Tired of it all. Possible burnout

Yeah I think people that actually understand the full stack and can diagnose problems quickly move into that. If you know what to check and where to check it you eventually get access. Should get promoted too but you know how it goes...

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19610taw3@reddit

Years later, they finally realized that. I am still close friends with my old coworkers and old boss. The CEO just did not want to promote me despite the manager, CIO and even HR pushing hard for me to get a promotion. So I left.

They replaced me with a helpdesk and 2 sysadmins. All three positions have been cycled through numerous times in the last few years.

Would have been much cheaper for them to just give me a bit of a raise and a title ...

[-]

Beginning_Crazy2930@reddit

I have always doubted myself and called myself a technician and I finally looked up what a sys admin actually does and I do way more than that

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CammRobb@reddit

aspersions, not dispersions.

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ReverendDS@reddit

In the 90s you could get a job in Kansas as a helpdesk triage for 65k.

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K12onReddit@reddit

I made more than that as an entry level helpdesk for a HIGH SCOOL in 2012. $57k in 2026 for a sysadmin at any level is criminal.

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damik@reddit

I did a double take, I saw $57 an hour at first.

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Scoutron@reddit

You can make over 57/hr as a sys admin in DFW, just need to specialize a little

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Man-e-questions@reddit

Yes and ironically its the cheap bastards that underpay like this that expect you to do MORE and act like they are doing you a favor

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Escanut@reddit

Can confirm this honestly.

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The_Original_Miser@reddit

...and they want DBA, networking, telephony, wireless tech, programming, expert in some esoteric out of support ERP, Linux, Windows, and who knows what else.

For 57k.

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Stonewalled9999@reddit

crap are you my coworker?

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ibringstharuckus@reddit

Makes sense. If they don't value the job that person does, they're not going to pay them properly,and remember everything with an led or connected to the network is our responsibility.

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Sea-Aardvark-756@reddit

This is extremely true, across all types of work and industries, the entities with lower budgets or cheaper sensibilities tend to be the most demanding. Flee.

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xxdrakexx@reddit

I couldn't agree with this more, I see great employees across different departments jump ship due to this. A lot of favoritism by poor management and not what you know but who you know that gets the less deserving further. This is particularly true at the executive level, it's a good old boy's club across all big companies.

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RelevantToMyInterest@reddit

My T1/T2 support gets paid more than this...

Buddy, is overworked and severely underpaid

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deanmass@reddit

Also, vocally and adamantly tell them why because fuck companies like this.

[-]

Twizity@reddit

Seriously. I used to run a Support Tech II in the DFW area that started 65k.

You can definitely find better.

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xxdrakexx@reddit

I'm a client side support tech with 90% downtime as I just help executives making $95k. Granted I worked my way into this position, but you certainly should be making more than me like all sys/network admins at my company do.

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ScumLikeWuertz@reddit

heyoo ditto!

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tdhuck@reddit

Shouldn't the execs be making more than 95k? That also seems low.

/s

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xxdrakexx@reddit

The executives make a ton more, I'm just their IT guy. The CEO made $10 million last year.

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tdhuck@reddit

Right, I was being sarcastic. If you go back and read what you wrote, it sounds like you are helping the execs that make 95k.

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xxdrakexx@reddit

Oh yea it kind of does, that'd be some broke ass execs. The wildest shit is the top ones failing and getting the axe. Their contract is breached so they get paid out. One of the prior CEOs got $17 mil, talk about failing up.

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Hot_Direction7888@reddit

Hiring?

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xxdrakexx@reddit

They are always hiring but usually not in IT as that's not their primary business.

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sylvester_0@reddit

That sounds like a great "retirement" gig. Do you work for a huge company?

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xxdrakexx@reddit

Yes, it's a Fortune 200 company.

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ScumLikeWuertz@reddit

especially for all the responsibilities they mentioned, that's wild.

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RikiWardOG@reddit

thats criminal level wages jfc

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tdhuck@reddit

57k for a sys admin? That is very low. I am almost certain our HD starts more than 57k and they need their hand held for many of the tasks they handle. I can't imagine being a sys admin for 57k per year.

Sys admin in that area should be somewhere between 80-100k if we are talking about a true sys admin and not just a titled sys admin managing printers and a small network (generally speaking, I see what you wrote in the OP).

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creamyhorror@reddit

OP is an AI post. They used an ellipsis … character, humans don't do that.

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jasieknms@reddit

Please at least use some basic OSINT before accusing some of being a bot, OPs average comments and threads they comment/post are nearly 100% human.

OP is hiding their history but it's not exactly hard to find his footprint on reddit and if you invest even 2 min into checking it out then you can notice the odds of them being a bot is basically zero.

It's already hard enough to actually notice real bots vs users sometimes and it's not professional to accuse a real person of being a bot.

A simple google with reddit:u/username in google will give you quick results for no efforts, I assumed most people in r/sysadmin would be aware of that.

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creamyhorror@reddit

His posting history definitely doesn't look like a bot, that's why I edited my post.

I've just seen bot posts every single day where their posting history is realistic at a glance but discordant when dug through. Some accounts are just generating realistic posts over a large number of subreddits. It's a real problem so I'm oversensitive to it. In this case, OP's history doesn't look discordant, so I edited my post.

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spacelama@reddit

OP is an AI post. They used an ellipsis … character (not three dots), humans don't do that.

They don't? Coulda fooled me…

Keybinding on my keyboard is Alt-gr + . + .

I usually type n-dashes as "--" and rarely use mdashes though because of my \LaTeX{} upbringing.

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logicallyinsane@reddit

I do this all the time when I type...

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kirashi3@reddit

They used an ellipsis … character, humans don't do that.

... Except for humans whose reddit clients allow their mobile keyboard app of choice to auto-convert 3x dot characters into an ellipsis. There are dozens of us, I tell you. Dozens!

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creamyhorror@reddit

Hmm, fair enough.

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ZestyRanch1219@reddit

llm

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YSFKJDGS@reddit

For real, obvious AI post. Doesn't entirely mean it isn't true, but what it DOES mean is it should be taken with a grain of salt and it's probably not the full story.

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Decaf_GT@reddit

Eh...while it's annoying and isn't fooling anyone (the LLM usage), I'm not sure that using AI like this is an indicator that it's "not the full story".

This subreddi tis full of Sysadmins that will paint themselves in the best possible light, retell stories in such a way that the only logical explanation is that everyone else is wrong, that they alone are the ones who keep things running perfectly...and this has been going on long before LLMs became a thing.

We're inclined to believe people when they tell us they're struggling because at our core we want to be kind and compassionate but I think there's a lot more /r/talesfromtechsupport-level revisionism and selective disclosure when people are talking about their jobs. LLMs just make it easier to write something that smoothes the whole thing over.

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YSFKJDGS@reddit

I get it, but what I mean about the full story is a lot of times people leave out things that explain why they are not getting promoted, or not getting their raise, or not getting their job application callbacks, etc... even if they dont realize it themselves.

This career requires communication/soft skills, and a reddit post is too much to form a stream of consciousness, what is the work environment like that might be holding this person back? It's more about exposing your weaknesses so you can then work on them to help propel you forward.

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Decaf_GT@reddit

Isn't...isn't that exactly what I just said?

This subreddi tis full of Sysadmins that will paint themselves in the best possible light, retell stories in such a way that the only logical explanation is that everyone else is wrong, that they alone are the ones who keep things running perfectly...and this has been going on long before LLMs became a thing.

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brazzala@reddit

Jack of all trades is master of none, but still better than master of one.

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Elensea@reddit

55k is what we pay tier 1 help desk which is almost entry level.

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Whyd0Iboth3r@reddit

Wow, where are you?! LA?

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Elensea@reddit

No haha coastal Georgia.

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Whyd0Iboth3r@reddit

You must have a good budget. We are in healthcare and rely on Medicare for a large portion of our revenue. Not the biggest of buckets to pull from.

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Adept-Pomegranate-46@reddit

I resembled that remark...before I got the boot. Good luck.

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The_NorthernLight@reddit

Time to shop around and look outside your region. There is tons of sysadmin jobs that pay significantly higher than your current salary.

Don’t worry too much about meeting all of the requirements for jobs. Those are a wish list for the employer, not a minimum requirement list 99% of the time.

The best jobs ive ever had were jobs I applied for and got, despite being hugely under qualified for.

[-]

adymak@reddit (OP)

Thanks for the encouragement. I’ll keep applying. Hopefully something will come up.

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HerbOverstanding@reddit

Yes — I applied even to the “unicorn” jobs, eventually got a few callbacks, ultimately landed. So, in short, apply even to those “Must be Jesus” requirement roles

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literalsupport@reddit

Definitely apply for other roles and be able to tell stories about how you are resourceful. Only an idiot expects you to be a walking encyclopedia - the important part is being able to understand concepts and learn as needed. Good luck to you!

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UbetchaB@reddit

Best advice I have received from a supervisor way back when, was if you don’t think you are qualified enough or only hit half or so requirements, apply anyway! A lot of employers are willing to train in the areas that you may not have a lot of experience in especially if you’re a quick learner.

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EggoWafflessss@reddit

As someone in your area, avoid public sector at all costs if you are looking to move.

I don't care what they offer, don't.

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deanmass@reddit

Job hop- a better gig is out there- 57k is low level help desk pay.

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Ron-Swanson-Mustache@reddit

I hired my last jr. sysadmin in 2019 at $54k with 1 year of experience. He's in the $70s now.

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Responsible_Bag_2917@reddit

You think it might be low? I mean he has 7 yesars of experience at this point in the mid $70k range? I hope he wakes up from that nightmare

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Ron-Swanson-Mustache@reddit

I think he likes how un-nightmare the job is. It's fairly low stress and our benefits are insane ($0 out of pocket, ever, for anything medical). He gets the standard ~5% per year raise that we've all been getting.

Though if he jumped ship for greener pastures, I'd understand.

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cdoublejj@reddit

in some cases lower than help desk. like i'd expect at least 52k for help desk on the low end.

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8BFF4fpThY@reddit

Our helpdesk gets paid better than that, and we still think it's low.

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itishowitisanditbad@reddit

Some places don't even pay helpdesk that little.

I don't think I could hire a new help desk below 60 with our pay grades.

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Sea-Aardvark-756@reddit

I monitor Indeed in our area (midwest), even helpdesk with 2-3 years experience is 60k now, cost of living spike is no joke. Currently $22 in 2016 is $30 in 2026 due to inflation. And we had helpdesk people starting at $22/hr in 2016. It's absurd to even try hiring below that, they'd be a liability. Might as well just bring volunteers in off the street and give them account management rights instead if we can't pay a living wage.

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Amomynou5@reddit

I've been a sysadmin for far longer than you (\~15 years) and am not earning much better either ($76K) - and this is at Tier 3 level too. TBF, the wages in my country suck in general so it's more of a regional thing - I'd probably get way better pay in a different country... I'm stuck like you, but for different reasons - the biggest reason being that I invested (more like wasted) my career on the Microsoft stack, and now that Microsoft sucks terribly (their constnt push to their rubbish cloud services, AI and declining quality of products and services), I want to get out of this ASAP.. but I can't. Because my only other alternative is Linux, and although I have decades worth of home Linux experience, it's worthless in the enterprise because, as you said, they all want unicorns.

Besides, even the Linux space isn't all that great these days, with most roles requiring you to work with one of the big three "evil" clouds (Google/Azure/AWS).. and I really hate these cloud-first mega-corporations who want to lock you in into their ecosystem and use dumb names for standard but proprietarised tech and then proceed to change it all up next month just because... and the stupid companies that buy into their marketing bullshit and migrate everything to the next big cloud thing... and the stupid hiring people who demand that you do all their certifications when become irrelevant by the time you complete one of them because the vendors changed everything... I'm sick of it all.

What I'm after is a nice on-prem Linux job where I'M the one in control (not some random cloud provider/MSP), where I get to get my hands dirty and actually fix things like we used to in the good ol' days. That's the kind of sysadmin job I want to do - an actual engineering role and pull miracles like Scotty on the Enterprise. I don't want to be a middleman for some cloud/managed service provider. Unfortunately, these sort of jobs are almost non-existent, at least where I live, as our country has unfortunately sold it's soul to the devil (aka Microsoft) because no one here has the balls to use Linux and an on-prem stack...

[-]

Far-Hovercraft9471@reddit

This is why I'm lacking motivation to learn cloud shit. I'm just learning the way one company wants to do things in their bubble and not things applicable generally.

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cdoublejj@reddit

In the USA midwest you should be making 80k on the low end according to my gut.

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picturemeImperfect@reddit

Look into govt or healthcare IT jobs — most are hybrid on-premise and cloud but you’ll find LAN closets that need someone to get their hands dirty.

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ukulele87@reddit

Dont ask me why, but we tend to put more pressure on ourselves than whats actually coming from the outside.
Might be because we understand the simples mistake might stop the hamster wheel from spinning.
You really have to learn not to give a fuck (im not even close to there yet, but i think its the way).
Work is work, specially if you are not apreciated, do what they pay you to do, if shit breaks fix it but its not the end of the world, i know its hard to put into perspective when shit is burning, but the infra of the dude who doesnt give a fuck about you its actually not that important, your life its not your work, your worth its not your work.
Its imposible to know and do everything, our field expands faster than a single person can chase, so stop putting 110% into it, youll burn out and still feel like you are falling behind with the wrong mindset.
Self regulate and put into your work what you think they are paying for, what you are willing to do, most of the time it will be more than enough anyways.

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FPSViking@reddit

I feel you. I'm a Sr. Sys Admin in Northern Minnesota. Was hired as an Associate Sys Admin 11 years ago. Went up from Associate to Sys Admin to Sr. Sys Admin. My hourly is about $25/hr which equates out to about $53k a year. Though I take hope probably closer to $67k a year just from all the overtime I work all the time. I am already burnt out. I even WFH. Which makes replacing this with another Sys admin gig really hard due to the fact that I don't want to move away from the area, and most places are not hiring Remote only.

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baw3000@reddit

$57k is not sysadmin money. That's L1/L2 money.

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Lizardking1988-@reddit

Your in Dallas so much higher paying jobs there…

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ReallyOldSysAdmin@reddit

Take a break now and then. Vacations are vital to your mental health. I've been in IT over 40 years and wish I would have taken more time off when I really needed it.

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Charming_Raccoon_457@reddit

Also a SysAdmin in the same area. Been working at a spot for 1 year on the desk, 3 as SysAdmin and i'm at 91K before bonuses. You should find another spot. For this job I actually took a small pay cut and a smaller position, but made myself very useful and made and implement improvements with my knowledge set, was noticed and pulled up to sysadmin making a lot more than what I started with.

I know the job market is rough. It might be worth it finding a smaller position at a company that treats you better. Help get your mind back in it. YMMV but it's the path I took and I couldn't be happier.

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moistpimplee@reddit

sysadmin making 57k is fucking WILD. im sorry but what??

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DeadStockWalking@reddit

57k after 5 years in DFW?

Stop bending over for your employer and go elsewhere.

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cbass377@reddit

57K is $27 per hour.

You see many posts in this subreddit from admins that hate it, want to bail, but can't give up the money. At 5 years in the DFW Area you should be closer to 75 - 80K, so you are definitely getting screwed, but this presents a unique opportunity.

At your current salary, you should look at one of the trades. Like electricians, starting from zero you would be making 45K, in years 2 or 3 you could match what you are making now. With all the datacenter construction going on, they are in high demand. At the end of the day, you hop in your sweet truck or van, go home, and call it a day. If you don't want to "ride the lightning", you can specialize into low-voltage electrical, or serial controls, or building control systems.

Assuming you decide you want to stay in the technology realm. You combat the amount of information you have to know by specializing. You could focus on the network, and in an IT heavy company could be making about 85 - 130K. DBAs make about the same, but typically are treated better than system administrators. I guess they have that mystique.

Now for me to tell you how to spend your money.

Buy some training. Currently you are probably (And this is a guess) a primarily windows admin. Skill up on Linux + Cloud (AWS or Azure, get your AI to tell you what is more popular in job listing in the market). If the DBA or Networking thing interests you, Check out the community college thing in DFW. I took a SQL course in North Lake College for 3 months, 2 nights a week, for $350. I took the vmware Install Configure Manage course there for 6 weeks for $850. Both courses were in 2015 so adjust for inflation. The vmware course immediately helped me at my current job, and landed me a better one in a couple months. For the Comptia and basic certs, buy the study guide, grind it for a couple months and take the test.. I wouldn't pay for the training unless I couldn't do it on my own. By this I mean, I do respond better to classroom instruction where you can ask your questions immediately.

Maybe have your resume worked over by a professional.

Save up 6 months salary in case you crack and rage quit.

Get into food prepping to do all your meals for the week on Sunday. You will save money, and eat healthier.

Buy a burner phone for whatever number you gave work. Turn it off at the end of the day to enforce some separation.

Take a 2 hour walk after work every day. Or a workout before work, and a walk after work. Get your blood moving and again increase the separation from work. Even if all you do is 1 circuit on the apartment workout machines, a dumbbell workout, or walk around the block until your phone timer goes off, if you do it consistently, you will develop confidence and some mental clarity.

The workout, the savings, and the food prep is you doing something for you. It will help your mind and your body.

Do this while looking for a better job, you are employed now so time is not working against you.

Work on your soft skills and your polish, apply at larger companies. You will get closer to market value and maybe a 3% raise each year until you are underpaid again. Lather rinse repeat. For your resume I wouldn't recommend job hopping, but maybe change every 18 - 30 months to increase your pay.

I hope this helps you adymak. Good luck, take care of yourself, and keep us posted.

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cosmic_orca@reddit

I echo your thoughts. Now imagine working for an MSP and you have loads of different companies (with different setups and brands of firewalls etc.) to support and on top of that you don't get much sleep. Feeling burnout is an understatement.

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Personal-Teach586@reddit

Ai generated engagement bait

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slippery@reddit

Check out local government. Stable, expectations are reasonable, workload is manageable, pay reflects effort. Some states offer great or at least good pensions, something almost impossible to find in the private sector.

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VerifiedPrick@reddit

I don't really like that this sub allows rant posts in general, but it's especially bad if they're all gonna be this type of AI-generated nonsense instead of genuine words typed by human hands.

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wtfisthissh1t@reddit

Start applying. Don't let the rejections bring your attitude down. There are a lot of BS job listings that you may run into, but you'll find one better than this. Apply to them even if you feel you don't qualify. Doesn't hurt to try. I know I had to go through many applications to finally find my current place.

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Prismology@reddit

What do you mean memorizing? Create detailed documents for each job that you do. That way when you do it next time in 3 months, you have all the steps written down for you

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uninspiredalias@reddit

Yeah I actively remember much less these days - only the gist of the thing I did before enough so I can look it up in my notes...

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darknetwifi@reddit

I make 84 in PA. And I am essentially being overworked also. But for 57k? Time to start looking. I am in the same boat as you even though I make more, it is ridiculous the stuff they have me doing.

One thing though is to create your own database for solving stuff. Make your own KB. So you don’t have to memorize so much. I did that. And it’s helped. But the workload continues and it’s intense. I wish you luck buddy.

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maxou2727@reddit

You're underpaid, you should look for some other place while you still have this one

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voltagejim@reddit

Man $57k seems low. I'm not a sys admin, just a general IT specialist and I am at $72k. I'm local county government though which has its own issues. Currently feeling the most stressed I have ever felt cause the msp that does our network took our whole network down this week and scrambling to bring it back.

Then apparently our previous network admin ignored messages from our ISP a few years ago saying they were going to shut off an IP we were using for a critical Verizon network and Monday the ISP flipped the switch..still working with Verizon to get that network back up.. of course all while every day people are pissed asking when it's coming back

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cdoublejj@reddit

never did understand why they do 2 and 3 man bans and hire MSPs. i feel like the same money could go 1 more employee, 2 if they dig deeper.

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picturemeImperfect@reddit

Major f up but not surprised if nobody got fired for it.

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voltagejim@reddit

got that verizon tunnel back up this morning, our Verizon Architect was able to really escalate and push things through thank the heavens haha

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Lightofmine@reddit

It's criminally low for DFW

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RikiWardOG@reddit

dude I know sr helpdesk people making more than that

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bv915@reddit

Damn, this is insultingly low pay for the area. We’re hiring desktop support techs for above that (as part of a local university). We aren’t perfect, either, but damn.

[-]

Jaereth@reddit

If you make even the smallest mistake all the good you’ve done is instantly forgotten and they’re ready to crucify you

Yeah I really hate this culture of IT isn't a "Business partner" at the highest level of the org chart even though we manage an infrastructure just as critical to any business as shipping, purchasing, finance, etc. In fact we are usually the cornerstone of those departments facilitating them to maximize their power.

Yet somehow the disrespect is baked in. And you know, i'm at a point in my career where I wouldn't stay in a shit shop. The places I work we are solid and do GOOD work. Right now we run a "what's downtime?" type environment and are managing projects at the behest of several different departments. But we're still geeked out and not really on the inside at the top level of the business. It's all reactionary.

I briefly worked in the past at a place where IT was treated as business partner and equals and it was bliss. Makes you go the extra mile when everyone treats you with respect.

[-]

Late_Nectarine_7377@reddit

Change!

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uptimefordays@reddit

What really gets to me is how much you’re expected to know in this field. It’s not just one system — it’s everything. Servers, networking, accounts, troubleshooting random issues that pop up out of nowhere… and if you don’t remember something instantly, it feels like you’re falling behind.

I'll be honest, servers, networking, access control, and troubleshooting are all baseline requirements. There's just no world in which someone can work on distributed systems but say "I don't know how computers or software communicate" or "I don't know how access control works."

That said $57k is well below median salary for a sysadmin.

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Fox_and_Otter@reddit

I'm just going to echo what others have said - 57k in DFW is insane for your level of responsibilities. Your min salary for this position in DFW should be 85k, they are absolutely taking you to the cleaners. Get mad, find a new role and get paid.

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williamp114@reddit

I'm in a similar situation as you. Including the TC (not that much far off from you). Boston area so it's probably comparable (if not more) than DFW.

I've been officially a sysadmin for about 6 years now (and another 4 as helpdesk, when I was fresh out of HS) but since we're a ~100 person company with a technical team of 6 people that's mostly developers, two sysadmins (including me), and a dedicated helpdesk guy (used to be me), I frequently get bounced back to helpdesk when the main guy is out or coverage is needed, etc. Only in the last two years did they finally agree to hire a dedicated helpdesk guy.

For almost 10 years I've been handling desktop support while also being in charge of networking between several branch locations, managing MDM, VoIP, etc. And yet I always feel like I'm not doing enough to please them.

I only ended up with the title change because I threw a fit at management because I was still doing helpdesk work after 5 years, while other (non-tech) people were getting promoted to higher roles (from CSR to team lead) within a year or less of starting. I knew it wouldn't really cause a change in workload but it would at least not make it look on my resume like i've only been doing helpdesk for 10 years.

I started as a desktop support intern my senior year of HS (co-op program, I was a vo-tech student) working alone with only a non-tech manager on site and technical leadership WFHing two states away (which should've been a red flag for anyone else but I'm autistic; and computers and networking is one of my top special interests so I could handle it from a technical perspective, yet I was cocky and in denial over the soft skill side)

At this point my homelab is more advanced and divergent from the stuff I do at work. I've had a Talos Linux/Kubernetes homelab-- err "home prod" for all my personal and friends/family applications and it's automated with argocd, self-hosted gitea, renovate for automated dependency PRs, prometheus/alertmanager monitoring, etc.

The past year or so i've been trying to apply for SRE and DevOps engineer roles but I haven't even been gotten calls back, just a few rejection letters. I've had Claude help me get my resume and cover letters looking great, though I've had some doubts in an LLM handling this especially as it pushed back on me applying for a junior devops role because it thought I was over-qualified just based on the numbers alone (without considering the real context as how i've been fucked)

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dinnerbird@reddit

"It's not just X — it's Y"

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Grrl_geek@reddit

What are government jobs like? I know here in NYS, the ITS jobs make decent money.

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Splask@reddit

I have only been a sysadmin (in title) for a few years and am making far more. I work 100% remotely. I'm sure you can find someone who will pay what you are worth. My personal opinion is that a real sysadmin role shouldn't ever make less than $100k. $150k should be standard but we all know that is not the case.

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Public_Warthog3098@reddit

Do the bare minimum doh

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Tall_Put_8563@reddit

you need to start thinking about Skunkworks, make your own projects, try to find cost saving angles etc etc. Business want value.

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forkoff77@reddit

That sounds rough. I agree that I would start looking.

I just want to add that I never expect my staff to immediately recall every single bit of IT knowledge. I DO expect them to want to get to the bottom of an issue and provide decent customer service along the way. It goes a LONG way with me when a staff member brings me an issue they have clearly already tried to solve and just don’t have the operational knowledge. The latter can be taught, the the former, not as much.

I and NOT saying this is OP, just an observation.

[-]

bmzink@reddit

At $57k, you should only be working Monday and Tuesday until lunch.

Hope this thread is enough encouragement for you to find something better!

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SuppA-SnipA@reddit

Start considering you may want to specialize in a topic so ideally you don't need to worry about the shit you don't care about. Find the topics that really get you going.

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fanatic26@reddit

$57k/yr is Panda Express Assistant Manager money what are you doin friend?

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CeC-P@reddit

Either the company is failing or being run by cheap assholes. In either case, let me get some clueless bottom of the barrel person to replace you after you leave so they can have a week-long outage followed by them giving up and quitting and go back to using paper and pencils.

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FiredFox@reddit

What is your actual job title? $57k sounds way too low

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chelseacalcio1905@reddit

Sounds like a place called the 20

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JwCS8pjrh3QBWfL@reddit

We bought a company that used The 20 as their MSP; god they suck.

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unknwnerrr@reddit

Lol MSPs suck

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BisonThunderclap@reddit

I've only worked for MSPs, if this is an MSP they're getting away with the worst robbery I've ever seen at that position.

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sylvester_0@reddit

You must have the patience of a saint. I noped out of my small MSP gig after a little over a year and can't imagine going back to one.

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viral-architect@reddit

IBM

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bageloid@reddit

Granted it was NYC, and it was an hourly only infosec internship with no benefits, but I made nearly that much with overtime in 2011. You need to GTFO.

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mcshanksshanks@reddit

If you want to continue working in IT try to find a job with a state university.

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Daphoid@reddit

Sounds like burnout a bit to me. Key thing for me is your big complaint is my biggest pride point from my career. I spent a good chunk of my early career as the sole IT guy for a startup and helped take that from 65 employees to over 225 before I got an intern to help, and eventually the team grew. I had nice managers during that time but they were extremely hands off. My goals were set once a year and very vague (do a good job, close a bunch of tickets, etc) and not actively monitored / discussed until next year.

I had to make my own success; I looked after everything from tickets, imaging, networking, telephony, printing, security, storage, did half a dozen office moves nationally, etc. This was all during my late 20's and early 30's. Had a great time. Now I've got a wide range of knowledge and can speak to possible pain points for users and systems when handling the more specialized stuff I do now.

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Terriblyboard@reddit

57K in dfw is horrible. polish up that resume and start looking.

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wisym@reddit

Those job postings wanting a unicorn are wish lists. Apply anyway and let them tell you no while you tell them you can become what they want.

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mrfantastic4_@reddit

For what it’s worth, you aren’t alone. I am pretty much in the same spot, except my company won’t change my title from a T2 Specialist to Sysadmin..despite me fully taking on the role over a year ago when our team dropped down from 4 to 3 members. I’m doing way move advanced work than when I started, but im still in the same spot and only making like $5k more than when i started out. It sucks but the job market isn’t in the best spot imo. So for now im riding it out the best i can. God speed.

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wfpbrecipes@reddit

You're being paid like shit

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SynergizeTheNeedful@reddit

Dude... I am going to be hiring someone in 90-100k range on the east coast, not an expensive area to live in either, you are insanely underpaid.

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ultimatrev666@reddit

57K? I thought I was doing terrible at 65K back in 2022, which is why I jumped ship when I had an opportunity to make 10K more. Find another role!

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cdoublejj@reddit

geeehzuz!!!! i make notably more than that on help desk (hourly)

i apply to that shit anyways, spray n pray

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Mental_Beginning_698@reddit

$57k is low considering DFW turned into one big toll booth with low prices in the $3-4 range and high being sometimes $14. Hey, but at least you Texans don't have a state tax. The "business friendly" environment in TX has an implied worker unfriendly connotation to it. I would not ever be a W-2 worker in TX again. Just the tolls alone would be enough to consider being a 1099 and writing that off. $57k a year? We pay our nanny just under that. I say that because you are at the point where you can look around if you want outside the industry.

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wwbubba0069@reddit

I've been burnt out for the better part of a decade. 15 years until I can retire...

And that pay seems low for that area.

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Sorry-Rent5111@reddit

A lot of comments about the pay being low but at least from the original post I can't ascertain the skill set we are talking about.

What does a normal day look like?

You express concerns about multiple technologies but unless I am a bad boss my sysadmins better have a base understanding of at least a few out of bare metal, M365, Server OS, VMware, HyperV, Cisco UCS, Tools (Terraform, Ansible, Octopus etc), Monitoring ala Solarwinds or ServiceNow. There are a few more but if someone doesn't half of this I can't hire them.

I am in NYC area and we bring in L1 Admins at about $65k. In 5 years they should be L2/L3 at around $80k.

So really for me it comes down to what do you know and what do you do.

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Josh_Fabsoft@reddit

Full disclosure: I work at FabSoft, which makes AI File Pro.

Man, I feel you on this. The "do more with less" mentality in IT is absolutely crushing people right now. $57k in DFW for 5+ years of sysadmin experience is honestly insulting given the current market.

One thing that's helped some of our customers (and might give you some breathing room) is automating the document processing stuff that eats up so much time. Things like invoice processing, contract routing, compliance docs - all that paper shuffling that somehow always lands on IT's plate. AI File Pro can handle a lot of that automatically, but honestly there are several good options out there for document automation.

The bigger issue is your workload and compensation though. Have you looked at what other sysadmins in DFW are making? Last I checked, you should be closer to $70-80k minimum with your experience. Sometimes showing management concrete salary data helps, especially when they realize how much it costs to replace you.

Also consider what specific skills you want to develop. Cloud certs (AWS, Azure) can bump your salary significantly. Even if your current place won't pay fairly, those skills make you way more marketable.

The burnout is real though - don't ignore it. Taking care of yourself isn't optional. Maybe it's time to start quietly looking around? The job market for experienced sysadmins is actually pretty good right now.

Hang in there. You're not alone in feeling this way.

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8BFF4fpThY@reddit

5 years as a sysadmin, you should be making almost double in DFW

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Rocknbob69@reddit

I am paid well and am completely burnt out. I don't have the bandwidth to learn new things as I am constantly tired and trying to keep everything secure and up to date. I feel your pain

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whatdoido8383@reddit

I'd feel burned out too if I was a Sysadmin making $57k... I make double what you do so putting up with the shittiness of the job isn't so bad.

Even when I was a jr sysadmin I was making $80k+

Start looking for new jobs. A change in scenery and more money would probably help.

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noctrise@reddit

You are as replaceable as a janitor from their perspective

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Additional_Neck1886@reddit

Funny thing is I would love to be in your position now

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PhantomNomad@reddit

I was in your position back in 2012. Under paid, under appreciated. I was worried about not knowing enough to be able to move to a different place. Then one day my Mom told me about an opening for IT at a place close to them. I applied and got the job. It was the best move I could make. I don't make tons more money and I'm the only IT/GIS guy at the place, but the people are much better. They actually listen to what I say. The pay isn't spectacular (about 1.5x what I made at the time). But the benefit package is really good and I'm getting a pension at the end of it. On top of that I only work 8:30 to 4:30 5 days a week and no over time ever. Even if I need to reboot a server I do it during working hours and everyone just waits until it's back up.

So I would suggest looking and applying to everything you can. Sometimes it will only be a lateral move but it will give you some fresh perspective. If the new place doesn't work out move to some place else. One of the hardest things to do for me and my wife was to move my family from a big city to a small town 500 km away.

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chronospike@reddit

When everything in IT is going wrong: What are we paying you for?
When everything in IT is going right: What are we paying you for?
Agreed with everyone else. You can find something better than your current situation. At the end of the day, they need you more than you need them. Once you find your offramp, put in your two weeks and then dont answer the phone for any follow up phone calls asking you to "just help this once". You tell them your consulting bill rate is $400/hr and once the P.O. is cut, you'll be glad to help. Use this job as a learning experience so you can spot the red flags early and move on before it gets this bad again.

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MetalEnthusiast83@reddit

I wouldn’t get out of bed for 57K. You need to find a new job.

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No-Structure828@reddit

I feel your pain. Similar situation. If I had less expenses in life I think id jack it in and go work stocking shelves at tesco tbh.

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getsome75@reddit

My level on service desk kids make 60 fresh out of college, Tampa

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TeflonJon__@reddit

Yes I feel you - we have to know SO much to be effective in this role, yet we make terrible money. Shit, any other field that requires this much knowledge would probably make 30% more minimum. Is the market really flooded with that many sysadmins where they can get away with paying us shit? I guess so..

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Geminii27@reddit

Have you had different employers/workplaces in that time? The same job title can be vastly different experiences in different places.

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How-didIget-here@reddit

I work in Europe and earn more than you. You need to leave this place man.

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ciscorick@reddit

Post is engagement farming ChatGPT post.

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picturemeImperfect@reddit

Get a new job asap $57k is help desk and desktop support in my area. Also, don’t forget to do self care.

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NISMO1968@reddit

I’ve been working as a Sys Admin for 5+ years now, making $57k/year (DFW) and it just doesn’t feel worth it anymore.

Here’s your real issue! Make it 157K, or better 175K a year, and you’ll be back on track! Seriously, the salaries you’re listing don’t even exist anymore, so update your CV and start talking to headhunters. Just some friendly advice, if you don’t mind, before jumping into the fire of your next role, take a two week break. Go see a lake, do some fishing, surfing, racing, whatever clears your head, just don’t switch one prison cell for another just because the last one had a better yard view and bars painted gold. Good luck!

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logicallyinsane@reddit

57k says your employer doesn't value you. I wouldn't even be mad if you sold all of the creds, backdoored your c-suite's computers, and posted all of the IP to a competitor.

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logicallyinsane@reddit

Please explain, I'm dying to know the 'cause'.

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Illthorn@reddit

Like everyone has said, its the salary, not the work. You should be making in the 70-80k range(minimum) The low salary coupled with enhanced expectations is what's killing you. Try to get out or up if out isn't an option.

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boli99@reddit

make sure that nobody at work knows your personal phone number. NOBODY. not even friends. change your number if you have to. keep the new number PRIVATE.
dont put any work stuff on your personal phone (except maybe an authenticator). no email. no chat. no work whatsapp. nothing.
get a works number on a separate phone.
turn the works phone off out of working hours
do your work during working hours. then go home on time.
dont arrive early to 'catch up on work'
dont start any fires, but if someone else does - its ok to let them burn
when stuff burns, management can see the smoke. smoke is much more likely to get them to help than seeing you work yourself to death.
in small organisations you have to know everything. this can be a good learning experience - but it eventually loses its novelty
in larger organisations you can specialise in a few aspects. this can be more boring, but its also much less stressful.

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rararagidesu@reddit

From place which looked good outside (but actually is shithole bound to collapse sometime soon) I've gone to MSP. Don't go my way, after half a year I'm regretting but think it's gonna look good in CV when I leave this gig too...

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Hasuko@reddit

We're all tired of it. Most of us are just getting paid enough to not flip out.

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anime_at_my_side@reddit

True. I am a linux admin and i need kwnoledge of lots of systems aand applications almost impossible to know it all and next day there is a mew application

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melissaleidygarcia@reddit

you are underpaid, update resume and start applying elsewhere.

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wise0wl@reddit

There are dudes in India making more than you right now. Wtf man. Your job is screwing you.

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CatsAreMajorAssholes@reddit

Don't go into healthcare.

It's way worse.

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SomethingAbtU@reddit

I think you're describing a lot of jobs/roles, not just sys admin. This is what working has become, or is still evolving into -- you need to know a lot to the point where you can't me automated out of a job, but also need to accept a sh*t wage b/c beyond a certain threshold you will be automated out of a job. No matter how much good you've done for a company, how much of your family time you've sacrificed, there is very little recognition to get because you're not that special, there are supposedly tons of people who wish they had a job, so we should be honored to have the job. And at the company's convenience, you are out of here, here's a 3 week severance, if that at all.

What is also driving poor worker treatment is the more cost of living goes up, and the more jobs become scarce, many workers will accept less, which creates a feedback loop of companies trying to see how low they can go and still get jobs filled.

We can fight back -- for those that have options, they can quit and start their own companies, or job have enough savings/financial cusion where they can hold out for better offers and tell exploitative companies to go to hell. Personally, I am trying to move into IT consulting role where I provide services to a small set of companies to start then potentially expand into a multi-employee company downt he road.

For those who don't see themselves working starting their own consulting business and need the employer healthcare and benefits (especially in states that don't have a good state subsidies for health insurance), then the next best thing is to find a product to specialize in and know in depth and get a job for that and not try to be a jack of all trades which are the roles that tend to be exploitative.

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Snarky_Survivor@reddit

How do the tier 1 get paid then?

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BadCorvid@reddit

Don't memorize details. Memorize resources and how to look things up. Because the commands you memorize today will be deprecated tomorrow.

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Aggravating_Refuse89@reddit

You are disgustingly underpaid. You are worth closer to 100k with your experience and what you do. Especially in an MCOL area like DFW. Its not NYC but its not rural Ohio either

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Fuzzy_Paul@reddit

Like everyone here adviced you is to switch job. For not falling into a real burnout be puntual but no more no les. It times up go home the campany must feel the pain of overstressed IT. The managers must feel the heat from above and you as responsible for IT only, stick to working within you work hours. If doing more tak time for time. Do not ask you manager but tell himthids is the default. Do not hasten anything and try to relay, remeber it is just a job.

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th3groveman@reddit

Typical cheap company paying bottom dollar for IT expecting an entire department in one person. I imagine you’re working unpaid OT to keep the plates spinning on top of getting helpdesk pay for sysadmin work.

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DB_Ivessy85@reddit

Single handedly the most thankless shit of a job you can have.

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Hot_Direction7888@reddit

Bro 57 as sys adm? Bro wow like wooow. People make more as a technician ? Which state man? U been there 5 years? Didn’t you feel sorry for your self. Immigrants try harder than you bro. But best of luck man! I hope u get what you wish for!

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Mrhiddenlotus@reddit

We have Juniors fresh off help desk making more than that. Keep applying.

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Drakoolya@reddit

Lock in bro as in Lock in to finding that new job, continue polishing the CV.
Get come certs done, tailor the CV to the jobs you are applying to.
Build a cheat sheet of answers that are usually asked in an interview and practice answering them.

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Danowolf@reddit

Remember you a mercenary for hire. If your not supplied with correct tools including r&r it's not your fault. Company never upgraded that switch or other shiny expensive bauble it's not your fault it's down. He'll if it's new it's not your fault. I'm sure someone is getting paid Alot more at your company to deal with accepting responsibility. Just figure out how to say it in a neutral non confrontational or derogatory manor. And your memory or training gaps? Load Claude or chatgpt ai and ask whatever you don't know. Your one fish in a huge dirty ocean. You will do fine.

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sixblazingshotguns@reddit

I’d maybe suggest a different career. Be careful moving. The higher salaries / last hired get the axe first. We are seeing comp adjusted downward due to poor hiring and borrowing decisions made during the COVID era.

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Disastrous_Meal_4982@reddit

I was there in 2020 working for a fortune 100. Miserable and getting paid peanuts while leading projects saving the company more money than I’d see in a lifetime after being there for almost 15 years. Started a new job after I stopped looking through job sites and just started looking at companies I wanted to work at. There are a lot of companies out there that don’t have trouble filling positions because they are decent to work at so they just post on their careers page and you won’t see them anywhere else. Im now doing what a lot would consider a dream job.

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zed0K@reddit

From someone who experienced burn out last year and had and pretty bad health effect from it, screw it all and just clock in, do your work, then go home and enjoy life. Don't sweat it and don't put yourself down about things. It's not worth it.

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BarracudaDefiant4702@reddit

That seems low for expecting to know everything, but you didn't list much detail and didn't really cover enough areas to be everything... If even everything isn't true, with 5 years experience $57k seems low even if modest knowledge to do some of the things you mentioned. Do you have more senior people on the team that can help guid when you are stuck, or are you one of the ones most knowledgeable? Probably at least worth checking the job market, even positions at Universities can be better than that, at least if your skills are deep enough. The tend to pay less than corpate jobs, but also tend to be less stress and decent benefits. That said, without grilling you I can't say if you could expect to do better such as $90k at a University, or would have to be more entry level and be closer to $40k. At least expectations tend to be reasonable and workload manageable, but you have to be really knowledgeable for good salary.

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IT_GuyX@reddit

I was in a similar boat, although I was making around $72k. I decided to just start casually applying at a few jobs every week and aiming high (around $100k range) then eventually landed a new job that I am loving so far. I applied at 17 total jobs in about a month span and ended up getting the offer from the 5th job I applied at.

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peteybombay@reddit

No wonder you are burnt out, you are getting put through the ringer for not a great salary.

I would keep looking for another job. You can definitely get more out there, you just may need to keep looking or get lucky when someone has an opening...but that is not enough money to also have to deal with that sort of bullshit.

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TheKosherGenocide@reddit

Bro, $57K/year after working 5 years as SysAdmin in Dallas?! I made that kind of money just work in Support as like an L2/L3, of course you're burned out.. They aren't paying you enough to live in that hot shit hole.

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Imoldok@reddit

I burnt out as a systems admin of 5 companies while going through 3 platform changes in 6 years , so yeah 6 years for me too.

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brekfist@reddit

Well when you make a mistake what your solution so that mistake never happens again? Nothing more annoying then the same mistake over and over again.

Work smarter not harder!

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Schizophrenic_Spy@reddit

You will own nothing and you will be happy.

Look up Tim Gurner

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CharcoalGreyWolf@reddit

That salary seems low; but in addition, I would do my best to show them that if they want two job specialties out of one person (which requires learning two fields of IT in depth) they should be paying for two specialties, not one.

I would also indicate the same to anywhere I’m interviewing with.

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discgman@reddit

You making like 28 or 29 dollars an hour for a System Admin job with 5 years experience. You could work here at Walmart and make that in 3 years. You need to update your resume and bounce. You can make like 2-3 times that all over the country. Holy cow your work is saving some money 💰

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SAugsburger@reddit

While cost of living for DFW isn't as bad as some coastal cities $57k for 5+ years as a sysadmin sounds a bit low. Unless it is some title inflation I would honestly suspect that the low pay makes it feel less "worth" it. Obviously money isn't everything, but if you get paid enough some undesirable aspects of a job might feel like a fair takeoff. That being said finding a new job in the current job market nevermind one that is a clear improvement obviously is easier said than done.

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Potential_Grocery_40@reddit

Where are you located

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adymak@reddit (OP)

DFW

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Potential_Grocery_40@reddit

My bad can’t read. Salary seems crazy low are you internal IT not msp?

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adymak@reddit (OP)

Internal

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N7Valor@reddit

DFW = Dallas Forth Worth typically.

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N7Valor@reddit

Bad news, this is a trend in the overall job market. Fewer people doing more work and wearing multiple hats.

The people in charge of companies are not fans of history. They forgot the lesson of the assembly line and why it drove the industrial revolution in the automotive industry. It's easier to have 20 people who can do 1 thing really well than it is to find 1 super engineer who can build the entire car by themselves.

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makzpj@reddit

Pretty much the same everywhere. My advice: don’t stress over it. Our health is more important.