We can't do that here

I remember years ago looking over a book, Automate the Boring Stuff with Python, and thinking how this would be so useful at work. Half of my job was filling out the equivalent of form letters. All the information was in our database, and the Excel spreadsheets we used because the database was all but useless for considering more than 1 project at a time. But we could only get that information by copy-pasting it.

I went to my boss and asked about the possibility of installing Python on my work computer, explained what I wanted to do with it, and that it was something I would work on when I wasn't on the clock, as it was a chance for me to learn and play with Python on something that would make the department more productive, and my job more interesting.

"We can't do that here".

I tried asking if there was someone we could talk to, and explained that Python isn't some video game, and that the folks making and dealing with our database would all know what it is I am talking about.

Insert image of a plane going down in flames.

It wasn't just my plan crashing, it was also my dream of getting a foot into the tech world.

A while later, new boss. I try again, pushing the idea of some other tech thing I think I can build. Picture Wile E Coyote smacking into the painted-over cliff wall.

Over and over, boss after boss.

In between bosses, I'd be looking at internal job listings, hoping there was some kind of entry-level thing. "Entry Level Position - Requires 2yrs experience in the field, Comp Sci Associates". So close. Only missing both the requirements. And why are 2 yrs of experience and 2 yrs of training considered entry-level? 

People not in my department, and customers I'd help deal with some tech issue: "You should be in tech".

So one day, burnt out, and tired of dealing with doing the same thing for decades, I quit. And now here I am, making the leap into tech, no safety net, no ropes. Just tired of waiting for someone else to give me permission.