Is it just me or does anyone else HATE working for a living?

Discussion in 'Off-Topic Discussions' started by Xarick, Feb 27, 2006.

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  1. philosophicalme

    philosophicalme New Member

    It's really not that crazy. You could either work at a job for money, or you can grow your own food, raise your own animals and sell the extras and make your own clothes (still lots of work). Live off the land. Do you really want that nice roof over your head or would you rather live in a small cabin in the woods? Do you enjoy taking trips in your car with your family or need it to get to work? If not, get rid of the car and take public transportation. There are many ways to cut costs so that you can actually take a job you like that makes less money and still survive. Buy your kids clothes at the thrift stores, cut back on frivilous spending, get rid of your Internet, TV and phone. Anyway you look at it, you are going to have to do some kind of work or you may as well be a head in a jar.
     
  2. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    I see what you're saying Xarick, and I mostly agree. If I didn't have kids from a previous marriage who need child support, Adella and I would have a very different attitude about the relationship between money and time. We'd be in Dominica, doing jobs here and there that the primary criterion for which would be how interesting they are rather than how much they pay. In ten years or so, that's where I expect we'll be, having finished school and so forth.

    You're not wrong to ask these questions.

    -=Steve=-
     
  3. 3$bill

    3$bill New Member

    For what it's worth, Xarick, bus drivers are among my heroes. They have to keep a tight schedule every minute of their shift, without ever speeding up to get a little slack for later. They are of degrees of magnitude more courteous and patient than the drivers around them, and of course far more skillful.

    On the line I ride, there are some people whose social life revolves around riding the bus. They sit up front and ride around and around, using the driver as a captive audience for their rants and interminable, inane narratives. After ten minutes, I'm ready to scream, but almost every driver is unfailingly polite to them. Some are extraordinarily kind to these people to whom no one else will listen.

    We have one driver who is a bit of a churl, who lets the job get to him and shows it. The others take it all in stride. Some of the them are zen-like in their equanimity.

    I would bet that you are an exemplary driver and are feeling the cost of keeping your temper and sanity under very trying circumstances.

    I just want to say that your work is very important to a lot of people and you deserve the satisfaction that comes from doing a hard job the best that you can.
     
  4. Ted Heiks

    Ted Heiks Moderator and Distinguished Senior Member

    Xarick: I'm sorry if I insulted you by suggesting that you may be a bit depressed. As I admitted in that old thread of yours that dates from May 2005, for the past eighteen years (that is, since two years after my brain surgery for a brain tumor and epilepsy), I have been struggling with manic-depression. From what I know of my condition, I merely mentioned that you seem a bit depressed. Now, as our very dear friend DesElms mentioned, also in that thread of May 2005, even if you are a bit depreessed, that would not necessarily mean that you are clinically depressed, and even if you were clinically depressed, that would not necessarily mean that you are manic-depressive like me. That said, I'm not necessarily saying that you're going to be as bad off as myself, needing to be drugged up by shrinks for the rest of your life or, should you go off the meds against medical advice, end up facing the occasional possibility of month-long periods of medical incarceration against your will at the friendly neighborhood local psych ward. However, it may be worth checking on. And, if it turns out that you do need meds, it is nothing to be ashamed of, it's just another medical condition.

    That said, your concerns here reflect the human condition. One of the principal things about living in capitalist society is the continuing struggle to achieve eventual freedom of time and money. By that, I mean that, if one does have a reasonably decent paying job, one has achieved some degree of freedom of money, but not the freedom of time with which to go do all those things one dreams of. On the other hand, if you don't have a job, you've got freedom of time - hey, you can do pretty much whatever you want to do, well, within reason - but quite often don't have the money to do so. The key to achieving complete freedom of time and money is understanding the nature of the capitalistic system. There are, in our capitalistic system, four factors of production - labor, land, capital, and entrepreneurial skills - and four methods of compensation - wages, rents, interest, and profits. Now, when you're still young and healthy, you've still got plenty of labor power which to invest in, say, working at a water treatment plant or as a bus driver or whatever. And, while still making wages, one should be setting aside some portion thereof (I think the financial planners usually say around 10%) to invest in land, capital, and entrepreneurial pursuits so that, eventually, when you get to be too old and too broken down any more to work for your money, you can let your money work for you so you can get paid in the form of rents, interest, and profits.

    Now, of course, while you are still investing your labor power in the economy, one should also be investing in one's human capital by learning all you can about your current job in order to maximize your income potential there and pursuing your education in the form of getting so many degrees and certifications in the field(s) of endeavor which you would really like to be in. Take comfort, also, in what really matters. Years ago, whenever I would get unhappy about having a job as a drill press operator after I had graduated college, my Dad would remind me of a story he had heard on National Public Radio about a factory man with a college education who would work his factory job to support his family and come home and read a history book from his very fine personal library; apparently, on this NPR interview, the son said he considered his father a quiet hero for that.

    Now, yes, I suppose that one could try to drop out of capitalist society and go buy some idyllic South Pacific island and live close to the earth, raising whatever forms of plant life and animal life might be useful for being transformed into food, clothing, and shelter for onesself and one's family. However, be warned that regardless of how ever idyllic this sounds, having had a grandfather who was a dairy farmer and having worked on my father's Arabian horse farm in my late teens and early twenties, I can assure you that the agricultural labor involved therein can be very demanding. With regards to the idea of not working at all if money were no object and having lots of time for family togetherness, let me assure you that whether one is newly retired, unemployed, or on disability, the family often very quickly starts dropping clues that there's been just a little bit too much togetherness here and maybe it's getting time to go find something else to do and, besides, having way too much time on one's hands can get very boring very fast.

    That said, I think that the best thing for you would be to get working on that bachelor's degree in computer science while picking up a few IT certifications along the way. Meantime, you might try finding a way to raise the money necessary to start your own business building and repairing computers and eventually produce and market that route planning software program. If you did that and saw yourself working toward that goal, you might not be so depressed. Good luck!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 5, 2006
  5. Xarick

    Xarick New Member

    Thanks ted. I can see your points. and... I am actually working on the depression thing and have seen some counselors about it. Mine is not a medicated type fix, but a physical fix. As in I have a physical condition that I can rectify(though it is a toughy)that every doctor I have seen feels will probably solve the bulk of my depression problems.

    Your right about persuing a degree. It is something my wife is definetly pushing for also. Right now I am in the stage of.. what would I really enjoy studying. Of course there are many things and I have to pick one to start on and that is where I get stuck. Which I why I love this degreeinfo place. I can throw all kinds of ideas out and get expert advice from you guys.

    Also money is a huge factor. I hate the thought of student loans, but frankly there is just no other way. I don't make enough money and my employer doesn't reimburse enough. However, I am poor enough to get some grants.

    But... I definetly want to never get trapped into working for life instead of making money. Because in the end we all die and when we do not a single penny will matter.

    I for one would like to leave a mark on the world if at all possible. But mostly I want to love my wife and kids the best I can.
     
  6. RFValve

    RFValve Well-Known Member


    You stop living when you stop dreaming. Distance education is about dreams. People come here because they have a dream of becoming something and distance learning is the only way to full fill that dream.

    Yes, we need money to pay the bills, but you also need to feed the soul. You should look for your own dream and that is what will keep you going in life.
     
  7. recruiting

    recruiting Member

    Re: Re: Re: Is it just me or does anyone else HATE working for a living?

    That is some GREAT advise..


    :cool:
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 12, 2006
  8. LiveNow

    LiveNow New Member

    I do hope the OP is living on that island somewhere, it's been a while.

    Yeah, I hate working too. I try and do the least possible in order to live the free-est and most exciting life possible.
     
  9. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    Come with me to the Azores and we'll work on a fishing boat together. Forget all this degree stuff. Run away with me.

    norah jones - come away with me excellent HD HQ audio sound - YouTube
     
  10. ebbwvale

    ebbwvale Member

    I thought I hated going to work, then I got cancer. It changed everything. I wanted to go to work and be cancerfree. Now I (as far as I know) don't have cancer but I learned that this is not a dress rehearsal. I was just too damn busy being a "personna" for work and home, not really being me.

    Really, your life is yours. You can do what you want with it. There is, however, a concept called "act and consequence". What are you prepared to sacrifice for what you want? This presumes, of course, you know what you want. Most people don't because they are just too busy being somewhere or doing something.

    Perhaps you need to do an inventory of what is good and what is bad about where you are in life now, then decide what needs to change and plan to change it. It is your journey and as far I know you don't get to do it twice in this world.
     
  11. Kizmet

    Kizmet Moderator

    You are my new hero.
     
  12. Maniac Craniac

    Maniac Craniac Moderator Staff Member

    Ahhh, the good old days. When the Tedmeister's posts were essays and saying "DesElms" three times with the lights off led to the exsanguination of ascii characters from every pore of one's body.

    Duces Tecum :headbang:
     
  13. AUTiger00

    AUTiger00 New Member

    I had a job I hated pre-grad school. As soon as I got my first admission letter from a school I quit and traveled around Europe from February - late July on a fairly shoe string budget and I've never been happier. If I had the option I would do that for the rest of my life. While I tolerate and some days even like my job, I've never understood people that really love what they do. I think a lot of people given the option would quit their jobs and do nothing, you're not alone.
     
  14. Randell1234

    Randell1234 Moderator

    For a period of time I loved my job. Even if I hit lotto I would have never left. I loved what I did, who I worked with, and the value of the work. Then the responsibilities changed, people changed, and it became a "job". I eventually left and took a $75K pay cut to do something that was more fun, less responsibility, and closer to the customer (as opposed to executive meetings). I am back to loving my job!
     
  15. ebbwvale

    ebbwvale Member

    Nothing heroic about me, but I do know now where to find the heroes.
     
  16. BlueMason

    BlueMason Audaces fortuna juvat

    Ah yes.. if only we could quit and really enjoy life... but, alas, the government has different plans for us than that! Imagine if we all quit - what would happen to the economy? Where would the money come from to pay for the huge stately buildings, the politicians salaries and pension funds?

    Years ago the government had the grandest idea yet to generate more revenue... it came up with the idea that both people in the household need to work. What an idea! Think of it! Why it would stimulate the economy because if more people had to go to work, they would require more goods (cars, clothing, etc., etc.), not to mention the money paid in income tax.

    My father, 30 years ago, was taking home what I take home today - and my mother did not work, we had a nice car, a house, a swimming pool.. vacationed twice a year (Summer, Winter)... fast forward, I make the same money - I have a house, no pool, we have 2 cars because my wife also has to work and we haven't had a vacation in years.

    I don't mind having to work for a living, but I hate the fact that both my wife and I have to work to afford to live - the quality of life has gone down over the years... and I don't see any indicators that life is going to get easier.
     
  17. RAM PhD

    RAM PhD Member

    There are apparently millions who hate working for a living, the entitlements continue to grow.
     
  18. AUTiger00

    AUTiger00 New Member

    It's not being entitled to hate working for a living. It's entitlement when you refuse to work and expect to be supported. There is a huge difference. I don't hate working, but if I was independently wealthy you wouldn't see me going to an office everyday.
     
  19. SteveFoerster

    SteveFoerster Resident Gadfly Staff Member

    Me either. At this point, I think starting a business is the only good way up that's still left.
     
  20. japhy4529

    japhy4529 House Bassist


    +1

    Nothing else to say, but I'm required to type at least 10 characters. ;)
     

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