I’ve gotten some good feedback on my previous post.
It depends on what I want.
So what do you want?
How do you decide what you want?
Here’s my general list (in no order):
- 100% fiscal self sufficiency, without having to worry at all.
- Good weather. I realize this means that job I’ve been talking about with a couple of people in London would probably be out… but that’s a dream job.
- A challenging job.
- A core of friends/family available at all needed times.
For some reason, I have this idea ingrained that I have to prove myself. To my parents, to my peers, to everyone. I don’t know what would do that.
Money’s a good thing. It isn’t the only thing. I’m not a soul-less capitalist bastard, but if I’m not doing anything better… might as well cash in.
Sorry about the sporadic thoughts.
By the way, a new addition to the sidebar: my resume.
The first and fourth bullets are easily attainable if you stay here and find a job. The weather here is decent for 8 months out of the 12 as you well know. The third point is interesting. I truly do believe that there are challenging jobs in the area, it’s just the act of digging through all the BS that surrounds us in order to find them.
P.S. I love the resume. Especially the V5 part. *snicker*
I may be speaking for only myself, but you don’t have to prove anything to anyone. If it isn’t obvious by now, you are surrounded by a group of co-workers that respect you and understand that you are much more intelligent than they are in areas. How many times a week does someone ask you for your advice on a certain subject?
nuff said…
Well, I think you should branch out, personally… but that’s because I’m not in Murray.. I’d be more selfish and want you to stick around were I living in that area.
Shaina and I moved to Saint Louis on a whim. As an indirect result of that, we have purchased a home (and are going to sell it, but at least we’ve experienced it), had a baby (celebration for purchasing the home), I got a new job (necessitated by the baby coming around), Shaina got to be a store manager for almost a year and then do animal rescue for the Humane Society (ended due to pregnancy and safety issues)… We are completely different people than we were in Murray. I don’t think it’s anything magical about Saint Louis (though I’d love to convince you to come here), I just think it’s part of growing up, moving away, and experiencing new things…
You have nothing to prove. You have several friends who are looked at as gurus/experts in their fields and at their jobs… and yet they come to you for help and advice oftentimes, as JohnO pointed out. So, lesse:
Fiscal Self-sufficiency: Given that you’re single (i just mean not married), and assuming you are not in debt (or get out quickly), you can live on much less than most people assume. Living in an apartment, in one of the nicest areas of Saint Louis, I think I could make it by (and by ‘make it by’ I mean have money to eat out sometimes, go to the movies when I want to, be able to replace clothing/other possessions as I desire, etc) on ~30k/year if I were single and out of debt. There are few computer-type jobs that are going to pay that little around here, and I imagine both the cost and the payment are similar in any other big city areas (e.g. San Fran will cost more, but has a higher median pay for techwork, etc).
Good Weather: Well, there’s not much to say about this topic actually.. you know what weather you want and what you will accept… Murray has a pretty nice climate and the lakes are right there (BONUS!).
A Challenging Job: Hmm… I think there are two types of challenging jobs – Those that forcibly challenge you, and those that have a set of problems and issues that you are completely welcome to address/fix and doing so in a creative and efficient way is greatly rewarded. I found a job (luckily) where the latter is true; I’m hardly ever PUSHED to do something, but I know what problems need to be solved, and which are sorta on my plate (and which others are not on my plate, but I’m welcome to address)… Creative and complete solutions are rewarded and as such I’ve gotten a good bit of praise from my co-workers and bosses.
Friends and Family: Well, I know you have family in several places, you know where those are, and you will have to decide how much this factor weighs in against the others when deciding what offer(s) to consider (as I KNOW you’ll get several). You know you have family-like friends here in Saint Louis in Shaina and I at least. I know you have a strong support system in Murray. I imagine in the Owensboro/Evansville area you would have a good deal of family/friend support too. I never really cared about having family around; honestly, in the case of SOME family members, I specifically DIDN’T want to be near them. Now that I have a baby that has changed a little bit, but having the internet, cell phones, etc… the world feels smaller. I think if we had family poking their heads in every day and giving us advice on how to raise our daughter, that would actually be a very negative thing, since we both have strong opinions about that and they vary greatly from what our parents think. So, take it for what it’s worth; family is great to have around, but there is always some additional drawma when family is involved.
I know you’ll find a satisfying position that meets all your goals, and I truly hope you end up somewhere that Shaina, Shiloh and I can meet up with you every so often and see how things are going. Even if not, I’ve heard there’s this thing called the internet…..