Love/Hate
- Posted at: 10:28 am
- Filed in: Life
I love my job and I hate my job.
A few years back I was going to college as a psychology major. I had a genuine interest in my major, but lacked the desire to attend college for the 15 or so years to become a practicing psychologist. I decided to take a term away from college and decide what direction I was going to take with my career. During this short break I really didn’t think of anything I wanted to do, and as the time drew closer to go back to school I hastily decided to try my hand at design. I chose to try graphic design because I was usually complimented on my artwork throughout my life, and saw no way to make decent money majoring in fine art. As embarrassing as it is, I chose my current profession out of laziness. I wanted to find something that I could graduate from college with that required less effort that psychology.
Fast forward seven or so years and I am now a somewhat successful web designer. I enjoy my job, and like helping others learn about design, but there are many days that I simply long for monotony. I imagine a job that consists of something like filing papers all day. Just show up, achieve the same basic task, then repeat…nothing more. There are many days where I don’t want to think of something “new”. I don’t want to create something “different”. My major complaint about my profession is that you always have to do something new. You can’t get by with doing the same thing day in and day out. A lot of people might think filing papers all day sounds extremely boring, but when you have job where everyday you have to think of something brand new and different, that type of monotony sounds wonderful.
I kinda agree with you on this sentiment. I love my job too. I hate it with almost the same passion. I want to get down with a desk job, no deep thinking or analyzing, or brain twisters or squeezing out creative juices. Of course, I’m wishful thinking. But wouldn’t it be loverly? At the end of the day, we always have to ask, “Am I happy?”. Almost certainly although not instantly, you’d answer, “Yes.”
i did psychology in university. It wasn’t all that work actually, and it was one of the “slacker” subjects. I had an 11-hour week. XD
i chose psychology because i was lazy too. ;D i admired my classmates who chose engineering, medicine, science, accounting and so on… many of them had to go back to school on saturdays even, and some of their days started as early as 8 a.m. My earlier class was 9 a.m. and usually if it was a lecture i’d skip it (notes were available online).
fast forward 6 years (i graduated in ’01) and i am now teaching music (piano) with yamaha. totally nothing to do with what i studied in the uni. i agree with everything you said, i’m glad you chose something your heart agreed with and found a way to make it work. The irony i think, when i look around me now, is seeing most of my female ex-classmates who did civil engineering in university working in theatre, the library, the arts, or banking.
Now I hate it
If it makes you feel any better, I AM a clinical psychologist, and the money sucks so bad I had to start teaching college just to be able to pay bills. (It’s pretty common to make about $35K-45K US if you carry a full caseload, but then you have no benefits and have to pay for your own malpractice insurance, health insurance, etc. And since you only make money while someone is in your office talking, the paperwork, all the phone time, dealing with courts and children’s services and hospitals and so forth is particularly grueling–ie you don’t make a cent for doing anything except actual therapy.
(It took me 5 years from start to completion of my doctorate, not 15
— but I also decided after I got the degree that I was tired of making less than my welfare clients and didn’t do enough postdoc hours to get independently licensed.)
I was a webmaster/web designer/graphic designer before going back to school — now it’s what I do for fun (I’m also the technology person in my department). It does get old to always have to come up with something new, and I hate having creative-impaired morons telling me what do do and change, but I’ll take that over monotony any day. (I can’t even stand to do the same lecture more than a few quarters…I get painfully bored…so I’m constantly updating things, which is a lot of work.)
What I love about psychology: it’s meaningful and fulfills my existential needs. What I don’t like: it doesn’t fulfill my creative needs. The money is bad. I don’t get no respect. But I guess that’s the nature of Having a Job, eh?