How can some people be content with their dead-end jobs?
 

I am currently temporarily working as a technican in a factory of a big corporation saving up money so I can move on to bigger and better things. This job if I were to stay would be a dead-end job. It would take years to make a below than average salary. I can't see myself doing that. Anyway there are some people working here who seem to content working at this company and plan on working here for years to come. The working conditions are terrible yet they work everyday with no care of trying to improve themselves so they can move on to better jobs. It's sad. Laziness? I don't understand some people.

I would be content in a "dead end" job, but only if pay was at least reasonable, but more importantly, if it was something I absolutely loved doing. If I could honestly enjoy my work, I'd gladly take less pay.

Yeah,Well,your personal motivation is what makes you stand apart from the rest.Good enough in your eyes is obviously not the same as in theirs,Some people find comfort in repetition,and others are just happy to be working at all,Kudos to you for bettering yourself,but.. imagine that they are happy? Money doesn't matter to everyone,sometimes people just need a purpose,and when they find one they stay forever.Even if it is a crap job.Move on,Move up,Be rich,be wonderful,but please remember the people who work so hard for so little that will be working for you someday.Life Is what you make it,I think.



I' been drinkin.. Sf'nW.

Possibly they don't care that much about success or money.

Possibly they need a reliable paycheck to support their family.

Possibly they are gimps: gimps exist. It is only before the law that everyone is equal.

Possibly you are a gimp by wanting to succeed: but, you'll be your kind of gimp! =)

Sometimes a dead end job sounds like it would be perfect...

You come to work. You do your job. You take your lunch break. You do some more work. You get another break. Work a little more. Go home. Get Paycheck. Few worries.

Me, I get phone calls at 3:00am - I've had last minute flight changes because of a crisis somewhere, I've had to cancel personal plans because of a work client crisis. I can't remember the last time that I worked a 40 hour week, it's been over 3 years since I took a real vacation. Dead end jobs sound pretty good sometimes.

Like has been said, no one ever died saying they wished they worked more.

I thinks it's lack of ambition and satisfaction with the status quo. Not a very hopeful lifestyle in my opinion.

During my summers I work for a temp agency. The jobs they give me are usually dead-end jobs, but that's ok with me because I know i'll only be there for 3 months. These jobs definately keep me motivated me to do well in school and look for better jobs.

maleficent, i've never thought of it like that before. Even still, I couldn't settle down working any of the jobs that I have during the summer.

To each his/her own.
Maybe this dead end job is all they want in life. Not everyone is caught up in climbing the ladder. There's something to be said for being happy with your life and not wanting to change a thing. I, on the other hand, need that ladder to climb. Otherwise, I feel like I'm going no where.

Change, or fear of it is also a big factor. Moving up the corporate ladder requires change. Some people would rather stay with the familiar.

I wouldn't be happy knowing I was going to be doing in 10 years, 5, years, 2 years what I am doing today, I want to grow. I like change, it's exciting to me.

:) sometimes just holding course is a good thing. It depends on the mission.

For some dual income families, its about one person being stable and the OTHER person being able to persue the career. Sometimes they take turns. It all depends on the motivator.

I'm in a dead end position as it stands, but I'm not in a dead end company. I can move to another department. But right now I want Skogafoss to persue her career. Take risks and chances, and I can just sit tight for the moment.

Yup, maybe it's not a dead end job for them. They could be prefectly happy doing what they do.

no one IS content with a dead-end job, they just feel that there is no other way.
The whole point of a career is to love what you do. To be living your passion.
The question is: Would you rather be stuck in a career that you hate for the rest of your life or would you rather work harder to get to the dream job you've always wanted?

A safe, narrow, predictable job is all that some people are equipped to handle, emotionally or mentally. These jobs tend to be dead-end jobs.

Also, jobs like this tend to be stopping places for people who've worked their way up from a disadvantaged background -- first in their family to graduate from _junior_ college, or even a trade school, that sort of thing. It's hard to claw your way up from absolute bottom. Some people get a certain distance up and stay there -- because it's way so much better than where they came from, and getting any further would take more resources than they currently have.

And then there are the people with drug and alcohol problems who can handle something like this while still having their problem, at least for now. Often these people are capable of much more (and may have done more, at one time), but with their habit all they can handle now is a drab little job that doesn't ask too much, one where you can show up hung over and still do the work because your fingers pretty much know the way by themselves.

And some people just have crappy self-esteem, and think it's what they deserve. There are a million reasons.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by WarWagon
[B]I would be content in a "dead end" job, but only if pay was at least reasonable"

That is why they pay so much at the car factories with full benifits, great holidays, sick days, awesome pension plan and a strong union that will fight for you even if you are an idiot at your job.

I did this for 3 summers to make a lot of cash for university and absolutely hated it. I was so lazy by summers end. I would rather get 15 bucks an hour (if I could get it) and be happy. Most of these guys were like zombies. Get in, get out, drink beer and do it again tomorrow.

I worked a dead end job for nearly 3 years. It was actually hard to leave because I was very very content. I had to work hard (most of the time), but I enjoyed my work. The pay sucked. No room in the shop to move up unless a higher up quit, wich wasnt very often. Lived in a messy, small, dirty duplex with my roomate at the time who also worked with me. But everyone who worked there was a good friend and we had a good time workin there. Made enough money to survive and go out on the weekends. Work was actually fun. Life outside of work was fun. I was content for a good while, but I realized if I stayed there I would probably stay the same for the rest of my life. No growth (I mean growth in a personal sense, not necassarily in a financial or economical sense). After I realized that, I took the first opportunity I had to move on.

Most people that stay with that dead end job aren't content. A little bit of them just dies inside as each day passes...

Not all people really give a damn about what they do for a living. Some have heaps of professional ambition, some have nil.

I make a lousy $7.50 ph, but it pays the rent and I don't mind the work. I do hope to someday be doing something that pays more and isn't as physically demanding, but I am not ashamed of my work or of myself for doing it.

Nor should you ever be. You're working, and that, in my own opinion, is the most important thing.

After the flurry of phone calls this morning from the second the plane landed to the second I walked into the office, I'm thinking that flipping burgers at McDonalds is a nice stress free existence.

having a fulfilling career is just one way to enjoy life I guess, I know people who see their family as their true expressive outlet, yet more people who just see working as a means to an end to fund travelling, partying, whatever....

it takes all sorts, remember that. one mans heaven is another mans hell.

If I want to improve my job at all I have to put money into it. It's my business. I would have to purchase bigger facilities, furnish them, hire employees too. I COULD do that but I'm not at least yet because it would put me in a management position not personally caring for the children. I LIKE what I do. I find it fulfilling and satisfying in intangible ways. I am proud of the job I do even though most of the people who see the results are the parents of the children I care for and few others. I like what I do even when I get wierd looks from people in the store when I walk in with 3 small children in tow. I'm nurturing the future generation. Is there a lot of room for pay advancement? NO. Is there hope for greater success and acknowledgement of that success? Not a lot. It's what I WANT to do because it's what I enjoy.

As for working in a factory or a more repetitive job - I would go crazy. It would have no higher purpose for me and be mentally numbing. I do not understand those that continue in jobs like that. Personally I believe everyone was created to serve a purpose and that is the nitch they will fall into in life.

I think at my place of employment, most of the people cope because they have a family. I think working my job would be easier if I were doing it to feed a family.
As it is, this deadend job is killing me (but only for 1 more month).

Well, I'm in a similar position JP. I have taken a summer-only job at my county's highway department. It's not bad, but the pay is pretty much awful. Pickins are slim in my hometown, however, so it's fine for me for a summer job. But there are many many older guys down there who are doing this for a living, full-time, and have been for years. I've been wondering the exact same thing as you. It just doesn't make sense to me, but hey, to each his own.

Like others have said before: there are a million reasons, one mans hell is another mans heaven etc.

Perhaps that "dead-end job" is just a stepping stone. It takes years and lots of hard work (or a recommendation from a friend or family member) to land that dream job. Some are content with what they have. Others need to be challenged constantly.

Me? Still looking for that slice of heaven...

Don't sweat it. We need people to ask us if we would like fries with that, whether we want to admit it, or not. These people serve a useful, and viable function, in society. Unlike a lot of others that I see out there. At least they are, and want to be, working.

Not everyone is cut for white collar management positions. This is not only fine...it is as it should be. Don't look down your nose at them. Our society would crumble were it not for the blue collar masses that punch a timeclock everyday, day in and day out.

I just graduated and am working a 'dead end job' for some cash.. and honestly, I enjoy the freedom.
I can work whenever I want, I get free drinks, free popcorn, and I don't get hassled by my boss. My job is easy, and has lots of perks. I mean, I'm not going to do it for the rest of my life, but I can see me being there awhile.

Sometimes, the stress-free nature of not having to take your job home with you is worth it. Wow, I'm really becoming a Bohemian like I said I would. I'm all about the no-stress, dudes ;)

What exactly is this "dead end job." Also, like some have commented maybe some of these dead end jobs are what is keeping their family fed. Sometimes I don't think people realize that sometimes there is not an easy way out of just going back to school etc. I knw/have known families where the parent or parents were working two jobs just to scrape by. They are making enough to make it, but if one were to quit the job to try to get a better education or even quit one of the two jobs, the family would go under and their children would be out on the streets. So maybe this dead end job is all thats keeping a family above drowning.

Those factory type of people, are the ones who makes the world go round. Factories make things for everyday living, that all of us need. Someone has to do it. And plus, they have a job and their not being lazy, rather than, living off the government.

Dead end job is basically a job that has no future. It takes years to get a dollar raise etc.. I think it's defeatist to not want better for your family. All it takes is a little more effort. Go to work. Get a better education on the side. Maybe I believe too much in the American dream. My parents came here with nothing. They were illiterate even. They worked dead end jobs, raised me and my sister, went to school on the side. Everntually getting better jobs. People have a choice to work these jobs. They also have a choice to better themselves.

You're missing the broader picture here. I see what you're saying, but some people enjoy doing what they do...dead end, or not. It could be that punching a time clock from 8:00 to 12:00 to 1:00 to 5:00, allows them more time to be with their family than a salaried position that requires 18 hours per day. Or, it could be that they like to work with their hands. There is a certain satisfaction to that. And, granted, some are just lazy, and grow content with what they do. But even so, they key word there was content. I think that it's great that you aspire to bigger and better. Power to you, and I wish you all the luck in the world. However...here's a little free advice. Take it or not. Do not look down your nose at the "working class". It is these people that actually turn the gears of industry. It is the working class that keeps this country great. Without the workers, the greatest manager in the world is nothing more than another face in the unemployment line.

Somebody needs to do those jobs. Be glad they're content and respect them for putting in a hard day's work. It beats sitting at home watching Oprah and suckling the taxpayer's teat.

We all have diffrent goals. I want to live my life the way I see fit, I want to be vane, big house, italian leather, down shifting like iv got gears on them. It all about winning at the game of life. I admire them for being happy with what they have, It is much harder then simply accepting capatalism into your heart.

"Thats Da Fact Jack"

People tend to rise to their personal level. If that is comfortable to them, then let them live how they want to. It leaves the opening at the top for the future leaders instead of a person that is a leader and does not want to be. Don't feel sorry for them. They would only be miserable and do a piss poor job if promoted beyond their abilities. Personally I believe that it is all about natural selection. Can you imagine an entire workplace full of Alpha Males?

Not everyone considers corporate ambition to be a virtue.

I've done plant work on and off for 3 1/2 years, and have noticed two kinds of people who are in for the long hall.

First off are the people who said that it started as a stepping stone... but the pay and benifits made it hard to leave and they always said "I'll go to school next year". Next thing they now 5-10 years has gone by and they have a family and cant afford to pursue a new path. These are the easiest people to work with because they are atleast working for a cause, to make their families life better:)

Second are the people who are just not motivated/ self confident enough to give up the pay/ benifits. They complaine about the job day in and day out and yet dont do anything about it, or simply dont realize/havent been shown what they could be doing instead.

Personally I cant wait to go back to school this fall! I have been work at a battery plant and xray batteries looking for imperfections 12 hours a day for three months and dont want to fall under my first example!

There are more important things in life than work. As long as the bills are paid and I'm not hurting for money, I'd work a "dead-end job" if I could have a family and be there for them.

"Dead end" jobs are sometimes just a means to an end. Your job does not have to define who you are... it is just something you do to earn a wage.

What you do outside of work is frequently more important... family, community, self improvement... all have little to do with making money but are often not nearly valued as much.

I personally could not work at a dead end job again. I've been there, done that. No thanks.

Having the standard "high school odd jobs" is what made me realize that I cannot do something for 8 hours a day for the rest of my life if it doesn't interest me in the slightest. If I don't care about the job, I don't do the job as well as I should, even if I tell myself that I'm not doing a good enough job and it's hurting my chances at staying employed.

Now...having said that, I never let my work become more important to me than my hobbies and enjoying my life.

I have a crappy dead end job, low pay, crappy hours, shite co-workers, but i like the field that it's in (ornamental aquatics), which leaves me in a confused state of what the fuck i want to do.

Unfortunatly, i do love my job, but i need to move on to a better place.

I'm not sure how to feel about the entire matter really, it seems to go against every norm.