I am going out on a limb here and asking for opinions.........................I cannot stand my job! I am so bored all day long and hate sitting in a desk and staring at a computer screen.......I work in insurance sales and let me be honest here, the content is very dry and there is not room for creativity.(I hope I don't offend those who love it)...I just have no idea if its worth it to go back to school or if maybe I expect too much from a job?? The money is not fantastic by any means at all, but it pays my bills and mortgage...I would love to enter into the fitness industry, but how?? or maybe pharmaceutical sales (requires alot of travel which is totally my department)but how?? Its just really frustrating to finally have graduated from college and work for one year & not enjoy it one bit! I dread getting out of bed in the morning and facing eight hours in this place..........do most people dislike their jobs?? I guess I am just looking for some feedback about any of the above!
Hi Reba--I'm sorry you're so unhappy. You spend at least a third of your life at your job & you shouldn't have to dread it. I can give you suggestions based on my own experience--when I was about your age I got laid off & started taking one or two classes at a time until I found something I really enjoyed. Then I set my goals & aggressively pursued them.
If you don't want to do that (or even if you do for that matter), IMO networking is the key to finding a good job. The old "it's not what you know, it's who you know" is truer than ever. One of the things that really helped me was joining a few trade associations & attending their meetings once or twice a month. That way you can meet people in the field you're trying to break into & make some connections.
Also refine your resume & cover letter. Since you've only been out of school a year I should think your college's career advancement center would still be willing to help you. If not, there are many professionals out there who can do it for you.
You can play with clip art and change some boring documents.
You can switch the decaf and regular coffee and watch your coworkers reaction.
You can leave magazines like Soldier of Fortune or other survivalist material in plain sight of your coworkers.
You can go into work early and change people's speed dialing directories to interesting numbers.
Scott Adams (Dilbert) has a website with a newsletter which has some really wild stuff on it at times.
I believe that everyone can find 10 things wrong with their job for every one thing they find right. My job really rots. I've worked graveyard shift for the Post Office for about 17 years now. I keep all of their machines running. The job pays the bills, I've never had to take a day off to go to my kids' school or help on a field trip. The external features of the job are great while the in plant features stink so I always tell myself "I do this job because it lets me......." and I fill in the blank with what I want to do.
By all means pursue your dreams, I don't know if you have a family, a mortgage or any of those things if you do it makes it tougher to take the risk... if you don't have those responsibilities yet what are you waiting for?
Learn from your boredom. When I graduated from college, I got a boring job too. I quickly learned that clerical work was not for me and that I needed something more challenging, so I went back to school and got a law degree, which is MUCH more satisfying. Think about what you like least about your job and what you like most and try to learn about yourself so you can determine what you would be happy doing and where your interests lie. Try that book called What Color is Your Parachute or similar books before taking the next step. Good luck!
-Nancy
Well maybe I'm in the minority, but I really love my job. I've worked really hard to get to this point, & I'd like to make more money (who wouldn't?), but I really do get up every morning & look forward to going to work. Am I insane?
Thanks Nancy and everyone else! I used to work as a Correctional Officer all the way through college and even though it was a safety hazard at times, I enjoyed moving around all the time (but I did my fair share of graveyard as well....., but it didn't challenge me enough either! I think I am naturally dissatisfied! LOL I will definately look into some books and do more research.....I do want to be one of those people that really enjoy getting up and going to work! I have one friend who loves loves her job, and is so happy and content, and I would like to get there someday - - I do have a mortgage, which makes it riskier, but no kids - - so I guess I have room to make some changes. I know my husband would support my decision, but we are looking to move again and need to save for that.....too many things going on at once to try and focus it seems like! But thanks for all the advice - really appreciate it, and appreciate you all letting me vent..........it felt really good!
Nancy, just out of curiosity what type of law do you practice and where did you go to school? I graduated with a B.S. in Criminal Justice and initially my goal was to go to Law School, but after being a Correctional Officer, it swayed my view of humanity for awhile I think..........I even studied endlessly for the LSAT - crazy how things change.....I have been debating going back to school for a nutrition or excercise fitness degree, but sometimes wonder if I did fitness day in and day out, if it would take away the thrill? Just thinking to myself. My cousin is graduating in May from Columbia University and has a job lined up in Washington D.C. - I am sometimes envious and wonder where I would be now if I had taken the test and applied for law school.......what has your experience been?
I feel like I am all over the place and its great to get some feedback from people to help me re-gain a focus
I have been in your situation. Let me just tell you what I have been going through since I graduated in 1997. I have an accounting degree. I did not research accounting at all before I picked the degree - I was at a point where I had to pick something.
My first job was public accounting. I liked it a lot for the first year or so. I did this for 3 years. In about the second year it seemed like I was a jack of all trades and no specialization. I really started to dislike working there and the biggest reason is that it was a small firm - 8 to 10 people and it seemed like going to a morge each day to work. Everyone complained and didn't like the boss for this reason and didn't like the tax guy for that reason. I decided to leave and go work for a manufacturing company in town. There were a lot more people and personalities. I was great for the first 3 years as I moved into 3 different jobs. One was a year long project implemeting SAP. Then there was year I was bored to death and my feelings of going back to school resurfaced. Then I was selected to head up the Sarbanes Oxley project at work and also took another senior positon. Now if I could get the Sarbanes monkey off by back and do the job I was hired for I wouldn't want to quit right now - at least for a few years. I don't really find accounting worth while as I feel I am not contributing to the well being of people. The Sarbanes project has been really stressfull with not much committment from the top. I have been trying to find out what it is that I should do as you are doing. I am glad I gave accounting a bit more time. I would love to teach it at a community college.
Anyway I am 32 and will probably get married and have kids real soon. I somewhat wish I would have went back to school when I realized accounting was not for the long haul. Can you explore other options with your degree? What got you interested in in your degree? Was it criminal justice but you are working in insurance? Life is too short to not be happy. Can you take a few different classes on line to experiment? It is expensive I know but if you look at the cost to quit or work part time to attend classes vrs spending more and still keep your 9-5 with benefits maybe it is worth it.
Good luck to you. I am in the same boat and can't seem to figure it out.
Reba-
I went to Rutgers Law School in New Jersey. Since I was a resident of NJ at the time, the tuition was wonderful, and I had no loans when I graduated. Since I didn't have any big student loans to pay off, I skipped the interviews with the big law firms, which I found to be rather scarey, and found my way into a smaller law firm. I now work for a firm with about 32 attorneys, where quality of life is considered to be a reasonable expectation. That was important to me.
There are good and bad things about being a lawyer. I love the mental challenge, and I love dealing with clients. What I don't like is having to think negatively and always think of the worst case scenario every time I draft a document. It's in my nature to trust people and to think postively, but if you want to think like a lawyer, you have to always assume the worst. Another thing I don't like about being a lawyer is having to deal with lawyers all day. I'd like to spend a LOT less time with aggressive men and a lot more time with nurturing women. I guess that's why I hang out here so much!
