes they will tell you that you are so valuable and that you add value to the company but in reality they are laughing behind your back while you do the job of someone that should be making 20k+ more than you do, but when you attempt to apply for that job from within so you can actually make that sort of money all of sudden you're not qualified but somehow you're qualified enough to do the same job at a lower position with substantially lower pay.

Akaricloud

Honestly it sounds like you really, really need to change your attitude. Get to know your coworkers, encourage your boss, and learn to laugh about the sheer insanity of some customer problems.

Why would another company want to hire someone who doesn't get along with customers, coworkers, or management?

Shdwmage

Always be pleasant to the people on the phone. Don't bad mouth them after the fact. It's a short term release. If you are a jerk and make fun of people that call in you will see how slowly you progress. If you're nice to everyone than you never have to worry about who is on the other end of the line.

I worked help desk for many years and I saw people get canned for being rude to a VP that they didn't realize was one.

Also a lot of times a nice attitude will offset an angry customer. My first goal as helpdesk wasn't to solve their problem, but to get them calm and rational so I could solve their problem without getting angry myself.

Johnjones

Yeah, it's really bad. I haven't even been working here for two months. I don't understand because I have a CCNA, VCP5, MCITP, CompTIA trio with experience and high level clearance. Might need to change location. Personal lab setup at home. Since I have started working here, I've lost all interest in studying and furthering my education within IT. Also, when trying to resolve an issue we can't call other departments because it breaks their "focus". I'm mostly venting because I feel like with all the studying I've done I should be doing something that offers a little more job satisfaction.

jvrlopez

What is your location? With those credentials and a clearance, San Antonio or the DMV area should be able to find you something.

pramin

Johnjones wrote: »

Yeah, it's really bad. I haven't even been working here for two months. I don't understand because I have a CCNA, VCP5, MCITP, CompTIA trio with experience and high level clearance. Personal lab setup at home.

With the certs and clearance; why did you take this position?

Johnjones

Just completed a contract and needed a job. Have a family to take care of. I'm in FL btw.

ande0255

I went through this not but 6 months ago, you just gotta keep interviewing and be absolutely sure to setup a linkedin profile and connect with local IT recruiters. I got my current position out of nowhere on linkedin from a recruiter, and I was on the brink of giving up.

Applying for jobs should be your full time second job to get out of that situation before it sinks your battleship bro!

Hammer80

Holy Crap what the hell are you doing?! With those qualifications you should easily get a IT job anywhere, especially in a town with a military base or contractors. Do you have a LinkedIn account ? if you don't you should, with that on your resume your should be getting recruiters throwing jobs at you left and right. You sir are way underemployed, you are most likely the most qualified person in your department by a mile. You could easily step into a NOC position anywhere or any other IT dept. Screw your existing company and your boss, the fact that you are having to do this crappy job with those qualifications means that they obviously don't have any idea of your value. Even with no experience you should easily be able to at least double your income overnight, and with experience triple or quadruple your income.

I am starting to see a theme with lack of IT jobs in Florida, every time i read a story where someone with tons of qualifications can't get a IT job it's almost always Florida. If you moved to Texas you would have so many interviews with so many companies that you would cry and laugh at the same time.

jvrlopez

Have you tried searching around any of the bases in Florida (Eglin, Hurlburt Field)?

If you don't use your TS within two years, it lapses, so just a heads up.

Johnjones

Is LinkedIn worth it? I always heard people just make a bunch of connections with random people and nothing comes of it. Recruiter's will contact you about jobs not mentioned on your resume once, etc. In regards to contracting, I think it's more of who you know then what you know from my experience, but I'll try it again. I wouldn't mind moving to DMV, but I can't get a callback.

tstrip007

I've never heard someone say, "Creating a linkedin account was the worst thing I've done for my career". I would take others advice and make your 2nd full time job being looking for another job. Post your resume up here and make sure its good. If your experience matches up with your certs like you say, you should not have a problem finding a good admin or engineer job. Post your resume on all the job sites (careerbuilder, monster, indeed, dice). Monitor craigslist daily. Reupload your resume to all those sites once a week. (You will get calls from recruiters). Good luck to you.

infulfx

If you can't find anything locally, i would just suggest to move somewhere else. I know it might be hard, don't know if you family or not but it would be the best career move you can do. I work at a help desk for about 4 years and i don't know why i lasted there so much but I had fun with my coworkers and the company did treat us good but like most people have said, it's a black hole and it's hard to get out. You might just need some motivation like I did that made me get out and find anotehr job. Luckly I landed another job that i was not really qualified for since I lack certs and knowledge they really like my soft skills and took a chance on me. Been there for 3 years now and learn so much and have hands on everything.

cyberguypr

There has to be more to this story. As mentioned above, I always hear that the Florida IT market is generally bad, but honestly I am inclined to think there's something else going on. Are you positive your resume is the best it can be? Are you getting face to face interview and not getting call backs or it doesn't even get to the initial call? With experience and credentials I would move earth to make sure I land at a good place. Status quo won't cut it. You need to adjust and get more aggressive. Otherwise you are in for a long nightmare at this place.

W Stewart

cloudyknight wrote: »

Is helpdesk really that awful? I'm at a small company handling all IT functions from desktop support to SQL DBA work, but they don't pay me for what I do. I've been looking to move into a helpdesk to make more money and have a chance at moving up from within a better company.

Should I aviod helpdesk at all cost and go straight for sysadmin?

Are you serious? Stay away from helpdesk. Your experience will get you a much better job in the long run that pays well and the work will be rewarding.

W Stewart

I live in Tampa, FL btw. The market isn't as good as a place like GA or TX or CA but if you're ambitious and you keep learning then you can make it into a decent IT role. I went from a dell tech support call center to a linux admin job in a matter of 3 years. My secret was that I didn't waste time at help desk. the manager told me in my 90 day eval that I've taken every call I'm gonna take after about 2 months so I didn't see any point in doing the same repetitive thing for the next year or so. I took a 50 cent pay cut to work with linux point of sales systems in a city outside of Tampa and moved out there to make the commute easier. I learned a lot at that job and it opened many doors for me. My though process when getting out of help desk was to learn the basics of as many technologies as I could because I didn't know where my next opportunity would come from. I also had to be willing to take that pay cut for the chance to learn valuable skills.

W Stewart

But don't get me wrong, I know a lot of smart guys with tons of experience who are getting low balled like crazy by some companies out here. I almost feel like I should be starting some kind of IT union but FL is a right to work state.

Johnjones

Honestly I wouldn't mind staying in a position with the potential for growth, but since this is a contract role that's out of the question. Some folks have been here for 7+ years. I can't imagine with much pay increase. If any of my co-workers were social it would help, but everyone is anti-social. Also, we have a tracking system that monitors call volume and breaks which totally sucks. I dread everyday of my life.

dsqueo1309

I am don't think there's coeping in a job like Help Desk. I have done call center work for over 5 years now. I only get calls now for help desk jobs which is irritating on its own.

I am working on a contract right now since March in a help desk role and every 2 weeks I call every recruiter I worked with looking for a way out. I only have my A+ but I'm enrolled in WGU waiting to earn my certs and degree.

If I had a choice I rather take a lower paying job and not deal with this but I rather leave on a good note.

cloudyknight

W Stewart wrote: »

Are you serious? Stay away from helpdesk. Your experience will get you a much better job in the long run that pays well and the work will be rewarding.

Thanks for the advice. From reading this it looks like hiring trends are only based on past experience. Would most companies rather hire someone from another company that already works in infrastructure than to promote an internal helpdesk guy?

I'd like to move into a pure infrastructure position. I also have a shot at becoming proficient with SQL and Access as I find myself doing more and more DBA work. I'm just not sure how to bridge that gap. Maybe I'll have better luck once I've hit the 2 year mark.

Jon_Cisco

Johnjones wrote: »

Honestly I wouldn't mind staying in a position with the potential for growth, but since this is a contract role that's out of the question. Some folks have been here for 7+ years. I can't imagine with much pay increase. If any of my co-workers were social it would help, but everyone is anti-social. Also, we have a tracking system that monitors call volume and breaks which totally sucks. I dread everyday of my life.

I feel for you. But it is extremely important that you understand that we choose how we react to situations. It will not get better unless you shift your viewpoint.

Good Luck!

--chris--

Adapt?

Overcome! If your not enjoying your job, use that as motivation to get out. Make that next job your motivation to learn new things now.

iBrokeIT

cloudyknight wrote: »

From reading this it looks like hiring trends are only based on past experience.

Would most companies rather hire someone from another company that already works in infrastructure than to promote an internal helpdesk guy?

Your first statement is correct - proven work experience is the #1 thing that will land you an IT job. That statement should also answer your question - most companies will take someone with proven experience in infrastructure over someone internal that needs to be trained up to do the job. It's a sad reality, if you want an increase in pay and responsibility then you jump ship.

Best of luck to you sir!