# Your Career - How Do You Feel About It?



## Konfyouzd (Dec 20, 2011)

This may be in the wrong section, and if so would someone kindly help a brotha out?

I'm just curious how many folks are happy in their careers. I recently joined the working world about 3 years ago and I came in knowing I wasn't going to be doing "exactly" the job I had in mind going into college. It just doesn't seem realistic in my mind.

It seems a lot of my friends had this idealistic view that once they got that piece of paper every employer in their field would be knocking down their door to hire them. 

At any rate, there is a friend of mine now that seems to grow increasingly disgruntled with his job. He has been interviewing with other companies and can't seem to get out. Part of me can't help but think that since we've graduated college he hasn't stuck it out even ONE year with any of the companies he's been with. He seems to just jump ship when he decides he doesn't like something.

I find it difficult to believe one could ever be succesful and/or happy in a career when they can't even give any one job a real try...

Anyone out there that isn't a musician that actually enjoys what they do for work? (Didn't mean to single you out musicians, but I'm pretty sure my conversations with y'all in pretty much every other thread shows that you enjoy what you do. Well that and the fact that most of us wish we had that job even as a secondary gig if nothing else.  )


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## s_k_mullins (Dec 20, 2011)

Although I'm still in the early stages of my career, I do really enjoy it so far. As with any job, I do have my share of frustrating days where nothing seems to go right, but overall I feel happy about the career path I chose. I get a lot of personal satisfaction from my job as well, because it feels rewarding to help others overcome problems.


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## Konfyouzd (Dec 20, 2011)

That is more or less exactly how I feel. There are days when I don't want to go in because I know some bullshit is waiting for me but I couldn't imagine wanting to do anything else except maybe a rock star, but that's still just a dream for now. 

My friend thinks he doesn't have a career path bc the job he's at isn't geared toward what he ultimately wants. We're 3 - 4 years out of college. I feel like we have time to develop our career path. And from what I undertand some ppl switch CAREERS (not to be confused with jobs) multiple times before settling on one.

Then again I don't really know what else to expect if you just jump ship every time something doesn't go your way. Some of it, to me, is character building.


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## s_k_mullins (Dec 20, 2011)

Konfyouzd said:


> Then again I don't really know what else to expect if you just jump ship every time something doesn't go your way. Some of it, to me, is character building.



I agree with this completely...I live by the rule of "You never know if you don't try." So how can you really know if a job is for you (or career, for that matter) if you never really give it a fair shot. Jumping ship early will get you nowhere.

Sometimes you may have to put up with people or things that make you unhappy, but you have to take the good with the bad. And you just gotta look at the bigger picture of whether or not you'll be satisfied in life with that career path. 

But yeah, I still have my days where I wish I could say "Fuck day jobs!" and be a rock star...or a professional chef...or an eccentric millionaire of some sorts.


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## MFB (Dec 20, 2011)

I wouldn't exactly call what I previously did a "career" since it was a high-school job that just managed to stick during my stint at community college, but I fucking hated it because it was one thing : retail. I don't think any person who works front end of retail for more than 3 years will say they're happy with their choice, and in fact are probably some of the most cynical people you'll meet because of that job; I know I am. I started at 16 when I wasn't too cruel or anything as far as I remember, and now I'm fucking sharp-witted and mean to the point of having people worry, and the only thing that's been a constant for the past 5 years was that job. Schools changed, friends went to different places as did the lady-friends, but that job was always the same. 

However, now I quit that job to move cross country and pursue animation and game design in part of a state that doesn't deal with snow!


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## s_k_mullins (Dec 20, 2011)

Konfyouzd said:


> And from what I undertand some ppl switch CAREERS (not to be confused with jobs) multiple times before settling on one.



This is so true. And some people work one career for years before switching to another. I went to graduate school with a lady who got tired of being an elementary school teacher and went back to college in her 50s to study speech-language pathology. She just realized she needed a change and totally changed careers in the latter part of her life. Never too late to seek happiness/satisfaction I guess.


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## USMarine75 (Dec 20, 2011)

Let's see... LOVED the military... hate government job... now applying to medical schools... so, yup, agree with Mullins... never too late! Do what you love (that will also pay the bills).


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## Konfyouzd (Dec 20, 2011)

What are you doing for the gov't currently? I'm a contractor and I feel like that might be as close to the gov't as I want to get.


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## SenorDingDong (Dec 20, 2011)

I enjoy my career. In fact, I can't see myself doing anything else with my life. 

I write for a living. Nonfiction for work, which is okay, although I'm not in love with nonfiction. 

The other half of my career is working on my own writing; horror fiction and fantasy. If all goes well, it will eventually be my full time job and I can stop freelancing and just make my bread as an author.

The reason why I love it is simple; I get to do what I love. I get to use my creativity and people pay me for it. There is no other feeling like knowing that someone thinks your creativity is worth their time and money.


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## SirMyghin (Dec 20, 2011)

I'll get back to you in a few months Konfuzyd, I start next week.


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## synrgy (Dec 20, 2011)

I'm in a relatively unique position in that I'm not exactly crazy about my job, but I _love_ the company I'm working for. I feel lucky to be where I am and so long as I keep working hard and stay loyal, I'm sure they will continue to take great care of me. I've been here 4.5 years so far, am in my third position, and have received pay raises every year I've been here. I'm not talking about dinky 1% raises, either. In these 4.5 years, I've almost doubled my original salary.

The older I get, the more I see work as being a means to an end, rather than an end in itself. It's all about how one chooses to look at the situation. I make more money than I ought to considering I have no degree, I have a set M-F, 9a-5p schedule, I get paid vacations, great benefits, blah blah blah. If my day-to-day kind of sucks sometimes, I figure that's a small price to pay for the quality of life and reduced levels of stress in my downtime that this job affords me.

Prospective employers want to see work history, and they want to see loyalty and dependability from that work history. They're much more likely to hire somebody who spent a great 5 years at a previous job than somebody who's been bouncing around every 6 months to a year trying to find the perfect job right out of the gate. Everybody has to start somewhere.


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## Baelzebeard (Dec 20, 2011)

I'm 33 years old and I still don't really know what I want to do when I grow up.

I've been in my current field for seven years, and it's a pretty good fit for me, but every job gets frustrating.

I think you need to tell your friend that the grass is not always greener. The next job might suckballs, and maybe he already quit something that could have developed into something great. I hope that makes sense.


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## Konfyouzd (Dec 20, 2011)

synrgy said:


> The older I get, the more I see work as being a means to an end, rather than an end in itself. If my day-to-day kind of sucks sometimes, I figure that's a small price to pay for the quality of life and reduced levels of stress in my downtime that this job affords me.
> 
> Prospective employers want to see work history, and they want to see loyalty and dependability from that work history. They're much more likely to hire somebody who spent a great 5 years at a previous job than somebody who's been bouncing around every 6 months to a year trying to find the perfect job right out of the gate. Everybody has to start somewhere.


 




Baelzebeard said:


> I'm 33 years old and I still don't really know what I want to do when I grow up.
> 
> I've been in my current field for seven years, and it's a pretty good fit for me, but every job gets frustrating.
> 
> I think you need to tell your friend that the grass is not always greener. The next job might suckballs, and maybe he already quit something that could have developed into something great. I hope that makes sense.


 
Makes perfect sense. I think some folks just get a little caught up in their own delusions of grandure after having graduated from college and/or seeing what those that came before them were able to achieve in the real world and ignore the fact that very few things are simply handed out. If anything you'd think he would have already realized the grass isn't always greener as he's switched jobs probably 2 or 3 times already only to find he hates the new place just as much as the last. Then again I may have simply befriended someone who will NEVER be happy... 

It's always sad when that happens. They make a place you already don't *really* want to be even more of a hassle some days.


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## oremus91 (Dec 20, 2011)

I wouldn't be happy if the job I have was it unless I could move up in the company. I'm still in college but really worried about what will happen after graduation tbh.


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## Konfyouzd (Dec 20, 2011)

There's always a way to "move up" and a lot of that has to do with self motivation and willingness to do things you might not necessarily want to do all the time. Or so it seems.


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## canuck brian (Dec 20, 2011)

I've been doing IT for about 13 years now. I originally went to school for law and got a degree for pre-law, but decided that computers were where i needed to be.

There are definitely times that I wonder if i made the wrong decision, but i've gotten into a field with extremely portable skills that allow me to essentially work anywhere in the world thanks to standardization. 

The pay is good, you just need to hold out for the right gig. When you start though, you usually need to put your trench time in - phone support, general tech support etc....


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## skeels (Dec 20, 2011)

I'm an arborist. I get to climb trees for a living. How kooky is that? Course, I usually kill them, but I get my hands on some cool wood sometimes. I guess I really do like my job. It's not for everyone. Im not snuggled up on an office surfing the web all day, but I get to do and see things some people can only imagine.


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## JeffFromMtl (Dec 21, 2011)

I'm currently a contractor. I paint. I don't love it, but I don't hate it. I actually find it therapeutic in a way. Sometimes you just don't know where the day's gone by the time you're done. I'm not always guaranteed to have work, but when I do have jobs, I make _really_ good money, especially for a University student. Being self-employed is also pretty sweet. You generally get back what you put in, but you get the occasional douchebag client also. I actually just posted a thread in OT that sort of talks about the stress of being self-employed and a student at the same time.

As for what my _actual_ career will be once I'm done school? I'm going to be a highschool teacher. I could probably make more money if I decided to paint full-time, but I just know that teaching is what I'm going to do and love.


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## MaxOfMetal (Dec 21, 2011)

I love my job. I really do. It still doesn't feel like I go to work about 90% of the time. I'm with a great company, have a butt load of perks and benefits, and nearly endless areas of growth available. The pay could be better, but I'm still kinda the "new guy". 

I think I'm going to stay in the beer industry for a long time.


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## Stealthdjentstic (Dec 21, 2011)

MaxOfMetal said:


> I love my job. I really do. It still doesn't feel like I go to work about 90% of the time. I'm with a great company, have a butt load of* perks and benefits*, and nearly endless areas of growth available. The pay could be better, but I'm still kinda the "new guy".
> 
> I think I'm going to stay in the beer industry for a long time.



Free beer? :jelly:


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## toiletstand (Dec 21, 2011)

double post.


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## toiletstand (Dec 21, 2011)

what career? D:


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## ralphy1976 (Dec 21, 2011)

i tried to have a career when i was around 25-27 yo, but in Europe such thing do not work and there is a very strong "dead man's shoes" culture.

So i moved on to acknowledging that my job is what is giving me the financial backing to buy stuff i want and do what i want alone, or with my family.

looking at it this way i do appreciate the luxury i have to go to work, whilst not 100% happy with it, i am happy when i get my pay check.

This outlook has kept me sain for a while now (i am 35 yo).

however, my real ambition has nothing to do with my job, i'd like to finish as a professor in a university..and for that i need to get out of my comfort zone (ie not so well paid job) which is proving a difficulty!!

Bottom line : you need to be honest with you and identify what is the priority : career, then drop everything else, having some greens for basic stuff and time to enjoy your life, then career need not apply...


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## Demiurge (Dec 22, 2011)

Work is what I do between waking up and doing what I really want to do. Maybe it sucks to look at it that way, but at this point, I'm not about to be bent out of shape about having a secure job that pays the bills (and therefore finances the aforementioned "what I really want to do") in this economy. But hell, 5 years ago I didn't think I'd be doing what I am now, so I'm not about to believe that I'm consigned to some fate or career path that is outside of my control.


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## ShadyDavey (Dec 22, 2011)

I'd like a career but a tentative +1 on Ralphy's post above.

I'll settle for a reasonable job and some happiness.


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## Konfyouzd (Dec 22, 2011)

Demiurge said:


> Work is what I do between waking up and doing what I really want to do. Maybe it sucks to look at it that way, but at this point, I'm not about to be bent out of shape about having a secure job that pays the bills (and therefore finances the aforementioned "what I really want to do") in this economy. But hell, 5 years ago I didn't think I'd be doing what I am now, so I'm not about to believe that I'm consigned to some fate or career path that is outside of my control.


 
I kind of have mixed feelings. On the one hand I do feel like this is just something I do to afford the things that I WANT to do, but at the same time I do enjoy the mental exercise that being a programmer inevitably entails. Something about determining how something should work logically and seeing it actually work in practice does my heart joy considering how something should logically work NEVER tends to work out that way in "real life" (vs the logic-based world inside my computer).

At the same time I did mention in so many words that there are other things I'd rather be doing. 

So this job is also what I do to fund endeavors that will hopefully free me from the shackles of standard 9-5 employment.


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## Bevo (Dec 22, 2011)

I have had 6 jobs in my life,the second last was 16 years and this one 2.
All my work had to do with buildings from welding to property management. 

My work now is great, every day is different and I get to do things from buy huge properties, renovations, buy new companies all with my 3 co workers.
We have a small team in a big company and do all the real-estate for Canada.

I could not ask for a better job and love the work.

For you guys starting out it's really important to not skip around to different jobs. Find a great company and get in, if things work well you can move up.
When I hire people and look at resumes, if I see them moving around allot even if they are better qualified I skip them and my luck with this has been very good.

Another thing for those in school or uni, look at what you will be doing and the jobs in that field. If there is no work......?
This is a big problem I see, all these guys doing massive degrees and not spending one day in that field. And for those that say it's for the experience....think about that plus your debt and time lost.


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## AK DRAGON (Dec 22, 2011)

I've been working for the same company (10 years next month) but have moved inside the company 4 times. I'm currently on medical leave (surgery) and would rather not go back to work what I as a technician. I don't totally hate the job as more opposed to my body can't take the abuse anymore. I've been trying to get back into the IT field within the company but it's tough when fighing ITS for the same position.


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## M3CHK1LLA (Dec 22, 2011)

working in a game store is not all fun & games...


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## Underworld (Dec 28, 2011)

I have mixed feeling about my career. Well, I'm at the dawn of it - I'm still a trainee lawyer and will be for the next 4 months. Right now it feels "ok", but I do not have much relations with customers. I feel it might get better with time as I will meet more people, get confidance in what I am doing and devellop my own field of competence but on the other side, I feel like I am not going to like my job on the long run. 

My income as a trainee is ridiculous, and I fear it wont be much higher when I will be junior lawyer. I work for a small company and we do not have lots of advantages like bigger compagnies. On the other side, it is easier to get something if needed and everyone in the office is very kind and friendly! 

I guest only time will tell!


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## jymellis (Dec 28, 2011)

i love my job and all it entails. i hate the bullshit office politics, and jr.high games that go on. i didnt like those games even when i was in jr.high.


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## Aevolve (Dec 28, 2011)

FUCK retail.

Cannot wait to go to college and actually do something with my life.


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## Blind Theory (Dec 28, 2011)

I know exactly what degree I want and what field I am going to pursue as a life long career. I've known since I was a wee little lad. That being said, I am not doing that right now, obviously. Right now I am doing shitty grunt work at a local restaurant that gets fucking stupid busy. I liked it in the beginning just because I'd been looking for a job for a long time but now I absolutely loath it. The majority of the people I work with are either assholes, incompetent, or fake ass bitches and hoes. It isn't exactly what I'd call an "intellectual" field either. That gets on my nerves as well. I really like being around successful people who followed through with their dreams and goals. I have to say the people I work with aren't like that at all, especially bussing and dishwashing. 

That being said, I love the fact that there is steady income and I can afford my own shit. 18 years old with my first job, after looking for 3 years, is really nice. There really isn't any advancement either. It is a single chain with no other locations so there is no corporate office or whatever. I could move to another job but I'd still get the same pay. The only positions I could move up to are supervisory positions but they are all taken by the owners family members and if they aren't related to them they have been with them for a very long time. One of the owners can be a real asshole, too. I haven't had a lot of interaction with the other owner so I can't say anything about him. Either way...I'll stick with it because it is a job and will pay my way through college and whatever else I need until I get into my preferred field. In this economy you can't be too bitchy about that stuff.


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## SirMyghin (Jan 23, 2012)

Well, just got back from my first shift (21 days in, 12 hours a day, minimum, sometimes need to put in some extra hours to get er done) and I really like my job. I am a field engineer at a tunneling project for a hydroelectric power hour (which will be underground). Haven't slept this well in years.

Was good getting to know the miners, and being at a work camp in the mountains is pretty cool. Time just flies when you are up there and they you go home, and relax, for 21 days. I lose 3 days to travel each time, but that is minor. It is fairly hard on the wife on weekends, as she has a lot of free time then (works during the week) but she is getting by.

The job is a hell of a lot easier than my Master's (in advanced analysis) was, and my background was civil engineering (but now I am pretty much doing mining, oh well, it is awesome). Learned a lot this first run and can't wait to keep at it. Next shift starts Feb 7th, and I have a travel guitar for my few off work hours this time (or will, once it gets here in the mail). 

For all you considering education, stay in school, or at least go into mining, miners make a lot of money  The time off (working 1/2 the year) makes this job awesome, especially considering I am still working full weeks (42.5 hours) all year round on average. I am salary though, so I don't get to see the overtime.


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## Vostre Roy (Jan 23, 2012)

SirMyghin said:


> For all you considering education, stay in school, or at least go into mining, miners make a lot of money



Being a Mining Technician, I can only second that 

I will not say that I'm batshit crazy about my job, but thats because I just find it kinda boring most of the time (although my job allow me to stay on SSO all day, wich is a good thing). Difference is that I'm working in the Ore Mining sector, wich is blooming at an incredible speed around here (the Abitibi-Témiscamingue mining camp has never been so active). I don't work for a mining company directly, I'm in an engineering consultant firm, that allow me to see different projects and different mining processus.

The thing that I really like about my job is that I got to use AutoCAD every fucking day. Needless to say that the day I'll order a custom guitar, a well made up-to-scale CAD drawing will not be an issue lol

As for the money, I'm not working underground on a jackleg or a jumbo, making 50$/h with the bonuses, but its pretty decent and it allows me to buy the gear I want at a decent rate. And I don't ruin my body by working with those heavy machinery (10 years of jackleg and you can get the "white-hand" syndrome, making your hands unusable to play guitar.... would be a nightmare)


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## thrsher (Jan 26, 2012)

I changed careers a year ago to get started in IT. i despise my job. particularly so, i work for a mortgage company. i do get great perks. but i hate being responsible for peoples technology. end users are idiots. you change one thing and its the end of the world for some of these people. 

i do wonder to myself though if its the company i work for or its like this across the field for another companies.


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## MaxOfMetal (Jan 26, 2012)

thrsher said:


> I changed careers a year ago to get started in IT. i despise my job. particularly so, i work for a mortgage company. i do get great perks. but i hate being responsible for peoples technology. end users are idiots. you change one thing and its the end of the world for some of these people.
> 
> i do wonder to myself though if its the company i work for or its like this across the field for another companies.


 
I hear the same from IT guys across the board, even at the compay I work for. 

My company hosts IT group meetings twice a month and I've sat in a few times. They reserve about an hour to two hours at the end of each meeting just to discuss how difficult it can be working with non-technology inclined folks. 

It seems pretty stressful, though it can only get better as the average person's computer literacy is climbing with every year.


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## Konfyouzd (Jan 26, 2012)

thrsher said:


> I changed careers a year ago to get started in IT. i despise my job. particularly so, i work for a mortgage company. i do get great perks. but i hate being responsible for peoples technology. end users are idiots. *you change one thing and its the end of the world for some of these people*.
> 
> i do wonder to myself though if its the company i work for or its like this across the field for another companies.


 
It's even better when they request the change and then seem surprised by it. 

"But it used to work like..."

Yes and you didn't get that so I changed it to be "more intuitive" based on what you said and you're still bitching. 

The main problem seems to be that everyone understands things slightly differently and no matter what you do there will be some ppl who almost seem to REFUSE to get it. It's like every time they change the tax situation... Some ppl jump for joy and others lose their minds.

I was contracted to come to my current site to change the user interface on their intranet search engine. Now, the fact that I was contracted to do this leads me to believe that a good few ppl wanted this. Keep in mind I didn't design the interface AT ALL. The interface was an HTML layout some designer from a completely different company made and it was my job to connect said interface to the back end search engine, etc.

The day we changed everything over the world went crazy. 

"I can't find anything anymore!"

"This new layout is harder to read!" (The text was LARGER and the results were positioned in such a way that the client no longer had to scroll at all to see the first 5 - 6 results. Scrolling is a big deal for clients here apparently--they don't want to do it--ever. They've even done surveys to prove this. )

Some people will just never be happy.

I've recently tried to find a way to flip this into a positive. 

I've come up with this:

The whole reason I got into this field is because I like the mental exercise it provides. It's also part of the reason I like buying mid range guitars and trying my best to mod them. It's not so much that I wouldn't pay for the exact axe I want. I WANT to do the wiring bc I just think being frustrated as hell is fun nuts and rewarding when you can figure it out.

Thus...

People bitching technically only serves as further mental exercise. Not only that, but most of the time when the end user hears "error" they already assume it may take a while to fix even if it means just throwing a semicolon somewhere. This allows me to fix things at a more leisurely pace since they don't "really" know how long it's going to take (although I obviously shouldn't just take forever every time bc I can).

On top of that, I mentioned that being frustrated as hell all day is rewarding [for me] if I manage to figure it out. So my ability to constantly respond to their needs no matter how petty also serves as a little bit of a confidence boost for me as well. Reassurance that I can do literally anything I put my mind to.


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## SirMyghin (Jan 26, 2012)

Konfyouzd said:


> On top of that, I mentioned that being frustrated as hell all day is rewarding [for me] if I manage to figure it out. So my ability to constantly respond to their needs no matter how petty also serves as a little bit of a confidence boost for me as well. Reassurance that I can do literally anything I put my mind to.



People are the hardest part of any job, imo. They are the only part that is so damned unpredictable


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## Konfyouzd (Jan 26, 2012)

Ha I know right. We need that dude from Office Space. "I have ppl skills dammit!"


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## SirMyghin (Jan 26, 2012)

Konfyouzd said:


> Ha I know right. We need that dude from Office Space. "I have ppl skills dammit!"



Fortunately I only really have to deal with engineers and miners, not sure if either group counts as people


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## Solodini (Jan 27, 2012)

My career's just starting, really. The music teaching thing is what I hope to do with my life as I enjoy learning by teaching and being able to help others out. I'm still slogging away in a call centre to pay bills until things pick up, that is that I'm working to make them pick up rather than just waiting and hoping, but helping people on here is a way to do what I love in the mean time and build up some further knowledge of people's problems and what has worked for them or not. I think I could happily stay in a call centre my whole life, as long as I can teach a few lessons each week and make some form of difference to people.

I'm of the "I do it to allow me to do the things I enjoy" mindset and I think that's important. A lot of people seem to do a job which they hate and then sit in front of the TV as their only way of relaxing. I find that I only really get something out of an experience if I put something of myself into it. Watching TV doesn't do that for me. Doing something where I can benefit someone else and they can show me that they appreciate it is way more relaxing for me than doing nothing. Without being a hippy, it's spiritually relaxing for me.

Like Konfyouzd said, if I can face a challenge and overcome it then I have a great sense of achievement.


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## Kidneythief (Jan 29, 2012)

Oh God don't get me started on the IT.
I work at T-Systems in Europe as an ...international servicedesk...wait for it...wait for it....agent!

Basicly I'm sitting there in a big room with lots of other people, and are taking calls (we are 1st level) from our beloved customers.
Life can be hard there.

I'be been there since last year May, since then:
-have been nominated for Employee of the Month
-got a status, where I don't need to take any more calls, instead I work on cases which prove more difficult then your average: "Please click here, then there, and there you go it works again"
-and I'm applying now for a position in Beijing, China for 1 year 

I like the company, love my co-workers there. My two lady-bosses are wonderfull (not just the looks ), so yeah. I guess I'm pretty well settled for the next few years.



My dream however:
1; Opening a Bonsai shop, and growing and taking care of them little trees. And occasionally sell them to rich snob idiots who are too lazy to grow their own 

2; Music...hehe what else?


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## Bucks (Jan 30, 2012)

My situation is pretty unique I think. I don't consider myself to have ever had a 'proper' job. I went to college at home got my undergraduate, came to the UK, initially for just a year to get a masters, ended up being pretty fortunate and getting offered funding for my PhD, I've worked in the faculty alongside for some time now and I should be awarded the doctorate this year. It looks like there is a permanent place for me here in the university.

The constant need to improve academic standing by publishing it stressful and there are times where I doubt myself. It's cost me a lot to get here, and required a lot of work, but I think I have it pretty easy in comparison. Besides I love what I do.


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## SirMyghin (Jan 30, 2012)

Bucks said:


> My situation is pretty unique I think. I don't consider myself to have ever had a 'proper' job. I went to college at home got my undergraduate, came to the UK, initially for just a year to get a masters, ended up being pretty fortunate and getting offered funding for my PhD, I've worked in the faculty alongside for some time now and I should be awarded the doctorate this year. It looks like there is a permanent place for me here in the university.
> 
> The constant need to improve academic standing by publishing it stressful and there are times where I doubt myself. It's cost me a lot to get here, and required a lot of work, but I think I have it pretty easy in comparison. Besides I love what I do.



Cudos, a professorship is not a common oppurtunity nowadays, and I for one absolutely hated being in research . What field you in?


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## Bucks (Jan 30, 2012)

I came from electrical engineering originally. 

I've been looking at natural language processing for the last few years, specifically machine learning algorithms for natural language disambiguation tasks. 

I think the PhD system needs revising, while I love what I do, the four years have been very difficult and for many of my unfortunate colleagues utterly pointless.


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## Blind Theory (Feb 2, 2012)

So it's been a month since I last posted and I gotta say, if I ever had the idea of getting into the restaurant business before, fuck that.  A lot of people are cool but a LOT of people are fucking assholes (including the owners, go figure).


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## Murmel (Feb 3, 2012)

Anyone here a cop or firefighter? I'm seriously considering going to school for that after I finish high-school. I'm 110% determined that I WILL NOT spend the rest of my life on my ass in some office. And I love to make a difference for the better.
I know the physical requirements for firefighters is pretty high, but I work out so when the time comes for a physical test I'll hopefully make it. The job situation seems to be super terrible for firefighters here though...

I just have to get some laser surgery done on my eyes, because my vision is way too bad right now (you can't have glasses for either).
And the pay is absolute shit, but whatever.

Edit: I'm also considering the military. But I wouldn't be surprised if it's hard to get a full-time job there too. Because the Swedish army is pretty much non-existant and gets smaller every year 

Edit2: It's kind of a small dream of mine to work for something like a SWAT team, but I have no idea what the requirements for that are. Probably years of excellent police service and incredible physique.


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## SirMyghin (Feb 3, 2012)

Bucks said:


> I came from electrical engineering originally.
> 
> I've been looking at natural language processing for the last few years, specifically machine learning algorithms for natural language disambiguation tasks.
> 
> I think the PhD system needs revising, while I love what I do, the four years have been very difficult and for many of my unfortunate colleagues utterly pointless.



Yeah the PhD system is too common, you might say. The rate which 'professors' are trained greatly exceeds the need for more, but isn't that the case with everywhere? It was great in research boom times, like the cold war, where you had tonnes of expansion in those sectors in order to keep ahead of the other side. 

I think PhD holder expectations, paired with employer expectations play a role though. Employers don't want to pay what the PhD's may demand, and look at the PhD with uncertainty, as it looms 'if he is offered an academic position he will just up an leave. Whether the employee would do that is irrelevant though. These things, along with the long term commitment (often equated to lost income over your lifetime) are some of the reasons I did not pursue a PhD (despite the + of being to call myself Doctor...). That and research isn't my game.


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## Konfyouzd (Feb 3, 2012)

Bucks said:


> My situation is pretty unique I think. I don't consider myself to have ever had a 'proper' job. I went to college at home got my undergraduate, came to the UK, initially for just a year to get a masters, ended up being pretty fortunate and getting offered funding for my PhD, I've worked in the faculty alongside for some time now and I should be awarded the doctorate this year. It looks like there is a permanent place for me here in the university.
> 
> The constant need to improve academic standing by publishing it stressful and there are times where I doubt myself. It's cost me a lot to get here, and required a lot of work, but I think I have it pretty easy in comparison. Besides I love what I do.


 
The doubt is what makes success all the more wonderful to me. It's like Nicholas Cage said in Gone in 60 Seconds: "Without disappointment we can't appreciate victory." Doubt--to me--seems a lot like premature disappointment.


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## Konfyouzd (Feb 3, 2012)

Murmel said:


> Anyone here a cop or firefighter? I'm seriously considering going to school for that after I finish high-school. I'm 110% determined that I WILL NOT spend the rest of my life on my ass in some office. And I love to make a difference for the better.
> I know the physical requirements for firefighters is pretty high, but I work out so when the time comes for a physical test I'll hopefully make it. The job situation seems to be super terrible for firefighters here though...
> 
> I just have to get some laser surgery done on my eyes, because my vision is way too bad right now (you can't have glasses for either).
> ...


 
Go for it, man. I don't know how it is where you live but cops can get some serious undeserved hate here in the states sometimes. There are plenty that make you think, "This is why people don't like you," but the cool ones are usually pretty awesome and god forbid a situation arise where you actually NEED them.


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## Murmel (Feb 4, 2012)

^
I know what you mean about the hate.
The crime situation in Sweden vs the US is probably quite different, but they sure get hate here too, especially among kids. And I haven't really ever talked to a nice cop, but I still want to be one 

But I'm not sure I want to live here in Sweden, I'd honestly rather live someplace where there's summer pretty much all year round. Southern California is very tempting. I just don't know how I'm gonna go about doing this if I want to be become a police officer 
Not to mention the fact that moving abroad to someplace totally unknown is quite a scary thought.


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## MFB (Feb 4, 2012)

Murmel, you'd be surprised actually. We had a kid move from Sweden just to attend school out in San Francisco. I thought I moved a long ways, that SOB straight up changed countries


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## Sicarius (Feb 4, 2012)

I started my new Career Monday, the 30th.

I love my job so far. It's IT (PC Tech 2) for the community college I go to. It's a part time gig, but it's awesome. I don't have a desk, or even a cubicle, my computer is my own, and no one messes with it. Last year before Christmas break everyone played MW1 for a little localized LAN party. 

While I'm in a probationary period right now, and I can't really go out on calls on my own yet, they've let me go out on my own to do some things, like make sure some computers were on so the software we use to push updates and things are working.

I get to drive a golf cart, too. I know that right now it's just the whole "new job" honeymoon, but I've been trying to get into IT for years, and now that I'm finally in it, I get to work with people who aren't stupid, and know what they're doing. 

I hope I get to stay here for a long time, and move up into the full time positions soon after I graduate. 

Not to mention I get Friday - Sunday off. The hours kind of suck since it's capped at 19.5, but some weeks (like my first one) I can go over a little, especially since I'm trying to get enough hours together for my Co-Op class which is full of bullshit.


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## Murmel (Feb 4, 2012)

Yeah if you're going to school then it's not uncommon at all to go to the US. But staying there afterwards is what would be difficult, VISA etc..
And I get a feeling that the Police Academy would rather take in an American citizen rather than some random kid from polar bear land


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## SirMyghin (Feb 4, 2012)

Murmel said:


> Yeah if you're going to school then it's not uncommon at all to go to the US. But staying there afterwards is what would be difficult, VISA etc..
> And I get a feeling that the Police Academy would rather take in an American citizen rather than some random kid from polar bear land



You just have to want it bad enough dude. Dreams are all good and well, but generally speaking only the people who actually sacrifice to attempt are achieving them. I know some foreign students who went as far as work Visas and have no intention of ever returning to their home country for various reasons (like manditory civil service in Iran). 

And because this is a music forum, a song to sum up what I am saying


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## Murmel (Feb 5, 2012)

I just caught myself reading the San Diego Police Department website. Why am I doing this 

Edit: In the list of stuff they like in people applying I found "Appearance". I guess this is not that you have to be good looking, but more focused on tattoo's and the like?


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## SirMyghin (Feb 5, 2012)

I am sure if you look like Dolph Lundgren (which you must, being swedish and all) you would get on no problem


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## ralphy1976 (Feb 5, 2012)

Update on my previous post.

I have been promoted to a job which i have been eyeing for a year now, so i am pretty happy.

However it doesn't change the fact that my job is still what gives me a paycheck, it is not a career per say, more a duty to the ATM!!!


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## Blind Theory (Feb 5, 2012)

Murmel, I am sure you could become a Police officer in the U.S. through paperwork of epic proportions. Just a little info from someone with connections though:

I know that most states have what is called P.O.S.T. certification. Colorado does for sure since that is the state I live in and am familiar with. It stands for Police Officer Safety Training Certification. Basically, you have to learn gun safety, driving tests, etc, etc, etc. AFTER you get certified, and pretty much ONLY after, you can apply for a position with a department. Once you are in, you still have to go through THEIR academy and learn what they want you to. After that, you will be in a sort of probationary mode where you are trained in the real world until the allotted time is up and you are signed off and free to protect and serve the public. Once you get in though, you can pretty much go where ever you want since you already did it once.


Also, the medical field is huge. It will be huge until people are immortal so...I think it will be huge for a few more years


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## Murmel (Feb 6, 2012)

^
I pretty much already had that in mind, it's kinda how it works here too. Except you guys focus more on guns than we do, I'm sure that all officers know how to shoot, but most don't even carry a firearm with them while on duty.
I'm already taking notes on extra fancy words to use to become better at English. Because right now, it's conversational, at best 

I'd go into the medical field, if I weren't as dumb as I actually am. I wouldn't last a week at med-school


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## Konfyouzd (Feb 7, 2012)

So I just got into work today and checked my email...

Why this lady emailed me at my work address--and how the fuck she found it--I will never know BUT she's offering me a position with a gaming company. FYI - gaming is the whole reason I chose programming in the first place.

What's more, one of the positions she's offering is in San Diego which AFAIK has AWESOME weather pretty much year round (would be awesome for my doggies; they hate walking in the cold). On top of that, the position in San Diego will pay for relocation.

Just one problem... What does that mean if I own property in my current state? Sounds like I might get stuck with a mortgage payment, but maybe I can work something out with the new employer where they hook me up with an apt for a little while...? 

I'm talking to her some time tomorrow and hopefully I'll find out the full scoop.

At the moment I have a raging semi...  



> Good Afternoon. I am reaching out to you today regarding a SR Software Engineer role in the Hunt Valley location for a MMO gaming company- No gaming experience is needed. This position would allow you to be involved in developing brand new MMO games. I would love the opportunity to talk with you a little further regarding this position, are you available this afternoon to have a conversation?





> P.S. I also have Java engineering positions for a MMO gaming company in San Diego that does NOT require gaming experience, as well as a Sr. Software Engineer role for a fortune 500 cloud computing company in St. Louis. Relocation will be paid for the San Diego position.


 
Might sound a bit sketchy since it requires no experience, but I have a friend that managed to score a position at Bethesda Softworks as a programmer with no programming experience whatsoever. I've been programming forever (in comparison to him anyway) and they completely ignored my resume, so maybe no experience is the way to go...?


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## Andromalia (Feb 7, 2012)

> SR Software Engineer role in the Hunt Valley location for a MMO gaming company- No gaming experience is needed




Flee. I have worked in the MMO field for 8 years now. Can't really say more as my contract is full of NDAs blablabla but, as a whole, seeing that kind of stuff, I'd expect a Facebook startup venture.


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## Konfyouzd (Feb 7, 2012)

Andromalia said:


> Facebook startup venture.
> [/COLOR][/FONT]


 


So not like WoW or that crazy Marvel vs DC Universe game? I think at the very least I'm going to listen to the lady and see what they wanna do. If it's those stupid ass Facebook type games I'll tell her to shove it. 

... or respectfully decline


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## Andromalia (Feb 7, 2012)

Depends on what you want, keep in mind some FB games DO make a lot of money. Your chances of getting in Blizzard or any other AAA publisher as a starter programmer are...slim. And then "programmer" isn't really a job description anymore, you have so many various kinds ^^
If it's in San Diego, jut check who is there, I seem to recall Bioware has offices there among others. The headhunter company likely won't tell you who the customer is straight away.


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## Konfyouzd (Feb 7, 2012)

Yea I've been noticing that "programmer" isn't exactly a position anywhere anymore. They all want you to do something else. I'm borderline feeling like Mitch Hedberg ab this. 

"If you do one thing ppl always want you to do some shit that's related but not the same. Like if I'm a comedian they say, 'Hey! Can you act?' That's not fair... What if I work my ass off to become a great chef and you're like, 'Oh you're such an awesome chef! Can you farm?'"

But the same thing seems to go for "programmers."

I came from a strict C++ backend coding foundation then moved to Java.

Now everyone says oh you know C++ and Java? Do you know Lua, SQL, python, PERL, CSS, HTML, JavaScript, C# and Cobol?  

Also, I kinda figured I wouldn't be starting off doing anything groundbreaking since there's no experience required but you never know who I might impress once/IF I get there...


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## Murmel (Feb 7, 2012)

Konfyouzd said:


> What's more, one of the positions she's offering is in San Diego which AFAIK has AWESOME weather pretty much year round


Fuck. You.

That's where I want to be 














Nah j/k, congrats duder


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## XEN (Feb 7, 2012)

Konfyouzd said:


> Yea I've been noticing that "programmer" isn't exactly a position anywhere anymore. They all want you to do something else. I'm borderline feeling like Mitch Hedberg ab this.
> 
> "If you do one thing ppl always want you to do some shit that's related but not the same. Like if I'm a comedian they say, 'Hey! Can you act?' That's not fair... What if I work my ass off to become a great chef and you're like, 'Oh you're such an awesome chef! Can you farm?'"
> 
> ...


Hedberg rules. Yes, he still does.

You know I feel your pain man.

As for my career, I know I'm lucky as hell to be where I am.
I quit high school after my sophomore year, got my GED, took the ACT and went to college for a year, where I bombed royally, and spent the next 12 years screwing up everything I could.

Now, I'm a webmaster/IT specialist at the pentagon with 8 years of civil service already under my belt.

I'd rather design guitars for an equally good (or better) living, but there's something to be said for a solid career path in this economy.


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## MFB (Feb 9, 2012)

Konfyouzd, take it from me man - I just movednto San Fran from Boston and once your out here the weather elsewhere is fucking horrid  It's sunshine and cool breezes 99% of the time and the other part is just rain. Kind of a black and white weather situation, and from what I've heard San Diego is even nicer; plus, Comic-Con happens there and not up here


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## Blind Theory (Feb 9, 2012)

If weather is your main objective, all the awesome places to live also seem to have some kind of booming industry within it. Southern Texas, Florida, California, Arizona...really anywhere south. Probably pretty wicked opportunity for starting a BBQ place in the south, too.


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## Stealthdjentstic (Feb 9, 2012)

Andromalia said:


> Depends on what you want, keep in mind some FB games DO make a lot of money. Your chances of getting in Blizzard or any other AAA publisher as a starter programmer are...slim. And then "programmer" isn't really a job description anymore, you have so many various kinds ^^
> If it's in San Diego, jut check who is there, I seem to recall Bioware has offices there among others. The headhunter company likely won't tell you who the customer is straight away.



For what it's worth Zynga alone is responsible for 12% of Facebook's profits purely from the "tax" they have to pay to FB each time a person buys in-game content.


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## BlindingLight7 (Feb 9, 2012)

What career?

I quit my first job after only a month cause I was working 12 hour shifts basically alone in the back of a massive freezer, my "partner" never hardly worked and whenever he did he was so high he could barely mutter a sentence. and he slept on the job. fuck that.

Now, I realize how bad of a mistake it was to quit, I've only worked one "special project" since then, its been 4 months. I've applied at just about every place I can see myself working at without going nuts, and its getting depressing. 

So yeah, how do I feel? I hate my "career" along with life, being broke isn't fun.


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## Sicarius (Feb 19, 2012)

4th week in as a Tech.

I hate every god damn teacher on this campus save a handful.

My plan was:
Get Associate, work all summer for the school I got my AAS from, then transfer to University of Houston to get my degree in CS-Networking: Security.
Then go to work in the Oil/Gas private sector for IT.

But I don't make enough to pay for the utilities at the Lofts at UH, or an apartment off campus.

so I'm gonna bail on my BA for now, or just take it a class or two online at a time, and work my way to full time work where I'm at now.
Even if I only make 30K a year, I'll be able to get my student loans paid off and my credit back up to snuff so I can move out of my mom's house.


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## Solodini (Feb 19, 2012)

I made contact with the coordinator of East Lothian Council Strategic Music Partnership last week. I'm going to a meeting of the local hub of the partnership on Monday then meeting with the coordinator on Monday to discuss how I can get involved with them. Looks like it could be promising, as he seemed to take quite a lot of interest in me.


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## Fiction (Feb 19, 2012)

My career at the moment is washing dishes and making entrees/salads/chips.. Although i've just started studying architecture and so far its awesome. I think I've picked the right path, but we'll see how long that lasts


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## Sicarius (Feb 19, 2012)

I took a hand drafting class while trying to figure out my major, and it was fun as hell.

I'd known the teacher since Jr. High (he was an adjunct teacher that taught at night) and it was cool to see a non IT related side to him.

But now I know how to change and draft blueprints. If only I'd taken that AutoCAD class.


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## Solodini (Mar 3, 2012)

Had a meeting with the head of my old high school's music department on Thursday. I'm going to start teaching some classes there in June, once exams are out of the way. I was just expecting to teach after school but they have a double period of music on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons so I'm being given the first hour of that! Classroom teaching experience ahoy!


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## Fiction (Mar 3, 2012)

Congrats Adam! Remember to take it easy on the kids


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## BlindingLight7 (Mar 3, 2012)

I just started getting into stocks, and it seems like a really good way to make(and lose) lots of money. 

I'm also starting a new job Monday, which I'm kind of anxious about, just because I don't know what it will be like...


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## Solodini (Mar 3, 2012)

Fiction said:


> Congrats Adam! Remember to take it easy on the kids



Thanks! I'll try! 

Good luck with your new job, blindinglight.


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## BlindingLight7 (Mar 12, 2012)

Well I just got fired for low productivity... even though I was told that the first month we where to focus on quality not quantity...and that I was doing a good job, for fuck sake I just got done with my training too. I'm so fucked now


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## JPhoenix19 (Mar 15, 2012)

Being in the military, I was handed a career that just so happened to allign with some of my interests (IT). That said, I still don't know what I want to do.


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## The Uncreator (Mar 20, 2012)

I do Glazing (construction), windows, glass, doors, all that stuff. It's actually interesting, I like putting together twenty foot curtain walls of glass, then seeing it all come together. Its one of the few construction trades that looks good when an entire building is done.

Although its get heavy sometimes. I work out of boomlifts 30-40 to 60-80 feet in the air a lot of times putting in glass that can weigh over 300 pounds. 

Dont wanna drop it! lol


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## Fiction (Mar 20, 2012)

Fiction said:


> ...Although i've just started studying architecture and so far its awesome. I think I've picked the right path, but we'll see how long that lasts



Yeah that's over, really not enjoying the course anymore and can't see myself doing it as a career. At least I've pulled out only 6 weeks into the course instead of almost finishing. I'm in the midst of transferring to IT Related courses, but it seems to be a bit of a problem cause it's already 6 weeks in, so I have 6 weeks to catch up, and I may have to wait mid-year to start.. Which I really don't want to waste more time. I've already got my parents annoyed at me because of it and they think If I have to start mid-year I'll never go back 

Life, why are you so annoying?!


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## Tiger (Apr 14, 2012)

Im stoked. In my short time in the military Ive done everything from combat to dive training to learning russian in a year (even got a degree) to lots of other stuff that I love on my resume, Im having an absolute blast. My wife is provided for and we have a daughter on the way. Navy is a good place for us to be.


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## Murmel (Apr 14, 2012)

Holy shit, Tiger is alive


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## SirMyghin (Apr 14, 2012)

Fiction said:


> Yeah that's over, really not enjoying the course anymore and can't see myself doing it as a career. At least I've pulled out only 6 weeks into the course instead of almost finishing. I'm in the midst of transferring to IT Related courses, but it seems to be a bit of a problem cause it's already 6 weeks in, so I have 6 weeks to catch up, and I may have to wait mid-year to start.. Which I really don't want to waste more time. I've already got my parents annoyed at me because of it and they think If I have to start mid-year I'll never go back
> 
> Life, why are you so annoying?!



Probably for the better as there is no one the civil engineer hates more than the architect . We make the dream come true, and they get all the credit. Kind of annoying really when you have to argue it isn't possible to have an entire building without columns just because they envision it .


Still liking my job a lot, and loving the underground environment. Passed my 3 months start of last turn around. Got to do a pretty cool experiment with detonators, and blow some stuff up. Living the dream. Nothing like sequencing (timing) an round to go off and having it all come out great, first damned try. Especially when a round is 400+m^3 of in situ rock.


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## ThePhilosopher (Apr 15, 2012)

I really enjoy what I'm doing now, but there's not a lot of room for growth in education so I'm applying to PhD programs to allow me to grow into higher ed+research. I'm taking my 3rd practice GRE today (hoping for 90+ percentile in verbal and 97+ percentile in quantitative).


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## Bevo (Apr 15, 2012)

When I was in my teen or early 20's I was all over the place but after a bit you will find your nich and things will work out.

There is a problem with school and that the sale of the course does not have anything to do with the work within the job. What I mean is what you learn and what you do are different.
Also, the amount of courses offered and the amount of jobs available are nowhere near the same in you typical post graduate schools.

You guys have it hard!
Saying that I still know people in their 40's who don't know what to do when they grow up.


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## texshred777 (Apr 16, 2012)

My current career is 9-11 dispatching. I don't hate it, I feel lucky that I have a decent job when many of my friends are barely(or not) making it. The pay could be better, but I respect my co-workers, am liked by everyone at the office and I've known my boss since I was a boy. I'd left for a few months last summer but my boss called me to offer the job back when someone quit. 

With that said, it is the single most stressful position I've ever had. I'm not complaining, it's nothing compared to what our active duty troops have to go through. Based on my experience though it gets pretty rough at times. 

I'm contemplating going back to school..although I'm not sure what exactly to go for. Several things appeal to me and are on my list. Med school/dental school is number one. I've also thought about music education, being a band director has always been something I thought of doing. I still love marching band and have taught drumlines in the past. Being a therapist also appeals to me. At this point I think I'm going to just go for basics and speak with some counselors.


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## Variant (Apr 26, 2012)

Ha ha... my career. A fucking joke. I always wanted to work on the development of automobiles, as a designer, technical director and whatnot. 

I bounced around in crappy engineering support jobs for bland industries for years, and have been unemployed and TIRELESSLY looking for any kind of work for over three-and-a-half years. 

Turns out the older I get, the more of a worthlessness piece of garbage I am. Some days I feel like I'd be lucky if I ever work again.


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## Konfyouzd (Apr 26, 2012)




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## Ill-Gotten James (Apr 26, 2012)

I've been working in the health field for a few years now. While my current position is not my dream job, I work for a really great health system and hope that I can stay with them for quite some time. I like my career field (nursing), but my current position has more to do with management, than actual face to face patient care. I'm kind of all about blood, guts, and fart jokes, so the office work life is not cutting it. But a job is a job right now and I have my foot in the door, so I cannot complain.


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## Konfyouzd (May 1, 2012)

I've been thinking about some things lately... 

I remember talking to a friend in college about careers. She told me she couldn't imagine doing a job that wasn't something she absolutely loved (clearly a lie bc almost no one likes their college job(s) much less loves the damn thing(s)). I always saw it as a means to an end:

This job pays x amount. I need y amount to live and z amount to enjoy myself. If x >= (y+z) I'm there. 

I still see it that way to an extent, but there are parts of working in my field that I am finding increasingly frustrating:

-Communications between the client and technical consultants is a little less than effective some of the time. One, the guy I work with on this project--the only other software engineer from my company on site--is actually formally trained in something other than what we do. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but when it comes to a lot of the theory and/or conceptualizing an idea I can definitely see where his skills are lacking.

-If I seem to understand something and other don't, they play it as though I'm the crazy one rather than asking me to help them achieve a similar level of understanding.
-I thought there was, but there seems to be very little direction. What I mean by that is we're working on one thing one day and the next something else is high priority and a few seconds later something else might trump that. And to an extent things like this are to be expected but sometimes all of the smaller issues are symptoms of a larger ailment the higher ups just don't feel comfortable tackling (usually as a result of being unfamiliar with processes/technologies involved).

-The main thing that bothers me is being held back from doing something that I KNOW will be beneficial because 20 people who don't even know what it is have to approve it and ask a million questions that have nothing to do with the point before I can even begin looking into building a test a lot of the time. And at the same time they want to know why I couldn't do it faster... 

I've been looking around at other programming opportunities and it seems like everyone everywhere wants to be doing the SAME EXACT THING. Whatever my resume says I currently do, that's what they want me to do. Yet they don't want to offer a raise or a better commute so what incentive would I have to leave other than being part of a "really cool work environment"--which is another thing I'm sick and tired of reading in job descriptions. It just sounds so juvenile.

Part of me thinks this is just the way things work when you work with the federal gov't. Things seem to go painfully slowly, not at all or "FULL SPEED AHEAD--WE NEED THIS YESTERDAY!!!"

Another thing I think of is that maybe this is what it's like when you work for a small company--at least as far as the lack of direction I'm seeing. My previous employer was a large corporation and everything was VERY structured. It was as though they'd thought things through a bit better.

Any other programmers out there? I know this is only my second job (I have to keep reminding myself) but this whole contracting/consulting thing is starting to drive me CRAZY. 

Going back to the job being something you love concept...

While the job being my passion wasn't exactly requirement, it IS a requirement that I not absolutely fucking hate the place. Some days I sincerely feel like I hate my job even though I actually like to program and I feel like treating it as a service the way they do in consulting/contracting is what's causing this.

I think I'd like to get in somewhere and just be a backend developer either for some name brand software company or a gaming developer. Even if dealing with the ppl is just as annoying I feel like I would have more fun.


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## canuck brian (May 1, 2012)

I view my career as an interruption in my day to day events and a monetary fuel for my passions. Other than that, I really don't care anymore. I just want to be happy and enjoy life - my job is low stress / great pay so for me, that's enough.


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## Konfyouzd (May 1, 2012)

I do and don't see it that. It's becoming more and more evident that I need to find a way to employ myself.


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## Sicarius (May 1, 2012)

you do the programming, I'll do the physical build 

At this point, I want to do more. IT is a hobby, and I'm getting paid to do it, and I love working for a college (plenty of eye candy).

But I'm at a point where I'm getting my Associates, and want to flip everything and take the CNC machining classes and try and get in with some domestic guitar company that does CNC for bodies and necks.

Or just stay where I'm at, pick away at my Bacholer's online, and move on from the community college.

I'm taking the summer and fall off to work, so I can try and figure out what I want to do.


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## SirMyghin (May 2, 2012)

Well back to work again for me today. Leaving for work, knowing I won't be around or see my wife for the next 23 days, is definitely the most difficult part of my job. Everything else is peachy and sometimes awe inspiring still.

I have gotten to blow stuff (rock) up and everything!


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## MaxOfMetal (May 2, 2012)

So, I recently realized that I've been at my current place of employment for a year now. 

I've learned and grown so much in such a short time frame. I still love it.


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## mhickman2 (May 3, 2012)

I've had a rather slow, but steady growth in my career. After a few tries in different areas such as construction, customer service, consulting, mechanics, HVAC, and Electronics; I feel I have vast general knowledge of a lot of things. Job searching is relatively easy due to my versatility, but as mentioned earlier, it is an obstruction which prevents me from doing the things I'm passionate about. I'm in the process of starting a business of my own, which I hope will be much more profitable than the standard 50 hr work weeks. It's going to be extremely challenging though.


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## Konfyouzd (May 3, 2012)

SirMyghin said:


> Probably for the better as there is no one the civil engineer hates more than the architect . We make the dream come true, and they get all the credit. Kind of annoying really when you have to argue it isn't possible to have an entire building without columns just because they envision it .
> 
> 
> Still liking my job a lot, and loving the underground environment. Passed my 3 months start of last turn around. Got to do a pretty cool experiment with detonators, and blow some stuff up. Living the dream. Nothing like sequencing (timing) an round to go off and having it all come out great, first damned try. Especially when a round is 400+m^3 of in situ rock.


 
Sounds like architect is to civil engineer as the salesperson is to the technical consultant... 

They promise stuff they don't even fully understand and then we arrive on site like... "Wait. You want this program to do WHAT?! Who the hell told you it could do that?"


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## Solodini (Jul 6, 2012)

I applied for the position of marketing assistant at BrewDog last week. I'm shortlisted so am finalising a presentation to be emailed before I'm offered an interview. I think I'd really enjoy the job, so I'm hopeful. Just need to exercise my creativity suitably. The one downside is that it's based in the middle of nowhere in Aberdeenshire, but the missus has a job in Edinburgh and will be commuting to Ayre for uni 2 days a week, starting in December, so me being up north 5 days a week shouldn't be too problematic.


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## SirMyghin (Jul 10, 2012)

mhickman2 said:


> I've had a rather slow, but steady growth in my career. After a few tries in different areas such as construction, customer service, consulting, mechanics, HVAC, and Electronics; I feel I have vast general knowledge of a lot of things. Job searching is relatively easy due to my versatility, but as mentioned earlier, it is an obstruction which prevents me from doing the things I'm passionate about. I'm in the process of starting a business of my own, which I hope will be much more profitable than the standard 50 hr work weeks. It's going to be extremely challenging though.



Good luck, the thing about home businesses is they will take a lot more than a standard work week to make profitable. Successful business men often have to live the job, it is harder as you need to both work, and establish.


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