Isn’t that where you go to work, do the same thing, day in, day out – and finish the day achieving absolutely nothing? (or the nearest equivalent).
That’s the realisation for me, where I am at now, is too boring. Each day, it’s generally the same story, someone did something, or didn’t do something, and that’s caused the issue, the fix is generally doing what someone should have done already, and making that happen.
If, on the other hand, I was solving issues of a different nature, such as a website not working, due to a scripting bug, or adding a new web application, or extending a current application with a new feature, or upgrading server software – it’d be far more interesting.
The other part, ‘dead-end’, is because there is no apparent room for advancing into anything remotely more interesting, less boring. It’s a dead end. It leads nowhere.
I finished Friday, the same way every Friday ends, annoyed that the week effectively resulted in very little improvement, the same issues from the weeks prior ongoing, annoyed at many of the staff.
I’m certain there is a pattern with just about anything that has a dead-end. You reach the dead-end and stay there, or take a different turn, and end up reaching the highway.
This logic can apply to driving, jobs, problems, pretty much anything. If you reach a dead-end, then you either diversify, and extend the options, or you go back and take a different road.
I can diversify, by extending to those other avenues, and when they liven up, keep those in priority 1, or I can go a different road, when the “Road Closed” signs are removed.
For me, the Road Closed signs are the long transport times to get to another position. The only way they will be removed, is if a business advertises locally for a role that I believe I can fulfill, and end up accepting, or if they are willing to accept a work-at-home applicant.
The other avenues, would be creating the business myself, and making it viable. This sounds like too hard a task for someone like me. I have minimal time after work and the kids to put into it, to make it succeed. Add to this, the marketplace is unique and can be competitive.
Back to ‘dead-end’ – this leaves me no direction to decide if I want to get CCNA, which could lead to CCVP – but no point getting either of them if the career prospects at the end remain as they are now.
I could go through and get MCSE (lame, I know), Linux+, or many other industry certs, each of them specific to a target job – and if the target job isn’t reached, the certificate is effectively wasted (CCNA has a life of 3 years as an example).
VoIP is an interesting path, but I have no career prospects where I am.
Do I cave in, take a job in Sydney and sit on the F3 day in, day out? My thoughts on that is No!.
Where I am right now, isn’t ideal, but travelling to Sydney each day – that’s no better (and possibly be no worse). Work from Home wins over travel, purely because there’s more time for ‘me’.
Back to ‘boring, dead-end job’, it is very easy to see why the work for customer service is off shored. If it were me, I’d keep Australians on it, and be very careful about the aptitude of the people being employed – you want intelligent, attentive, bright individuals – not the dumb shits that frequent the ACT.