Reply to: Boring Job

[rurffy]

I actually think the OP is either being lazy or doesnt have the passion to grow. - I remember when i started, 9 months in 2nd line and then moved to 3rd - Did all possible certifications i could get and studied hard - worked hand in hand with the 3rd line guys to boost up my skills.

12 years in 2nd line support???? really? - and if you cant pass Microsoft MCP Exam easily with your 12 Years experience ... well i think you should spend 6 more years to fully understand 2nd Line support.

The earlier you move up the ladder, the better - I would advice you take more certifications/Study more instead of the OU degree if you want to move into contracting. Gigs are more worried about what you can deliver at day one and not what you have on paper. (Well the paper(cert) could get you to the door though).

[SuPaStA]

Hello

I did get an MCP in Windows XP before but to be honest it was really hard work..I was going to do the MCP in Windows Server 2003 but the pint out for the brain dumps for it where so thick I never bothered as I was loosing the will to live haha!

This is the difference between a contractor and a permie - there is a lot of money in contracting (even support) but unless you can't be that bothered to better yourself training/experience etc then you will never achieve it.

I came to the UK in 2005 and had to start from the bottom (helpdesk) and by 2010 I had the experience and qualifications (MCSE/CCNP/ETC) to start contracting.I have done well for myself since then and don't see myself going perm any-time soon (just turned down a 85k+bonus job opportunity recently because it was perm).

To put it into perspective there are still people I worked with on that helpdesk, still moaning about being there.....but not bothered to take matters into their own hands and start working to better themselves. Maybe I should be happy there are people like that out there.

[Sausage Surprise]

Have you tried valium or yoga? Or a basic English language course?

Just beat me to it

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

+1 to that. Why would anyone invest extra time and money in and employee that has demonstrated a long term inability or effort to do it for themselves.

+2

If you are in a job that long and don't have the drive to advance then you only have yourself to blame

[NorthWestPerm2Contr]

You do realise this is a contractor forum. May not be the best place to be asking about permie career advice I am afraid. You you feel working as a permie in 2nd line support will be very different to you you feel working as a contractor in 2nd line support.

Really?

I can't imagine the work would be all that different - it is support work after all. Dev work you can see as different because you come in with something to deliver (hit ground running, delivery mode) whereas with support it's often cover they need etc.

[northernladuk]

12 years suggests to me a lack of career planning, ambition or motivation to do something a bit more fulfilling or rewarding. Current client I work at typically employs 1st line support on 1-2 year fixed term contracts. I've seen a few of these eventually move on to a variety of roles such as junior BA, data analyst etc. after a year. Now they are on a career path of sorts.

12 years? I would have lost the will to live by then!

+1 to that. Why would anyone invest extra time and money in and employee that has demonstrated a long term inability or effort to do it for themselves.

[edison]

I can't believe how somebody can work 12 years in 2nd line support. This is a line of work with a high turnover, people don't stay in 2nd level for more than 2-3 years, at least not in the UK.

Being bored or frustrated would be the last of my worries. I'd be more worried to lose my job and not being able to transfer my skills elsewhere.

12 years suggests to me a lack of career planning, ambition or motivation to do something a bit more fulfilling or rewarding. Current client I work at typically employs 1st line support on 1-2 year fixed term contracts. I've seen a few of these eventually move on to a variety of roles such as junior BA, data analyst etc. after a year. Now they are on a career path of sorts.

12 years? I would have lost the will to live by then!

[petergriffin]

I can't believe how somebody can work 12 years in 2nd line support. This is a line of work with a high turnover, people don't stay in 2nd level for more than 2-3 years, at least not in the UK.

Being bored or frustrated would be the last of my worries. I'd be more worried to lose my job and not being able to transfer my skills elsewhere.

[SueEllen]

Never seen this in my experience.

April seems no different to any other time. By the same token, I've landed my last 4 roles in either August or December - traditionally thought of as being fallow periods.

Agree.

Contracts are available all year round because companies screw up all year round.

[northernladuk]

You do realise this is a contractor forum. May not be the best place to be asking about permie career advice I am afraid. You you feel working as a permie in 2nd line support will be very different to you you feel working as a contractor in 2nd line support.

[jmo21]

I did get an MCP in Windows XP before but to be honest it was really hard work..I was going to do the MCP in Windows Server 2003 but the pint out for the brain dumps for it where so thick I never bothered as I was loosing the will to live haha!

I do like IT still but I don't like some of the really techy stuff and with no disrespect some people in IT are very socially inept. I want to work somewhere when you can have a bit of banter and a bit of a laugh the company i work for is ex government maybe theres one issue.

Im thinking of try to finish off my Open University Open Degree i just need 60 more points at level 3. I assume having a Degree is better than having a Microsoft Certification that will be out of date in a few years?

You reaaallly don't know what you want do you? One minute saying your job is easy, but you struggled with MCP exams. Then you want to finish a degree you started and presumably gave up on.

Moaning about a boring, easy job, with people that aren't fun or whatever.

Sounds more like a midlife crisis than anything else.

Do you have a family or any hobbies?

[Gittins Gal]

Now is a good time to look, new projects tend to kick-off in April. New project new team, start fresh, works for me.

Never seen this in my experience.

April seems no different to any other time. By the same token, I've landed my last 4 roles in either August or December - traditionally thought of as being fallow periods.

[vwdan]

Slinky, Currently doing a 3rd line job and still get calls asking for file restores etc. Its always the same.

At least with contracting you can count the money....

Yep - in my (soon to be no more) permie consulting job I'm meant to be operating at near vendor-support level (So 3rd - 4th line for 3rd Party orgs) and our help desk still gets the weekly stupid question / call from other organisations 3rd line teams.

I just remind myself that
1) Other people are lazy
2) Other people don't have the drive to work out the "why"
3) Other people don't want to learn
4) Other people are lazy

And that's why I'm here doing what I do and getting paid a reasonable sum for it and they're over there doing what they do complaining that nobody appreciates them.

It's not hard to progress quickly in IT Engineering, you just need the drive to learn and really figure stuff out. I'd advise anyone to move on from support to actual engineering/building/consulting/etc though. You can never escape the odd support call and your knowledge will always be called upon, but dealing with other IT Teams is a world away from dealing with end users.

[MyUserName]

That's thing for me anyway contracting for IT support does not pay that well I mean how hard is it to do a roll out contract? the best paid contact I had when I tried it was for Mclaren but don't get me wrong its a cool building but imagine having to take phone calls from 5 PA's they would often swear and scream and shout ..no money is worth taking that s%^t

Pay me enough and I would do it!!

[ukmercenary]

Slinky, Currently doing a 3rd line job and still get calls asking for file restores etc. Its always the same.

At least with contracting you can count the money....

That's thing for me anyway contracting for IT support does not pay that well I mean how hard is it to do a roll out contract? the best paid contact I had when I tried it was for Mclaren but don't get me wrong its a cool building but imagine having to take phone calls from 5 PA's they would often swear and scream and shout ..no money is worth taking that s%^t