If you happen to be reading this and thinking about what job you might one day want to do, here's a tip to help guide you away from the wrong direction.
If you can't emotionally handle a day where everything breaks, then don't become an I.T. person. (-;
Yesterday was one of those days.
Our team were all very tired because we put a lot of effort into this new project, and it finally went public and we were glad.
Today stuff broke.
-email ssl cert expired
-vpn stopped working
-email wasn't getting delivered
-people weren't able to log in from work
-radius server went offline so no one could access the internet
-I had to tell a crying translator her work needed re-doing.
then, quitting time rolled around and I went home.
-my truck broke - a short in the wiring causes the fuel injector fuse to blow repeatedly so I can't start it
-my wife told me the fridge is on the blink
then add to that the normal aches and pains of daily living,
-my wrist is banged up because of some fire training we did on the weekend.
-my son's health is slowly getting better but not as fast as we'd like.
so.. the theme of Tuesday was.... -BROKEN-
Having a day where everything seems to be falling down around you is a typical thing when you work in I.T. no matter where you are. The difference between somewhere else and here, is that when something breaks, like a refrigerator, it takes weeks to get a new one.
Well, I'll tell you my honest reaction at times like these, and they do happen regularly in my line of work....
If I'm energetic, I sink my teeth into the problems and go after them aggressively.
My honest reaction if I'm tired is to get down in the mouth a little, without realizing it.
And then, when I do realize it, I stop, and find a quiet spot and take a few minutes and pray.
Yesterday I prayed, 'God, I'm tired and stuff is breaking. I need to fix them well, and I don't have the energy, please help me in whatever way is right, to do You proud today.'
By the end of the day,
-the SSL cert was put back in place
-vpn was working (no thanks to microsoft it was THEIR patch that broke it)
-email got delivered
-people could log in to work
-the radius server was put back online with a script to refresh it when it dies AND it helped us troubleshoot another problem.
-The translator found someone to help
-my truck is still broken but my mechanic friend is looking at it.
-the fridge turned out to be fine.
-my wrist still hurts but is healing up... telling me it isn't broken.
Being on the field, having a bad attitude, or a depressed attitude, or letting problems get you down, can be a definite advantage to the enemy. Since I honestly view my work as battling the enemy and trying to push the lines of God's forces against the enemy's lines, I see things like getting discouraged as spiritual warfare.
I do not mean that I have to always be upbeat and happy. I allow myself to get rest when I'm tired. And to talk out problems when they bug me.
But I also am always aware that exhaustion and discouragement are weapons in the enemy's arsenal that I have to have defenses against.
SO, if you're working in I.T. and you have a day where everything breaks, think 2 things:
1 - this is great job security for you!! (-;
2 - every day you find a solution, is preceded by a day where you're given a problem. So if today you found a problem, tomorrow, may be the day you find the solution!
