Dream Careers

jesus christ, you sound just like me except that i am 26. i think the term may be renaissance man. some guy wrote a book about having too many interests, look up 'renaissance man' on amazon.com.

if any older guys have advice, it would be appreciated.

found it: http://www.amazon.com/Renaissance-Soul-Design-People-Passions/dp/0767920880/ref=pd_bbs_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238447195&sr=8-2

Stupid time to quit your job. Hang in there. Life gets better when you are older and settled. You just have to pay your dues first. If you screw up now, you cannot go back.

Agreed. There is no way I'm leaving my current position with the way things are. I'm not unhappy, I just don't want to settle. The upside is that my wife is very encouraging, and much more career driven. At least one of us knows what they want.

I got fired for the third time in a year last week. I'm applying to be a wild land firefighter with the state for the summer. Then maybe after that I'll apply to work on a ski resort for the winter. Minimum wage jobs they are but if I get them, I think I'll have fun.

Sometimes I think it'd be cool to be an actor or a painter if you could do it and make decent money off of it. I think I'll eventually go back to school. When I was little I thought of being a pharmacist so maybe I'll try that.

Notold wrote:

Stupid time to quit your job. Hang in there. Life gets better when you are older and settled. You just have to pay your dues first. If you screw up now, you cannot go back.

I had a different philosophy when I was young. Take chances while you're young and you don't have kids. You never get your youth back. If you hate your office job and want to be a firefighter, a mountain guide or an actor then go do it.

But realize that you can only screw around for so long. I was in a "fun", low paying job until I was 29. I then went back to grad school and have a decent job. But, I am way behind financially and am only starting to get my finances together.

Save up lots of money if you want to go be a roadie or a whitewater rafting guide. And figure out what you want to do for the long run by the time you are 27/28. You can burn you savings on grad school and start making good money without the grad school debt.

And to answer your question, go green. Learn how to install solar panels, wind mills, geothermal units, etc. For the next four years, there will be a lot of demand for this kind of work. No office walls, learn about green tech, maybe start your own company one day.

honestly, I have many hobbies that I would LOVE to make my full time job one day. I have a stable job in a stable field, but it is definitely not what I'm really passionate about. I work to make the money to do the things that I love in my spare time.

i have a great salary, young, no debt, money saved up and i turned in my 2 week notice last friday. the unemployment rate for college graduates is 3.1% (something the press conveniently ignores). going to hang out for a few years and live stress free and take classes in a subject I am truly interested in. luckily, my interest is in a financially rewarding field. you only get one shot at youth.

I'm in a similar situation. Realized lately I want a more active career and applied with the local fire and police departments, as well as the FBI at family friend's urging. I'd love to be a firefighter, but am not so sure about police. They get a bad rap, and as much as I don't care what people think normally, I dont want that stigma every day at work. They called me in to test in a couple of weeks. Thoughts? Should I be a cop, or not?

You also sound like a complete douche.

22 year old wildland firefighter here, turning 23 in may. I've been doing it for 4 years. Before that I worked for the National Park Service on a trail crew 1 year. During summer in high school I worked for the city (water department, reading meters and such). During the winters I worked as a fur trapper. Not a lot of job experience, but I am very happy as a firefighter. It is extremely challening, mentally and physically (even if you are a stud runner, you will get your ass kicked repeatedly). I don't make a letsrun.com brag-worthy salary, but I think 46k a year is plenty, especially when you have 6 months a year free. (Make no mistake, you earn your money-you will do nothing but work those other 6 months.)

I can't imagine having an 'ordinary' job, and an office job would probably drive me to suicide. Still, I do think of other jobs that I would love to do. A photographer/writer for National Geographic would probably be ideal for myself. I am working on getting through college, but it is difficult with my job obligations. Most of my friends have graduated, but they are broke and unhappy with their jobs, unemployed, or just doing menial internships. I wouldn't trade places with them, although they rib me for still being in school.

That book sucks.

almost 24 years old wrote:

Sometimes I think it'd be cool to be an actor or a painter if you could do it and make decent money off of it. I think I'll eventually go back to school. When I was little I thought of being a pharmacist so maybe I'll try that.

I have a very close friend that is a professional painter...its an awesome life...especially the kinds of money he makes off of it. I on the other hand can paint a straight stick figure. The guy that said Ski Instructor is on the right path though.