What do you do for a living?

[orionquest]

This is a worthy sentiment, but not entirely realistic.

I'm a graphic designer and I do not wholly love what I do. But at the time I got in to it, I was looking to do something that involved computers and got me out of having to work physical jobs.

I love design well enough and have enough skill to remain employed and keep food on my table. But, if I did what I thoroughly enjoy, I'd be playing Dungeons & Dragons (or other RPGs) all day and be homeless.

My son, who is 19, is currently in his second year at ASU. Towards the end of the first year he was stressed and agonizing because what he'd chosen as his major turned out not to be thoroughly enjoyable to him. I told him that I'd always seen him as doing something in IT because he's always been involved with computers.

My best advice to him was to find something that he liked well enough to still be doing in 30+ years. Something that he wouldn't regret wasting his life on doing.

I doubt IT is thoroughly enjoyable to him, but he's much more relaxed and interested in what he's doing now.

Good advice here. I too would be out riding my motorcycle or skiing all day if I could get paid doing it. Like you said not always the case. And the term starving artist really does apply.

To add what you have mentioned, turning a hobby into a living isn't always the best idea either becuase what you enjoyed could end up being a grind and kill off anything you might of enjoyed in the first place. Who knows until you try.

 

[cthompson94]

No problem at all! I was always drawn to electronics as a kid but as a kid I was never really drawn to school so I did 6 years Navy where I was a technician/operator for the ships missile systems and now I am a technician for encryptors/decryptors for satellites and pursing my degree in mechanical engineering since I have discovered my drive for school now haha.

Edit: I wanted to add that I was interested in school especially math and science, but not going to college because I wasn't sure what I wanted to do and I didn't want to make the mistake that could cost me thousands of dollars in loans with all the options in electronics and I grew up with not a lot of my family having degrees/trades so I was just confused and that made me nervous of college so when I joined the Navy I signed up for a program called "AECF" which is Advanced Electronic Computer Field so I said "sounds like something I would like"

 

[orionquest]

IF you like to dream and are curious. There is a whole section on Reddit about digital nomad. You can go there and see people posting photos of where they are working and share a bit about where and what they are doing.

From what I can tell most of them are writers, and or a programmers of some sort. Most of which seems to have started their job at some company which then allowed them to work from home, and or travel while doing it. Teaching English or doing some sort of online tutorials is another. I've even bumping into people who do this work while I've been on vacation.

 

[Mousse]

There's a scene in an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond where Frank (dad) and Ray (son) are discussing what Frank used to do for a living before retiring.

Ray mentions something about accounting as his dad's career. "Career?" Frank exlaims! "That was a job!" I had kids, a wife and a mortage. I needed to put food on the table. I hated that job!"

Good gawd! I'm becoming more and more Frank Barone everyday.😲 I know a lot of bean counters. None of them enjoy accounting either.😄

At least now we have Excel to makes the job easier, especially if you know how create a spreadsheet that automates the work.😎 You're not a Excel expert until you've spent 10 hours automating a 3 minute task.🤓 Y'all lurking bean counters know what I'm talking about.😁

 

[compwiz1202]

There's a scene in an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond where Frank (dad) and Ray (son) are discussing what Frank used to do for a living before retiring.

Ray mentions something about accounting as his dad's career. "Career?" Frank exlaims! "That was a job!" I had kids, a wife and a mortage. I needed to put food on the table. I hated that job!"

This leaves Ray shocked and dismayed because he had always believed and was proud of his dad's 'career'.

Retirement with a pension was Frank's out.

I would be more proud because he did something he hated to support his family. Same from when someone does something for someone even if they complain. To me that means they care more about the person than if they loved what they were asked to do.

 

[compwiz1202]

Good gawd! I'm becoming more and more Frank Barone everyday.😲 I know a lot of bean counters. None of them enjoy accounting either.😄

At least now we have Excel to makes the job easier, especially if you know how create a spreadsheet that automates the work.😎 You're not a Excel expert until you've spent 10 hours automating a 3 minute task.🤓 Y'all lurking bean counters know what I'm talking about.😁

I did that once with reports we did. Took hours, but got to the point where I just had to save some files to the desktop and click a macro button in Excel. I think I'd love the accounting but it would be the clients or the management that would be a pain.

 

[nightcap965]

I'm a shiftless unproductive beach bum. 🤓

 

[QuietGamer]

You never know where life will lead you in the end. I grew up around '70s tech as my mother was in the printing business. Apple II, Radio shack TR 80, floppys. I had an interest and after high school in '79 I was going to go a local tech school but I could not secure funding. My father whom was a retired Army Medic was thrilled when I decided to enlist in the Army, but as a Tanker. He thought I was nuts LOL I enjoyed the large toys with big guns and playing in the dirt. While in the military I took technical classes like Cobalt, MS basic however I really enjoyed the hardware aspect of computing.

After 10 years I became a civilian again and worked in the tech field for a while and was absolutely miserable.

Venting to a friend of mine whom was a Concrete Mixer driver said his company was hiring. I thought screw it I'll give it a go. Back outside playing with big toys in the dirt, camaraderie with like minded gents and no females to deal with LOL

28 years later I still like it but I am a Geek at heart with a home lab ect. unlike most of my coworkers whom are the salt of the earth type of people. The type of people that always have your back and perform as a unit. Always talking smack, booze and babes. Oh, and crazy contractors!

 

[obeygiant]

I deliver TPS reports all day to my boss

 

[eyoungren]

Good advice here. I too would be out riding my motorcycle or skiing all day if I could get paid doing it. Like you said not always the case. And the term starving artist really does apply.

To add what you have mentioned, turning a hobby into a living isn't always the best idea either becuase what you enjoyed could end up being a grind and kill off anything you might of enjoyed in the first place. Who knows until you try.

I've seen what happens when people think they can turn their hobbies into a profitable business. Usually it turns out that they don't love their hobbies so much that they are willing to do what owning a business requires. They often think they can just open their doors for 2-3 hours a day and the money will just roll in, the customers will be just like them and willing to spend, and running the business itself will just be an exercise in depositing their loads of cash into their bank account.

Not the way it works.

 

[eyoungren]

I'm a shiftless unproductive beach bum. 🤓

Based on your avatar, that's a cover for what you REALLY do!

 

[eyoungren]

No problem at all! I was always drawn to electronics as a kid but as a kid I was never really drawn to school so I did 6 years Navy where I was a technician/operator for the ships missile systems and now I am a technician for encryptors/decryptors for satellites and pursing my degree in mechanical engineering since I have discovered my drive for school now haha.

Edit: I wanted to add that I was interested in school especially math and science, but not going to college because I wasn't sure what I wanted to do and I didn't want to make the mistake that could cost me thousands of dollars in loans with all the options in electronics and I grew up with not a lot of my family having degrees/trades so I was just confused and that made me nervous of college so when I joined the Navy I signed up for a program called "AECF" which is Advanced Electronic Computer Field so I said "sounds like something I would like"

You never know where life will lead you in the end. I grew up around '70s tech as my mother was in the printing business. Apple II, Radio shack TR 80, floppys. I had an interest and after high school in '79 I was going to go a local tech school but I could not secure funding. My father whom was a retired Army Medic was thrilled when I decided to enlist in the Army, but as a Tanker. He thought I was nuts LOL I enjoyed the large toys with big guns and playing in the dirt. While in the military I took technical classes like Cobalt, MS basic however I really enjoyed the hardware aspect of computing.

After 10 years I became a civilian again and worked in the tech field for a while and was absolutely miserable.

Venting to a friend of mine whom was a Concrete Mixer driver said his company was hiring. I thought screw it I'll give it a go. Back outside playing with big toys in the dirt, camaraderie with like minded gents and no females to deal with LOL

28 years later I still like it but I am a Geek at heart with a home lab ect. unlike most of my coworkers whom are the salt of the earth type of people.

My father was 17 when he joined the Marine Corps. He wanted to get away from his home life (my grandmother specifically) so bad that he was willing to get packed off to the war in Korea to get out. He served as a radio repairman for tanks.

Made sergeant, but got out right around the time the Corps was starting to send Marines to Vietnam. My dad used the GI bill to go to Northrop University in the early 60s. That was a university that the Northrop Corporation had established. Got his degree in electrical engineering.

His entire career from that point on was in aerospace, specifically gyros. He was part of the Space Shuttle program, Minuteman and Peacekeeper. When he retired in 1995 he'd spent several years on the Star Wars program. TRW kept sending him up to Vandenberg for missile testing.

None of that was ever my thing, but I am quite familiar with how the military works.

 

[chown33]

I'm a shiftless unproductive beach bum. 🤓

I've been meaning to start a thread on this career choice, but ... sometimes shiftless happens.

 

[Rafterman]

My B.A. degree is in film and TV production, but I became a network engineer (self-taught) at the same univeristy I graduated from and have been there my whole adult life (4 years college plus 24 years at the job.)

When I am carried out of my office on gurney on my last day on earth, I will recall Captain Kirk's last words:

"It was...fun."

 

[MBAir2010]

what do you do for a living?

Mortician!

 

[VitoBotta]

I am curious as this forum is quite popular so I am sure there are people from many different backgrounds.

I am a developer and ethical hacker based in Finland. At the day job my role is that of the Lead Platform Architect for an event management platform. As the title may suggest, I oversee every aspect of the architecture of our platform, including infrastructure (Kubernetes/GCP). In my free time I do bug bounty hunting to earn some extra cash on the side, although it's not easy.

What about you?

 

[jedimasterkyle]

What I wanted to do vs what I'm doing are two very different things lol.

What I wanted to be is a Web Designer, so much so that I went out and earned TWO degrees. However, while in school, the entire Web Dev/Design field leapfrogged us and by the time I graduated, I was already a decade behind what the market was looking for.

What I ended up doing was working for an IT managed services company that got bought out by a massive corporation that has three letters as its name. Now, I'm working for the consulting division of said corporation and I've never felt more dead, exhausted and unsure of myself.

But hey...at least the bills are getting paid and I have no retirement, house or plans b-z...

 

[Matz]

Hello all,

I hope you don't find my question impertinent.

The reason I ask is that I've reached a phase in my life, where I don't know where to turn next.

Currently thinking about self-studying, to become a developer. My dream would be to travel the world with my MacBook, iOS devices, and develop apps, as I stay in nice hotels and meet nice people from all over the globe.

Is this an unrealistic dream? I don't know. I'm sure there are many people who do this, though?

So, If you don't mind sharing, what do you do?

My mind is open, so I'm willing to consider most things at this point.

Wising you all well.

Since this post is from February '23, I'm wondering where this journey has taken you since then. Care to update us?

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

Since this post is from February '23, I'm wondering where this journey has taken you since then. Care to update us?

Hello Matz.

I've actually applied to go to acting school!

It's something that's appealed to me, for some time now.

I hope you're well.

 

[Bodhitree]

I’m an author, except I haven’t written any books yet. And also a retired software developer, architect, games designer, and technical director.

 

[Matz]

Hello Matz.

I've actually applied to go to acting school!

It's something that's appealed to me, for some time now.

I hope you're well.

Thanks for the update. And yes, I'm well, thanks.

I have to say, that is awesome to hear!

As a student of acting it would seem that you have a unique opportunity to develop a number and combination of valuable skills that would serve you well in whatever direction your path takes you; whether it is pursuing acting as an actual career, or in anything that involves working with and around people, directly or indirectly.

Having a more complete sense of yourself, of context, your audience, and of how to effectively communicate not only through words, but through movement and appearance, would be most useful in any endeavor.

Not what I would have expected from your OP, but I'm genuinely excited for you! Please keep us posted!

 

[eyoungren]

I’m an author, except I haven’t written any books yet. And also a retired software developer, architect, games designer, and technical director.

Keep plugging at it. Dave Duncan spent 30 years as a geologist in the petroleum industry. He published his first book at the age of 53. Went on to a successful career as a fantasy writer.

 

[splifingate]

as I stay in nice hotels and meet nice people from all over the globe

Sounds . . . nice

I build gardens for the 1%

Totally-Fantastic Gardens; not the rosemary and marigold kind.

As exciting and stimulating the design/build side of things is, I'm transitioning-out because my half-century body won't meet such demand for another fifty.

I'm either going to work for TSMC in AZ, or continue my path into Healthcare, locally.

Or, maybe I'll go Off-Reservation, and implement the design I've been contemplating for a new tool, become rich in residual, and sip margaritas as I watch you enjoy your espresso at the next table 😈

 

[splifingate]

turning a hobby into a living isn't always the best idea either becuase what you enjoyed could end up being a grind and kill off anything you might of enjoyed in the first place

This!

 

[rm5]

I've actually applied to go to acting school!

It's something that's appealed to me, for some time now

That's really cool!! I actually know several actors (although I'm not one myself). I hope you've found your passion by doing that!

Me personally, I'm getting my music degree at a conservatory. I've been performing for about the past decade, but I've been doing the production/editing stuff for much longer, since I was like 5 or 6. All of that stuff sort of fell by the wayside for awhile, and it's great to be back in that realm a little bit--I've taken several classes in production, mixing, editing, and mastering. Performing is tons of fun, but can't say it's a very sustainable career (unless you get VERY lucky). Production/editing a little more so, as there are companies, news agencies, studios, etc. looking to hire full-time audio people. I've also gotten into the video side of things, too--can't hurt to gain skills in more than one area!