Dealing With Discouragement

peterw2300 · 2022-12-13T08:27:45.000Z

In any profession or activity you are going to sometimes wonder whether you are adequate and why is it that others seem to be sailing along with no problems whilst you struggle. Everyone has bad spells when nothing goes right and problems pile up as it is a fact of life. You just have to develop the determination to plough on and the ability to recognise when you need help so that you are not buried and these characteristics will be valued by employers. Have a good working relationship with your boss with clear courses of actions you are taking so that you can keep him/her informed if needed allowing him/her to suggest ideas.

chris.hone · 2022-12-13T09:44:30.000Z

Wait until the Sh!t hits the fan, you are placed under extreme pressure and you resolve/fix the issue. That’s when you know you are not an imposter. We all have days when we feel like you do, but then we all have really good days. Take each challenge as it comes and leanr from it. When I left the Navy it took me a good couple of years to settle back into a civi role if I’m honest and when I started out in IT I felt like you do for a long time.

gregdrauch · 2022-12-13T12:20:01.000Z

I think most people go through periods where they feel like they could do better. It’s part of our nature. The question is what do you do next. Do you learn more, do more, be better? Or do you give up? Be the one who continues to strive, continues to learn, continues to grow. And don’t forget to step back once in a while and review your accomplishments. I think you’ll be surprised at how much you done over the course of your career. It’s really easy to lose track of your successes as you slog through the daily grind.

jeffjones11 · 2022-12-13T13:17:38.000Z

Everyone faces impostor syndrome or other existential crisis from time to time, whether it is the professional arena or in life in general. I would be worried about the mental state of anyone who never did. Like fear, doubt is natural. And like fear, it is healthy as long as you don’t let it get the better of you. Check your scorecard from time to time - count the wins large and small. I’d be willing to bet there are far more wins than losses in your tally.

EDIT: Besides, everyone knows printers are evil, placed upon the earth to test the IT faithful,

smalltownitguy · 2022-12-13T13:37:27.000Z

Imposter syndrome is very common for IT, no matter how long you have been in it. After nearly 18 years in IT I changed jobs and it really opened my eyes to how much I didn’t know. I ended up a few times on the verge of a panic attack in the bathroom (only private space at the company) expecting to be fired, but ended up surviving until I could find a job out of there (stress level is WAY down since then). Sometimes the issue, like it was for me, can just be lack of support/input from co-workers and lack of documentation on what the (&^$ someone else set up to get the job done and you now have to deal with.

tim-smith · 2022-12-13T13:39:45.000Z

First off: Printers are Satan’s tools. Never use printers to benchmark anything except the depth’s of God’s sick sense of humor.

That said, It’s always better in the end. If it’s not better, it’s not the end. Life isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon.

I have imposter syndrome big time. I don’t have a college degree. I didn’t even major in Computer Science or Computer Programming when I went…erm…“enrolled” in college (I spent my time dinking around in the computer labs on the brand new 286’s instead of going to class until NDSU kicked me out.) I’ve been doing IT for almost 30 years. I’ve had a few computer classes and week-long training camps, but I’m pretty much self-taught on everything. When I pointed that out to a future boss during an interview, he just said “Yeah, but we’re all self-taught. Windows wasn’t even a thing when we went to college.” Yet somehow, despite my lack of formal education, I’ve managed to earn a few awards and recognitions over the years that should tell me I’m not a total waste. That doesn’t stop the voice in the back of my brain that tells me I’m over paid and out of my league, but it does help the rational part of my brain combat it. To make matters worse, I recently took a full stack development job. I’ve made some websites, written a program or two (and even sold two!), and hundreds (thousands?) of scripts. But does that really qualify me as a full stack developer? Apparently my new boss thinks so because I was very upfront about my short comings during the interviews. His comment was, “Your problem isn’t a lack of honesty, its a lack of confidence. And I like the determination.” Because remember: It’s not a sprint, its a marathon. Like Dory says, “Just keep swimming”.

The point is, you’ve likely gotten to the point where the education the Navy gave you and any college courses you’ve taken are not readily applicable. Not to worry! You’re in the same boat as most seasoned IT pros now. And the days of one person knowing everything about computers is long over. You could be a printer expert like Repairatrooper , a virtualization pro like Rod-IT , or a PowerShell expert like Neally , but I will bet dollars to donuts that none of the excellent pros here at SpiceWorks would claim to be an expert in everything. Chances are even these pure cap brainiacs have people they consider mentors. If you want to impress your boss and prove your worth, don’t give up. Put on your big boy Underoos , pour some coffee, and set something on fire.

machomanrandall · 2022-12-13T13:42:05.000Z

Imposter Syndrome is a pain in the butt. It’s important to remember though that its really just negative thoughts due to stress and anxiety. It sounds like you enjoy IT related work and have had success over the past couple of years doing it. Almost 7 years of IT related work shows that you know most of what your doing. Sometimes new things take a while to click. Being introduced to new environments/infrastructure, new workloads, and new people, all can take some time to become comfortable or familiar with. If you feel there are holes in your expertise/knowledge then its always best to find a way to fill it. Whether it be taking a course/certification, watching or reading 1 hour a day on the subject, etc. Being proactive is usually better then being reactive especially in the IT field

shaneharvey · 2022-12-13T13:45:37.000Z

This is normal

NetworKing · 2022-12-13T13:52:16.000Z

I felt this to some degree yesterday try and load a network printer i know works tried two versions of the vendor’s drivers loads but refuses to print, tried MS driver same thing. I can ping it, but won’t print finally figured must be firewall somewhere but that person was out so I was dead in the water at that point. My issue is I know there are things we could do better but we always did this way so we still do or the way these things should work like GPO software deployment no matter what you do or try just don’t work. I’d like to try and get better with network side things but we looked at things like DNA center and it is just not worth the cost or risk being that tied to one vendor.

I can relate to where you are coming from and i get the same thing at times, but I also try and realize tech is always changing if someone days they know it all they are full of themselves. Also there is so much to keep track of even with what I do patch panels, ports, vlans, ips, etc. I often have to go back to spreadsheets or tickets to see what was done. This constant change, security things, complexity and people abusing tech in some way also kind of make it not all that exciting like I once thought it was. I think for me another thing I do is get away from tech learn some other new skill Welding, riding horses, etc. Some of these are scary at first but once you do you may find you like it or realize you can still figure out things.

Briser-fae-the-broch · 2022-12-13T14:00:29.000Z

As many have said, it goes with the job.

I remember about 30 years ago when I was just getting a foothold in IT, a popular guy was let go and I was given his job. One of the earliest things I was asked to do was fit a ribbon to an old dot matrix printer in the accounts dept and it was a fiddly job, to which the woman in charge of that dept said “Bring back Neil”.

I am pretty much self-motivated and I don’t really need pats on the back but I can get rapidly de-motivated by comments like that and it can make you feel a certain lack of worth. However, I let it go at the time and got on with the job and I never looked back.

alangeoffrion · 2022-12-13T14:52:25.000Z

I’ll echo that imposter syndrome can be a big part of it. Another thing that I have personally experienced is anxiety (mostly social) and moderate to high depression largely due to the divorce from hell. Seeing a therapist can be a huge benefit and if needed see a psychiatrist. There is no shame in needing medication to improve your mental well being.

Now onto another part of your feelings. Are you in the right area of IT, part of you’re feelings may be that you are either bored or it’s just not a good fit for you. Consider what really interests you and work to that position. Find job postings and work on those skills and consider earning certs in that area.

Just know that if you switch for the short term you’re likely to feel even more out of your depth. I’ve done traditional on-prem security for over 20 years, this year I became cloud security engineer number 1 without even a manager just reporting to our director. We’ve since hired a manager experienced in DevSecOps and I feel even more out of control. I’ve felt discouraged with questions my new manager has asked and I have to say I don’t know far too often. Yet each question gives me an area to study and learn.

chivo243 · 2022-12-13T14:57:08.000Z

It goes with the territory. You will have days where you kick ass and take names, and other days your name gets taken in shame… I’ve had my share of down days, and I think Tom, Dick or Harry off the street could do better on their worst day.

Another 22 year veteran with little to no formal training…

grh6534 · 2022-12-13T15:01:07.000Z

A little bit of self-doubt, which is what ‘impostor syndrome’ is, keeps you grounded - saves you becoming one of those insufferable ‘I am an IT god’ bores.

spiceuser-qratq · 2022-12-13T15:04:48.000Z

If you compare yourself to your previous self that can alleviate imposter syndrome. This often comes when I compare myself to others, who’ve had different experiences and teachings, financial help, etc etc etc.

Take into account that sometimes the technology is fighting against us also. It may not be compatible, or there is a hint of a bit of information in a 20 year old forum/manual stating X will not work with Y.

I’ve been stuck on something for hours, gone home, to sleep, then just woke up the next morning with the answer… fresh brain/fresh eyes

jcox11 · 2022-12-13T15:17:20.000Z

technically been in IT since 1998. Imposter syndrome is very real and affects lifelong veterans. You’re not alone in that regard.

John5152 · 2022-12-13T15:44:16.000Z

I don’t think anyone whose been in IT for more than a year or two hasn’t come across jobs that they thought should be simple and quick which turn out to take ten times longer than you expected and push the frustration levels through the roof, but you walk away for a bit and do something else and then when you come back (maybe not the first time) it suddenly clicks and you feel a wave of satisfaction.

What doesn’t break you makes you stronger (and more experienced / valuable), stick in there!

testa2 · 2022-12-13T17:02:22.000Z

Been doing IT for 34 years, I always feel like an imposter, I try to handle the hard unknowns for my team. we have a Team Lead but since he is laid back watching youtube I usually am the guy 50 people ask for help, even at the highest tier. but I learn from my mistakes and late hours of solving the unsolvable. Army taught me that doing tech as a cav scout cause the comm/net team cant go into hostile areas.

zed · 2022-12-13T17:07:16.000Z

Working with computers is not the same as working in IT.

I did tech support for 4 years before getting a helpdesk job. The experience helped but it’s not the same thing.

I’ve now been doing real IT for 6 years. I don’t know anything about setting up a VoiP server. I still spend way too much time fixing a “simple” printer issue.

As a help desker, it sounds like you’re doing fine. Maybe if you were hired as a sysadmin your imposter syndrome would be justified.

Jimeagle · 2022-12-13T17:54:16.000Z

As you’ve no doubt surmised by now, imposter syndrome is quite common in IT. We chose to be in an ever-evolving industry where there is always something to learn, and we’re always going to encounter the unknown. That’s inherently scary. I’ve found the best thing for me is to dive in and if the job is beyond my experience be sure to reach out to the resources available to me for help. And take notes. Lots of notes that I can go back to later for review, learning, or just when I encounter the same situation in 6 months and can’t remember how we fixed it last time. Note your successes as well as your learning experiences and you’ll soon find you are feeling less like an imposter than before.

tagyourit · 2022-12-13T18:54:22.000Z

Are you comparing yourself to someone else? trying to be someone else isn’t healthy. You need to be yourself. If things take you longer to learn, or if you are fast at learning. That’s who you are. You need to do you, not someone else, don’t strive to be like someone else. Any IT person has troubles like you stated, years 6 in IT is like dog years, tech advances so fast you can’t be master of everything.

Take a breathe and approach everything logically, one step at a time.

Follow troubleshooting methods and don’t forget to restart the computer. The best person you can be is yourself.

There isn’t a person in this community that knows everything. It they did they wouldn’t bother being here, they would be rich and on an island beach somewhere.