Random Thoughts - Part Deux [NO POLITICS]

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by ScoobsMcGee

That's a good one, too. I had a friend in college with two dark tabbies named Guinness and Stout. Two of the most laid back cats I've ever met.

Also excellent. I just thought of one. I could call mine Bang and Olaf

edit: nah that sucks but I have to keep it real so I'm leaving it.

Originally Posted by Teseo

@soulreapersteve

lolol Steeeeeve nooooooo

[Ultramaroon]

#99problems #sysadminlyfe #reboot

[soulreapersteve]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Steve, I have to ask ( not ragging on you) since you so frequently say you are stressed so badly from work. From what I understand you monitor systems and if there is a problem you contact sombody. Is this correct? If so what exactly is causing this frequent stress? You have only been full time employed for about a year and if stressing now promotion and higher paying jobs with more responsibility are going to destroy you. Like I said I am not ragging here but actually curious and quite frankly concerned a bit.

So I'm the first line of defense in my line of work. My job is to monitor and resolve the initial tickets that come in to our system. If I can't resolve it, then I escalate to higher level resources.

There are quite a few factors that is wigging me out currently, compared to when I first started 2 years ago and up until beginning of this year. The head honchos are trying to take on larger clients, which means more $$$, but we don't have the systems nor manpower to support a large number of seats. They have no plan laid out, just "fly by wire and see what happens" kind of deal right now. We have voiced our complaints, yet simply told to roll with it. The new system we are using now is complete shit with how they are asking us to use it. Because of this alone, many, many technologically savvy resources have left after being there for 5+ years.

This one is mostly my own. With trying to get a promotion, I am taking on harder cases and attempting to learn new things.. also simply personal growth. However, that conflicts with my actual position because I can't work on the harder cases if shit is hitting the fan. Its mostly a balancing act though.

3rd, I'm a hard worker and its extremely frustrating when I have another coworker at my level who is very lazy. I do at least 3x the work they do, and management is attempting to rectify that but (my theory) they can't push too hard because he has some sort of mental disorder and they are afraid of him filing some sort of discrimination lawsuit.

4th, the work is not hard at all at my level. I came in with only theory from schooling and is able to do this job, with management and senior level resources being surprised at how quickly I was able to learn things. But when the combination of shit hitting the fan and having lazy coworkers, that's when I get stressed out. I have a high expectation of myself and my peers to work together to leverage work but unfortunately, I am learning I am setting the bar too high for others.

5th, we are a 24/7 operations so we have 2 shifts on rotation. The opposite shift have some extremely lazy workers who is complete shit at what they do. I may be sounding arrogant but they always hand me cases where they either do very little investigative work, or none at all. I've also voiced my complaint, but my direct supervisor can't do anything beside trying to talk to their direct supervisor (he literally gives no shits).

All in all, its really not too bad most days. But its either 0% or 90-100% and never in-between. I'm only staying because the benefits are good right now. I get paid to train, free certification exams, and the pay really isn't bad at all - I am overpaid for what I do at the lowest level.

Can go into more but its all techno mumbo jumbo that a few regulars here will understand.

[Ultramaroon]

I'm the last line of defense at my work. If I can't figure it out, we have to go outside my team and back to the customer with our tail between our legs.

Just focus on enjoying whenever you get to be a bad ass and have fun with flaunting it from time to time.

[soulreapersteve]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

I'm the last line of defense at my work. If I can't figure it out, we have to go outside my team and back to the customer with our tail between our legs.

Just focus on enjoying whenever you get to be a bad ass and have fun with flaunting it from time to time.

Heh, I have an ego larger than my short, skinny, mid 20's Asian body. While I do keep it in check, I have no problem flaunting it while at work.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by soulreapersteve

So I'm the first line of defense in my line of work. My job is to monitor and resolve the initial tickets that come in to our system. If I can't resolve it, then I escalate to higher level resources.

There are quite a few factors that is wigging me out currently, compared to when I first started 2 years ago and up until beginning of this year. The head honchos are trying to take on larger clients, which means more $$$, but we don't have the systems nor manpower to support a large number of seats. They have no plan laid out, just "fly by wire and see what happens" kind of deal right now. We have voiced our complaints, yet simply told to roll with it. The new system we are using now is complete shit with how they are asking us to use it. Because of this alone, many, many technologically savvy resources have left after being there for 5+ years.

This one is mostly my own. With trying to get a promotion, I am taking on harder cases and attempting to learn new things.. also simply personal growth. However, that conflicts with my actual position because I can't work on the harder cases if shit is hitting the fan. Its mostly a balancing act though.

3rd, I'm a hard worker and its extremely frustrating when I have another coworker at my level who is very lazy. I do at least 3x the work they do, and management is attempting to rectify that but (my theory) they can't push too hard because he has some sort of mental disorder and they are afraid of him filing some sort of discrimination lawsuit.

4th, the work is not hard at all at my level. I came in with only theory from schooling and is able to do this job, with management and senior level resources being surprised at how quickly I was able to learn things. But when the combination of shit hitting the fan and having lazy coworkers, that's when I get stressed out. I have a high expectation of myself and my peers to work together to leverage work but unfortunately, I am learning I am setting the bar too high for others.

5th, we are a 24/7 operations so we have 2 shifts on rotation. The opposite shift have some extremely lazy workers who is complete shit at what they do. I may be sounding arrogant but they always hand me cases where they either do very little investigative work, or none at all. I've also voiced my complaint, but my direct supervisor can't do anything beside trying to talk to their direct supervisor (he literally gives no shits).

All in all, its really not too bad most days. But its either 0% or 90-100% and never in-between. I'm only staying because the benefits are good right now. I get paid to train, free certification exams, and the pay really isn't bad at all - I am overpaid for what I do at the lowest level.

Can go into more but its all techno mumbo jumbo that a few regulars here will understand.

Ok so what is stressing you out so bad is what is commonly called "working". Not one thing you said is different in any other company in the world. I have worked for some of the biggest companies in the world and all that stuff happens every day. You will need to relax and get used to it since it will never go away. Never. Ever.

The bosses that to you seem to be wining it very well may not be. They know things they can not say and that again is the business world. It happens to me all the time when I make a call that looks dumb or incompetent to the guys on the floor and I can not say why it is that way. Remember that those guys have sombody above them that they have to answer to and people below them that they have to deal with. Hell even the CEO has to answer to sombody.

If I had a dollar for every time I have heard "the other shift ..." over the last 30 years I could retire today. About 90% of those comments were without warrant. They are probably saying the exact same thing about your shift and unless your shift has never passed something on to them that will be the perception.

It is great to take on more responsibility but if it is stressing you now then maybe you just are not ready yet. You need to be comfortable with those added duties or they will eat you alive.

So what is the worst case scenario if you don't fix a ticket right away? Sombody goes without email for a bit? In no way am I downplaying the importance of what you do (I have written hundreds of "urgent" tickets over the years) but is it really something to stress over? In my job a slight error on my part can cost the company millions, create a serious environmental disaster, have sombody lose a body part or be seriously injured and even result in a fatality. It may be tough to keep things in perspective when you are swamped in work but you really need too keep the big picture in mind.

You probably have 50 years of work ahead of you and the stress is only going to go up as you progress so you really need to learn to deal with it. Get some help if you need too but don't let it control you this early in your career. Also remember that any of us are only a PM or e,ail away if you need to chat.

Ok sorry for that lecture and I will now turn dad/manager/preacher mode off and go back to wise cracks and memes.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by soulreapersteve

So I'm the first line of defense in my line of work. My job is to monitor and resolve the initial tickets that come in to our system. If I can't resolve it, then I escalate to higher level resources.

There are quite a few factors that is wigging me out currently, compared to when I first started 2 years ago and up until beginning of this year. The head honchos are trying to take on larger clients, which means more $$$, but we don't have the systems nor manpower to support a large number of seats. They have no plan laid out, just "fly by wire and see what happens" kind of deal right now. We have voiced our complaints, yet simply told to roll with it. The new system we are using now is complete shit with how they are asking us to use it. Because of this alone, many, many technologically savvy resources have left after being there for 5+ years.

Do what you can professionally and if it breaks, so be it.

This one is mostly my own. With trying to get a promotion, I am taking on harder cases and attempting to learn new things.. also simply personal growth. However, that conflicts with my actual position because I can't work on the harder cases if shit is hitting the fan. Its mostly a balancing act though.

Don't sweat it. The cream floats to the top. It may take years but just be cool. Don't get confrontational about the slobs. Can you leave the day shift some bullshit so you can focus on the good shit?

3rd, I'm a hard worker and its extremely frustrating when I have another coworker at my level who is very lazy. I do at least 3x the work they do, and management is attempting to rectify that but (my theory) they can't push too hard because he has some sort of mental disorder and they are afraid of him filing some sort of discrimination lawsuit.

Don't do 3x the work unless you enjoy it. If you enjoy it, quit looking for ways to not enjoy it. Fuck those assholes.

4th, the work is not hard at all at my level. I came in with only theory from schooling and is able to do this job, with management and senior level resources being surprised at how quickly I was able to learn things. But when the combination of shit hitting the fan and having lazy coworkers, that's when I get stressed out. I have a high expectation of myself and my peers to work together to leverage work but unfortunately, I am learning I am setting the bar too high for others.

I get irritated with this too. It has taken me years. I am twice your age. Do what you can do effectively and realize those around you notice when you kick ass. Let them flounder a little but always be supportive when you give them shit for not doing the due diligence.

5th, we are a 24/7 operations so we have 2 shifts on rotation. The opposite shift have some extremely lazy workers who is complete shit at what they do. I may be sounding arrogant but they always hand me cases where they either do very little investigative work, or none at all. I've also voiced my complaint, but my direct supervisor can't do anything beside trying to talk to their direct supervisor (he literally gives no shits).

Do the high-priority shit. Do one thing at a time knowing you are doing it properly. Don't give in to the pressure to hurry. Investigate shit you plan on fixing yourself. Leave the rest. Don't apologize.

All in all, its really not too bad most days. But its either 0% or 90-100% and never in-between. I'm only staying because the benefits are good right now. I get paid to train, free certification exams, and the pay really isn't bad at all - I am overpaid for what I do at the lowest level.

Can go into more but its all techno mumbo jumbo that a few regulars here will understand.

If you have time to watch anime, you're doing just fine. Let it go, man.

[soulreapersteve]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

Ok so what is stressing you out so bad is what is commonly called "working". Not one thing you said is different in any other company in the world. I have worked for some of the biggest companies in the world and all that stuff happens every day. You will need to relax and get used to it since it will never go away. Never. Ever.

The bosses that to you seem to be wining it very well may not be. They know things they can not say and that again is the business world. It happens to me all the time when I make a call that looks dumb or incompetent to the guys on the floor and I can not say why it is that way. Remember that those guys have sombody above them that they have to answer to and people below them that they have to deal with. Hell even the CEO has to answer to sombody.

If I had a dollar for every time I have heard "the other shift ..." over the last 30 years I could retire today. About 90% of those comments were without warrant. They are probably saying the exact same thing about your shift and unless your shift has never passed something on to them that will be the perception.

It is great to take on more responsibility but if it is stressing you now then maybe you just are not ready yet. You need to be comfortable with those added duties or they will eat you alive.

So what is the worst case scenario if you don't fix a ticket right away? Sombody goes without email for a bit? In no way am I downplaying the importance of what you do (I have written hundreds of "urgent" tickets over the years) but is it really something to stress over? In my job a slight error on my part can cost the company millions, create a serious environmental disaster, have sombody lose a body part or be seriously injured and even result in a fatality. It may be tough to keep things in perspective when you are swamped in work but you really need too keep the big picture in mind.

You probably have 50 years of work ahead of you and the stress is only going to go up as you progress so you really need to learn to deal with it. Get some help if you need too but don't let it control you this early in your career. Also remember that any of us are only a PM or e,ail away if you need to chat.

Ok sorry for that lecture and I will now turn dad/manager/preacher mode off and go back to wise cracks and memes.

Nah, it's helpful to always get a more experienced perspective - may it be cars, work, or anything else.

I think my issue is, always been like this since as long as I can remember, I can't flip the switch or find an in-between of pace. Can't accurately describe this. An instructor during auto-x said this: "Your speeds are either too fast or too slow around the course. Gotta find that balance between brake and gas." Guess the same can be said about how I work.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by soulreapersteve

Nah, it's helpful to always get a more experienced perspective - may it be cars, work, or anything else.

I think my issue is, always been like this since as long as I can remember, I can't flip the switch or find an in-between of pace. Can't accurately describe this. An instructor during auto-x said this: "Your speeds are either too fast or too slow around the course. Gotta find that balance between brake and gas." Guess the same can be said about how I work.

You don't want a switch you want a rheostat. Preferably one that works automatically without conscious action.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

You don't want a switch you want a rheostat. Preferably one that works automatically without conscious action.

We could replace it with a 32-bit DAC driving an efficient PWM output amp.

#upgrades

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

We could replace it with a 32-bit DAC driving an efficient PWM output amp.

#upgrades

Damn engineers always overdoing things!

I prefer lower tech for this sort of thing. Now if we are talking about one of his sexbots...

[humfrz]

Well, @soulreapersteve , sorry to hear that your work is stressing you out.

I suggest you ask yourself this simple question "is your workplace/work stressing you out .... or are YOU stressing YOURSELF out" ..??

To help you sort this out, I would suggest that you consider several possible approaches.

* schedule an appointment (not just a chat in the hall) with your supervisor to discuss your concerns about the work environment and your workload.

* if your department manager has an open door policy, ask your supervisor if it would OK to schedule a session with the department manager to discuss your observations and feelings.

* if your workload exceeds your resources (time, equipment, knowledge), prioritize your workload, with the most important tasks first, then approach your supervisor with your plan and explain, that unless you're given additional resources, the other things aren't going to get done.


I suggest you give those strategies a go and see if it helps.


humfrz

[Cole]

Currently getting drunk with my dad. I wish I handnt taken these moments for granted while I was growing up.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Cole

Currently getting drunk with my dad. I wish I handnt taken these moments for granted while I was growing up.

Generally not acceptable for a toddler to get drunk with their dad so god thing you waited till now for that part.