yea, help desk, desktop support, support desk, customer service... those are all nuts from the same tree. I've been doing it all for over 6 years now and can confirm it's a veritable life sentence (or death sentence, however you prefer to look at it) . I've followed all the traditional (and fallacious) advice that you'll find on this forum (the certs, the "home labs", all the bullshit) and it's all entirely ineffectual. I've been ignored or insulted by every employer I've applied with over the last ~18 months. I was once told my resume was "not at all competitive" with the average candidate for a particular mid-level sys admin role. Another recruiter explained that I would never be taken seriously due to my lack of experience, and suggested I look for an internship. An internship. After 6+ years in the field. I'm 40 years old with a mortgage to pay, how do you think an internship is going to work out for me? lol