How are you employed

[Epee_Pox]

For those of you who are finished with school, how do you perceive what you do for a living? Is it just a way to pay the bills? Is it an all-encompassing calling? Something else?

[latenight]

It pays well. Well enough to do most of the things I want to do.

[Inquartata]

I have yet to think of a job that would be "more" than a way of earning an income. My "calling" is---retirement.

[ThatReallyHurt]

I'm lucky - I'm doing what I've always wanted to do.

[BrianH]

I'm lucky - I'm doing what I've always wanted to do.

I'll second that. I've retired twice, but always come back to field archaeology. I love the work, and people keep calling me to work on projects. I would do it as a volunteer, but they usually insist on paying.

I've tried retirement and found it boring. In theory it sounds good, with all that time to write, draw and fence. In reality, there's not enough intellectual challenge for me.

[blue_falcon]

I'll second that. I've retired twice, but always come back to field archaeology. I love the work, and people keep calling me to work on projects. I would do it as a volunteer, but they usually insist on paying.

I've tried retirement and found it boring. In theory it sounds good, with all that time to write, draw and fence. In reality, there's not enough intellectual challenge for me.

A third on that count! I love what I'm doing but I think the difference is that I didn't even know the profession existed until I actually got into it.

I've been giving it some thought and I honestly don't think I'll ever retire. They may need to take me out of my office feet first ......

[Goofy]

A third on that count! I love what I'm doing but I think the difference is that I didn't even know the profession existed until I actually got into it.

I've been giving it some thought and I honestly don't think I'll ever retire. They may need to take me out of my office feet first ......

Here's hoping you and Dynomutt never hang it up!

[howtobrew]

It's the basic difference between a career and a job. You get a job to make money. (maintenance, busing tables, etc). You choose a career based on your interests, so your career is a job that you are actually interested in doing. Of course everyone has good and bad days/weeks/months at work, but in general you are doing what you want to be doing.

The best thing you can do for yourself is decide what you would like to be when you grow up and work toward while in high school and college. Sometimes you just don't know, but you really need to dig for it even harder then. Because later on, being dissatisfied with your life really sucks, and going back to school to get re-trained for another career is really hard to do once you are on your own.

[Elemental]

I enjoy my work but sometimes I wonder if there is something better for me out there.

The main motivation I have for staying with my current job is that it pays well, there is a lot of flexibility on where I can go in it, and I'll retire at 52.

Right now it just feels like I'm treading career water waiting for the next job development position to open up.

[glowstix]

i think this the first time we've had a poll and no one said it was flawed!!

anyway, sometimes i think the coolest jobs, unfortunately, have the lower salaries.

[counter riposte]

For those of you who are finished with school, how do you perceive what you do for a living? Is it just a way to pay the bills? Is it an all-encompassing calling? Something else?

You have three choices in life:

Love what you do for a living
Love why you do what you do for a living
Fall in love with what you do for a living.

Have you ever noticed that the people that do best at thier job are the people that are having fun at what they do, or are doing something that they would do anyway and get paid for it?

I enjoy my job and know that doing it gives people opportunities that they may not have had before. I also love fencing, which means I spend a lot of time watching and refereeing fencing on the weekends.

I get paid to go on vacation to places like Miami (during hurricane season), Charlotte (in the summer without AC), Atlanta (Ah, the humidity), Sacramento, etc.

Either way, love it or leave it. Otherwise, you start hating doing what you do, do a terrible job and get fired.

[Inquartata]

You have three choices in life:

Love what you do for a living
Love why you do what you do for a living
Fall in love with what you do for a living.

Tsk! Reductionism, I think.

What about:

Hate what you do for a living
Be indifferent what you do for a living
Don't do anything for a living ( ie playboys and bums )
Stop living

[counter riposte]

Tsk! Reductionism, I think.

What about:

Hate what you do for a living
Be indifferent what you do for a living
Don't do anything for a living ( ie playboys and bums )
Stop living

If you hate it, why do it?
Unless you're into the love/hate thing.
i.e. I hate practice, but love fencing, going right along with wanting to be the best fencer in the salle, but not spending the enough time practicing.

If you love what you do or why you do certain things, the money comes naturally. If you're killing yourself over a paycheck, you're just killing yourself.

[Inquartata]

No, the job itself is neither particularly difficult nor particularly thrilling, that's all. Neither forbidding nor enjoyable. What's with the insistence that things must be either one extreme or the other, love or hate, great or horrible? There's a lot of mediocre out there, believe me.

I work because I have to support myself. I have never heard of a job which would for me be a 'calling'. There is no sort of labor which would make me 'happy' in and of itself. Why is this so hard to accept? Why does it imply that I must therefore hate my life or be "killing myself"? Look up from your own navel, dude, not everyone feels the same drives and imperatives you do.

To reiterate: the minute I amass enough capital to throw off a liveable income I will never work again. There is no job which will lure me out of retirement into gainful employment ever again. There is no need to read more into it than it says...

[jBirch]

I've gotta go with Inquartata on this one. There is so much else to see and do in the world to spend all your time working, even if it is a job you love to do. Every person that loves their job, hates to leave it at the end of the day, I've seen. Personally, I'm happy that I have something MORE enjoyable then my job to look forward to after work and that I'd rather skip work then go when I get up in the morning.

Now that's not to say that one should HATE what one does for a living, or even occupy your days in an environment that you don't want to be in. Merely realise that you work to live, not the other way 'round and there are more important things in life then the title that follows your name.

Hope this helps.

James.

[Go? Fencing?]

Well, seeing as my title at work is Squirrel....

[firebrand]

Are you altruistic? Are you into missions? I would if I could work alike Nomi from this link, I do something and hope for more yet...
http://www.jewsweek.com/bin/en.jsp?e...82&enVersion=0

You can study law and speak in parliment for human rights... You can counsel or study politics, but some jobs are stressful shortening ones life. You can aim for big returns and spend it as you want.

Perhaps try a degree in arts and see what you want later on. Although I hear that paying for and education is difficult in the US, is it?

There are free universities, I heard of one in Peru and there is a Belgian one called the Vrije University. In Australia scholarships are offered and I have heard the American accent around Macquarie uni.

[epeeisky]

Perhaps try a degree in arts and see what you want later on. Although I hear that paying for and education is difficult in the US, is it?

There are free universities, I heard of one in Peru and there is a Belgian one called the Vrije University. In Australia scholarships are offered and I have heard the American accent around Macquarie uni.

paying for education in the US is very difficult. The best Universities in the US are around $35,000 for tuition alone plus another $10,000 in room board and compulsory fees. Usually state universities are cheaper but sometimes they are not as good. I am looking at a university in Canada because it is much cheaper and has excellent uducation.

[swordwench]

I am looking at a university in Canada because it is much cheaper and has excellent uducation.

Which evidently yu wil nede...

[Moonitic]

I'm lucky - I'm doing what I've always wanted to do.

YAY! Me too!

(FYI...no, it's not stage combat. Still acting, though)