Are You Doing What You Love?
Posted by Cap in Even More Ramblings |Quick question for ya’ll.
Are you doing what you love with your life?
To be a bit more specific, do you love your job? If so, how did you came about finding what you love? If not, why not?
If you’re expecting some thought provoking post about achieving happiness, you should know better than that from a sarcastic, wise-ass blog.
I’m just being a curious little monkey.
A note: plenty of people have certain jobs because of the free time that affords them to spend their time on what they truly love, whether that be family or whatever else.
Also, it’s obvious that the question has some assumptions to its target audience; there are plenty of labor intensive, low-wage, and unpleasant jobs that people do because, quite frankly, someone’s gotta do it and many times you just gotta bring home the bacon.
But yeah, just curious.
30 Comments to “Are You Doing What You Love?”
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December 1st, 2006 at 1:17 pm
I’m a computer programmer and I love it. I first learned to program on an Atari XE. I learned basic and found I had a knack for it. I’m not in it for the money (and that’s obvious by my salary). I am very happy to help my customers with their problems through my skils. I’m very blessed to be doing and enjoying something I set out to do in life.
December 1st, 2006 at 1:10 pm
Alright I’ll start the boat seeing as how its my lame post :)
My name is Cap and I’m
an alcoholica college student. At 23.Certainly, being a super-senior is not something I love doing. Though I have little prospect on what I would enjoy later on when its all said and done.. so, as the 8-ball says, outlook not so good.
December 1st, 2006 at 1:21 pm
grr posted before I finish mine (now to edit time stamp). but thanks for sharing barry, that is indeed very hot sauce that you’re able to do something you enjoy in life.
December 1st, 2006 at 1:49 pm
My job is ok. It’s not great, but I don’t hate it either.
I continue to do it because…
1. It pays well.
2. I am an employee of a firm (not self-employed), but I telecommute. So I get to work from home in my PJs while bringing home a steady paycheck.
3. It’s relatively easy and stress-free.
4. Since I don’t have a commute, I have more free time to spend on the hobbies and activities I truly love.
5. If/when I ever have kids, I’m guessing the telecommute factor will be even more valuable.
December 1st, 2006 at 2:12 pm
I really love my job but really hate the bureaucracy; the work I do involves Electrical Engineering. My wife is a consulting analyst. She has the opportunity to telecommute during part of her workweek. Since she was allowed to telecommute the job has become more enjoyable for her.
December 1st, 2006 at 3:44 pm
My job rules.
December 2nd, 2006 at 12:08 am
I know that I love my job because of the long hours I’m willing to put into it (this, of course, is in the hopes that in a few years those long hours won’t be necessary…), but then again, I’d be doing it even if I wasn’t being paid anything (which was the case for a couple of years). It wasn’t an easy decision to make to start doing it, but I’m very happy that I took the risk.
December 2nd, 2006 at 1:34 am
I’m a broke-ass student that’s been stuck at the same crap job for the past four years ;/
December 2nd, 2006 at 4:27 am
I feel very blessed that I love my job. Oh, there are days when it drives me crazy, but overall, I love what I do. It’s a combination of loving the actual work I do and the people that I work with. It’s a small company and in many ways we are like a family. My boss rocks – she understands me and is looking out for my best interests and how to best utilize my skills. It’s a great place to be!
December 2nd, 2006 at 9:49 am
I like my job, but I don’t love it. I’m 23 and I’ve been out of college for six months, so I’m very much “paying my dues.”
Frankly, I think I’ll probably end up going back to graduate school, but I wanted to get a little real-world experience to make sure that I wasn’t just going to school as a default. At this point, I don’t think it’s a default—I think I really, really like school and want to go back into academics.
It’s confusing to be so unsure of what I want to do with my life—sounds like you’re in a similar position.
December 3rd, 2006 at 4:36 am
I’m 25 and also a computer programmer. I love being a techie as geekiness is a huge part of who I am but can’t say that I love being an employee. I get along well with my boss and my co-workers but this whole “can be fired anytime” hangs over the head of any employee, no matter how good they are at their job or how good they are with brown-nosing to managers. Shareholders can whine over profits anytime and then bam! Company will look for ways to cut costs and employees are seen to be expendable.
I figured out that being completely financially independent and living off my investments is what I would love the most after finding out about an aunt who is a landlord and earns enough every month from rental income to do as she pleases. Another huge influence on determining my new goal is a colleague who was made redundant and is now running his own business very successfully.
From the advice of various mentors, my new game plan is to travel the world while I’m still in my twenties(while still young, single and childless), as well as continue investing. Maybe also look into whether I can handle running my own business. Of course, this means I’ll need to hold down a job to be able to afford travelling and to have funds to be able to invest. Hopefully, I’ll be able to reach the same level of financial freedom as my aunt in my thirties!
As for the job, I will do the leapfrogging thing to increase my salary as is the trend these days. The reward for company loyalty seems to be redundancy and non-existent pay rises(as was the case with many of my colleagues)! The kind of work I’ll be doing will most likely to remain in the tech sector as that is what I know and like. However, I haven’t had a chance to look into other kinds of roles or industries, so I will continue to allocate some money into studying and self-development to see if there’s other things I do to earn a living. Like maybe becoming a real estate agent(even if they seem to be on par with lawyers as the most hated kind of workers :D) or a mortgage broker, since I have a growing interest in real estate.
I would hate to lose the ability to dream and feel like that with hard work, I can do anything and be anything, as seems to be with many older colleagues who grimace at the idea of starting again but hate their jobs sooooo much.
December 3rd, 2006 at 5:21 am
Well, I retired this year from the high tech, (read: high stress) industry, and have found an enjoyable, (read: low paying) job that pays the medical insurance premiums. I guess you could say I’m happier than Michael Richards having learned a new word.
December 3rd, 2006 at 8:03 am
I am an instrumental music teacher in an inner city K-8 school and I love it. I wanted to be a music teacher because I loved playing in band in school and have come to love teaching because the kids are so great. It is a lot of fun for me to take kids who know nothing about playing an instrument through learning how to do it and eventually to sounding pretty decent! I learn at least as much from them as they do from me.
In it for the money? Don’t go into teaching. Think there’s lots of free time? Most teachers on my staff spent at least 1.5 days over Thanksgiving weekend doing school work, and at both 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. every day, the staff parking lot is at least half full. Check it on Saturday mornings, too. The summers are nice, though, and make up for the lack of free time during the school year.
December 3rd, 2006 at 11:14 am
I am another one that loves my job. I work as an IT Manager. Though it is a high stress environment, I get to learn and grow with my career. I am constantly updating my skills and working with intersting people, it is great.
I am also lucky to work with a very good company. They are flexible and offer by far the best work environment I have ever experienced. That in itself makes me extremely lucky!
December 3rd, 2006 at 6:59 pm
Yea, I do love my job. It doesn’t pay well, but I work with children (pre-school, kindergarten,first grade) and I feel I make a difference. Will Teachers ever get paid what they are worth to society? I think not. Oh, well, its a trade off. I could be digging ditches somewhere
December 4th, 2006 at 1:02 am
I am 25 yrs old and currently work as an office manager at an animal hospital and I really like my job. I’d love it if there had been management in before I got there (now I’m stuck cracking the whip since the staff got lazy w/ no one in charge) and if it paid a little more. I used to work as an IT Tech a couple years back. I loved it but I have OCD really bad and it was making me crazy(ier) and causing health problems because of the stress.
December 4th, 2006 at 5:51 am
I’m 25 and have 2 jobs…one as an administrative assistant for a huge corporation, and one as a journalist. I love being a journalist…but unfortunately it doesn’t pay enough to cover all my bills.
The administrative position is slowly killing my soul…and am currently looking into grad school.
December 4th, 2006 at 8:22 am
I notice that a couple of the few people who hate their jobs are thinking of going back to graduate school. A word of warning: graduate school can devour your soul, too; in some ways it’s harder than any job you’ll ever have; when you’re in there, you won’t be contributing to retirement or improving your financial picture generally — instead you’ll be running up student loans, which I experience as a sickening albatross. And I say this as someone who was very, very successful in graduate school
December 4th, 2006 at 10:30 am
I was an industrial engineer–because of an uncle’s influence and college scholarships. I loved the mental challenge and getting to see the results of my work on a daily basis. The money was decent, too. But over time I did less and less technical work. I was pretty good at the other work, but it was not something I loved or even liked.
One day, doing one non-technical part of my job, I heard something I had never heard before. Someone said, in all seriousness, “I love my job.” Stuck in boring meetings all day, I started to think about the sorts of things that person did for her job. Later I went home and started doing research. Her career path contained most of the fun stuff I liked doing at work, and a more palatable mix of no-fun stuff.
I went back to school and became an accountant. I love being able to help others make sense out of data. I also love helping to keep the business “machine” running. I took a pay cut, because I went from being experienced (in engineering) to being a newbie (in accounting). But I was having fun, so I didn’t care.
I’m using the past tense because…right now I’m a stay-at-home mom. The challenges are completely different, but I still love it. The pay and hours are terrible but I’m doing important work. And I’ll go back to accounting when I’m finished with my current project ;)
December 4th, 2006 at 10:34 am
I like what I do now better than what I was doing. I can’t say that I love it, because it has really awful downsides, but I can say that what I am currently doing as a programmer is much more satisfying and lucrative than tech support work.
I found myself going into programming as a natural extension of wanting to progress in the field of IT and software. I like puzzles of all kinds and programming is just another kind of problem-solving/solution finding, just as tech support is. But you get mad props for good code rather than handling a crappy customer. It’s just the way it is.
I got nudged into this field by my sibling who happens to be a programmer as well, but I was a geography major. Technology just happens to you sometimes if you let it. Oh, I take that back. I am in this field because I realized that computers were the wave of the present and future. Someone years ago told me that if I understood semiconductors, I’d always have a job, and for the most part that is true. I would also argue that if you understand people, the same also holds.
I like this work enough to keep doing it. And that’s very important. I don’t think I have to do what I love for money. I know people who do that and get burned out with their knitting and crafting businesses, etc. I will do what I love for love, and do this job for MONEY. ;-)
December 4th, 2006 at 10:46 pm
Well I bet you can guess what my job is.. Besides the constant apperances i have to make on this Late Night red headed man boys show. I get pretty tired, but i believe ive become a workaholic. Every day i have to put in work, sometimes i work too much in a day and i pass out. Only to have to wake up and do it all over again. At the end of a completed job i both feel exhausted but yet a sense of satisfaction. Although im my own boss, i can be very hard on myself. Its manual labor and i guess i can complain on the hours. But it would be good to get a co-worker someday.
Sincerely
Masterbating Murdock Bear
December 5th, 2006 at 12:51 am
wow lots of great comments, even the one from masturbating bear was amusing enough.
from teachers that work w/ kids to a surprising number of people in IT (or was in IT anyway). it seems IT is a very much love it or hate it field?
I gotta agree that there’s quite a trend of career change these days, as evident by chrissy and Sharon’s post (and yes stay at home mom is a serious job too, IMO). personally I’ll hate to reach a point where I feel like it’s too late to dream of something better, etc. or get myself into a position where I dread the daily work.
Also gotta agree w/ Jennifer on grad school for others that may be reading that are considering it.. now, it’s obvious I’m not in it.. but I know a few that went back to school simply because they weren’t happy w/ their previous career path or the pay. it’s a difficult decision all-around, and the financial aspect has to be taken into account seriously.
I mean most of us knows how its like to be dirt-broke in college, w/ graduate program’s price tag, it’s like dirt-broke x 10.
don’t get me wrong, I believe it’s perfectly acceptable to pay for education, even some significantly ridiculous price for fields w/ questionable returns, its just as with all debt, if you’re going to get into it.. make sure you have a plan on getting out of it.
anyhow… appreciate the comments guys, I enjoyed reading them.. thanks. if there’s more keep them coming :P
December 5th, 2006 at 7:31 am
I love my job. I went to school for 4 1/2 years, and while in school I worked retail- AKA hell. I also married and divorced during this time.
So when I got this job, which I had been waiting for months for a phone call, I jumped. I’m in marketing and technical writing. My salary doubled after I got my special piece of paper.
And I bought a new car, so it all works out.
December 6th, 2006 at 2:19 pm
I like my job as an engineer, but I don’t love it. It’s stable, pays well, and fits my education and experience and personality. I’m doing what I love in my non-work time – hobbies, volunteer work, and family. In about 5 years I’ll be eligible to retire and can do the things I love all the time.
You don’t nexessarily need to have a job you love if you are doing what you love outside of work. Of course you don’t want a job that you hate.
December 7th, 2006 at 6:46 am
Being a super senior at 23 is cool, that was me last year. In January I grabbed the first job that came along so I could get outta the Fema trailer. I love my family, but uh yeah, not that much.
My current career? kitchen designer. My major? international business/spanish. You’re right, they don’t match up. Someone should warn you about that ahead of time while in college.
At the time, and still today, Biloxi has an abundance of jobs in the construction industry because of the storm. I never wanted to work within that industry, but I never wanted to be dirt poor either.
My last day is Friday. Being a kitchen designer for a year has not made me like it anymore than my first day. I realized the only way to like what you do is to change what you do.
December 11th, 2006 at 4:24 pm
I love what I do but not always my job. It varies. I’m 26 and a Production/Marketing/Permissions Coordinator at a small publishing company and the workload can be huge. Three roles in one, being paid for one and while I like to think I’m indispensable, it’s tough going sometimes.
I do enjoy the responsibility and the actual ‘work’ but sometimes I wish I had another me. (or two)
December 30th, 2006 at 10:02 pm
I’m a college student right now so I don’t really have a real job, but I love the job that I do as a part full-time-ish (I hate how I’m called part time when I work as much as a full time employee a lot (30 usually to 40 hours when I can) and go to school. I have decided to also in addition pursue five majors (I don’t care if I’m never going to “use” all of them) and I’m actually graduating in a year (go seniors) after pursuing this five degree track and I’m graduating on time (except for a year dropping out medically/studying abroad). The reason I work so much is because I’m contributing to the max in my IRA fund saving up 2k for “future post-college costs” and…I have a crap that I love spending problem (however I don’t buy anything else other than this crap).
Sorry long answer short. I wish I could get into the fashion industry instead of what I am doing major wise. I treat fashion catologues like bibles an can recognize people’s purses and what season they came from a lot of times. I used to study art in high school and got so high up that I had taken every single course in the art department and showed my pieces in a couple of shows. However, the fashion industry is incredibly hard to get into and you need a certain “look” to get in.
January 17th, 2007 at 8:57 am
Why do all of you (most) want to quit your jobs and attend graduate school?
Why not work full-time DURING graduate school with employer tuition benefits? Get a few roomies, free grad. school, and save money like there’s no tomorrow.
Quitting life and going back to school isn’t the answer. Working through it isn’t fun, but it at least doesn’t finally screw you in the butt quite as hard.
January 17th, 2007 at 8:59 am
I’m sorry, but five majors seems like an utter waste of time and money. Two would be sufficient, or even one coupled with work experience. Five is essentially overkill that employers want give a d*mn about.
January 24th, 2007 at 6:50 pm
Doing what you love is the most important thing.
I am not doing anything related to my college degree, and after being layed off, I took a job with a lot better pay. I thought this is what I wanted, but alas, not so happy. I am on the edge of being miserable, but I always make the best of everything. Make sure you are happy in life, considering that you spend a majority of your waking hours working, it has a profound effect on you and your life outside of work.
J S