Anyone else "stuck" in their job and in life?

[GeorgiaBadger]

A hobby is a great thing to have. Although it is better to enjoy work too. Enjoying what you do tends to keep you in a better mood and then more things in life become enjoyable at the same time. If work is a grind, life is a grind. My hobby is Mustangs and Beer. I love old Mustangs and I love young beer.
Get your wife some new panties and a video camera. Have fun.

And if you really want to experience life passing you by at lightspeed........have a couple (or 3) kids. Now you dont have time to work on the mustang or drink beer all the time. But the kids go to bed eventually and the video camera can be fun.

 

[Koing]

Nope.

Moved jobs 4months ago, loving my job. It is very busy, quite high pressured and a lot of work. I'm learning a lot, on a fair salary with scope to earn a lot later on.

My lifes busy, part time job, training 8-10x a week, going out, resting, blah blah blah.

Best wishes and chin up. Something is bound to come along!

I was in a job I didn't like, but that was for 15months and I moved out once I found a better job

Koing

 

[ITJunkie]

Don't sweat it Pale. Everyone reaches the point in their careers where they ask "why?". I know exactly how you feel in terms of being overlooked for promotion due to the lack of a degree, even though you can dance circles skill-wise, around the bozo's above you.
I know it seems to you like you've "accomplished everything" but in reality you probably have twice as much lifetime in front of you as you do behind. Taking a rough guess based on your post, you're probably mid 20's right? Sh*t dude, you still have time to try 5 different careers before settling into one. Don't even get me started on kid's because believe me, once you have them you won't have time for self-pity.
My advice, FWIW, is to get back up and get your head back in the game. Realize that you really haven't accomplished all that much but have done really well with what you have. If that isn't an indicator of some success I don't know what is. Don't totally dismiss the idea of going back to school for a degree. Hell, think of something that really interests you and take a class in it to see how it feels. That can open all sorts of doors you never even considered.

Good luck Bro'

 

[bleeb]

My recommendation to you is to stay at your current job and attend college courses during the night or online and obtain your degree that way.

This allows you to maintain the lifestyle you currently have, and to obtain the degree that is holding you back from advancing.

I just wanted to say that you call your fellow workers morons but these morons will eventually end up surpassing you (because you lack a degree).

 

[Soybomb]

I'm in kind of the same boat, except I have a 4 year degree. I just don't find the work interesting or fun. I'm thinking about becoming a doctor. It seems like after some time the diagnostic work would be much the same but with a little more variety, for a better reason, and with better rewards.

Work sucks, save for retirement.

 

[mrrman]

be greatful for what you have..alot of people have less

 

[Nightfall]

Ok, I will chip in with my thoughts and you can take them for what they are worth.

First off, a little background. I have a 4 year degree in computer information systems. I have a total of 10 years of business experience not counting the internships or work I did in college in the computer industry. I have come a long way over what I started at. I don't have the certifications, but the experience I have has gotten me a nice job and in MI, thats a challenge in itself.

I also have a wife, no kids. I also have a nice house, with 2 nice cars, and a lot of cool gadgets.

Yet, do I feel empty? No.

From reading your post, I have concluded a couple things. You are unsatisfied with your job, and you are frustrated that the people above you are educated but can't do anything right. Well, the easy fix is for you to find a new job and then leave your old one. The long term fix would be for you to go to college and get your education taken care of. I hear a lot of bitching from people like yourself, who view college educated people as common idiots. These same people say that college educated people have a hard time making ends meet and can't find jobs. The simple fact of the matter is that a college education helps you only as much as you put into it and what degree you get. Studies show that those who have college educations will make more in their lifetime over those who don't go to college. Not to say those people who skip college won't make more, but for the vast majority, people without degrees will make less.

Whats worse, these people who point out weak people or people with bad degrees won't go to college themselves. Probably because they can't handle the years of commitment it takes to complete something like that.

Another thing you can do is immerse yourself in something outside of work. What extra activities do you do? I am active in the community with coaching youth hockey. I spend time playing hockey and messing around with photography. I also play computer games in my spare time. Obviously, my wife and I spend time together, but we make a point to do things together. Maybe doing something outside of work and home would be beneficial as well.

Thats just an observation, so take it for what you will.

 

[MX2]

I'm on sabbatical

 

[Old Hippie]

So I quit my job. Sold my house. Sold my car. And I'm moving to Hawaii on Monday. I'm taking all the lessons I learned about starting a new business from scratch in a comeptitive environment and putting them into practical application in a place I've always wanted to live. And I'll be doing something very different than I did before. I CAN'T WAIT!

What an adventure. It's gonna be great. Good Luck! :thumbsup:

 

[RKS]

I am a lawyer. Take that money and travel instead of going to school.

 

[shadow9d9]

How much do you have saved? Close to retirement? If yes, then retire and do something you love on the side. If no, what're you doing with a "nice truck and toys" etc?

 

[Jeff7]

Get a job at Walmart or at a warehouse. You want unchallenging and unstimulating? At the warehouse, you do what the computer tells you to do. Go to XY location, get 10 boxes of 5 quantity each. Go to AB location, get 5 boxes of 2 quantity each. Take pallet to Door 700, left side.
You might get a freezer warehouse, where it's just always really damn cold. Or you can get a regular warehouse - you go from deep-freeze in the winter, to toaster-oven in the summer. It's dirty, and the managers are probably used to dealing with temp workers who don't give a damn about their job, so the managers don't give a damn about who you are. You are another body there to get work done. If you can't meet the quota, no excuses, you get written up or fired. Too bad, goodbye, NEXT!

Find something at home to do that keeps you busy or happy. I am considering building one of these to have in the back yard of wherever I finally decide to live. The largest, at 53' wide, is $37K - 2200sq ft of floor space. That's a house-sized area for that money.
I'd want something smaller, but I just think that sounds nice. A quiet, sunny spot, with plants everywhere, and maybe get some fish in there too - without blood-thirsty insects or weeds to spoil it all.
Either that, or maybe one of those sunroom things. Hadn't even thought of that. Just a sort of quiet, disconnected sanctuary.
Not much of a dream, but it's at least something to look forward to and hope for. I don't really have any other plans for myself right now. I've got two years of college left, after which I hope to have a mechanical engineering degree, get one of those $40K-$50K/year jobs I keep hearing about.

 

[chambersc]

I'm going to law school after I finish my undergrad. One piece of advice I've learned: don't go to law school/become a lawyer for the money.

 

[KoolAidKid]

Maybe an online degree program or something would be a good idea? In my experience education gives you many options, not all of which you will be able to anticipate.

 

[marulee]

Many people feel same way as you do, looking for their destinies despite having a satisfaction through their possesions and goodies though. I am the one among those people from same catagory lacking on here and there, but I would make my life goes on.

 

[lokiju]

Man I've discussed this sort of thing with my wife many times now.

I'm 26 and will be 27 in 3 months, I've been working IT since '97 so this will be my 10th year of doing computer support/work/admin whatever and I just can't see myself being happy doing it another 10 and honestly am not sure at all whatelse I wanna do. It's kind of a big deal to even think about up and leaving a career path I've been on for 10 years now and I pretty much hate school so I feel I wouldn't get very far if I took the whole "go back to school" approach either.

I'm just lost at this point really. If I were to go back to school I'd have to be for something more non traditional I think, maybe EMT or something like that.

Hardest part is finding something else to do that I can start off making at least what I make now and have the ability to make more in the near future all while enjoying it.

This is like the million dollar 20something year olds question it seems.

 

[pyonir]

yes.