How do I find work that doesn't make me hate myself?

laingsoft

laingsoft

Formerly SteamDNT
Seriously?

I've been freelancing, and it feels like I'm selling my soul for pennies on the hour.

I've been interning, and it feels like I'm having creativity and happiness strangled out of me.

I've dabbled in managing, and thought about opening liquor stores, but it feels disgusting to perpetuate and profit off of alcoholism.

Academia has an absolutely incredible power to completely isolate anyone and everyone.

How do I find a balance of morality, job fulfillment, and actual wealth?
 
SteamDNT said:
I've dabbled in managing, and thought about opening liquor stores, but it feels disgusting to perpetuate and profit off of alcoholism.
Click to expand...

I work in the gambling industry, and a lot of my customers clearly have problems controlling how much money they spend gambling but that's not really my fault so.
 
Kickback said:
SteamDNT said:
I've dabbled in managing, and thought about opening liquor stores, but it feels disgusting to perpetuate and profit off of alcoholism.
Click to expand...

I work in the gambling industry, and a lot of my customers clearly have problems controlling how much money they spend gambling but that's not really my fault so.
Click to expand...

But that doesn't make you feel like absolute flax? It isn't fair to them, it's like shooting fish in a barrel. Where's the line then?

Selling Scam Adware? Well that's just because old people don't know how to use computers, not really my fault so...
Selling bullflax Self-Help books? Well if people really want to get better they should go see a therapist, not really my fault if they waste their money
 
SteamDNT said:
Kickback said:
SteamDNT said:
I've dabbled in managing, and thought about opening liquor stores, but it feels disgusting to perpetuate and profit off of alcoholism.
Click to expand...

I work in the gambling industry, and a lot of my customers clearly have problems controlling how much money they spend gambling but that's not really my fault so.
Click to expand...

But that doesn't make you feel like absolute flax? It isn't fair to them, it's like shooting fish in a barrel. Where's the line then?
Click to expand...

Nope, they have problems they need to get through.

I have bills that need paying and I have a job that pays them.

Such is life.

If you open a liquor store 95% of your customers will be people who just enjoy a drink, I quite often go the one near me because they sell expensive fancy scotches and I really like the taste, just as 95% of my people stake low on their bets because they just like to have a laugh with their friends, most of whom are old. Every now and then a customer comes in and whacks 400-500 quid on something and loses, gets angry and talks about how his wife left him. It sucks, but it's not my fault.

EDIT: Probably worth mentioning that if you're opening a liquor store, you don't really need to worry about alcoholics, they will probably go for cheaper supermarket drinks.
 
I'll have to with kickback on that last one, most poor alcoholics are going to gas stations and the local grocery before going to a liquor store. The cheap stuff gets them going.

If your really thinking about opening a liquor store, you will probably meet several hundred people with the same mind set as yours and have a blast.

IMHO there's little to nothing out there that really satisfies, you can sit and research everything that anyone person could do, and still find several things that could be taken negatively.

I've been worthing for 17 years now, in fast food to factories and warehouses, oh and once at a really shady computer store. Fast food was ok because of the customer service side. You know helping people out, making great food, meeting new friends, but then there's termination stuff if your a manager. I found it really hard to fire someone. I had to from time to time and sometimes it killed me because I built a relationship with this person. Factory and warehouse is like being in high school again, but the pay usually isn't bad but when it is its bad.

Shady computer guy actually actually removed a clients working screen to repair another customers laptop. Now this guy really needed his laptop, he needed it for school. School was already 2 weeks in, dudes laptop needed a main board. Came in when computer guy told him to come back, computer guy's assistant said while opening the lid "here's you laptop right here, we ha... where did your screen go?"

Sorry point is, the human race is a filled with negativity, damned if you do damned if you don't. If I could I would open a computer store and run it with a friend of mine, you keep what you work on and help pay the bills.

I hope you do find something, the right thing is out there, you just have to find the piece of hay in the needle stack.
 
Kickback said:
If you open a liquor store 95% of your customers will be people who just enjoy a drink, I quite often go the one near me because they sell expensive fancy scotches and I really like the taste, just as 95% of my people stake low on their bets because they just like to have a laugh with their friends, most of whom are old. Every now and then a customer comes in and whacks 400-500 quid on something and loses, gets angry and talks about how his wife left him. It sucks, but it's not my fault.

EDIT: Probably worth mentioning that if you're opening a liquor store, you don't really need to worry about alcoholics, they will probably go for cheaper supermarket drinks.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, in Alberta grocery's and gas stations aren't allowed to carry liquor. Liquor is confined to restaurants, brewpubs, and liquor stores. So most certainly, the demographic of a liquor store is indeed 90% alcoholics-10% normies.

I ran some stats last month when I was working almost every day, and approximately 65% of our total average income for the day came from the same ~20 customers. EVERY DAY.
 
I was in the same boat as you, and I don't know exactly how old you are but at a YMCA near my house they offered a service where they allow me to take some tests/surveys and then it is able to suggest based on the results what you will most likely like. It showed me that I like the more technical stuff/architectural side of things which is pretty much true. It was pretty expensive though for a full on analysis but it pretty much nailed it for the things I like. So now I am in school for architecture and (at this point) I couldn't be happier.
 
grossaffe said:
Its always helpful to have a skill that's in demand.
Click to expand...
ProgMetalMan said:
I hear fellating John Carmack does wonders
Click to expand...
;)



Learn to suck it up (in the way unrelated to Prog's suggestion, unless that's your thing)? As far as jobs that might fulfill your criteria, I've heard good things about trades, like electrician, HVAC, welder, etc.
 
I'm already mostly done a Computing Science degree. I'd much rather not go back to school yet.

I know that what I want to do will involve programming or some sort of CS, but I just don't know what I am to do. Most of the major software companies are literally evil.
 
Well, as far as programming goes, the best way I've heard of is to contribute good code to open source projects, and hope you get picked up by a startup. (That said I have a job that often involves coding, and I never even learned how to code, let alone contributed to open source stuff, so it's certainly not the only path)


Beyond that, all I can really say is try to make yourself useful to people. Just having people out there that know you're competent goes a long way. I've gotten several jobs over the years just by being in the right place at the right time, and being able to solve a problem. I picked up a second job at an electrical panel shop because I had helped an electrician chase a short last summer while installing a production line - when said panel shop needed help fast, I was on the short list because they knew I knew the ropes.

Finally, most jobs suck. Doing something you hate for years is a part of life - you just have to look at it as a learning experience more so than anything else. I worked at several jobs I hated for 7 years before I got a job I really like, that pays me enough to justify doing it. But now that I'm here, I'm really enjoying myself, and am looking at a pretty serious promotion soon. It takes time and effort, but there's certainly good jobs out there if you have a good attitude and are willing to learn.


vskid3 said:
welder, etc.
Click to expand...

This very much. Both of the shops we use are having a Heck of a time keeping quality welders around - not enough talented guys left, and the seriously good guys are all off doing flax on oil fields and such since the pay is better (think hundreds per hour).
 
SteamDNT said:
I'm already mostly done a Computing Science degree. I'd much rather not go back to school yet.

I know that what I want to do will involve programming or some sort of CS, but I just don't know what I am to do. Most of the major software companies are literally evil.
Click to expand...
Browse craigslist, indeed, monster, etc. for listings and then you can find a company that fits you.

As for welding... well there's a huge deficit in welders. I think I read something to the effect of our supply of welders being approximately half of what the demand is. It's getting so bad that companies are resorting to hiring security to keep other companies from poaching workers from their jobsite.
 
I deliver pizzas and I actually really like the job.
I get to sit in my car and think about things, and it gives me an opportunity to be really organized and detail oriented without having someone looking over my shoulder the whole time. I even have a spreadsheet going with all sorts of data on my deliveries that really helps me to keep my math and science and planning parts content. It's really quite swell.

Really food service isn't that bad so long as your manager doesn't suck, and I make more money delivering pizzas than I have at any other job I've had: around $15.69/h on average, and on one night I made $21.93/h. Not bad money at all.
 
I dunno how well you handle tedium but pretty much all trades seem to be in demand. For example, my dad does painting with a bit of construction, and struggles to find anyone that can actually do it well.
 
This is going to sound kind of ridiculous but it's true: I've found fulfillment in operating laundromats. No really! It's the family business, sure, but I've helped grow it from one store doing $250k per year and mainly just employing my dad to three locations breaking $1.2m with a team of over 25 people.

The thing about it is service. Whom do you serve? Whose life have you made better? We took a tired old industry that has a bad reputation for being nasty and gross with no customer service, applied good business practices, served people well, and we've found success. We now run some of the top performing laundromats in the country. I love my job!

What business is there with a bad reputation or maybe just a boring ho-hum reputation that you can turn on its head? Whom can you serve? Whose life can you make better? Approach it from that angle and not only will you make money, you will find fulfillment.

Okay, now I've gotta brag about the new website redesign I just made for our company: http://www.libertylaundryok.com
 
Life of Brian said:
This is going to sound kind of ridiculous but it's true: I've found fulfillment in operating laundromats. No really! It's the family business, sure, but I've helped grow it from one store doing $250k per year and mainly just employing my dad to three locations breaking $1.2m with a team of over 25 people.

The thing about it is service. Whom do you serve? Whose life have you made better? We took a tired old industry that has a bad reputation for being nasty and gross with no customer service, applied good business practices, served people well, and we've found success. We now run some of the top performing laundromats in the country. I love my job!

What business is there with a bad reputation or maybe just a boring ho-hum reputation that you can turn on its head? Whom can you serve? Whose life can you make better? Approach it from that angle and not only will you make money, you will find fulfillment.

Okay, now I've gotta brag about the new website redesign I just made for our company: http://www.libertylaundryok.com
Click to expand...

This is probably the best answer in this thread so far.

I'm not really interested in making an absolute boatload of money. It is pretty lucrative to be able to say that you are super rich, but it isn't exactly hard to make a ton of money immorally. I would much rather have enough to cover my expenses, sociopathic hording of money seems like a huge waste of my time, to be completely honest.

Do you think that the area of work is completely arbitrary in regards to happiness? For example, would you see yourself having the same amount of career satisfaction if you were working in say, a coffee shop?
 
SteamDNT said:
Do you think that the area of work is completely arbitrary in regards to happiness? For example, would you see yourself having the same amount of career satisfaction if you were working in say, a coffee shop?
Click to expand...
Absolutely. To further prove the point, I graduated with a degree in chemistry in 2010*. When I started school I had no intention of joining the laundromat business, and yet here I am. At the time it was just a weekend gig and some work during the summers, and then I'd go back to school studying for a "real" job. However, when I graduated there was an opportunity to take on a greater role in the company than just a laundry attendant and so I became to operations manager. Well, it's a self-appointed title so that sounded close enough anyway.

Here's the thing - growing the company to a size where it's more than just taking care of me or my family is awesome. There are 25 families that depend on the income the company is creating, and there are thousands of customers who depend on our stores being excellent to take care of clothing their families. It's a lot of responsibility but when we get daily compliments from customers about what a great store this is or from employees talking about what a great place to work this is, then I can't help but smile. I'm not going to pretend that nothing has ever gone wrong or that every day is a walk in the park, but you can't appreciate the good times without the bad or difficult.

It's a huge creative outlet for me, building new systems and marketing materials and such. I get to work with my hands and put my problem-solving skills to the test when repairing one of our many machines. Honestly, though, I think that I would be the same way no matter where I work. I can't help myself!

*Side note: I taught myself electronics and portablizing while going to school studying chemistry. How's that for super nerd cred? :p
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top