How much money do you guys make in general? I've been looking for an IT job for the past 5 months, but the economy sucks pretty bad at the moment...so I guess i'm looking at other options.

Just curious if this is something that pays halfway decent, or not. I'm used to making 50k per year or so as a PC Tech..... (give or take).
(On another note, in case you're wondering why i'm not broke or homeless, i've got a job I work from home for the past 1 1/2 years which has saved my buttocks... )

Thanks

Jeff

 

Keep looking for that IT job. It pays better and has better job security. I'm in IT.

 

Double-double.

 

you can make alot of money in car sales. i made 43k my first year at 19yrs old. some guys can make 70-90 possibly 100k but you have to work your butt off. also the economy also effects us. we dont get as much traffic anymore because people are not spending anymore that they need. banks are going under. last year i would sell at least 23 cars per month now im barely getting 15 lol. its alot worse. oh and make sure you work for a company that sells like toyota,scion,honda. of course yur pay will vary from company thru company alot of dealers change the payplans like crazy. good luck.

 

Well, I've been looking for an IT job for 5 months now. I know alot more about scion xb's than most dealers and i'm pretty passioante about the brand in general....just a thought is all.

thanks for the replys, i'd LOVE to hear more opinions and positives and negatives, so keep em comin please!

Jeff

 

my dad has been in car sales all his life. was up to nearly 120k a year. You have to be willing to take hits some months and personally, from a family aspect of it. Its just not worth it. if you are young and can roll with it, perfect. if not run, look elsewhere. IT can be lucrative, just have to find the right place. It is also a lot more secure and you know how much money is coming through each month.

IT > Sales

my dad has worked 6 day weeks, because he wants to be that good salesman, that hand delivers cars and truly takes care of the buyer. in fact he has a list of about 200-250 customers that will buy a car from him no matter what dealership he is at. That says something, but it didnt come easy it came at the pain and suffering of not only himself but the family as well. I cant tell you how many times my dad missed out on sports, events, etc that his kids were involved with. Missed me going to state two years in a row because of it. Would that be worth it??? maybe, but really weigh the options.

 

Thanks Trent, I appreciate the feedback. I'm not really looking for a career change, per say, just something until I can find another job.....unless it goes great of course, then who knows.

Thanks for the feedback trent and everybody, thats alot to think about.

jeff

 

but you can easily get hooked and thats what has happened to my dad. if its as an interim and you know that going in. go for it. if its a save my but and you never know sort of thing be careful...

My dad has gone from dealership to dealership: honda, chevy, bmw, mercedes, most recent was managing a hummer and cadillac shop, and now back to chevy. He even went on a 4 year stint with large boats. 30+ feet. but ya, weigh all your options and see whats there.

If you were up here in the Seattle area, i would help you out with the IT thing. Since I have my share of connections, but man good luck and keep me updated. I do job development and training for people looking to change jobs, or get back to work after injuries (primary focus is on disabled: mental, physical, emotion). So this stuff really interests me.

 

trentonm hit it on the head.

My pops was never in car sales but he has sold everything else, appliances, mattresses, furniture. He has missed a lot in our lives, just to struggle to make sure we had lives. It's a very brutal business that few have the chops to really do well in. There seems to be no morals in sales that use commission. My pops has worked long hours and endless weeks, and because of that he and I are not close at all.

I say stay away from it, because it is very addicting. that's how my dad started, just something to do for the meantime, ended up being a 35+ year career.

 

Yeah, well computer geek is what I am, and IT is what I do...lol, just been looking for so long i'm starting to get frustrated I guess.

 

Try Dice or Monster. I put my resume up on Monster, and within a month I landed a pretty good job at an international web hosting company making sure the interwebs doesn't die (and now I'm branching out and doing off-hours sales!), and I'm actually still getting calls and emails three months later for interviews at places.

What degrees or certifications do you have? "IT" is pretty broad; what specifically are you looking to go into?

 

i've got a job search I do 2-3 times daily on monster, dice, careerbuilder, hotjobs, craigslist, and indeed.com
LOL

I do helpdesk, application support, and desktop support. Pays pretty good usually in Southern California.

Edit: I think i'll stick with IT for now, or maybe i'll get a job at bevmo (discounts on beer?) while I look, hehe

thanks all

Jeff

 

Do you have a degree? A nice looking resume? Those things make the difference.

I tried doing the daily Monster, Dice, CareerBuilder, Craigslist thing. I was doing that for months, but I only got offers from little start-up companies that didn't really tweak my interest. I suppose it depends what you are looking for. Eventually, I made a decision to start approaching all of the big IT companies directly. The websites of most big IT companies have daily-updated job openings and they are usually quick to respond. You have to be prepared for a lot of rejections, but you will eventually find what you are looking for. I focused my job search on IT in the aerospace sector, and I am now a Systems Analyst at Boeing.

 

No Degree, but experience. And my Resume is Amazing. I've thought about doing a resume service my resume's are so good. I helped my sister with hers and shes got a business degree.

 

Then you should have no problem. If you just pimp out your resume to anyone and everyone, then you are bound to generate some interest eventually. Just don't expect them to come to you. The thing about Monster, CareerBuilder, etc, is that you are just sitting around waiting for someone to show interest in you. I say the best approach is to spend hours every day actively applying to companies directly. I think I must have applied to at least 40 or 50 big-name companies and at least 10 positions within each company before I finally got the job I wanted.

 

hi Rod,

Oh, I do, I do a search on ALL those sites 3-4 times per day . And I got a tip from a recruiter that helped. They usually do searches for the most RECENTLY updated resumes. So now i'm updating my resume on all those job sites every 3-4 days, and that's gotten me more leads and calls already. Just a matter of time, LOL.

Thanks

Jeff

 

I forgot to mention that I was looking for a good solid month doing what you're doing on Monster before I actually started getting calls. You just gotta wait it out sometimes, unfortunately.