Screw it....do what your enjoy doing. Security is a fallacy used to lead you around like a donkey on a rope. Life is wayyyyyyyyy too short to get stuck somewhere you don't want to be.
Good luck finding a consulting job -- do they still exist any more? I agree with trying out the change, but don't get rid of your day job! If you want some experience, I can always use someone here unpaid of course If you do make a change, make absolutely sure that you can get a job before you leave your current one. Not being able to find a job REALLY REALLY sucks . . . a lot! Oh, and make sure that you can do fine on the salary you'd be making. Some people make money in IT, but many of those who don't have much experience and only have certs end up working contract jobs that are sporadic, can involve lots of travel, and can range from $30/hr to $7 per hour. When the contract job life is going well, it is GREAT, but when you've been out of work for a month, it's not a ball any more.
I'd have let it slide, but it would hurt my argument. Which is this: that you can take every conceivable measure and still lose. That's not to say that seeking security is bad or pointless. It is only to say don't make security your idol because it will fail you one day. There are higher things to subscribe yourself and even your children to. Almu, if you believe in God, switch careers. How bad could it get? If, like me, you don't believe in God, hang on to what you got because you only have your wits to protect you. (BTW, my parents also had a dog that didn't get vaccinated and contracted parvo and lived anyway and is now 13 years old. Behad, you're not my brother by any chance are you?)
Nearly 80 years in the same location, the second largest refinery in Texas, making gasoline for 100 million cars on the road, and over 300 operators with less seniority than me......trust me, my job is going to be here awhile. I never said I hated my job. It just does not make me happy working here. Personally, I'd love to open my own landscaping business. That would make me extremely happy, but it would not provide the security needed to ensure said happiness. This is just my opinion and my way of viewing the situation Almu presented. He asked, and I told him what I thought.
I respectfully disagree. I am not making security my idol, simply my goal in life. The higher things myself and my kids subscribe to are not defined by what I do for a living. LOL...I said lived...past tense. (And so is the dog!)
JayZ, I work for a big ad agency. The name of it is the Bravo Group in downtown NYC. Don't crank call me! Here is the perfect example about what I am talking about when it comes to perks. It was freakin freezin outside today but very sunny. I left for lunch at 12:30. I took a car to 50th street and 5th avenue to look for a watch. Took my time. Then went to Niketown to buy my first pair of sneakers in 5 years. Took my time. The car brought me back to the office. It was damn near 3. My boss saw me walk in. Followed me to my office. Opened my sneaker box and said "You know, if I wasn't 52, I would actually think these ugly **cks would look good on me. Where the hell do you get such ugly pieces of s**ts???" We laughed. I left to go home after he did at 5:15pm. No b****in. No complaining. But I do have to say that I am there sometimes til 4am in the morning. I do work alot of overtime which I don't get paid for. And one of the best perks is that if after 9pm I get a driver to take me home in a nice Lincoln. But like I said, its tax time. And last Wednesday, I worked until 4am and was right back at work at 9am. World wide corporate taxes are weekend things which include Sundays. But my boss is right there with me which I appreciate. The thing is that in the morning, I just don't have the same...oomph as before. Maybe its Sept 11th. Maybe I am burned out. Maybe I need a get away for a few weeks? Just for the hell of it, I am going to format this machine to reinstall crap and configure crap for the next 4 hours. See what I mean?
Almu: That sounds familiar. I have a friend whose wife is on the partnership track at her law firm. She works between 65 and 80 hours each week. If she doesn't, she won't make partner. He works a 40+ hour per week job AND they have a one-year-old already in daycare. It's really NICE daycare but it is still daycare. They had this arrangement set up 3 MONTHS after he was born. I am far from a traditional person but I couldn't imagine doing this if you have a child. Anyway, the concept of working long hours is a tough one for me. I work a lot of hours but I do it at home so I don't have a commute and I can take care of other stuff while I'm working. I guess I just always agreed with the quote: "No one ever said on his death bed, 'I should have spent more time in the office.'"
