Help/Advice on career/job

#1

I am going bonkers doing what I do for a living. I shop for a certain online retailer for deliveries. Before that, I was a Windows systems admin for 16 years and the last few years did some systems architecture, helping design and build out distributed systems using all kinds of OS’s and technologies, some newer back then. In 2010 I was laid off and instead of doing what I should have and got another job ASAP I went on a 3 week vacation that lasted 5 years.
So I ended up coming back to the USA in 2015 after making several mistakes. I tried to get back into what I loved doing but I choked on almost all my interviews and thought I had a couple of the jobs where I did better interviewers, but never got them.
So about 8 months ago I gave up. My heart is not into Windows anymore. Never was fond of it and used it more out of necessity, working with it and all. Plus Linux DE’s are so much better now that say when I installed my first Slackware install. I never stuck with Linux until about 2 1/2 years ago.
Any ideas what I can do to get back into tech? Or jobs that I might not have thought of? Sure, certs might help, but which ones? I am also older and I hate studying for tests. I thought about Linux Academy but can’t really afford it due to limited funds from my minimum wage job.
Sad thing, I would work for what I get paid now and yet I can’t tell all those interviewers that or they think I must be mental. At least I would enjoy going to work daily.

Thanks,
Andamo

#2

Hang in there!

Since you have some Windows experience, I wonder if you can market yourself as an independent Windows IT guy to small local businesses. At least until you can get back a bit more in the tech scene, then your options might open up a bit more.

When I first moved to the US, I probably sent my resume to more than a hundred places. Nothing. Eventually I posted my resume on Craigslist. Someone randomly found me and after chatting briefly I had a job that opened up the rest of my career. This is clearly anecdotal, and happened over a decade ago, but things like this can happen every now and then, so I would like to encourage you to keep trying.

I wish you the best of luck!

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#3

Hi Andamo, there are so many ways to look at your situation. With your experience some might say you need to get back into the technical field. Some might say follow your heart and find a job you love to do... etc. etc. I offer my two cents if I may. You said you are older. I'll share the path I chose. I was in a technical field that I loved for over 25 years. This field had no pension. I quit and found a county job that offered a pension. I share this because of the many retired people I have run in to that live on a fixed income without a pension or alternative income.
You may consider a county or city job as an IT technician. Sometimes these positions can lead to other doors of opportunity in their MIS Dept. I have seen this happen...
Again, just my two cents. Best wishes to you.