How do you actually load them, if I may ask? I used to live in Japan, and vending machines are a big thing there. The machines have these sort of curved racks with one way doors in front, and you...
How do you actually load them, if I may ask? I used to live in Japan, and vending machines are a big thing there. The machines have these sort of curved racks with one way doors in front, and you add cans by just dropping them in. US ones look like they're designed quite differently?
Like a lot of people in the DC-area, I work for the Federal Government. I can't go too into specifics, but I do more-or-less enjoy my job. My base stress level is pretty high, and I've learned to...
Like a lot of people in the DC-area, I work for the Federal Government. I can't go too into specifics, but I do more-or-less enjoy my job. My base stress level is pretty high, and I've learned to become One with traffic, but every now and then I'll see the results of my work. There is value in that.
I enlisted in the Air Force on a six-year contract to pay for college a little after I got out of high school. I got most of a Chemistry degree, but my work made it difficult to continue. I never finished. Once I got out, I realized that my job prospects were fairly limited with the experience I had. I applied to a number of jobs around DC, got a few offers, picked one, and moved here. I will never have to worry about finding work.
I am not what I ever wanted to be — my heart belongs to maths and the sciences — but I am very good at what I do. While I resent a little bit that fate has brought me to where I am, as opposed to where I would like to be, I think I am where I need to be. I'm the kind of person who tries to carry the whole world on their shoulders, so in that respect it's a good fit for me. While I dream of one-day going back to school, getting lost in knowledge, and becoming an academic, I'm not sure if I can turn back from where I'm going. I mean, I can, but I don't think I could, if that makes sense.
I make rich assholes richer. Hell no. I was born poor, and thought that doing gay-for-pay was beneath me. However, since I'm a man I have no inherent worth and must justify my continued existence...
What do you do, Tildes?
I make rich assholes richer.
Do you like it?
Hell no.
How did you end up there?
I was born poor, and thought that doing gay-for-pay was beneath me. However, since I'm a man I have no inherent worth and must justify my continued existence by serving people who are no more than my equals and pretending that they are somehow better than me because they have more money.
I'm fat because I eat my rage and resentment.
Serious answers below.
I'm a software developer. It's a day job I took on because I knew when I was 18 and just starting out as a writer that I might never be able to earn a living as one.
I hate it. I regret ever learning to code. I would change careers if I thought it would help, but I'm almost 40 and I live in the United States, so even if I were to get a job that didn't involve coding -- which is unlikely because nobody wants to hire middle-aged fat dudes when there are plenty of healthy young suckers like you who will work for half my wage and pretend to be grateful because you have student loans to pay off -- I would end up resenting the work I did instead of coding.
I'm burned out, but I don't dare quit because my wife is depending on me.
Man, you sound really depressed. Have you tried getting on an exercise routine? It probably won't turn your life into sunshine and rainbows but it'll probably make you feel a bit better.
Man, you sound really depressed. Have you tried getting on an exercise routine? It probably won't turn your life into sunshine and rainbows but it'll probably make you feel a bit better.
Not depressed. Just demoralized. But thanks for the internet diagnosis. I have one. It involves beating the shit out of a heavy punching bag in the basement while listening to The Sound of...
Man, you sound really depressed.
Not depressed. Just demoralized. But thanks for the internet diagnosis.
Have you tried getting on an exercise routine?
I have one. It involves beating the shit out of a heavy punching bag in the basement while listening to The Sound of Perseverance by Death. It keeps me functional.
It probably won't turn your life into sunshine and rainbows but it'll probably make you feel a bit better.
You know what would make me feel better? Doing to the world's billionaires what Vlad Tepes used to do to Turks, criminals, and people who talk at the theater.
I joined the army back when I was 17. My parents are awful with money, so if I wanted to do college I was on my own. I ended up with a state scholarship to a 2 year school. It wasn't bad but I...
I joined the army back when I was 17. My parents are awful with money, so if I wanted to do college I was on my own. I ended up with a state scholarship to a 2 year school. It wasn't bad but I wasn't a fan of playing cadet after actually spending time going through basic and AIT(army job training). Got put into an imagery analyst position, where I learned a lot of good life skills, met some awesome people, and got to visit interesting places, both in the US and abroad. Once out, I worked a few minimum wage jobs while I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with myself.
Ended up going back to school on a geology degree, and college was a completely different animal after spending so much time in the army. Almost everyone was young, it was super refreshing to be in a college environment and I was eager to learn. Being older and more responsible than my peers, I got to personally know every single one of my professors. Took a few GIS courses as a backup in case the geology degree didn't pan out. I'm glad I did, since when it was time to graduate, the oil market was in the shitter and I never heard back from any of geology jobs I applied to, and it was hundreds of positions.
After graduating with no jobs prospects, despite an exceptional GPA and previous army experience, I wasn't really sure what to do with myself. As I was preparing to move back in with my parents, I ended up getting a call from a company that had pulled my resume from my college career center, of all places. If you're still in college, make sure you visit it. You'll be amazed that it can actually work. Worked a GIS job at a startup for a few months until one of the places I had applied to 6 months prior, a national laboratory, called me back for an interview working on remote sensing problems and research.
I'm still there to this day, but I feel the research and the field are outpacing me. It is increasingly dominated by computer science and programming, neither of which really draw my interest, and the pressure to go back to school and pursue a PhD is immense in the workplace. I admire many of the brilliant people I work with, but I really don't feel a PhD is for me. I've tried looking around at remote sensing companies or the civilian defense sector but they pretty much all want clearances and mine expired long ago. I'm not really sure where to go from here, and it's kind of depressing.
We aren't really that long away from dropping Python off our resumes I feel like (at least for research). Like how in the 80s you used to be able to put Microsoft Word as a valued skill but no one...
We aren't really that long away from dropping Python off our resumes I feel like (at least for research). Like how in the 80s you used to be able to put Microsoft Word as a valued skill but no one does now. I don't work in a computer-based field but programming is absolutely essential.
A doctorate can seem bleak while you're doing it, it's 6-9 years of somewhat stressful work (depending on your situation) paid at below market rates (3x lower approximately). But I've seen people come out of it with definitely more than they would have gotten if they didn't do it. The nice thing is once you get in you can basically switch fields if you don't like your current one.
We had a thread like this several weeks back but it's going to be impossible to find until we get a search function. So here's a shorter version of my comment in that thread: I started playing the...
We had a thread like this several weeks back but it's going to be impossible to find until we get a search function. So here's a shorter version of my comment in that thread:
I started playing the drums when I was 11, and when I went to college I started volunteering at my school's radio station. I have been doing those two things ever since. Now it's more than 20 years later and I am an engineer and operations manager at one of the biggest public radio stations and podcast producers in the US, and I play the drums professionally on the side (anywhere from two to ten gigs each month). I just got home from a gig, in fact. It is a pretty cool lifestyle, but I have to say I don't feel like I chose it. Rather, it chose me. I'm not sure I'd be able to keep playing music so often if I had kids, but for now I have the freedom to play as often as I like. And the radio career basically subsidizes the musical pursuits. I can use my vacation days as needed to play more gigs. And because I have a full-time salary, I can turn down any gigs I don't want to play, and take the gigs I like even if they don't pay well. It's a pretty sweet balance.
Currently working as an aged care nurse, it's not where I want to be and I have plans to change that. I'll hopefully be ready enrolling in UNI next month to become a Registered nurse (bachelor's...
Currently working as an aged care nurse, it's not where I want to be and I have plans to change that.
I'll hopefully be ready enrolling in UNI next month to become a Registered nurse (bachelor's degree) then I'll special in mental health. So in all about 2 maybe 3 years I'll be where I need to be.
I worked as a carer for about 6 or 7 years, the 7th year I was studying to become an Endorsed Enrolled nurse.
I love different parts of my work, assisting the residents is always a huge plus. Even when they are full of piss vinegar! that is probably the most fun.
I don't like talking to the family of a recently passed resident or one that is close to the end, that is something I'll never get used to.
And since you asked for a story...
Every part of me wants to share a poop story because I've got so many, but I'll be kind.
Back when I was on placement for my aged care certificate I was assisting a Dutch fella into bed, his accent was very thick and he also had some speech issues so I barely understood him. He started telling me a story then as we left the room my buddy said "Well he must really like you, he never talks about the time he was in the concentration camps."
Turns out he told me about when his family was taken away, then he was. He actually escaped then paid off others to have his family also let out then left the country. It blew my mind.
Are you talking about getting a job while you're in college, or something to study towards? The options you have in the former are limited; the latter, endless.
Are you talking about getting a job while you're in college, or something to study towards? The options you have in the former are limited; the latter, endless.
Without getting specific. IT related field. I grew up in a small town, always wanted to do what I do. Was told it was a stupid dream because it wasn't common to want to go into specifically what I...
Without getting specific. IT related field. I grew up in a small town, always wanted to do what I do. Was told it was a stupid dream because it wasn't common to want to go into specifically what I do. I mean to have it nailed down to a specific subset.. Which it was common, just not in my little town, and the state schools only had computer science. We had one class in the whole town related to it at a vo tech. My high school only catered to a specific group. The counselor was so busy making sure this group was happy she didn't get my enrollment packet. I tried to go up and get it, but they wouldn't give me one. Told me had to wait on counselor.. (Others had gone up and gotten theirs.)
So I kept taking these basic computer classes just to have access to a computer to work on what I wanted to work on and study what I wanted to study..
Went into military because I didn't want to go to college for computer science and school had been a bad experience..
When I got out I could have gotten work on a number of boats. A friend had a job for me on some research boat in the UK.. I decided to just go to a small school, catch up on everything on my own in my own time.. I basically taught my self a lot and sold myself for my current job. The degree just helped me get the interview. Honestly, my first job in 2014 taught me the most useful information. It taught me basic problem solving and gave me a foundation build on.
I love my current job and current company.
As far as what I wish I had done differently. I kind of regret no going to Maine once I got out. I think about it a lot. But I wanted something I could do into old age.. I also took a lot of time off when I got out. A couple years where I didn't work and lived off GI benefit s and savings. I wish I had done more with that time, but I still enjoyed it.
I am a statistician. I went from college (psych and applied math) to grad school (bioinformatics, then switched to statistics), got my PhD, and went into industry for a couple of years. Worked for...
I am a statistician. I went from college (psych and applied math) to grad school (bioinformatics, then switched to statistics), got my PhD, and went into industry for a couple of years. Worked for a fairly small company helping them move their data operations into the 21st century, then got an offer I couldn't refuse and went back to academia to do research.
I love my current job, and also loved what my previous job ended up being, but it was rough going for a couple of years as I created my position by annoying the crap out of people until they finally saw the light :). In some organizations, change is hard. Statistics wasn't my goal in college - my dad is in the field, and I wanted nothing to do with it, but I found out pretty quickly that it was the part of bioinformatics I most enjoyed, so why fight fate?
I'm a goldsmith. I work in a small shop doing custom bridal mostly, which I like a lot, the work can be interesting, and can be tedious, but in kind of an enjoyable way. I like The Monotony of my...
I'm a goldsmith. I work in a small shop doing custom bridal mostly, which I like a lot, the work can be interesting, and can be tedious, but in kind of an enjoyable way.
I like The Monotony of my work, in that everything is essentially the same process of steps, and it's kind of mindless, but not boring. I can listen to audiobooks or podcasts while working, and at the end of a job I've created something beautiful, which is satisfying.
I went to college, I have a bachelor of fine arts, which is a stupid way to get into a trade (with debt!), but I didn't know my vocation existed before college, so I can't complain about my path here! Plus, I enjoyed the 4 years of sort of a soft-start to adulthood, I am still not great at adulting at 32, I would have made a mess of things at 18 without some time to learn what is expected of a person in the world.
I always vaguely wanted to be "an artist" but I don't really have the kind of skills or work ethic to pay the bills with illustration or gallery art, so I enjoy my job in a skilled creative field that pays me hourly! I have like, absolutely no feelings of ambition, so I'm pretty content with where I'm at!
I went to university for software engineering, got a summer job for an engineering company while I was still in school, developing little programs and automation and some IT. I just continued...
I went to university for software engineering, got a summer job for an engineering company while I was still in school, developing little programs and automation and some IT. I just continued there when I was done school because the pay was good, it was stable, and it was easy. I realized quickly that I didn't have a whole lot of career aspiration in the field. I wanted to do a good job where I was at, but I wasn't particularly interested in keeping up with the latest and greatest in software and IT. I attribute it partially to being pretty easy-going... I probably didn't really like it, but I didn't really dislike it either. So I kept going. For 10 years until the company made some bad decisions and went under.
I was lucky and kind of stumbled into a new job right away doing software and database development for energy billing. I felt unqualified at first and there was a lot to learn about the new industry, but I quickly became good at what I was doing. But still, I didn't really like it. It was a job and it provided a paycheque.
Nearing the end of my long-term job I had gotten into board game design as a hobby. That was a passion. I could work on games for hours and I loved it. But it's not really something you can make a living on... so it was just a hobby. Until I started winning design contests and getting games signed by publishers. It wasn't going to be much money, I knew, but I got 3 games signed in quick succession, and then another, and then another and another. Some contracts came with small signing bonuses but it was not money to live on.
Luckily my wife is amazing. She knew I didn't love my new job, and that I had a passion in something else, even if it wasn't something lucrative. On a vacation to Mexico we made the decision. As a couple without children, we could survive on my wife's income alone if we downsized our house and took on a smaller mortgage. And I could pursue life as a board game designer. We put things in motion when we got back from vacation and we were in a smaller home and putting money aside a few months later. We moved in in August and the plan was to quit my job in May the next year after saving up a bunch of money.
Well that all changed when I was laid off in October. The small company I was working for couldn't afford my salary any more and was cutting back. So I was suddenly a board game designer!
Well, me making very little money was stressing my wife out. She didn't want to admit it, but she was very nervous (I knew we'd be fine, we did lots of planning). I had been doing a little bit of contract work for a board game company, run by a friend, called Roxley Games. If you're into tabletop games you may have heard of Santorini, Steampunk Rally, Super Motherload, Dice Throne, or Brass! Well, at the time Gavan was looking to grow; putting out more games per year and moving his own life into the board game world full time as well. So I took on a greater and greater role, to actually make some money while still working in the tabletop world doing something I love.
I now handle logistics, some game development, bookkeeping, and even a little software development for Roxley Games and I couldn't be happier. I design my own games in my spare time still. I have 3 games that you can find on store shelves (or board game conventions like Gen Con, happening next week!), and I have 4 or 5 more that will be out over the next couple years.
I do what I love now, but it took a while to get there... and some fortuitous timing.
I do software development. Not really, it's mostly just boring programs that shuffle data around and validate it. My work isn't evil though, in the sense that I'm not directly making the world a...
I do software development.
Do you like it?
Not really, it's mostly just boring programs that shuffle data around and validate it. My work isn't evil though, in the sense that I'm not directly making the world a worse place or empowering corporations, so that's nice. I also have enough flexibility that I have time to
How did you end up there?
I spent a lot of my teenage years programming and messing around with computers, so I got good at it. I don't have much of a formal CS education.
What do you wish you'd done differently?
I wish I had either studied some subject in the humanities and then pursued work in activism (idealistic, I know, but these are my fantasies so it's OK), or gone for some outdoor trade work like the park service or firefighting.
I'll probably try for something different once I finish my degree this year. I don't know what exactly yet though.
Previous jobs? bus boy at a buffet (high school) grocery store film camera processing tech (high school) valet at a golf course (college) national chain film camera tech (college) phone tech...
Previous jobs?
bus boy at a buffet (high school)
grocery store film camera processing tech (high school)
valet at a golf course (college)
national chain film camera tech (college)
phone tech support for multiple accounts at a help desk company
desktop admin at a recruiting company
phone tech support at a help desk company
-move to VA
backroom employee at Target
independent assembly technician
remote pilot operator for the FAA
non-certified instructor for the FAA
-move to AZ
help desk for financial aid at a university
phone tech support for a small isp
-move to VA
remote pilot operator for the FAA
911 dispatcher
-move to NY
Infrastructure Tech at a non profit
Lead Infrastructure Tech at a non profit
-move to VA
Current job?
Im a Field Service Tech II for reselling company
I do almost everything IT needed (minus the mid to high level networking stuff or app specific) at their corporate office and one off site suite.
Education?
I did two and a half years at DeVry for electrical engineering but left due to a faculty shakeup (the new instructors were complete shit).
I did 5 years (rough working fulltime and moving all over the fucking place) to finish my BS in IT from an online school.
What would I have done differently?
Thats a good question. I guess it depends on how far back you go?
To college? I would have rallied the students in an attempt to stop the faculty shakeup. The initial professors were great. There was one who I could have learned anything from. Always aced his classes. If he had taught all the classes Id be working for NASA right now.
Before all the moving? I dunno. I was way too comfortable at the FAA despite there being NO upward mobility or raised. We would have bought the condo my wife was renting from her friend but then I would have likely lost the job when Raytheon overspent and lost the contract.
Long Story Short?
I dont think there is a job that I LOVE enough to do it all the time.
I tried to do that in college with photography.
When I had to take pictures so I could pay my electric bill I was done.
I can tolerate IT enough that it doesnt make me hate it so thats what I do.
I work in Human Resource Information Systems. I set up, deploy, and administer systems related to recruiting, benefits, training, HR, and other stuff. It pays the bills and I don't have to get...
What do you do, Tildes?
I work in Human Resource Information Systems. I set up, deploy, and administer systems related to recruiting, benefits, training, HR, and other stuff.
Do you like it?
It pays the bills and I don't have to get into the muck involved with the people-side of HR. It's a pretty enjoyable job that's a good balance between technical and non-technical. I couldn't imagine making a career out of it (though it's totally possible)
How did you end up there?
I have a knack for figuring out technology and a master's degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology. When I finished up my degree, I was essentially a reporting analyst which is good work but I felt the death by spreadsheets and lack of career enhancement from the company I was working for. The goal is to figure out all the software and data storage side of HR then circle back around to my degree by emphasizing HR Analytics through the use of Data Science methods.
What do you wish you'd done differently?
I wish I participated more in research in undergrad and my masters programs instead of "lone wolfing" it. When I was in undergrad, participating in research was a check box that I needed for grad school and when I was in grad school, I opted out of being around the people with the biggest ego. In hindsight, my attitude was the biggest ego in the room and preventing me from doing things that were beneficial for my future.
How do you actually load them, if I may ask? I used to live in Japan, and vending machines are a big thing there. The machines have these sort of curved racks with one way doors in front, and you add cans by just dropping them in. US ones look like they're designed quite differently?
Like a lot of people in the DC-area, I work for the Federal Government. I can't go too into specifics, but I do more-or-less enjoy my job. My base stress level is pretty high, and I've learned to become One with traffic, but every now and then I'll see the results of my work. There is value in that.
I enlisted in the Air Force on a six-year contract to pay for college a little after I got out of high school. I got most of a Chemistry degree, but my work made it difficult to continue. I never finished. Once I got out, I realized that my job prospects were fairly limited with the experience I had. I applied to a number of jobs around DC, got a few offers, picked one, and moved here. I will never have to worry about finding work.
I am not what I ever wanted to be — my heart belongs to maths and the sciences — but I am very good at what I do. While I resent a little bit that fate has brought me to where I am, as opposed to where I would like to be, I think I am where I need to be. I'm the kind of person who tries to carry the whole world on their shoulders, so in that respect it's a good fit for me. While I dream of one-day going back to school, getting lost in knowledge, and becoming an academic, I'm not sure if I can turn back from where I'm going. I mean, I can, but I don't think I could, if that makes sense.
I make rich assholes richer.
Hell no.
I was born poor, and thought that doing gay-for-pay was beneath me. However, since I'm a man I have no inherent worth and must justify my continued existence by serving people who are no more than my equals and pretending that they are somehow better than me because they have more money.
I'm fat because I eat my rage and resentment.
Serious answers below.
I'm a software developer. It's a day job I took on because I knew when I was 18 and just starting out as a writer that I might never be able to earn a living as one.
I hate it. I regret ever learning to code. I would change careers if I thought it would help, but I'm almost 40 and I live in the United States, so even if I were to get a job that didn't involve coding -- which is unlikely because nobody wants to hire middle-aged fat dudes when there are plenty of healthy young suckers like you who will work for half my wage and pretend to be grateful because you have student loans to pay off -- I would end up resenting the work I did instead of coding.
I'm burned out, but I don't dare quit because my wife is depending on me.
Man, you sound really depressed. Have you tried getting on an exercise routine? It probably won't turn your life into sunshine and rainbows but it'll probably make you feel a bit better.
Not depressed. Just demoralized. But thanks for the internet diagnosis.
I have one. It involves beating the shit out of a heavy punching bag in the basement while listening to The Sound of Perseverance by Death. It keeps me functional.
You know what would make me feel better? Doing to the world's billionaires what Vlad Tepes used to do to Turks, criminals, and people who talk at the theater.
I work as an independent software vendor. Mainly for business web/mobile apps.
The reality: CRUD with some data table UI, dashboards, etc.
I joined the army back when I was 17. My parents are awful with money, so if I wanted to do college I was on my own. I ended up with a state scholarship to a 2 year school. It wasn't bad but I wasn't a fan of playing cadet after actually spending time going through basic and AIT(army job training). Got put into an imagery analyst position, where I learned a lot of good life skills, met some awesome people, and got to visit interesting places, both in the US and abroad. Once out, I worked a few minimum wage jobs while I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with myself.
Ended up going back to school on a geology degree, and college was a completely different animal after spending so much time in the army. Almost everyone was young, it was super refreshing to be in a college environment and I was eager to learn. Being older and more responsible than my peers, I got to personally know every single one of my professors. Took a few GIS courses as a backup in case the geology degree didn't pan out. I'm glad I did, since when it was time to graduate, the oil market was in the shitter and I never heard back from any of geology jobs I applied to, and it was hundreds of positions.
After graduating with no jobs prospects, despite an exceptional GPA and previous army experience, I wasn't really sure what to do with myself. As I was preparing to move back in with my parents, I ended up getting a call from a company that had pulled my resume from my college career center, of all places. If you're still in college, make sure you visit it. You'll be amazed that it can actually work. Worked a GIS job at a startup for a few months until one of the places I had applied to 6 months prior, a national laboratory, called me back for an interview working on remote sensing problems and research.
I'm still there to this day, but I feel the research and the field are outpacing me. It is increasingly dominated by computer science and programming, neither of which really draw my interest, and the pressure to go back to school and pursue a PhD is immense in the workplace. I admire many of the brilliant people I work with, but I really don't feel a PhD is for me. I've tried looking around at remote sensing companies or the civilian defense sector but they pretty much all want clearances and mine expired long ago. I'm not really sure where to go from here, and it's kind of depressing.
We aren't really that long away from dropping Python off our resumes I feel like (at least for research). Like how in the 80s you used to be able to put Microsoft Word as a valued skill but no one does now. I don't work in a computer-based field but programming is absolutely essential.
A doctorate can seem bleak while you're doing it, it's 6-9 years of somewhat stressful work (depending on your situation) paid at below market rates (3x lower approximately). But I've seen people come out of it with definitely more than they would have gotten if they didn't do it. The nice thing is once you get in you can basically switch fields if you don't like your current one.
We had a thread like this several weeks back but it's going to be impossible to find until we get a search function. So here's a shorter version of my comment in that thread:
I started playing the drums when I was 11, and when I went to college I started volunteering at my school's radio station. I have been doing those two things ever since. Now it's more than 20 years later and I am an engineer and operations manager at one of the biggest public radio stations and podcast producers in the US, and I play the drums professionally on the side (anywhere from two to ten gigs each month). I just got home from a gig, in fact. It is a pretty cool lifestyle, but I have to say I don't feel like I chose it. Rather, it chose me. I'm not sure I'd be able to keep playing music so often if I had kids, but for now I have the freedom to play as often as I like. And the radio career basically subsidizes the musical pursuits. I can use my vacation days as needed to play more gigs. And because I have a full-time salary, I can turn down any gigs I don't want to play, and take the gigs I like even if they don't pay well. It's a pretty sweet balance.
Currently working as an aged care nurse, it's not where I want to be and I have plans to change that.
I'll hopefully be ready enrolling in UNI next month to become a Registered nurse (bachelor's degree) then I'll special in mental health. So in all about 2 maybe 3 years I'll be where I need to be.
I worked as a carer for about 6 or 7 years, the 7th year I was studying to become an Endorsed Enrolled nurse.
I love different parts of my work, assisting the residents is always a huge plus. Even when they are full of piss vinegar! that is probably the most fun.
I don't like talking to the family of a recently passed resident or one that is close to the end, that is something I'll never get used to.
And since you asked for a story...
Every part of me wants to share a poop story because I've got so many, but I'll be kind.
Back when I was on placement for my aged care certificate I was assisting a Dutch fella into bed, his accent was very thick and he also had some speech issues so I barely understood him. He started telling me a story then as we left the room my buddy said "Well he must really like you, he never talks about the time he was in the concentration camps."
Turns out he told me about when his family was taken away, then he was. He actually escaped then paid off others to have his family also let out then left the country. It blew my mind.
Are you talking about getting a job while you're in college, or something to study towards? The options you have in the former are limited; the latter, endless.
Without getting specific. IT related field. I grew up in a small town, always wanted to do what I do. Was told it was a stupid dream because it wasn't common to want to go into specifically what I do. I mean to have it nailed down to a specific subset.. Which it was common, just not in my little town, and the state schools only had computer science. We had one class in the whole town related to it at a vo tech. My high school only catered to a specific group. The counselor was so busy making sure this group was happy she didn't get my enrollment packet. I tried to go up and get it, but they wouldn't give me one. Told me had to wait on counselor.. (Others had gone up and gotten theirs.)
So I kept taking these basic computer classes just to have access to a computer to work on what I wanted to work on and study what I wanted to study..
Went into military because I didn't want to go to college for computer science and school had been a bad experience..
When I got out I could have gotten work on a number of boats. A friend had a job for me on some research boat in the UK.. I decided to just go to a small school, catch up on everything on my own in my own time.. I basically taught my self a lot and sold myself for my current job. The degree just helped me get the interview. Honestly, my first job in 2014 taught me the most useful information. It taught me basic problem solving and gave me a foundation build on.
I love my current job and current company.
As far as what I wish I had done differently. I kind of regret no going to Maine once I got out. I think about it a lot. But I wanted something I could do into old age.. I also took a lot of time off when I got out. A couple years where I didn't work and lived off GI benefit s and savings. I wish I had done more with that time, but I still enjoyed it.
I am a statistician. I went from college (psych and applied math) to grad school (bioinformatics, then switched to statistics), got my PhD, and went into industry for a couple of years. Worked for a fairly small company helping them move their data operations into the 21st century, then got an offer I couldn't refuse and went back to academia to do research.
I love my current job, and also loved what my previous job ended up being, but it was rough going for a couple of years as I created my position by annoying the crap out of people until they finally saw the light :). In some organizations, change is hard. Statistics wasn't my goal in college - my dad is in the field, and I wanted nothing to do with it, but I found out pretty quickly that it was the part of bioinformatics I most enjoyed, so why fight fate?
I'm a goldsmith. I work in a small shop doing custom bridal mostly, which I like a lot, the work can be interesting, and can be tedious, but in kind of an enjoyable way.
I like The Monotony of my work, in that everything is essentially the same process of steps, and it's kind of mindless, but not boring. I can listen to audiobooks or podcasts while working, and at the end of a job I've created something beautiful, which is satisfying.
I went to college, I have a bachelor of fine arts, which is a stupid way to get into a trade (with debt!), but I didn't know my vocation existed before college, so I can't complain about my path here! Plus, I enjoyed the 4 years of sort of a soft-start to adulthood, I am still not great at adulting at 32, I would have made a mess of things at 18 without some time to learn what is expected of a person in the world.
I always vaguely wanted to be "an artist" but I don't really have the kind of skills or work ethic to pay the bills with illustration or gallery art, so I enjoy my job in a skilled creative field that pays me hourly! I have like, absolutely no feelings of ambition, so I'm pretty content with where I'm at!
I went to university for software engineering, got a summer job for an engineering company while I was still in school, developing little programs and automation and some IT. I just continued there when I was done school because the pay was good, it was stable, and it was easy. I realized quickly that I didn't have a whole lot of career aspiration in the field. I wanted to do a good job where I was at, but I wasn't particularly interested in keeping up with the latest and greatest in software and IT. I attribute it partially to being pretty easy-going... I probably didn't really like it, but I didn't really dislike it either. So I kept going. For 10 years until the company made some bad decisions and went under.
I was lucky and kind of stumbled into a new job right away doing software and database development for energy billing. I felt unqualified at first and there was a lot to learn about the new industry, but I quickly became good at what I was doing. But still, I didn't really like it. It was a job and it provided a paycheque.
Nearing the end of my long-term job I had gotten into board game design as a hobby. That was a passion. I could work on games for hours and I loved it. But it's not really something you can make a living on... so it was just a hobby. Until I started winning design contests and getting games signed by publishers. It wasn't going to be much money, I knew, but I got 3 games signed in quick succession, and then another, and then another and another. Some contracts came with small signing bonuses but it was not money to live on.
Luckily my wife is amazing. She knew I didn't love my new job, and that I had a passion in something else, even if it wasn't something lucrative. On a vacation to Mexico we made the decision. As a couple without children, we could survive on my wife's income alone if we downsized our house and took on a smaller mortgage. And I could pursue life as a board game designer. We put things in motion when we got back from vacation and we were in a smaller home and putting money aside a few months later. We moved in in August and the plan was to quit my job in May the next year after saving up a bunch of money.
Well that all changed when I was laid off in October. The small company I was working for couldn't afford my salary any more and was cutting back. So I was suddenly a board game designer!
Well, me making very little money was stressing my wife out. She didn't want to admit it, but she was very nervous (I knew we'd be fine, we did lots of planning). I had been doing a little bit of contract work for a board game company, run by a friend, called Roxley Games. If you're into tabletop games you may have heard of Santorini, Steampunk Rally, Super Motherload, Dice Throne, or Brass! Well, at the time Gavan was looking to grow; putting out more games per year and moving his own life into the board game world full time as well. So I took on a greater and greater role, to actually make some money while still working in the tabletop world doing something I love.
I now handle logistics, some game development, bookkeeping, and even a little software development for Roxley Games and I couldn't be happier. I design my own games in my spare time still. I have 3 games that you can find on store shelves (or board game conventions like Gen Con, happening next week!), and I have 4 or 5 more that will be out over the next couple years.
I do what I love now, but it took a while to get there... and some fortuitous timing.
I do software development.
Not really, it's mostly just boring programs that shuffle data around and validate it. My work isn't evil though, in the sense that I'm not directly making the world a worse place or empowering corporations, so that's nice. I also have enough flexibility that I have time to
I spent a lot of my teenage years programming and messing around with computers, so I got good at it. I don't have much of a formal CS education.
I wish I had either studied some subject in the humanities and then pursued work in activism (idealistic, I know, but these are my fantasies so it's OK), or gone for some outdoor trade work like the park service or firefighting.
I'll probably try for something different once I finish my degree this year. I don't know what exactly yet though.
Previous jobs?
bus boy at a buffet (high school)
grocery store film camera processing tech (high school)
valet at a golf course (college)
national chain film camera tech (college)
phone tech support for multiple accounts at a help desk company
desktop admin at a recruiting company
phone tech support at a help desk company
-move to VA
backroom employee at Target
independent assembly technician
remote pilot operator for the FAA
non-certified instructor for the FAA
-move to AZ
help desk for financial aid at a university
phone tech support for a small isp
-move to VA
remote pilot operator for the FAA
911 dispatcher
-move to NY
Infrastructure Tech at a non profit
Lead Infrastructure Tech at a non profit
-move to VA
Current job?
Im a Field Service Tech II for reselling company
I do almost everything IT needed (minus the mid to high level networking stuff or app specific) at their corporate office and one off site suite.
Education?
I did two and a half years at DeVry for electrical engineering but left due to a faculty shakeup (the new instructors were complete shit).
I did 5 years (rough working fulltime and moving all over the fucking place) to finish my BS in IT from an online school.
What would I have done differently?
Thats a good question. I guess it depends on how far back you go?
To college? I would have rallied the students in an attempt to stop the faculty shakeup. The initial professors were great. There was one who I could have learned anything from. Always aced his classes. If he had taught all the classes Id be working for NASA right now.
Before all the moving? I dunno. I was way too comfortable at the FAA despite there being NO upward mobility or raised. We would have bought the condo my wife was renting from her friend but then I would have likely lost the job when Raytheon overspent and lost the contract.
Long Story Short?
I dont think there is a job that I LOVE enough to do it all the time.
I tried to do that in college with photography.
When I had to take pictures so I could pay my electric bill I was done.
I can tolerate IT enough that it doesnt make me hate it so thats what I do.
I work in Human Resource Information Systems. I set up, deploy, and administer systems related to recruiting, benefits, training, HR, and other stuff.
It pays the bills and I don't have to get into the muck involved with the people-side of HR. It's a pretty enjoyable job that's a good balance between technical and non-technical. I couldn't imagine making a career out of it (though it's totally possible)
I have a knack for figuring out technology and a master's degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology. When I finished up my degree, I was essentially a reporting analyst which is good work but I felt the death by spreadsheets and lack of career enhancement from the company I was working for. The goal is to figure out all the software and data storage side of HR then circle back around to my degree by emphasizing HR Analytics through the use of Data Science methods.
I wish I participated more in research in undergrad and my masters programs instead of "lone wolfing" it. When I was in undergrad, participating in research was a check box that I needed for grad school and when I was in grad school, I opted out of being around the people with the biggest ego. In hindsight, my attitude was the biggest ego in the room and preventing me from doing things that were beneficial for my future.