Posted by Penny on December 15, 2003, at 12:53:11
In reply to Finding a career, posted by Civ on December 15, 2003, at 11:09:14
Someone else might give very different advice from what I'm going to say to you, but anyway...take what you will from this. I hate my career. I've been out of college 5 1/2 years - I enjoyed my major (journalism and mass communication), and I was good at it. But 5 1/2 years and three jobs in PR later, I am completely unhappy with my choice.
Why? It's not that I don't have the skill necessary to perform the job. It's that I don't like sitting behind a desk every day, staring at a computer screen. I don't think I had any idea as a student that my career would involve so much desk work - I guess I had the impression that P.R. was more people-oriented, but in my experience, it's not.
So...now I'm planning for a career change. I don't expect to ever get rich, and right now I'm barely making enough to scrape by. It sucks. I'm trying to figure out how to change careers - it will probably require going back to school, which, of course, will require money and time. It's not going to be easy, any way I look at it.
I think my gut told me when I was a student that I wouldn't be happy sitting behind a desk. An internship in public relations I had in college was miserable. A job I had at a daycare as a teacher assistant was great. I should have listened to my instincts instead of my head...
So, my advice to you is to not limit your options. If you are unhappy with your business major, that is probably not going to change once you're out of school. Regardless of how much money you are making, you are spending the majority of your waking hours at work, so, IMO, you should try to find a career that you ENJOY.
Don't get me wrong - you have to be able to live. You have to make a decent salary, etc. If money wasn't an issue, I would leave my job right now and go work for a daycare or as a nanny...but the reality is that I have to keep a roof over my head and make car payments and whatnot. So I continue on in a career that I hate - but I'm determined (at least today) that I'm not going to do this forever.
My therapist told me that I need a career where I can 'be myself'. I think she's right - and I think you need the same thing. Try to get to know yourself. Listen to the nagging voice in your head that's telling you when you are taking the wrong path. Figure out a way to do what you want to do and make money at it. I have friends in broadcasting - it's not great money, but you can make a living. Something to consider. Do internships. Do volunteer work. Change your major - so what if you don't graduate in four years? It'll be easier to make such changes now than it will after you've been out in the 'real world' for a few years and your resources are more limited.
To put it plainly - DON'T SETTLE. You will spend too much of your life working to settle for less than what you really truly want.
Good luck.
P
poster:Penny
thread:290011
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20031207/msgs/290051.html