New job needed ASAP

factor29

So I posted a while ago about how down I was feeling with hobbies, friends etc but more importantly my job.

I followed the advice on that thread and am currently volunteering which has improved the hobby/socialising situation and I enjoy it.

Since then I have been diagnosed with work related stress/depression and currently on anti depressants because of the work situation.

I absolutely hate my job at the moment. It has been building up for the past 9 months or so, but recent events at work have just tipped me over the edge. The culture where I work is if you work to live you are a nobody - you MUST live to work. The more work you do in your own time the better and you have a nice easy path to the top. I work in IT by the way, general support kind of thing.

The trouble is this job is probably the most boring thing I have ever done in my life. It is the same thing day in day out, everybody expecting the impossible of you and giving us the crap jobs when they dont want them. I usually have little or no work to do, which just makes the day drag on and on. I only live for one thing and that is finishing time and the weekend.

I work early/afters shifts and recently have started dreading the early shift as that is when everybody else is in the office - I have to pretend I am busy. When I am on lates once everyone leaves the office at 5pm I am on the Ipad playing games or looking for jobs etc.

The trouble is the job probably pays more than it should. Seemed like a brilliant thing at the time when I was offered the wage, but like they say if its too good to be true it usually is!

I enjoyed the job to start with, but the job has got more boring and more quieter over time.

I have now been looking for jobs for the past 9 months, and have had very little luck finding jobs suitable for applying for - and have not had a single interview - probably due to only applying for a handful of jobs.

My ideal job would be something outdoors or something where I can travel around throughout the day a little. Something that isnt at a desk for 8 whole hours. The job needs to pay at least 25k, which is where I am struggling. I am now so desperate to leave i am looking at every single type of job that pays over 25k, but still nothing.

If the job is office based, fine - so long as it gets me out the hell hole that I currently call work!

Really need some help finding something or some ideas, as I cant cope much longer and know its only a matter of time before I am given the sack!

DCFC79

Only obvious 2 I can think of are:

You widend your search area ?

Thought about relocating toi where there are more jobs ?

BillyB

You could try retraining, do a course in your own time to gain more experience in a different sector. Put your CV on a few job boards/ job sites and maybe contact some agencies. Alot of them offer permanent jobs and will contact you based on what jobs you are looking for..

DKLS

Fastest way out would be to go down the contracting route, something along the lines of IT Support or IT Engineer. Look on CWJobs,

Could I ask why you dont have any work to do?, sounds like your bored and its hard work looking busy, in the meantime it may be worth asking if you could take on additional tasks to stop the boredom.

To assist with the stress/mental health I would recommend signing up to Living Life to the Full website (its free!)

andrewjf

BillyB wrote: »

You could try retraining, do a course in your own time to gain more experience in a different sector. Put your CV on a few job boards/ job sites and maybe contact some agencies. Alot of them offer permanent jobs and will contact you based on what jobs you are looking for..

I was going to suggest that, but the OP said a job paying over £25k is required. I don't know his/her circumstances, but I know in my situation, I couldn't afford to take the hit of retraining and the massive salary drop that would entail. Also depends on age - if you take the long term view that putting up with a salary drop initially will probably lead to a lot more job satisfaction from doing something you enjoy.

DKLS wrote: »

Fastest way out would be to go down the contracting route, something along the lines of IT Support or IT Engineer. Look on CWJobs,

Except it looks like from what the OP said, he hates the support job he's doing, and money isn't the prime motivator.
Although the IT sector is massive, and retraining in a different area is possible, but again, a salary drop would probably be likely.

gb12345

andrewjf wrote: »

Although the IT sector is massive, and retraining in a different area is possible, but again, a salary drop would probably be likely.

And most IT related jobs (except possibly the network/hardware side of things) will involve a lot of time sat at a desk (or in a meeting if you are lucky).

DKLS

andrewjf wrote: »

Except it looks like from what the OP said, he hates the support job he's doing, and money isn't the prime motivator.
Although the IT sector is massive, and retraining in a different area is possible, but again, a salary drop would probably be likely.

True, but he also wanted to get out of his current role, and the fastest route out would be to get another support job elsewhere on contract, if he pulls his finger out and his good skills he could be in another role within a couple of weeks.

BUt I suspect that the underlying issues need to be resolved first before the OP is happy in a role.

andrewjf

DKLS wrote: »

True, but he also wanted to get out of his current role, and the fastest route out would be to get another support job elsewhere on contract, if he pulls his finger out and his good skills he could be in another role within a couple of weeks.

BUt I suspect that the underlying issues need to be resolved first before the OP is happy in a role.

Yup, and this is quite revealing -

"I usually have little or no work to do, which just makes the day drag on and on. I only live for one thing and that is finishing time and the weekend."

I've been there, and believe me it's absolutely soul destroying. The OP should seek to resolve this situation ASAP, either by talking to people at work or by finding a more fulfilling job. Otherwise he's heading for severe depression.

RomfordPele

Not wanting to repeat whats been said but my advice would be:

Get into a regimented habit of searching. Set aside x amount of hours a week scouring different job boards. All online job boards, nowadays, enable you to commit bespoke, tailored searches and so be as specific as possible.

If you get the chance, network. Go to coffee meet ups, get on LinkedIn. By meeting people and telling them about who you are and what you can do, you're likely to improve your chances. You never when someone might think of you and so plants some seeds.

factor29

Thanks guys.

Yeah the retraining is likely to put me at the bottom of the salary range, and I'm already struggling to find something with a suitable salary with my 7+ years of experience in this role.

To get out of this job short term, Ill try my hand at ANYTHING if it pays. Long term I don't know - not sure if IT is for me, or if I need something more exciting.

Unfortunately I guess I was paid too much too young and took on a chunk of debt. The stress didnt help either! I can afford it comfortably at the mo but with a big drop it could be tight.

I'm already looking on every job site I know, every single day and I get daily email alerts from the big recruitment sites. My CV is uploaded and searchable.

Like I say, im willing to do absolutely anything so long as the pay is OK. There must be something out there somewhere lol :rotfl:

andrewjf

factor29 wrote: »

Thanks guys.

Yeah the retraining is likely to put me at the bottom of the salary range, and I'm already struggling to find something with a suitable salary with my 7+ years of experience in this role.

To get out of this job short term, Ill try my hand at ANYTHING if it pays. Long term I don't know - not sure if IT is for me, or if I need something more exciting.

Unfortunately I guess I was paid too much too young and took on a chunk of debt. The stress didnt help either! I can afford it comfortably at the mo but with a big drop it could be tight.

I'm already looking on every job site I know, every single day and I get daily email alerts from the big recruitment sites. My CV is uploaded and searchable.

Like I say, im willing to do absolutely anything so long as the pay is OK. There must be something out there somewhere lol :rotfl:

I spent the first 7 years of my career in IT tech support and I really regret not getting out of it sooner. Fortunately I managed to migrate into software development within the same company so I didn't really have to start from scratch again.
But if you do want a fresh start on something completely different, then I think you're going to have to take a hit. Anyway, best of luck.