This is a question from the kiddo who will be joining the workforce in the not to distant future.
“Do you love where you work? If so, where and why?”
Thanks for the help!
You should love where you work on most days. There will be days when something will happen to upset that love relationship, but if it happens too often; it is time to move on.
You can’t do a good job for your employer if you don’t love the job. And the days will seem very long and that clock on the wall will become your enemy if you don’t love your job. Doing a good job will bring even better work and better pay; a true win - win situation.
I am now retired and I do miss working a little. Not the daily grind but the intellectual challenge it presented.
Great feedback!
He’s really looking to find companies that people are (or were) enthused to be at. He’s heard “it’s OK” from more than a few of his friends now out working. He is trying to land somewhere that the bulk of the employees are happy to be there because they like the work and the culture, not just a job that is OK.
I do most of the time, but my case is also quite different from what 99% of the folks asking this question will be doing in their careers, so I am not sure my answer is truly applicable.
I am likely in the same boat as @boneh3ad
above. I have my own little office and my boss is a few thousand miles away. A meaningful portion of my salary is commission. I spend a lot of time networking (lunches, coffees etc). I enjoy it but can be stressful when I go for a period without generating business.
Your son should also consider whether there is travel involved. My work requires moderate travel but lots of local driving. I don’t mind it but just do one night away per month normally. My neighbor flies all over the place and that is particularly hard on family life.
This is an excellent question for your son to be asking.
I do like my job because of two things:
- I am continuing to learn - which shows you are never to old to learn new things, even after being in industry for 30+ years. If I’m not learning, I’m bored.
- I work with really nice people. People who stick around where I work tend to be the type who value collaboration, teamwork, having a common mission, etc.
Your son will have to figure out what he values, and then try to ascertain in interviews whether his ‘wants’ can be satisfied. It’s not always easy to tell. But, asking people he interviews what they like or don’t like about where they work can give him some insight.
Good luck to him!
I agree with VMT’s comments.
I loved my job because of the people I worked with and the fact that I was always learning something new.
I also didn’t travel that much. Travel sounds like fun and it is if you are traveling for pleasure. But traveling for business was quite a different story for me. Travel usually meant working long days, red eye flights, many times with travel on short notice (so personal life was upended) and I missed my family (wife and kids). The less business travel, the better in my book.
@VMT, the two things you mentioned are the things he prizes the most with his perception of the quality or worthiness off the product(s) or mission coming in a close third. It used to be that the third one ruled, but he’s gotten enough feedback from friends at companies with very noble missions and less than ideal work environments to rethink that posture.
He’s also beginning to pay serious attention to where he’d want to live with factors like cost of living and proximity to his favorite hobby, skiing. He’s looking at places like Seattle, Denver/Boulder, Portland, SLC, and Sacramento, but hasn’t ruled out the Bay or most any other area for the right opportunity.
The big question is…how does one find those jobs? Are there any specific companies any of you would recommend?
His background is strongest in mechatronics and fluids. His MS thesis combined both in a handy way, but he isn’t wedded to that fairly unique combo going forward. The only things he’s really solidly ruled (that I’m aware of) out are sales and HVAC.
I really like where I work, compared to other employers in the past, but that doesn’t mean I don’t think that there are other good places out there. When I took this job, the atmosphere, co workers, and management were major part of the decision process, and are a large part of why I have stayed.
Caveat - I only ever looked for professional employment in one particular industry, so a lot of other factors were constant across my prospects.
Thanks for all the feedback and thanks to those of you who have PM’d me with specific company names. It’s very helpful.
He is intrigued by several of the FFRDCs. He applied to Lawrence Livermore, and if the right job(s) post, he’ll apply to Lawrence Berkeley and Lincoln Lab. He’s looking into several other FFRDCs to get more information.
There do appear to be several private companies that sort of function like the FFRDCs. Draper, HRL and Southwest Research Labs are the only ones we know of. Can anyone suggest others to look into?
Thanks again!
DH and I love our jobs. We work for ourselves and built an addition onto our house that includes an office overlooking the woods. It’s been wonderful for me to have flexibility. I can take half a day off to deal with kiddo’s illness, for example, and then work late at night if I need to.
The actual work is rewarding, too. It’s cool to use math to design buildings. I like going around town and seeing the buildings we’ve worked on. We’re not designing skyscrapers, but the quality of life is excellent. 