Comments on: What Should I do with my Life?

By: Kim N

Kim N — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 02:14:09 +0000

I really enjoyed this post. I have thought about this too. I think a big part of it is a generational thing. I would bet that neither Dad nor Dave would say they felt “stuck” in their jobs and they were pretty happy with what they did. There was probably somewhat of a “duty” felt to stick it out, but also a satisfaction in doing it. I think in both of their cases they are also in fields that they are interested in and they enjoyed the people they worked with.

I know for me the environment and people I work with have as much to do with my happiness in a job almost as much as whether I have a passion for it or not. I have even had the same job and loved it at times and hate it at times depending on who I was working with and who my manager was at the time. I could do a lot of things if I was able to work with people who are friends and have some freedom to have fun while working.

I have also enjoyed the jobs I have had that I really felt I was helping others. I loved working at the group homes for ARC, although, I don’t think I could have done it forever. It is a time of my life that I look back on with fondness for the friends I made and experiences I had, but it would have been hard to do it for more than a few years.

Interesting subject! I look forward to reading more comments about it. C’mon dad! Let’s hear your thoughts about it.

By: Brett Nordquist

Brett Nordquist — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 23:13:33 +0000

I enjoyed your post and have had many of the same thoughts. While going to college I didn’t really think of what job it would lead to or how much it would pay. I cared about getting an education at the time and felt things would work out down the road.

Our fathers come from a different generation where there was trust between employer and employee. That’s a thing of past now. We live in the age of Enron and WorldCom. Seriously, do you think the companies we work for care about us? They give us a paycheck every 2 weeks because they feel we are worth MORE than they pay us.

Our fathers worked the same job for 30+ years. They don’t have a lot to compare to that single job. Work to them was a means to an end. I don’t believe they give much thought to how “fun” or how much passion they felt. It’s a way for them to put food on the table. There’s a sense of pride there.

I couldn’t describe it any better than your mom did in her last sentence, “stuck with the same job…” You and I don’t want to be “stuck” to any job. That’s a key difference.

By: Grandma

Grandma — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 07:04:56 +0000

Dad has the blessing of liking what he does. He has a sense of pride in helping people with their networks and computers and gets along with everyone so well they all love him. I think that kind of a relationship with people keeps you happily going. There was a time when his job was stressful before he switched over to computers … when he was more in management and accounting. He does better when he doesn’t have to supervise but just gets to talk to everyone and help them be successful. We are so grateful now that he stuck with the same job for 35 years because his pension package is really a good one.