floe206

Hey guys, I'll try to keep this post pretty short. Basically, I'm 23 and don't really know what to do with my life. I work an average job (I guess having any job is good in this economy). But I look at some of these people that have been at my company for so long, and I really don't want to be like them, old and stuck at the same place for so long. 4 years have already passed and I feel like it's time for a change, but I'm not really sure where to start. Part of me wants to go to school, but It's been so long (5 years) let alone I have bills to pay and I'm not quite sure I could cram school and work together. I was heavily into martial arts and that was my escape but I got injured really bad and since then it's never been the same. I also haven't really had luck with the ladies even though I'm a good looking guy and thats messing with my head as well. Not really sure where to go or where to even start? Any advice??

kramus

Get educated. Seriously. Night school, correspondence courses, whatever you can do to create a foundation for a professional career of some sort. Blue collar/worker drone/cubical farm resident is a working class po' boy route to treadmill grind and a life of working without gaining anything more significant than providing your daily living expenses. It is easier to jump ship and get a more interesting job if you have solid credentials. This is the age where people jump jobs regularly in order to get experience and enjoy life. Pull up roots, move to a different city/state/whatever and do it now. Why not? You have nothing to lose but your chains.

__________________
And now to disengage the clutch of the forebrain ...
I'm going with this - if you like artwork visit http://markfineart.ca

Jaime..

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"Thinking men cannot be ruled. -Ayn Rand"

floe206

Well I was waiting around Seattle for a long shore man job which is a solid union job and really hard to get. I got a number through a lottery, but it takes about 1-2 years to get in and another 1-2 years to start getting more hours. It's a rare job to get but at the same time I feel like I'm already 23 and shouldn't wait much longer. It's already been 5 years and even before my math suffered so I'm a bit worried about that, as well as I don't really know where to start? I work 7-4 pm so wouldn't it be pretty hard to work in school with that schedule?? I do appreciate the replies though..Thanks

---------- Post added at 06:37 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:32 PM ----------

Also are there any books I can read or websites where I can practice because I'm pretty rusty?? Or would internet courses be a good way of getting back in the mix?

Sheepy

hey floe i had half a semester break before i started university. What i did to get back into practise is type ' how to write a good essay/assignment' in Google and youtube and there are a lot of videos and information on how to structure writings and references. Look across a few of them then when you have got a good idea try doing university / correspondence school.

ASU2003

What do you want to do with your life? Do you want to get rich? Do you want to live on a boat in Mexico drinking margaritas? Or do you want to get married and live the middle-class suburban lifestyle.

I'm in the same situation. I would go back to school and take 1 or 2 hours per semester. I would party it up. Van Wilder style. Having friends is a lot better than having lots of money, but working 50 hours a week and watching the years go by. There is more to life than working your way through middle-management...

I would like to start my own company or be a Red Cross volunteer in disaster areas to setup camp and help clean up and rebuild. But at the same time, the beach bum life sounds great if you have enough saved to travel the world (or sail) from the US to Hawaii each year. But the woman situation is the big problem. How you find one that will support you in any decision you have is something I don't have an answer for.

floe206

Thats the big questions...What do I want to do with my life?? I feel like I should have it figured out by now, but I don't. I've traveled a good amount and have a solid group of friends. Should I chase wealth and good fortune? Should I scrape check to check while partying it up into my 30's?? I worked pretty hard for something to do with martial arts and one injury kind of ruined it all...Not sure what to do...

Kind of leaning towards school just not really certain if I don't have a goal in mind.

Sheepy

hey floe i reckon 90% of youth from 18-27 have the exact same thoughts.

I think you can balance it like, - do a job you generally like but has a decent earn, a small group of decent friends and those two things will attract a decent wife. And maybe people say that is a 'typical' lifestyle, but if you also throw in some sort of volunteer organisation ( even something as simple as youthline ) and look out for events in your town to attend every here and there, i think that will bring you a lot of satisfaction.

I've been told once you earn above maybe 40,000-50,000 US dollars a year ( equivalent to around 70,000 NZ) you don't really need much more than that, and that millionaires satisfaction after there first year of being a millionaire reduces down to what it originally was.

I also believe having a family and sacrificing financially for it is worth it in the long term, I've visited the retirement homes and i swearthe only people who ever come to them are grandchildren / children.

remy1492

Having been around older and richer people, the same advice is always given.
Do what you LIKE to do, even if it pays crap. You really CAN live on very little, but the job satisfaction will make up for it.

What are your interests or hobbies? Are there jobs in martial arts that dont require the physical prowess? Id start community college, just one class even, to get the ball rolling. Id also start saving $$ and living below my means right now to prepare for future schooling.

Many of us have lived on barely nothing to get by while going to school, but in the end it pays off and oddly, many dont even work in a job they went to school for.

Halanna

What does this mean to you? Are you seeing these co-workers as failures? Do you feel they have wasted their life? Do you not respect them because they have worked at the same place for so long? Are they uneducated? Isolate why you don't want to be like them.

Having been there for 4 years, is there an older person you can talk to? Most older people are happy to share their wisdom and thoughts on life with the younger generation. It can even be a simple, breezy question thrown out at lunch, or a break, "If you could go back in time, what would you do different in life?" Something to that effect. There is a lot to learn from the regrets of those who have already lived that time in their life.

If someone came up to you today and asked you, "You can have any job on the planet, with the appropriate salary, what job would you like?" What would you answer? On site archaeologist? Chef? Long shore man? Professor of English? Music producer? Growing plants and flowers?

Think what will make you happy to get up every day and go do. Then research how to make it happen.

snowy

Have you thought about taking community college classes? You could likely take one class at a time, at night, while you continue to work. This would allow to explore your options and figure out what it is you want to do.

__________________
If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Strange Famous

I am 33 and I dont know what I want to do with life. Thats what life is like.

The only thing I can say is just try to live it, be happy when possible, dont do things that you feel ashamed of, etc.

There is no master plan, and the fact is most people dont do the job or have the life they dreamed of, if they ever had any dreams at all.

__________________
"Do not tell lies, and do not do what you hate,
for all things are plain in the sight of Heaven. For nothing
hidden will not become manifest, and nothing covered will remain
without being uncovered."

The Gospel of Thomas

Martian

WARNING: Some of my views run counter to conventional wisdom. I am not liable in any way, shape or form for the consequences of following my advice.

I'm kind of against going to school for the sake of going. I mean, sure. It's one option. It's an incredibly expensive option and if you don't happen to luck out and pick the right program you're going to saddle yourself with a whole pile of debt to be in exactly the same position four years from now. Get the idea of going to college (full time, at least) out of your head for now. You can tackle that when it's actually going to help you complete your objectives.

You've got a lot going for you right now. You're young, single, (I'm assuming) childless. You may have a lease but I bet you don't have a mortgage. You're old enough to be independent but not so old that you've started weighing yourself down with a whole pile of commitments and obligations. You've got, what? A twelve month lease and a cell phone contract? You're in a prime position to do whatever the hell you want. Figure something out.

Options are:

* Join the army
* Take courses at the adult ed centre or do distance learning
* Start learning a trade
* Move to another city
* Move to the other side of your country
* Get a new job
* Learn a new language
* Volunteer for a non-profit

Stop moaning and start experimenting. Go out there and find some new experiences. If you're in a major city (and I'm pretty sure Seattle counts) you've got them all around you. Start looking. You'll figure out a direction for yourself as part of the process of figuring out what kind of person you really are. You'll also land on a dozen hare-brained ideas that turn out miserably, but that's part of the process.

Nike that shit up. Just Do It.

__________________
I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept
I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept
I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head
I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said

- Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame

Baraka_Guru

Bear in mind the difference between community college and university. Community college is for the most part basically job training. Well, career training, anyway. It depends on the program, but quite often people are ready to work in their field with little or no training required after college.

Look at college programs of this kind as learning a trade...but in a broader sense.

University is another matter.

Have a look at what colleges offer and see if there is anything related to your interests. But be sure to look at job prospects/future growth beforehand. Do your research in the field that interests you.

If you aren't sure, most colleges offer a general arts & science option, which is good for searching and trying to see what interests you without committing yourself to something quite yet. Transferring into a formal program from there is usually easy.

Other than that, go to a job centre and take one or two of those skills/interest tests and see what sticks out. From that, have a look at jobs that relate to your outcome.

Combine the two: college and vocational testing. The two often go hand in hand.

__________________
Knowing that death is certain and that the time of death is uncertain, what's the most important thing?
—Bhikkhuni Pema Chödrön

Humankind cannot bear very much reality.
—From "Burnt Norton," Four Quartets (1936), T. S. Eliot

floe206

Thanks for the sound advice guys, I really appreciate it. I guess sometimes I feel the need to rush into something without really looking at what I do have now, which is pretty good. A lot of my friends finished college this year and I guess I got down because I felt like I missed out on that boat. Taking into consideration the night classes and moving..Maybe even a new hobby or something.

On another note...Where's a good place to meet girls other than a bar?? Where did some of you meet your wives/gf's? I feel like I'm a good looking guy, but am having some trouble. I guess part of it is the approaching factor..I always feel like they will think I'm some sort of creep if I randomly say something out of the blue.

---------- Post added at 04:42 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:33 PM ----------



For martial arts, the only thing I could see happening would be starting my own school, but around Seattle, there's so many established jiu jitsu school that I don't think I could make it happen. And no I'm not being negative, I'm just saying Seattle is not that big anyways and there's already too many as it is. As for hobbies, I enjoy cooking and baking, art, music and so on..But I don't really see myself making those things a career..I just do them for fun. I was basically just asking how do you find that one thing you want to do? How did you guys find your paths?? What made you just decide, hey, I see myself doing this and being relatively happy for the rest of my life? Not sure if that makes sense, but thanks again for the replies..

Martian

If it makes you feel any better, I'm rapidly approaching the ripe old age of 28 and I still haven't gone to college. My comlaw is 25, went once and dropped out. Now she's figured out a path she wants to follow and determined that she'll need a university degree for it, so she's looking at going again. I may or may not in the future -- it depends on where my career takes me. Opportunites are opening up in a big way for me right now, so at least in the near future I don't see it being a necessity. Maybe on the far side of 30.

Fuck the status quo. Go when you're ready, and when you have a reason. Don't go for the sake of going. The great thing about college is that it's not a limited time offer -- whenever you get to that point where you feel that lack of education is a barrier to further advancement, you can go ahead and do it. 30, 40, 50, whatever. There's no such thing as too old.

Don't worry about the girls right now. Relationships are like school -- you don't want to dive in just for the sake of being there. Start pursuing some of your interests, and see where they take you. You don't have to have a goal in mind; just find something you like and start doing it. Unless your list of interesting activities consists of things like meditation and agoraphobia you're going to meet people in the process, and statistically speaking some of those people are bound to have girl parts. Don't try to force it. Just let it happen.

I figured out where I want to be by figuring out where I didn't want to be. A few of the careers that I considered, and took either classes or entry level jobs in:

* Writer
* Auto mechanic
* Baker
* Heavy equipment operator
* Heavy equipment mechanic
* Salesman
* Social worker
* System Administrator

Now the last one looks to be shaping up into a career. I enjoy it, I'm good at it, and I can see myself doing it for at least a few years. And hey, along the way I learned how to communicate, how to bake a loaf of bread, how to do a brake job, how to work with others, and how to be outgoing and assertive. Almost by accident I became a fairly well-rounded person.

This is the path you should be taking. Find something that interests you. Do it for six months or a year. Try it on, see how it fits -- you'll certainly learn something new and you just might find the right fit for you.

__________________
I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept
I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept
I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head
I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said

- Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame

RogueGypsy

That's life for most of us. Doing something to get by, until we find what we want.

I agree with Martian, education for the sake of a piece of paper is kind of pointless. I don't say completely pointless, because I think any new knowledge is probably worth having, whether it's useful to you or not. I've seen some stats recently stating 80% (?) of recent graduates are not working in the field of their expertise. I'm not sure about the 80% number, but it was ridiculously high. The number of degreed people working in their chosen field, that I've known, who were unhappy in that field, far outnumber those who were happy. So, it is what it is.

It's not all about the money either. I have a family friend that opened a string of Judo Studios in So. Cal. back in the 70's. He sold those and built strip malls all over Huntington Beach. Sold those and bought a bank. Dude has more money than anyone needs. His mark of success was when he bought his first Rolls Royce. It was something he wanted all of his life. The day he drove it off the showroom floor, he didn't want it any more. He handed me the keys at 18 and said "have fun". Who in their right mind hands and 18yo Keys to a 1/4 million dollar car and says "have fun"? I think he enjoyed letting me drive that car for a weekend, more than he ever enjoyed driving it himself.

His advice to me: Forget about money, forget about everyone's opinions, forget about doing what you think you should do. Find what you love and do it. Life's too short to be unhappy. Actually, his advise was a little more.....straight forward, I believe his exact words were. "Pull your fuckin' head outa your ass and do what the fuck you love, fuck everyone else, they don't pay your fuckin' bills". You get the idea. He says if he had it all to do over again, he'd still be living in a shitty little house in Gardena teaching Judo. Fuck the headaches.

I guess the trick is to find what you love. Here I sit 25 years later, still looking. Now if I can only find someone to pay me to ride motorcycles, shoot guns, blow shit up, fish, hunt and drink Tequila. I'd have it made. Hey, wait a minute, isn't that Plan9's job?? Fuck.



..
.

__________________
Methods, application and intensity of application vary by the individual. All legal wavers must be signed before 'treatment' begins. Self 'Medicating' is not recommend. However, if necessary, it is best to have an 'assistant' or 'soft landing zone' nearby. Any and all legal issues resulting from improperly applied techniques should be forwarded to: Dewy, Cheatum & Howe, Intercourse, PA 17534. Attn: Anonymous.

Plan9

Haha. Hahahaha. Hahaha. HAHhahHAH. Hahaha. HahahHAHhahah. Hahahahahahah. Hah.

It's "the system" for a reason, eh?

You're misinformed. I'm in waste management.

__________________
Whatever you can carry.

"You should not drink... and bake."

floe206

Very good advice, but again..I'm looking just like you..That's why I feel out of place because I can't quite find my "love" If I haven't found that thing that just clicks, will I ever? Funny how somebody earlier was talking about getting advice from the other people at my work. Well, today at lunch I was on my smart phone when one of the older shuttle van drivers comes over and tells me he was a school counselor for over 25 years and he helped a lot of people my age find out what they wanted to do in college...So now hes motivating/helping me to get back on the saddle. Kind of funny how that works..

Cynthetiq

I posted something right after you posted the OP and I deleted it.

Mostly because I don't want to come off as so negative and turn this into a college/university thread.

I didn't graduate. I did go to college for 4 years, and during those 4 years each year someone kept offering me more money to work than go to class. Soon it became as simple as, "Do I go make $1,000 for a couple hours consulting? or go to class?"

I make a good living as a corporate drone some might call me. Being a corporate drone allows me to do the things that I want to do, like travel the world, eat out and go to the theater, and own my own home. I make a very good salary and when my wife was also working (she isn't now by choice), we had a very large income. I don't think too much about what I want to buy, I usually just buy it when I've decided that I want it more than I want to keep the money or don't want to use the money for something else instead.

I don't get why one would want to spend $75,000 in student loans to get a $30,000/year job. It doesn't make any sense to me. Even my friends and colleagues now spending money to retool or retrain doesn't make sense if they will not recover that money for many many years. There are not many places that so require you to have a degree that you cannot succeed. By the time they paid off the loan they would have been able to make the salary just by experience alone.

I'm not saying that education is all bunk. I'm not saying gaining new skills to stay competitive is a bad thing. I'm saying paying exorbitant fees for it is.

Look at the graph and see just how much Median Earnings by Major and Subject Area - Home - The Chronicle of Higher Education. They say they've adjusted for lost income and other variables, but I'm skeptical because I know many people who's college degree didn't do much for them. Understand that this is at the lower levels of the job ladder and structure. They didn't want to go higher than just above entry level. Nothing wrong with that, I never went higher that First Class in Boy Scouts.

Now that I'm in upper management with no degree, it's a bit more challenging for me to navigate. There are jobs that I could probably do and be great at but no one would give me a first look because I don't have an undergrad or an MBA. I really don't care that much most of the time, only when I'm in between jobs and I think I won't get hired when competing on paper against someone with the same skills.

Now, back when before TFP was born, I was working in a job that I loved and woke up every morning looking forward to what I was doing. I worked with a great team of people who worked and played together until late nights.

Eventually that changed, people got married, had kids, company grew and merged with other companies, and soon that job that I loved became just a job. Eventually it became something that I hated.

What has always gotten me through that is making sure that during my own personal time I was able to do what I loved. This meant that I had to have the financial means to pay for those things I loved.

My mother in law is an artist. She loves being an artist. But when it comes to paying her bills and doing things that cost money, it causes her great stress. Because of some good luck and previous dealings she has home that has no mortgage, but that's doesn't mean she has no monthly costs. Besides electric, cable, and the incidentals of life, there's still property taxes and maintenance costs.

Results Not Typical. YMMV. etc.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

Ourcrazymodern?

I reckon 23 is MUCH TOO YOUNG to have decided. Don't pigeonhole yourself before you want to. Ignore Plan9's comments, & mine. We make our own paths.

__________________
BE JUST AND FEAR NOT

John$

If I may say, the one thing that girls always look for in a guy, but seldom find, is his ability to listen to what they are saying. This quality is seldom appreciated from a guy's point of view. After all, they are always trying to make a good impression - never knowing that the art of listening to another is the best impression that any guy can make.

I suspect that this is because few guys are instructed on how to listen to another person when they are speaking. When girls talk they speak about much more than the words they are selecting on any given subject. There is always an implied feeling being expressed. A guy who can tune into that level of communication will be noticed - and liked a lot - if they are sincerely interested in that expanded conversation.

Now 23 is quite young by my standards, I am 68 years old. The confidence in self is well established. I was not confident when I was 23, or even 33 for that matter.

I hope these insights are helpful.

John

Ourcrazymodern?

__________________
BE JUST AND FEAR NOT

Remixer

I agree with floe's mentality of going for a change in his life.

Seeing as martial arts was something you wanted to pursue professionally, and assuming you'd like to work in that industry in the long-term, why not go become an instructor?

I don't know what your experience is and how familiar you were with effective training regimes and technique, since those are questions that can only be shown in an actual test of your skills. If you think you're up for it, that'd be my advice.

You won't get paid much, unless you somehow manage to become one of those private trainers for the pretend-elite.

Alternatively, why not do evening studies at a university (or whatever else you have in the US), or 1-year intensive skill-building courses? That should help your portfolio and increase your chances for a better job.

floe206

Thanks for all the replies once again..

The thing with martial arts is I feel like only dedicating myself to that single sport, kind of made me miss out on other things in life. It's something you have to breathe and think constantly to evolve. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but my injury kind of stripped that away from me and made me realize how much it took over my life..

I can still do martial arts just not like before because I almost lost my hand. And to be honest after an 8th month recovery, I kinda got burnt out. And now my hand is permanently defected and will only get worse as I age. Now that I'm not so serious about it though, it's almost more fun cause there's no pressure to always perform. Rather then a lifestyle, it's just a hobby now.

I'm honestly trying to just find a long term goal so I have something to aim for. School would be good even though I am working full time and just that alone is tiring. I just have to find something else I can be passionate about, which is where my confusion is coming in. I think one of my problems from before was I always sold myself short when studying. I have a family of very smart people and I purposely tried to be an outcast because I didn't want to be like them. It developed some poor habits and a mindset of "I'm not like them, I'm not smart like them, I'm different"etc...

Do any of you know of any books I can use to brush up on the skills I should know if I do end up in college? Motivational talks or anything of that nature? I know I'm still young so I figure start now because I already kinda regret not doing it right out of high school, what's going to happen when I'm in my 30's?

GreyWolf

The advice you're getting here is all good in its own way. At 23, you don't have to know what you want to do with your life... just that you want to know. In 30+ years of working, the longest I ever took off was 2 consecutive weeks. I'm now taking some time to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. It's down to a fireman or a jet-fighter pilot. So take your time.

One of my favourite stories of all time was about 5 successful inner city youths who grew up to be successful professionals (doctors, lawyers, professors). All had had the same teacher in high school (history or English, I believe). His first 2 classes were always about "The Big Game". He engaged these kids in describing a game where they got to set the rules for winning, decided how to play, how hard to play, when/where to play. Then he explained that the only rule was they HAD to play. The game of course was life. But he explained that winning at life was as personal as anything else one ever did. YOU decide when you've won. YOU decide what constitutes winning. You set your goals for life, and when you achieve them, you've won.

Money? Fame? Family? Adventure? Passion? Whatever you decide is for you is how you win. And probably the neatest things he taught them was that 1) education gave you many more opportunities to win; it wasn't a goal in itself, but a tool for winning, and 2) once you've won (or lost, or stagnated), you can change the winning formula, renewing your drive. It's all up to you, and your life is wasted only if YOU decide it was.

__________________
The secret to great marksmanship is deciding what the target was AFTER you've shot.

genuinegirly

My brother has just started figuring out what he wants out of life, and he's 35. Some people take longer than others to decide on a career. There's no harm in it. Heck, it took me 9 years to finish my undergraduate degree partly because I was so indecisive, and because I chose to work while attending school to avoid debt. Similar to Cynthetiq, I worked in the fields that interested me, as each opportunity arose. I was able to rule out accounting, theatrical lighting design, pharmaceutical development, environmental chemistry, customer service, and secretarial work. If I hadn't been through a period of searching, I probably would have wound up in career that I couldn't stand.

It's good that you're reflecting on your interests, but don't let the process get you down. You're at a great place in your life, and you're relatively young to be facing these questions.

__________________
"Sometimes I have to remember that things are brought to me for a reason, either for my own lessons or for the benefit of others." Cynthetiq

"violence is no more or less real than non-violence." roachboy

floe206

Thanks for the replies!!

On another note; What is a career I could choose that would give me traveling possibilities while working? Something that I could enjoy remotely while getting paid, and working at the same time. I've heard being a teacher because you get a lot of breaks and paid summers. Anything else??

UnclearContent

Alright. For a math refresher do a Google search for "Purple Math." It's free and very good.

Most community colleges are set up for people who work and go to school. Plenty of night classes.

Find a new hobby. After a messy break up about two years ago I was drifting. Ended up joining a local search and rescue group and it helped me tremendously. Keeps me busy on the weekends, work during the week, and I'm going back to school in the fall.

By the way, I'm 27

UnclearContent

Oh, women love a guy who has things he's passionate about. Find new hobbies, find things that you look forward to doing, and pursue these passions in a non-obsessive yet driven way. Of all the things in my life that have helped my love life, this was one of the best.

floe206

Any websites like purple math that help with english as well? Also, anybody have any advice for the working/traveling?

AbelG

I think you should take kramus' advice. because if you are educated, you are more competitive making you more flexible when it comes to jobs. the more you are educated, the more you're able to find a job that you would love to enter. of course at good points.

Midnightskyline

Hey floe206, I have a suggestion you may not have considered.

(Sorry if this has been mentioned before but I'm tired and can't be bothered to trawl)

Have you considered joining the military? Don't be put off by the thought of it. I'm guessing you're American, in which case you're in luck. Why don't you join one of the largest 'companies' in the world, with massive promotional possibility, job rewards, pretty good pay and benefits, make shit loads of buddies, see the whole damn world, contribute to your country and represent everything you hold dear?

You can literally do anything, you don't have to be a point-man. Look at apprenticeships in the air force for engineers. Navy weapons specialist. Logistics. Infantry. Tanks. Ships. Planes. Machinery. Animals. Protection. Attack. The possibilities are literally endless. Plus, it will look awesome on your CV, you will be a respected member of society eligible for all sorts of perks and discounts. I know you Americans really look after your 'vets'.

Think outside the box. Navy diver? Helicopter loadmaster? Tank engineer/repair? Air Traffic Control? None of these skills in this post require special qualifications. They will all give you transferrable skills in the civilian environment.

The military will make you a more rounded individual, teach you invaluable life skills, add to your CV and will show you things you couldn't imagine in everyday life.

Plus, you can study while you learn. I know in the UK, even as a fighter pilot you can study for a degree in anything you care to put your mind to. Just pick up anything that is offered to you, and you will leave the military 10x the person you are now.

I should work in recruitment right? And I'm not even American!!!

Good luck.

floe206

I have thought about joining the military..And I would too, but I have a criminal record...When I was younger I got a minor DUI and an MIP for drinking. Even though it was before I was 21, I'm pretty sure they are down sizing all military in the US and it isn't as easy as it was to once join. I have a buddy who is trying to join the Navy right now and he had some MIPs from when he was 16 and they were still freaking out about it.

As for now I'm just brushing up on my math skills and hopefully I'll have enough courage to take some night classes pretty soon here.