What do you do fora living [WARNING: Numbers included]

I have a good career, pretty much started a few years ago. My advise: money don't mean squat if you're not happy in life "in general". I busted my ass making good income a couple years ago, but came to realize that it wasn't worth it. So I stick with my 3 x 12 hr night shift schedule and was pretty happy about it...enjoying my free time.

SO Bois

Spend time for yourself and others.
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Boem wrote:
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鬼殺し wrote:
I have wrestled with this a lot. A LOT. What makes a good person? What does a person have to do to look in the mirror and say, 'I'm not an embarrassment to my species'? Is it as simple as getting a job and going to that job and paying your taxes? Is it making a family and raising another generation of people who will go through, by and large, what we've been through? Is it being available for loved ones when and if they need us? Is it donating money to charities?

This isn't really philosophical -- I'm not talking about the heavier ideas of good or evil. Perhaps a better term for it would be 'self-satisfaction'. Do we live up to our own standards?

Am I a bad person for not having a job and thus not contributing to a company which in turn no doubt contributes to the overall movements of the world? Do I need that for self-satisfaction? In my case, not really. I've never had a job you'd consider indispensable or character-defining. I always worked hard when I needed to but I was under no illusions I was changing the world for the better, not even one iota.

On the other hand, if a friend is, say, moving house and needs a hand, I'm there. Even though physically I'm far from the top pick, it's important to me to be useful and used by those I care about. That's my self-satisfaction. It is definitely a case of privilege, that I can self-satisfy in a way that doesn't involve money.

But how much do I have to give before my lack of gainful employment is off-set?

That is what I can't figure out.


Not sure if that was a response to your own "i don't work" or to my "i only worked 61 days in my life"?

But as far as logic goes for me on that philosophical front, my family has money enough to sustain me.
Maybe i should mention that i don't drink, i don't party and i don't indulge i am very cheap simply sustaining myself.

So i told my dad when i was 14, "why should i go work and take the job of another human being, possibly with a family and children depending on him, when we can sustain fine without me working"

15 years later and he still isn't capable of giving me an answer to that.

To me "working" in the current society is just "war" between humans while placing the responsibility of the unhappiness a few steps away from yourself.
At least in war, if you want something, you simply crack the skull of the person holding it and look them in the eyes.
In our society, when you take a job, somebody else fails to get a job. Maybe he has children that are unhappy since they can't be provided for, a wife that's upset due to this.

I always think nothing really changes over time, just the visuals and outer layers, but people are still as barbaric as a thousand years ago, they just got good at playing dress-up and distancing themselves from the responsibility of their actions.

Peace,

-Boem-


This point of view only works if the amount of jobs that can be created is finite, which it is not. In the grand scheme of things, more jobs get created when there are more people willing to work. Your view is that everyone is competing for a piece of the economic pie, when nowadays the pie just becomes bigger. There are many industries where what you say is true since the demand is finite, but then there are also industries where it is essentially not. For example, if you write an amazing book you create jobs for the publishing company and editors. Look at the end credits of a Hollywood movie. If you create a movie, that’s job creation for hundreds of people that does not compete with anything else. In both these cases, you’re also not taking anyone else’s job in the sense that nobody can write your novel for you.

I’m not saying you should feel an obligation to society, but I do suggest giving a little more effort in finding a profession that creates more jobs than you take. In the simplest sense, living the way you want AND contributing to society is better than living the way you want and not contributing to society.
www.twitch.tv/Sushin for various games, generally laid back
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North2 wrote:

This point of view only works if the amount of jobs that can be created is finite, which it is not. In the grand scheme of things, more jobs get created when there are more people willing to work. Your view is that everyone is competing for a piece of the economic pie, when nowadays the pie just becomes bigger. There are many industries where what you say is true since the demand is finite, but then there are also industries where it is essentially not. For example, if you write an amazing book you create jobs for the publishing company and editors. Look at the end credits of a Hollywood movie. If you create a movie, that’s job creation for hundreds of people that does not compete with anything else. In both these cases, you’re also not taking anyone else’s job in the sense that nobody can write your novel for you.

I’m not saying you should feel an obligation to society, but I do suggest giving a little more effort in finding a profession that creates more jobs than you take. In the simplest sense, living the way you want AND contributing to society is better than living the way you want and not contributing to society.


That's a pretty flawed notion which you should realize if you look at the current state of the economy.

Everything is finite, so are fulfilling jobs.

I could probably explain to my nephew who is turning six this year how an exponentially increasing system based on a finite amount of potential is bound to create distress.

Obviously, there is no limit to the amount of unfulfilling jobs one can create to keep people bussy and active in the treadmill we call the economy which is the current strategy. Create meaningless jobs where there is no real need for it just to peak capacity for the system as a whole.

Maybe your just well educated and have no tangible sense of unfulfilling jobs that really shouldn't be occupied by anybody at this point given our advancements as a society but still are to keep people in check.

If it wasn't clear from the post you quoted, i view working as a system as a replacement of tribal fighting with winners and losers on all sides of the participants.
It looks cleaner now since the loser get's to sob at home instead of getting his head smashed in and the winner get's to walk away with the self-serving notion he didn't do any "physical" harm to the other person.
A proxy mentality is created distancing action and effect.

If i created work for others, i would be providing to a system and mentality i don't agree with.
I'm selfish but i'm also conscientious so that's not within my possibility's, not due to ability but due to integrity of my live's view.

To get back to your original points, a lot of jobs are created out of thin air, occupied by people ill suited for the tasks with direct correlation or impact on other's people lives.
To me, that's not a healthy situation or something i can get behind or will indulge in just so i can "contribute to society" earn some cash-flow i don't require or gain social traction which i also don't require.

Peace,

-Boem-

edit : after re-reading, i would also argue that helping people in my near vicinity is contributing to those people directly.
I don't need "society" for that to be impact-full or compensation to gain worth from those actions.
Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes
Last edited by Boem on May 21, 2018, 9:04:32 PM
Im only 23, but after high school i used to cage fight, small australian promotions, amateur bouts, then i taught disadvantaged kids, or kids that didn't exactly have a home, they got a free meal and a bed for the night post-training

I am unfortunately injured, Sciatica, so fighting isn't possible, but i do try and train, so i get some money per week plus welfare benefits.
Twitch: twitch.tv/slayertip

Helping people with their builds, its somewhat a hobby, and a passion of mine, so don't be shy!

https://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/1715639 <--- Build help forums thread thingy.
I work in management for a company that sells industrial chemicals and sells/installs specific niche stuff for construction projects. The money is good but the job feels unstable (5 people had the job in the 3 years before I had it, I've been doing it for about 18 months now).

I'm going to be a dad in about seven months and suddenly making good money but not having long term stability doesn't feel so great. I'd gladly trade in my current job for something that paid a bit less but provided greater stability for my family. I should have been a fisherman.
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鬼殺し wrote:
...didnt i state i sort of did just that? :)


HA! You did exactly that. and I completely missed it. Too much detail reading lately on my part, looking at numerical values to make decisions - I was focused on the personal interactions you were describing and too little on the context.

To the thread topic, I've had a few different careers and professions. Some of them paid very well, some had a lot of responsibility that went home with me every day. Despite the differences in the jobs, what it took to succeed was very similar. Lifting up the people around you to succeed solved so many problems that most challenges became a breeze once you got past the initial steps.

I tried retiring many years back, and after a year I found that I missed working far more than I enjoyed the free time, despite having plenty of things to keep myself entertained and immersed in. I found helping others far more rewarding than any amount of income that was offered and switched careers again. Every person is wired differently, and I think the variety in what motivates us and brings us satisfaction is a big determinant of the world's future success. Without it, we might as well be insects in a vast colony.

My work doesn't define who I am, but I do enjoy it and look forward to it.

PoE Origins - Piety's story http://www.pathofexile.com/forum/view-thread/2081910
Last edited by DalaiLama on May 22, 2018, 1:50:40 AM
I work as a music teacher on private schools and private lessons. In post-crisis Greece this translates into hardly 10 000 euros per year (depending on the year it could be as low as 8000 per year). And consider the fact that i am midway of finishing my second master's degree in education, on the side of several other certifications outside the university :/. In the past i also used to work as bartender during the summer, i did some office work in my Uncles office (he is a lawyer), and i played guitar on terrible Pop cover bands for the paycheck. I hated all of them. I love being a teacher and i do not wanna keep doing other things.

I have no issue with the money not being much. I am happy with what i earn. I am not happy working on the private sector though, cause there is little no to no stability. Eg. i have no income during the summer (unless i do another job, as in, working in a bar), and while private schools do have some stability, the pay is extremely low and the biggest chunk of my income comes from private lessons, which are not stable at all. 1 year i can have 15 students, the next year they might be 5, and since i am getting payed by the lesson, my survival relies on if the student feels like doing the lesson or not this week.

My dream -ironically- is being employed in a public school. The money will be the same, but it is as stable as it can get. You are hired for life, you know exactly how much you will earn every month and nothing can change that, and of course being a teacher has other advantages as well. Lot's of free time, and you get payed the 2 months during summer vacation without working (which makes sense since you are forbidden by law to take up another job if you work for the government).
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Monstamunch wrote:
I'm going to be a dad in about seven months


Congrats!
Censored.
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astraph wrote:
I work as a music teacher on private schools and private lessons. In post-crisis Greece this translates into hardly 10 000 euros per year (depending on the year it could be as low as 8000 per year). And consider the fact that i am midway of finishing my second master's degree in education, on the side of several other certifications outside the university :/. In the past i also used to work as bartender during the summer, i did some office work in my Uncles office (he is a lawyer), and i played guitar on terrible Pop cover bands for the paycheck. I hated all of them. I love being a teacher and i do not wanna keep doing other things.

I have no issue with the money not being much. I am happy with what i earn. I am not happy working on the private sector though, cause there is little no to no stability. Eg. i have no income during the summer (unless i do another job, as in, working in a bar), and while private schools do have some stability, the pay is extremely low and the biggest chunk of my income comes from private lessons, which are not stable at all. 1 year i can have 15 students, the next year they might be 5, and since i am getting payed by the lesson, my survival relies on if the student feels like doing the lesson or not this week.

My dream -ironically- is being employed in a public school. The money will be the same, but it is as stable as it can get. You are hired for life, you know exactly how much you will earn every month and nothing can change that, and of course being a teacher has other advantages as well. Lot's of free time, and you get payed the 2 months during summer vacation without working (which makes sense since you are forbidden by law to take up another job if you work for the government).


how in the world does one survive on such wages?

is the cost of living super low over there?
I dont see any any key!
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kolyaboo wrote:
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Monstamunch wrote:
I'm going to be a dad in about seven months


Congrats!


Thank you, we're very excited.

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