Just how important is money, really?
 

Hi All,

I am really looking here for some advice from people with a little more "life" experience than myself.... I am 24, and through a lot of hard work and good luck, have got a job where I earn a very good salary.

However, the problem is I hate my job, it is not what I want to do with my life!

I have an opportunity in a little while to get a reasonable lump sum of cash, and I am thinking of using this to change direction. However I have a mortal fear of giving up the opportunities I have now, and going back to the bottom of the "ladder".

What do you think?

Why would you have to start at the bottom again? Do you hate your particular job, or do you hate the whole idea of what you do for a living?

If you're thinking of completely changing careers, my advice would be to do it soon.

Of course, that should be weighed against:
1. How much cash is in that "reasonable sum"?
2. How soon is "in a little while"?

If you're talking about going back to school, the cash will come in handy.

From an older comrade,

It can be a hard hard thing to go year after year to a job you hate. It eats at you, and beats you down.

If you know what you want to do and aren't in a financial straight jacket that won't let you pursue what you really want, I would encourage you strongly to do it.

good luck.

your young bro, go for it.

i recently made a slight change in careers and i'm so glad i did it.

best of luck

I'm 32 and have been working at the same company for close to 7 years. I can't say that I'm thoroughly satisfied with my job, but it does pay a hell of a lot. The problem I face is now that I am making good cash, it's hard to leave. I'd love to be able to take a risk and switch careers into something more rewarding--but by doing so I may be sacrificing some things that I've really come to enjoy (traveling, eating out, etc.)

It's a tough call, but if I were to do it all over again and make a different choice at the age of 24, I'd choose to do something that I found more rewarding as opposed to the higher paying job.

go with your gut. dont leave until you KNOW what you want to do. this is not the economy to be "experimenting" in. lump sum or not.

Do it before you have people to support. :)

I hate to be the depressing/discouraging one, but it is much easier to get a job when you have a job. So....if you are looking to change careers, consider biding your time in your current position (or change positions within your firm) until you know what you want to do.....then jump directly from one to the other.

If you quit because you have the cash now, you may find yourself burning through it quickly if you need to support yourself for an extended period of time.

A nest egg is going to be a wonderful asset later in your life. Think twice about burning through it while on the job hunt. Why not let your current employer pay you while you look?

Whatever you do, do not get into the IT field. It has been a year since I graduated and still haven't even found a entry level job. Of course if you're already in the IT field then negate everything I just said and stay where you are cause you'd be hard pressed to find another job. By the way I am in Lawrence, Kansas for anyone who might have any suggestions or ANYTHING tha could possibly turn into a job for me. Sorry for the thread hijack bro. Go with your first gut instinct.

Confucius said,"He who enjoys what he does for a living will never work a day in their lives."

I truly have felt that way at some p oints in my career. There are however more times in it that I've had to bite the bullet and do the grind because that's why it's called "work." It's called "work" because it's not supposed to necessarily be fun or rewarding, but a finiancial agreement for your time and the employers money.

I know many artists who live the artist lifestyle, won't become artisans and make items that people will buy but will only make art for arts sake and thus are not very wealthy in money.

It's all a trade off.

I just watched the play Avenue Q which is leaving off broadway and moving to broadway, it totally deals with this subject with puppets, songs, and lessons, just like Sesame Street but with adult subject matter.

Ancient Proverb:

"He who has a job he loves never works a day in his life."

I've heard your situation described as "Golden Handcuffs".

I've read some of the literature on happiness cross-culturally. Money does lead to greater happiness, but only when you are not having your basic needs met (food, shelter, etc.). People who have their basic needs met and are wealthy do not differ significantly in happiness from people who have their basic needs met who are not wealthy.

If you hate your jawb but like the money, Do it for a year or so (as long as you can take it) then take the money and run. Life is too short to spend much of it miserable at work. I've never heard of any one on thier death bed saying, "I wish I spent more time at the office."

I had a jawb I hated so I quit. Sure it was a drag to be somewhat poor but I was able to adjust and before long something wlse came along. I'm really glad I quit the jawb I hated. Something better will come along.

So true. Now if only I could find that job I love.

I restarted life at 25. It was a tough call to make. I enjoyed the company I worked for but realized it wasn't what I wanted to be doing for a career. I quit, went back to college, lived flat broke for 5 years, got the degree I wanted, and started a new career when I was 30. I don't regret a single minute of it.

I now love what I do for a living. Of the numerous paths I wanted to take, this was one of them. I'm glad I did it.

Money's nice, but if you hate what you do to earn it, then it's not worth the cost of getting it. My advice is to go for it. You only have one life on this earth so you've got to make the best of it.

Good luck.

Lebell is really telling it like it is - Sometimes it is difficult to walk off from a job and go look for another - often it gets worse before it gets better but there are always things to consider.

1. You were looking for a job when you found that one:

and

2. Ulcers are made out of allowing mole hills to become mountains.

Walk out - shut the door - don't look back and if the next one doesn't suit you remember that you were looking for a job when you found that one and ulcers are a sumbitch!

It's all about being able to seperate a job you hate from your personal life. I do it just fine.

Here's the secret:
Do what you gotta do to make the cash. Live off of it like you're just short of starving and have to stretch every penny. Live well below your means. Save like thats all you're on this planet to do. Once you have your overhead low enough to do nothing and have enough savings to manage it for a year, persue whatever you want. That way, your ass is covered.

My ex-GF made 6 figures, and lived on it like she made 30k. Talk about cushion...and discipline...

When i was young and foolish I chose a job I liked. I would probably choose differently today.
If you have no obligations it makes the choice easier.
BTW, what's to prevent you from going back if the new direction leads nowhere?

Try going for a month without enough money, and you'll see just how important it is. Just keep doing what you're doing, even if you hate it, and save your money for later. Someday you'll get a better job, and you can look back on this one as an important learning experience.

Here's another consideration for you nowthen. You say your job pays you a very good salary and that you are concerned about giving up the opportunities you now have and going back to the bottom of the ladder. Hmmm... If the money is good and the company you work for has opportunities for you why don't you explore some of the different opportunities within your present organization? If your company is of any significant size there will be people working in lots of different areas. Perhaps you can find a different department within your company that would allow you to grow in a different direction without giving up much in the way of seniority/salary. If they are progressive and interested in keeping you you might even be able to work within your company to assist them in expanding into totally new areas where you might have more of a personal interest. Just a thought.

I went from a working stiff at a company where I was an underling to buying my own business and successfully competing against my former employer. When I was negotiating with the owner of the company I was going to buy I had lots of reservations - similar to the mental turmoil you are experiencing. The gentleman selling me his business told me: "One of the hardest thing in the world to give up is a paycheck". He was absolutely correct. While I'm glad I made the choice I did it's not necessarily the best choice for everyone. Owning your own business comes with it's own set of pressures and headaches.

Good luck to you whatever you decide.