<p>I'm not a parent, but i thought this forum would be the best to get feedback from: </p>
<p>just to note, i'm not extremely motivated or ambitious and most people on cc are; I get good grades in college (junior year), but i'm started to wondering what i really want to do with my life, and if I have made the right choices. I'm majoring in business admin, (marketing to be specific), but I have almost gotten to the point where I am sick of of business in general...making people buy things they don't need, all that sales bullcrap...making profits and everything is about the bottom line and rarley about employees or the community. And I see all of the crap, like people on the Apprentice, the lightening fast pace, cramming products down people's throats, the constant noise of a world that goes to fast and works too much. Its too late to switch majors (even if i did, I wouldn't have a clue what to switch it to), so I'll probably just finish my degree. My thinking is it is better to have a degree than nothing at all. But I would rather work at a bookstore or even a friggin' tiki hut on the side of a beach than in an office. Any advice, any ideas what I could do after I graduate that isn't very business-related? </p>
<p>You don't need to give in to the most stereotypical aspects of the business field (as seen on The Apprentice). You can use your business and marketing skills for a non-profit or other organization you respect, if you would enjoy that more. You can even start your own firm and work primarily with non-profits. You can use your skills to work in Development for a company. You could work for the Ad Council. Or you could do something completely unrelated. You've gotten skills throughout college, and I think it would be a waste not to use them. You have a lot more options open to you than you seem to think, though.</p>
<p>I agree with corranged. Non-profits need marketing, too. Anti-coal power plant forces in Texas need marketing. Anti-war forces need marketing. Think outside the box. You are only limited by the agility of your mind.</p>
<p>I work in a bookstore (I'm also a freelance writer) and you need to know a lot about business to work in or own a small business like a bookstore.</p>
<p>I kind of share your opinions about people owning too much crap, which is why writing freelance works well for me. I hated working in an investment bank. That said, it is true that a lot of alternative energy companies and other non-big business, non-consumer type operations need people with business skills. </p>
<p>Work for a non-profit. Your skills would be welcome.There's a lot of good you could do for the world with your knowledge.</p>
<p>And if you could figure out a way for small bookstores to successfully compete against the likes of Amazon and B&N, you'd be a hero.</p>
<p>p.s. tiki huts are drafty in hurricanes, and you'll breathe in way too much carbon monoxide selling oranges on the freeway.</p>
<p>Having had an internship at a non-profit (United Way), I can say it's tough and very poorly paying (to the extent that most employees could qualify for services based on income :eek:). There is a constant need for money, which is finite, and a constant demand for services, which often seems infinite. It was a great experience and telling people I've done grant work (sadly, not sucessfully) seems to impress, but I'd be very heistant to recommend non-profit work as a starting career. Most of the women I worked (local office was all female by chance) with were doing it as part of a multiple income household or as semi-retirees. It can be rewarding, of course, but it is not without major drawbacks.</p>
<p>Another alternative would be to consider doing marketing in medicine and related area. I have a close friend who felt much as you did. She's carved out a career working for organizations like Planned Parenthood, a major cancer research hospital, and a government organization that specializes in helping children with multiple disabilities. She's not getting rich but she's had plenty of job choices and enjoys what she does.</p>
<p>Wolfpiper - my son works in the nonprofit field and has had a very different experience -- so I think it really depends on the agency. My son loved his work and he was very quickly promoted to the level of co-director of different field offices (he got moved around several times) -- he had to work very hard and the pay wasn't great, but it was enough for him to live on and he was very enthused about the work. He finally got burned out at one job and posted his resume on Craigslist looking for work -- and he got tons of calls and interviews, including a few for some very interesting and intriguing positions. My son is pretty good at fundraising -- I've told him that I think that some people just give him money because its the only thing they can do to make him go away, and he said I had it right, he's very persistent. So his resume lists some dollar figures he raised. </p>
<p>It is something you have to be well suited for -- the entry level positions are easy to come by and I have told my daughter that she can easily have a summer job with the same agency he started with, but she doesn't think she would be good at it. </p>
<p>The point is, I agree with the others who posted that it would be a good idea to explore working with nonprofits -- they really can use people with good business management skills. Once my son got promoted to the director position, he was in charge of personnel & payroll, supervision & planning -- just everything involved in running a small business. The only real difference from a business standpoint between a "nonprofit" and a for-profit company is that there are a few special rules that govern the activities the nonprofit can engage in, and of course the accounting for funds is different -- but other than that, it's still about generating income. The difference is that the money is going to a good cause.</p>
<p>It's hard to get rich working for a nonprofit, but at management levels, the salary is reasonable. My son's job had really good benefits, too -- health insurance, a 401K, and student loan assistance.</p>
<p>The business world is made up of all sorts of people. Some are cheats like the Enron managers. Some want to sell inferior products that no one really wants. Some want to make a quick profit and are motivated entirely by the bottom line. Our economic system is like democracy - it may not be perfect, but it is the best system we have.</p>
<p>A good business does three things simultaneously. It generates a profit (or in the case of non-profits, it generates income and uses financial resources wisely). It produces a useful product or service. A good business focuses on the quality of the products or services and strives to be better than the competition. It provides jobs and achieves its goals by working with people. A good business focuses on employees if for no other reason than the employees are the tools needed to function. A good business does all three things while operating within our cultural and regulatory environment.</p>
<p>Personally, I don't see anything inherently evil about business. I also don't see much difference between the operation of non-profit and for-profit businesses. If you are really concerned about some of the unsavory aspects of working for an organization or a business, you might consider business ethics, safety, or compliance. All of these are rapidly growing fields.</p>
<p>You might look into a field called Association Management. It usually involves not-for-profits, but not always in the traditional social service sense. </p>
<p>By the way, I agree that working for not-for-profits (something I've done forever) is a mixed bag. The pay is generally (but not always) lousy, support is minimal, begging for money endless. But the rewards can be a lot of autonomy, a truly varied work routine, the chance to wear a lot of hats, oh, and, you can actually help a cause you believe in now and then! ;)</p>
<p>My D works for a non-profit similar to Calmom's S. She works very hard, has made great friends there, supports herself, and absolutely loves what she does. She looks forward to going to work every day. That in itself is priceless.</p>
<p>I agree 100% with edad. There is nothing inherently evil about business. Well served clients + well compensated providers = a beautiful thing. Did the United Way scandals turn everyone off to charity & non-profit organizations? Not me. I just skip the umbrella charities & make donations directly. </p>
<p>If you do find yourself in one of the unethical businesses out there, it's easy enough to move on. Calmom's son is a young guy & she reports that he had a great deal of interest when he posted his resume. The Apprentice is a TV show, not reality.</p>
<p>You also could consider working for a foundation. Business skills are very much needed by such organizations, and you may also enjoy being in a position to help generate funds that would be used by places like nonprofits.</p>
<p>Another possibility is take a semester off study aboard, your perspective on life may change. Your knowledge on supply the demand may be useful in a context that it could actually improve other's life.</p>
<p>You might want to try morphing a bit before you graduate. Think about a double major in a related field like economics or just take some courses in it. You might like it and it would make you more employable in government or policy research which you might find more to your liking. Or take some politcal science courses. Marketing and politics are close and you might like it. By the way there are all kinds of businesses some are better than others. I'm not saying your completely wrong but its a big world you might find some companies that you are really comfortable working for. Good Luck!</p>
<p>I like your Tiki hut idea. It sounds a lot like my plan to move to Northern California and live on the beach in a sleeping bag, working part time as a cashier or something to make money for food. This idea was a revelation I had while watching Blue Crush, so that speaks to the pure intellectual fire behind it.</p>
<p>But anyway, the suggestions about looking into non-profit organizations is great. I find I don't care about much except for chillaxing, unless it is something for other people.</p>
<p>Successful small bookstores have to specialize. I always wanted to open up a science fiction bookstore, with all the latest journals and things like that. And it wouldn't have just books, it would...wait! I'm not giving away my business plan to you people. Jeez.</p>
<p>Tinaceo - Have you ever done any aptitude testing to see if maybe you are in the wrong major? I don't know why you chose business but I think a lot of kids choose their major based on what parents encourage, or vague notions of getting rich, etc. without any practical experience to help you know whether it's a good fit. You may be able to get some free aptitude testing through your college's career center, or you could try the Johnson O'Connor Research Foundation (<a href="http://www.jocrf.org/)%5B/url%5D">http://www.jocrf.org/)</a>. They have an office in Chicago.</p>
<p>We used Johnson O'Connor for my daughter & got some great advice for her.</p>
<p>It's perfectly okay to work in a bookstore with a college degree. From where your head is coming frome right now that actually is a pretty good idea. What will happen is, you will become disatisfied with the bookstore and the fact you are over educated to be there. Or, they may move you up and you will become a manager of a bookstore. The hours will be long, the job responsible but you will earn a decent living.</p>
<p>You should do an internship or volunteer in the development office of a non profit, volunteering will really help get your foot in the door. You may wish to schedule information interviews with several non profits to see where you might fit.</p>
<p>Like I said, I enjoyed my (unpaid) time at the non-profit, and the people seemed happy with their work. I just wanted to point out that non-profit work can haves=some serious downsides as well. I felt like it was one of those professions that could eat you up and burn you out. Maybe I'm completely off base. If so, mea culpa. <em>shrug</em></p>