Dreadfully boring IT jobs...

DOLEMAN

Hey,

I work as a Software Tester. It's shockingly boring. I really have to struggle to motivate myself to get out of bed in the morning.

The place where I work is lovely. Lovely people, lovely atmosphere, no pressure, and good money. The work would be considered "good" software testing - lots of Unix and Jave stuff. It's certainly not beginners stuff. But it's just... not exciting.

I'm finding I'm coming home from work everyday totally exhausted because... I've been so bored during the day (i.e. half-asleep.)

Does anyone else feel like this? "Trapped" in a dire boring job but with great working conditions?

Raiser

I'm working in IT Support - has its negatives such as occasional manning of Helpdesk phones etc. :eek:

For the most part though the sheer variety of tasks makes an 8 hour day fly by and the journey from Mon. to Fri. is very, very quick.

- Did factory work years ago & 40 hours can seem like 120 when you're in certain jobs.

DOLEMAN

I worked in helpdesk before, and I agree the day flies. I actually quite enjoyed helpdesk stuff, but unfortunately the money is dire...

JackieChan

Raiser, you reminded me of when I too worked in a factory(10 years ago this year) and the 12 hour shifts were shocking. At dinner I would think that conversation we had had a breakfast had actually happened the previous day.....the pain of it.

ambasite

same. testing financial software, great company, great people, etc. the boredom of the job is unreal, no motivation, even the simplest task, writing a test case, executing a test case is a major effort... i'd rather be fishing.

Buttony

I'm a software developer and feel exactly the same. My motivation is zero at the moment. I haven't been working on anything that has challenged me in a long time and I'm bored to tears. The pay and conditions are great and the company is brilliant. I look around and see loads of people the same as me. The day really seems to drag. I don't want to change to another company as a developer, I don't know whether this is what I want anymore and I hate the whole corporate lifestyle.

DOLEMAN

Yeah! If only I'd become a plumber (seriously).

My manager seems so bored. It makes things even worse for me!

Isn't it amazing how boredom makes you exhausted at the end of the day?

IronMan

DOLEMAN wrote:

Yeah! If only I'd become a plumber (seriously).

Agreed. I work in IT and quite like it. But I had the opportunity to ditch in college, and train to be a plumber. I didn't. And how I regret it. A great job, excellent money, loads of variety, your own boss, and (after trying to get one to do some work in my apartment) no shortage of available work.

thedaveg

Who ever says it's too late??? Only you do!!!

I handed in my notice in my well paid IT consultancy job for a great company because I realised that it's not what I want to do. I work too hard not to get the job satisfaction I desire, so I am returning to university next year to follow my dream. Until then, what lies in wait??....... a huge paycut for starters.... but what price do you put on your own time and happiness?

I now have the chance to do all the things that I couldn't because I was working too hard........ I acknowledge that doing something like this is an opportunity easily afforded to a young person with no mortgage..... but there is more to life than a nice house and paying the bills!!

If you think something is holding you back from being happy..... remember, it is you that decides what it is!!

srdb20

I handed in my notice in my well paid IT consultancy job for a great company because I realised that it's not what I want to do.

Any jobs going there???

oh god yessss
but yahhh!!! today is my last day in the most dreadful boringest job known to man!!!


Im now working in Ernst and young from monday week Whoo hoo!

ButcherOfNog

Its your own fault, either strive to make it more interesting, or quit and get a more interesting job. Testing can be done two ways, the boring way, or the interesting way. If you are doing automated testing, you will walk into another job. If you are not doing automated testing, you should be, its more of a development role than pushing buttons, leads into load/stress testing and troubleshooting, theres plenty of scope, you just need to get off your a$$ and do something.

qwytre

I used to have the worst IT job ever, it was a 6 month work experience thing as part of my degree. My job was to take photos of new staff and put the pictures up on the intranet. Yep that was it. I used to enjoy emailing these peoples photos around to friends as most of them just looked so nerdy.

It was so demotivating that I used to come into work at about 10.30am and leave at 4pm, nobody even noticed much bar one morning when I got a sarcastic "Good Morning" from the Head of IT. I never turned up on a friday and instead got the early train home. After the Christmas holidays I didnt go back until a week later than expected, they even had my desk kind of put away and things stacked on top of it as they thought I had quit. I still got the full pay every week I was there, wouldn't you know it was a big Bank with more money than sense.

Needless to say I spent most of the days in there kinda hung over but it was so so boring. Still in IT now but I have my ideal job now, just pity about the commute.

DOLEMAN

ButcherOfNog wrote:

Its your own fault, either strive to make it more interesting, or quit and get a more interesting job. Testing can be done two ways, the boring way, or the interesting way. If you are doing automated testing, you will walk into another job. If you are not doing automated testing, you should be, its more of a development role than pushing buttons, leads into load/stress testing and troubleshooting, theres plenty of scope, you just need to get off your a$$ and do something.

Not everything is so black and white! Blaming it on laziness is a lazy way to viewing the problem...

As I said, great company, great people, great pay. It's just boring. Getting another testing or development job will be just as boring (or slightly less boring, or slightly more.) It will still be boring.

IT is a ****ty career choice for someone with good social skills and ambition. God damn my career guidance teacher!!!

quon

Doleman, It seems like you're comfortably stuck in a rut. Everything should be going peachy because it's got all these great things, friendly people, great pay etc. and you like and want to keep these aspects of your job,which may be whats stoppiong you quitting, just the work itself sucks.

If you want to become a plumber, then why not seriously think about it?

Don't ditch the day job just yet, but have you thought of doing a night course in some plumbing related topic to give you a feel for the trade? I am in IT and I am considering switching careers. Maybe to auto mechanic, so I'm looking around for motor maintenance classes in the evening. If I decide it's not for me, then at least I still have a job to go to and I'll be able to maintain my car. I'll keep on looking.

fatboypee

Ahhhhh....

Thing is here, do you have any responsibilities that may hold you back ? If not, review your situation and work on an escape route.... I'd love to change.. I enjoy what I do sometimes but its still boring at some levels, I'm sure every job has those elements (even plumbing, same house, same pipes... yadayadaya....), if you've nothing holding you back then please, for the sake of others not as fortunate, do something about it ... ... you will take a pay hit but if IT is not for you then you need to think long and hard about what you'd LOVE to do as a career and not just something that looks good as it has more freedom (very often not so true)....

There is also the point that work is work, what about what you do outside of that ? I live for my home time, especially in the summer... theres five hours of daylight after I go home and then the weekends !....

Fatboy..

DamoKen

ditto on the IT job, great company, brillant pay and perks, plus great social life, but the work is just soooo boring, maybe we all work in the same company?, now that would be funny
Anyway I am out of here in a few months, going to head off to NZ, greener pastures and all that what what?

Edd

I'm a software developer and also feel the same. I'm really struggling with motivation at the moment. I spend a lot of my time at work not working, but trying to look busy, and trying to look busy is actually exhausting work!! I been in my job for 3 years and get a fantastic salary, and the working conditions and people are excellent. I have a love/hate relationship with programming. Depending on what project i am working on the programming is either great enjoyable fun or boring mental torture. I need more work variety I just cant seam to sit in front of a pc programming for 7 hours a day anymore.

DOLEMAN

Yeah, Edd, I hear ya! I was a developer for a few years. Same thing - love/hate.

The thing is, I'm not lazy. The website in my sig, I am happy to work all weekend tweaking the code and design. But when I'm testing some boring app, with a manager who is clearly as bored as me, in an environment where you can _not_ work and no one seems to mind...it just make my motivation zero.

Hmmmmm...

In a sick/sad kind of way, it's nice to hear that there are other people in IT who feel the same as me. Maybe we should get together and form our own company

rsta

Hey Doleman sorry to hear you stuck in a rut in the job. It sucks alright, somebody else mentioned maybe doing a course in the evenings? Sounds like an alright idea. Hey just noticed your website, I'd say you wouldnt have a problem finding another job!? Best of luck with what u decide anyway

Most boring job I had was a data entry position during my year out in australia, at the time there was no work and people were actually goin back to Ireland/England or whereever early as they couldnt get work, so i was glad to get it. But the gladness didnt last too long! it was soooo monotonous I thought i was gonna end up with repetive strain injury or something.

There was about 25/30 of us all stuck in a little room with no radio or anything, and we couldnt even chat to eachother as the wicked team leader wouldnt let us... :mad: I ended up bringing in my cd discman player and listening to cd's during the shift to keep me awake. The shift started at 6am til 1pm... had to get up at 4am to get a bus to the job.. ah nightmare! I lasted 2 and a half weeks (cos i was desperate for some dosh) and then one day i finally landed a more normal job!

Cork

My solution to a boring job was to get my employer to pay for courses. Then focus on the course and it took attention from the job.

Brillant?

No - the course ends and you still have the boring job.

I am considering signing up to yet another course in the next few months. People think that I am a course junkie but I look around me and see an office of people in the job for 5-25 years and it motivates me to gain further qualifications.

Brillant?

Again, No. I am not gwtting much experience and I am finding it difficult even to get to the interview stage in other organisations.

People at work think I am very job focused. I find the job a bore.

timeout

Does anyone else feel like this? "Trapped" in a dire boring job but with great working conditions?

YES!

I too work as a Software Tester. It's boring, but the place is nice, small low office space with excelent views. Lovely people, very chatty,no pressure, and the money isn't the best but i'm not fussy. Its websites with alot of content and backend stuff.

Don't want to leave but the promotion prospects have gone up in smoke for the next 12 months or more, and won't be able to stand the job that much longer.

p.pete

I'm bored doing Internet support but not for long
It feels like I've been bored since the leaving cert pretty much, bad choice of college course - got through that and then got into IT support and have never really liked the jobs that much. The only job I can say that time went by quickly and I felt enjoyment with what I was doing was helpdesk support, money was poor and job security was poorer - plus I was unlikely to progress too far there.

So I've spent a long time trying to decide what it is I want to do. Eventually I was about to do the travel thing (had decided on a year or two in Japan teaching English) but I had big problems in the back of my mind. Mainly, what the hell will I be doing upon returning - one guess, IT! Except I'll have spent a year or two away enjoying myself, the thought of going back to IT would be even less enticing than before and whatever skills I have now would be less useful.

Having spent years wondering what it is I'd like to do with myself and having reached this stage of almost panick I decided to go to a private career guidance type person. I didn't get any easy answers there but they helped me learn a little bit more about myself and thinking in different directions. I'm still in the same job (large company, nice people, good conditions and money) but I'm here with the purpose of saving money before going back to college this September

What you come up with for your future will obviously depend on what commitments you have now at this point in your life, but I'd definitely recommend seeking help and asking questions about what you'd be suited to, good luck!

far2gud

I also work in IT support and feel the same as alot of you. I used to work doing helpdesk work but am now working as a sys admin. Your days fly working on a helpdesk but so does your life. In my current job I am just bored and lethargic...is anyone in IT happy in their work??

qwytre

far2gud wrote:

I also work in IT support and feel the same as alot of you. I used to work doing helpdesk work but am now working as a sys admin. Your days fly working on a helpdesk but so does your life. In my current job I am just bored and lethargic...is anyone in IT happy in their work??

I am! I've been working in IT since I left college back in 2001. I work in internal systems development and love it, I have all the responsibility I want, can work from home whenever I want, get to build small-ish systems from scratch and find it all quite rewarding. I think I like it because I am not a hard core programmer nor a bull**** talking middle manager (I do a bit of both!) so its varied and I dont feel bored on a day to day basis. Plus I have a great boss who doesnt check up on me and doesnt track my time but obviously that only lasts as long as I keep delivering whats expected.

I can imagine IT support is a bit boring, I have to do a small bit of support too on the systems I build and it is sometimes a drag. You should look to get into some other areas, SQL Server or Oracle databases are not that difficult but there are some good jobs in those areas....

DOLEMAN

qwytre - I'm glad you're happy!

I think part of the problem is people like me really don't find working with IT exciting. Yes, as a hobby, I love writing code and playing with technology. But sitting in an office all day, in front of a computer, is just not challenging. I don't find learning how to use a new piece of technology challenging. It requires patience and intelligence, yes, but it's not a challenge. Chatting up a girl in a bar and bringing her home, that's a challenge

As someone said to be recently, at least when you're in pain, you're not bored...

fatboypee

Hi Doleman

I haven't been back to this thread for a bit but... did you talk to your employer about the issues you have (guardedly asking if there are different opportunities ?), at least a change may get you out of the boredom for a while while you work out what better interests you...?

FBP.

kerinsp

Hi I spent 8 years working as a tester and hated every bit of it so I got out and changed careers this year. Took a pay cut but it was worth it to get away from the cublicle farms and geeks. I am working as a medical sales rep now and Its a lot better but still its tough work sometimes. My advise is to get the hell out of IT.

foxyboxer

DOLEMAN wrote:

Yeah! If only I'd become a plumber (seriously).

QUOTE]
exactly. there we were, my brother and i struggling to get points for a poxy IT course back when demand was high, stressed out of our heads, then two years later my younger brother is playing gran turismo the night before his leaving cert, knowing he wants to be a plumber. he now earns almost double what i get and he's still not finished his apprenticeship.....more power to him though!

Dave!

Interesting read, this thread... I'm just finished my first year studying computer science and history. I hated the course for most of the year, but the history part looks like it'll get better next year. I don't want a career in IT, though... I'm just not interested in it as a job! As DOLEMAN said, I play around with programs and websites as a hobby, but as a job? Count me out.

I just don't know what to do re: a career, when I'm finished in college... Is it pointless getting this computer qualification? Last year I thought about dropping out of my course, and considered an apprenticeship as an electrician. What's always been at the back of my head is to join the gardaí or the army, though.

I dunno... We'll just see how the course goes next year

Good luck to you all!

CiaranC

Its perfectly viable to take your IT qualification and move into the equivalent of plumbing. Im on the road, have little stress, earn good money and enjoy my job. Not all IT work involves sitting in a cubicle tapping a keyboard all day.

Its perfectly possible to take equipment onsite, physically put it together, install and configure HW, then install and configure SW over a couple of days. Which is exactly like working in a trade.