<p>how many of you are happy with your current jobs and pay,
include major, descrip of job,, VACATION, etc..</p>
<p>dont post your current salary, maybe your starting if youd like</p>
<p>i'm very happy with my current job.. i was a business major, i work for an insurance company, i have 28 days of vacation this year (5 of which i'm selling back for money in december) and i have great hours. i've gotten two raises since i started in august, and get monthly bonuses as well.</p>
<p>it's perfect for me.</p>
<p>oh, and they're going to pay for me to get my masters.</p>
<p>I am a business owner and am happy in my current job. However, my original degree and career are long since gone...I went to school and grad school very focused on what I wanted to do. Got a great job in my field out of grad school. Then I got married, moved across the country, life and kids intervened and I am in a totally unrelated field. That has been consistent message in lots of postings, do what you like, don't sweat too much over undecided majors, college A over college B, etc. because in the end your life will meander and wander all over the place...</p>
<p>I also own and run my own business. I was an animal science major -- spent a little more than a year full time in the horse biz, then went into marketing/advertising/writing for 10+ years, stayed home with the kids for 15 years (very happily with dogs and ponies) and then bought a pet shop on 9/11/01. I've sort of come full circle.</p>
<p>I like what I do ... right now I have really good staff and we are having a good year. The hardest part of running your own business is hiring the right help and not giving away the bank to keep them.</p>
<p>I am generally able to take 2 short vacations (5-7 days) a year, plus 2 days off a week. That would usually not be a weekend! I generally get holidays off as well -- that would be New Years, Easter, Memorial Day, July4, Labor Day, Turkey Day and Christmas (although 1 person goes in to feed and water the animals). Plus 1-2 trade show trips that I fly to, and 1-4 other meetings or shows that I drive to. Benefits would be all the dog food my personal doggies can eat, supplied by my manufacturer of choice and samples of the newest treats toys and other goodies. </p>
<p>This is not a business where you can lock the door and leave worry free. Right now I have 4 baby birds that I am handfeeding in a tub on the kitchen counter. </p>
<p>I should point out that 'being out of radio contact' is a big deal. I am almost always available by cell phone for a crisis or big sale in the store. Unless I am on an airplane or visiting my son at prep school (no cell phone service in parts of the Litchfield CT Hills) the store can get hold of me. Even on vacation, I talk to the shop every day. The goal is to get the staff to the point that they know as much as I do and can predict how I will price something that's not in the POS system.</p>