The Burnout Curve of a Career in Technology
I’ve been working in technology for just over ten years, running the gamut from Help Desk I to Corporate Product Manager. My roles have included:
- Help Desk I–III
- Systems Administrator I–III
- Network Engineer I
- Systems Engineer I–II
- Security Engineer I
- Product Manager
- Analyst
I’ve never officially been paid as an analyst or security engineer, but I have performed both roles.
At a wedding this past weekend, I spoke with a newcomer to IT about the beginning of his career in technology. I told him how I currently find myself back at Help Desk II, and then shared this:
“Help Desk I and II are just as hard as corporate engineering. Make it through your first year and you’re golden—at least until you reach the Fortune 500. Learn everything you can.”
I truly find the work at technology’s entrance barrier and its upper corporate echelons comparable in their burnout thresholds.
The blue-team and red-team work in the middle—from systems administration through networking and engineering—is often sheer fun and, comparatively speaking, easy. Product management can also be fun and exciting, but its risks and corporate landscape make it feel more like a game of chess that no one can—or will—admit to playing.
Officially, there is no game. There are only hardworking managers with their livelihoods and families on the line. Consequently, no one can afford to make a mistake. One wrong move could cost someone their home, their children’s schooling, or, in some cases, their vacation home in Bermuda.
Meanwhile, years of break-fix experience eventually compress into seven-minute repairs. Miss that window, and suddenly the entire Fortune 500 is joining a Teams call to watch you fix everything live.
Yes, we have vendors for this work—but one false move, one failed contract, or one fired vendor, and an internal employee may be expected to assume that vendor’s responsibilities immediately, perform the work flawlessly, and somehow do it better—all within the boundaries of their existing salary.
That is the strange symmetry of a career in technology: the beginning tests whether you can survive the work, while the top tests whether you can survive everything surrounding it.
— Aetheros