I'm currently working in a cloud migrations role with 6 years of IT experience, including help desk and system administration. I make around $100K, but I'm feeling uncertain about my future. My company has faced layoffs every year for the past four years, and the workload is intense with limited promotion opportunities on my small team. I'm considering a career change and weighing my options between DevOps and data analytics. DevOps seems like a natural progression, but the interview process is daunting. Recruiters expect a wide range of skills including Terraform, Kubernetes, Azure, AWS, PowerShell, and more, which feels overwhelming. I'm also apprehensive about the on-call responsibilities that often come with DevOps roles. On the other hand, some friends have suggested data analytics, which might offer a more straightforward interview process and daily work. I have some experience with SQL and Power BI, but I’ve never held a dedicated data analyst position. I'm concerned about the potential for a pay cut and how difficult it might be to land an interview in that field. Ultimately, I'm looking for better work-life balance, job stability, and opportunities for growth without sacrificing my salary significantly. Given my background, I'm trying to decide if transitioning into data analytics is a viable option or if I should pursue DevOps roles instead.