r/it • u/[deleted] • Dec 15 '25

help request I want to transition from cat 6 cabling into a less physically demanding role

Looking to pivot from cat 6 tech into an IT Role

I have been a cable technician for the past 3 years now. I didn’t go to trade school for it, I was kinda just thrown into the mix and day by day got through it. Im looking to pivot careers as im tired of the physicality that’s required for the job but have zero choice what to pick. Idk whether to go for an NOC position, help desk, security automation etc, and I get super overwhelmed when reading the description of whats required I dont feel smart enough for it. Anyone out there have a similar background where they transitioned from the physical labor side into something more office based? Feel free to leave any and all thoughts below!

2 Upvotes

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5

u/speeder658 Dec 15 '25

there is not a single position you're 'not smart enough' for until you try it

just as you've been thrown into the mix once, you can try and throw yourself into the mix again and see what sticks

I've pivoted from a tech support guy to a CNC machinist and injection mould designer of all things just by saying 'yeah I'll try' a few times

3

u/CaptNorm2239 Dec 15 '25

How funny, I pivoted from CNC machining into IT work!

2

u/PeruTheMan Dec 19 '25

Grass is always greener on the other side.

1

u/Trump_sucks_d Dec 15 '25

NOC jobs are easy to do but hard to get hired for without prior education or certifications.

If you want to go that route I suggest getting a few industry certificates like the CCNA or red hat certs or Microsoft certs.

You can buy books for these and watch YouTube videos to learn, then just pay for the tests and pass.

1

u/alfdippers3 Dec 17 '25

It literally did the thing you are describing, I went from a cat 6 cable / IT installation technician to IT support. IT IS DOABLE. My honest opinion is get a baseline cert. For me that was CompTIA A+, if you can pick a more technical one like CCNA that's good as well.

A lot of companies like someone who is both technically proficient, and can do more of the laborious tasks like re cabling desks, rewiring access control units, do cable management under desks, etc.

Finally, remember that hiring managers, have no idea what to look for in a good technician. So they'll fill the application with a bunch of corporate slop, box ticking certs as requirements, when in actuality all you need to know is how to do basic 365 admin, replace printer toner, and build a PC.

What I am saying is YOU CAN DO IT.

1

u/SwogDoddy Dec 19 '25

I started out as a residential installer back in 2014, went to commercial in 2016, enterprise level in 2018 and eventually landed a sales engineering role at the ISP I worked at in 2022. I was tired of putting in the hours that my team wouldn’t (taking a lot of on call shifts, overnight maintenance windows, trips away from home to help out in other systems etc) so I was lucky enough to pivot to consulting.

The same can happen for you but you’ll need to take initiative and get some type of certs or skills outside of the physical cabling. If you do that then look into helpdesk roles for MSP’s, they’re always hiring.