Jobs and happiness

Career Opportunities & Internships
1

<p>I was just doing some soul searching and I realized that money doesnt matter as long as your happy, BUt and its a big one that is if your job is unique. No matter what you do, a white collar job gets repetititve, and boring. All jobs requiring you to create reports, write briefs, solve calculus problems etc. will get tedious and most people loose some drive.</p>

<p>Money helps to motivate us in difficult times, but there needs to be a genuine balance between happiness and compensation. If your so happy in your job but your just getting by it will take away from your happiness.</p>

<p>Now I am thinking that there are a few blue colar jobs that provide excitment that sometimes you can overlook the salary problems.</p>

<p>Jobs such as</p>

<ul>
<li>Airforce Pilot
-Fire Fighter</li>
<li>Police Man</li>
<li>Special Forces</li>
<li>Commercial Pilot</li>
</ul>

<p>If you guys could add to it, let me know.</p>

2

<p>hitman
mafia boss
professional fighter
professional gambler
gamer</p>

3

<p>stunt man?
sky diver.
extreme skateborder
surfer
US president
etc.</p>

4

<p>porn star
porn video director
porn video producer</p>

5

<p>I mean does everyone have to work behind a desk?</p>

6

<p>racnna
LOL</p>

<p>Guy in a costume at a theme park
Hot dog vendor (ts extreame)
Guy who puts motherfudging snakes on a motherfudging plane</p>

<p>Dang you CC forums swear filter!You $%&# me off, you $@#%ing &%! #$^#s. LOL JK.</p>

7

<p>mechanic!!!</p>

8

<p>Airforce pilot is very interesting; it's both blue and white collar. And there are no salary problems there! Your paycheck is almost all spending money; you'll get your food, clothing, and housing provided for.
I knew a retired pilot (who retired at age 40:) with great benefits. He then moved on to whatever he was interested in.</p>

9

<p>actress
event planner
pilot/flight attendant
peace corps
doctors w/o borders
professional extreme sports (not that i can do any, lolz)
matchmaker :)
entreprenuer
rock star/musician
private dancer :) (of course i'd have a bodyguard so the guys dont bug me)</p>

10

<p>princessbell, thank you for mentioning peace corps and doctors w/o borders. those are absolutely great organizations.</p>

11

<p>Yeah, it'd amazing to be a peace corps volunteer, but it feels like in this day and age, if you're out of commision for a year or two, your life's over!</p>

12

<p>Any job is going to get boring and repetitive after a period of time. This goes for anything and everything. A job, a career, whatever it may be is only this: exchange of your blood and sweat for $$$.</p>

<p>However, the novelty factor is different for each job. Let's take for example, being an investment banker. The novelty of working 80+ hours a week, actually more like 100, is going to wear off fast. However, perhaps being a movie star will give "happiness" to a person for many years. That is, unless the star eventually grows tired of performing or getting harassed by paparazzi. This goes for directors as well. Why do you see film directors make 1 or 2 hit movies before their stuff becomes really crappy? They have passion in the beginning of their career, but then they just do it for the money after they've done all that there is to do. Look at Brian de Palma, Marlon Brando, etc.</p>

<p>That's reality. Even an entrepreneur at the helm of his own company will grow tired of being a visionary. Perhaps I am too much of a realist, because I think there are a few people who genuinely love their jobs til they die. But the majority really feel it's just purely an exchange. Labor for money.</p>

<p>With all that said, I will go ahead and make a list of jobs I think that would personally bring me happiness, along with my chances of actually becoming a successful one:</p>

<ol>
<li>Film Director -- very very low chance of being the next Tarantino</li>
<li>Movie Star -- very very low again</li>
<li>Entrepreneur -- good chances to start one, low to become super successful like a Richard Branson</li>
<li>Travel Writer -- low, so many people want to do this, competition is fierce, but what job isn't?</li>
<li>Pro Poker Player -- very low, the pros make it deceivingly easy, but to do this for a living, it's hard as balls</li>
<li>Heir or Heiress/trust fund baby (like Paris Hilton) -- 0% for me, I was not part of the lucky sperm club</li>
<li>TV Show Host -- very low</li>
</ol>

13

<p>I cant say for most people. But as someone with almost 25 years in industry, I know many people who enjoy there work. I am a geolgoist, in the energy business and most of the ones I know enjoy the work as have doing well financially. </p>

<p>I know people who enjoy in there 50s and 60s being accountants, engineers, and so on.</p>

<p>YOu are right there is a sterotypical $ for time exchange, but it is possible to sort through it and enjoy life and work ....</p>

14

<p>I think most people are content with their careers as opposed to actually enjoying it. Most have figured out that there are rarely jobs that they truly enjoy and they see that what they have as good enough for them, so they are "content".</p>

15

<p>I kinda agree with krazyk , its just contentment over time , the intrisic passion or desire fizzles out really quick and its just mundane, obviously some people dont hate their work that doesnt mean that they love it.</p>

16

<p>I'm writing this purely to express what's been in my mind for quite a while, so here goes nothing...</p>

<p>I study finance and accounting. I originally had huge ambitions to work in investment banking - the ultimate "it" job in the business field. Now that I have researched so many resources, both paper and people, I came to the conclusion that it is not my "thang", ya feel me? If I were to go into i-banking, I would want to do it for the long haul, not as a short stint. The true rewards of i-banking is when you work 10-15 years and become a director, earning the right to work less hours while making very generous pay (potentially in the millions). But of course, I can't even picture myself working at an i-bank for more than 2 years. It is not what I want in life. I-banking is a narrow skill set. Even more relevant is the fact that from all I've researched, the job is something that I find to be very BORING. I can't make those sacrifices just to become a director down the road. I just can't do it for the money. I need to enjoy it. Am I being too idealistic? Should I just say "screw it" and join the throngs of college graduates who jump the bandwagon and try to find the best corporate job out there because it is the trendy thing to do? I hope not.</p>

<p>So what do I want? I want to do something I believe will make me happy, at the same time give me the opportunity to be financially successful. I'm not one of those kids that at 8 years of age went out to start a lemonade stand. But I have thought about being an entrepreneur, and I really like the idea. To create - that in my opinion sounds sublime. I have had at different times started my own little business, but nothing came out of them. Nothing significant at least. But I know that there are at least 2 things I would want to do as a career. Those are being an entrepreneur, or a film director. Yea...2 way different things. I know. Go ahead and lambast me for my lack of focus.</p>

<p>These 2 paths are extremely high-risk paths to take. On one hand we have being an entrepreneur. All the risk lies on me when it comes to making my business successful. The work is hard, and I may even put in more hours than an i-banker. But you know what, if I'm passionate about the product or service I am selling, than I can live with that. On the other hand we have being a filmmaker... Jeez, I have loved watching movies all of my life. I love to read as well, which means that I can start out as a screenwriter and hopefully get my material made. Hell, that's how Quentin Tarantino did it. That's how many of the famous Hollywood schleps did it. But again, this is a VERY high-risk field to pursue. I am absolutely positively sure that there are tens of thousands of people like me with the very same idea. But I am a firm believer that I can make some great material. The problem is, so do those other thousands of people as well. I guess only talent alone will determine if I have what it takes to make it in the movie business. </p>

<p>But at this time I feel like I have to choose something. Time is endless, and time is going by. Which do I choose? Or do I even know 100% that these are the careers that will bring me happiness? SHould I go mishmash those 2 different fields together to come up with a business venture that deals with both? I am trying hard to figure that out in the discombobulated brain of mine. </p>

<p>I mean worse comes to worse screw it, if everything falls apart and blows up in my face I'll just move to Florida where the cost of living is cheap and I'll work a 9-5 job making $10 an hour at the local Best Buy and die without anyone in the world knowing who I was. But I don't want that. I want something big. I have grander schemes. I want them to work out. I also love to travel. Heck, who doesn't? But how I can make a living traveling? Become a freaking travel writer? I duno about that...it does not seem like something I'd be too passionate about. When it comes to traveling I want it to be a time of R&R. I don't want work to interfere with that, so out goes travel writing as a career. How about being a travel agent? Well, the work doesn't sound like too much fun when you're the one setting up other people's fun. Get my drift?</p>

<p>So it comes back to my plans. What do I do...that is the question. A bit Shakespearan huh? At the moment I am in college. Here goes my plan...I graduate with a major in corporate finance & accounting from some little-known school, and either plan on working in NYC or LA. One of those two. I can't imagine myself working elsewhere, I think I'd go crazy.</p>

17

<p>Where in Florida is cost of living cheap? ;x</p>

18

<p>Daytona Beach is fairly cheap. Orlando as well. I could get a very comfortable 1-bedroom apartment for around $600-700 a month. The variety of restaurants down South is absolutely amazing. No wonder why the Southerners love their food so much.</p>

<p>Florida also has their fair share of Wal-Marts, which makes things even cheaper. :)</p>

19

<p>My post above will be continued for later...</p>

<p>Hands are too tired from typing, but at least I sorted out all the ideas running through my head. Perhaps I shouldn't think so hard?</p>

20

<p>I love youth ... krazyk , that is so wonderful your thoughts, your dreams ,etc ...</p>

<p>generally though it is a bunch of BS :) ... i mean that in the nicest of ways ..really, just adding some material for your 'screenplay'. </p>

<p>The part about chasing a dream, at a young age i would encourage that ... even get serious and try the hollywood thing if you REALLY have some talent... What i find BS is the sort of " if I am not famous, I am nobody" the world and country are filled with people either working hard and building a good life, or even people who are 'famous' in their fields .. that most havent heard of ... The entrepreneur is something to explore, but find some unique talents and abilites and exploit them..</p>

<p>A bit of a ramble for me, but dreaming is good, but then look to see how to .. and thanks for sharing , i know you were giving a bit of a brain dump ... woudl love to hear more</p>