This is what I ended up doing. I migrated from software development to IT support after getting burnt out from the pressure-cooker environment.
After going a few rounds with different corporations I was lucky enough to come across a position in city government. It's a small city (under 20,000 pop.) and at the time they didn't have their own IT department.
It took the better part of 3 years to bring everything up to speed, but I'm now the manager of the department - I have a small staff working with me and no middle management to speak of (I report directly to the City Manager). There's plenty of work to go around, and overtime is at a minimum, usually when something breaks at the Police or Fire Departments. As long as I can still pilot a keyboard and don't piss off my boss (hard do do, he's a really cool guy) I'm pretty well set till retirement.
The pay is not as good as the private sector, but the benefits rock. All my medical benefits are paid as well as 85% of my family's.
Admittedly, opportunities like this don't grow on trees - I was lucky. If you're willing to relocate, however, the opportunities exist. You need to do a lot of digging and creative thinking, but they're out there.
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After going a few rounds with different corporations I was lucky enough to come across a position in city government. It's a small city (under 20,000 pop.) and at the time they didn't have their own IT department.
It took the better part of 3 years to bring everything up to speed, but I'm now the manager of the department - I have a small staff working with me and no middle management to speak of (I report directly to the City Manager). There's plenty of work to go around, and overtime is at a minimum, usually when something breaks at the Police or Fire Departments. As long as I can still pilot a keyboard and don't piss off my boss (hard do do, he's a really cool guy) I'm pretty well set till retirement.
The pay is not as good as the private sector, but the benefits rock. All my medical benefits are paid as well as 85% of my family's.
Admittedly, opportunities like this don't grow on trees - I was lucky. If you're willing to relocate, however, the opportunities exist. You need to do a lot of digging and creative thinking, but they're out there.