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live to work or work to live?

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by lumbergh77 2 views

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As a young IT professional, I'm strugging with this issue. Judging by a lot of the posters here and with conversations with people outside of this forum, there aren't too many people who actually like their job. It's rare to find someone who loves their job AND is well paid.

What is your philosphy? Do you work to live or live to work? How many hours do you work a week? How much time do you spend outside of work studying and/or doing side jobs?

42 replies

by secure_lockdown9

i love what i do. i also notice that many other IT professionals i know love what they do.

what we don't like is the way the industry is turning topsy turvy.

by apotheon

I like my job.

I don't like bad customers. I don't like being in an industry that's in the toilet. I don't like the way that work can just dry up for a month or two at a time, cutting into my income pretty drastically. I don't like the fact that my boss sometimes has expectations built on misconceptions rather than facts in evidence and my experience.

There will be things to dislike in any job, no matter how much you love doing it in general. That's because work is part of life, and nobody promised you a rosegarden for a life (or if they did, they were lying).

Unfortunately, sometimes the real world forces you to get a job you don't like as much if the one you have and love isn't paying the bills. I've seen that happen many times. I've also seen jobs simply dry up and disappear, leaving people jumping at the first thing that comes along just to have some income, and finding themselves in a bad situation as a result.

A lot of the time, you have to work a job you don't like just to stay alive until you can find the job you like, so you can find fulfillment, enjoyment, and comfort there.

by secure_lockdown9

i work regular hours. but most of my time away from work i spent working contract jobs, upgrading knowledge, reading IT news, reading IT security news and participating in online forums. keeps me on top of my game.

by choppit

I hear far too many people say they hate their jobs. Considering that work consumes around a third of our adult lives it's a pretty sad state of affairs. I love working (always have), and although I don't consider myself well paid, as long as I can support my family by doing a job I enjoy, I'm a happy man.

As for the working hours, I generally put in around 55-60 hours a week and study (in one form or another) for around 10 hours a week.

by imagictech

I cannot see myself doing anything else but this. Maybe the same thing for more money but not any other career. IT is different from alot of professions due to the amout of study and keeping up that it takes to remain competitive as well as certified.

I really enjoy working with the customer and (when things get fixed) I love the feeling of a job well done and the cementing of the relationship with the customer.

IT is demanding and not for sluff-off's or chronic underachievers. If you dont like to read, forget IT.

Robert

by apotheon

Thank you for pointing that out. I haven't thought about it for a while, but it's very true: to truly excel in IT, you have to read. You have to read a [b]lot[/b]. There's just no way to stay current in this industry without reading all the time.

It's important to read, and (more to the point) to learn, all the time in IT. The characteristics that make the best IT workers very much tend to overlap with the characteristics that make the best hackers (in the pre-FUD sense of the term "hacker", which pretty much just refers to a clever enthusiast with insatiable curiosity). I'm talking about characteristics like curiosity, intelligence, willingness to think for oneself, good problem-solving skills, and perhaps most importantly an admirable love of [b]learning[/b].

by packratt

At least it is for me personally.

I've worked with computers most of my life and have always excelled and had a great aptitude with them. I love what I do, I do it quite well, and I take pride in the work I do... As a matter of fact, when I can give that work away to charity I do it half for the joy of helping others and half for the joy of the work itself.

On the other hand... I despise what this industry/career has become.

Filled with self absorbed egomaniacs who think that their peers who are having it rough are somehow less than they and have no sense of empathy or brotherhood.

Managers and executives who seek to turn us into third-world laborers by enforcing slave-labor sweatshop hours, by exploiting people from overseas who come here hoping to leave that type of legacy behind them only to find it here as well, by making us all disposable contractors and perma-temps who don't get benefits, and by moving our jobs overseas where there are no labor protections and where government policies encourage substandard and unfairly low wages which forces our value lower.

See, I love what I've done and am capable of doing... But I work for myself and my family first and formost, I work to provide for their well-being and safety above all other considerations.

If I don't get paid enough to keep my family housed and fed, if I don't get benefits to keep us healthy, if I work so many hours that I don't spend time with my children to teach them what I know, and if the work is not stable enough to allow us to save for our children's futures... then what joy can there be in anything?

So, in the IT field of today... There is no joy to be had, only survival and the slim hope of getting the time and money to train yet again for something I can only hope will be better than being a permatemp slave.

by mrafrohead

That is the only reason to work, IMO. Otherwise, I'd just sit at home and smoke bowls all day long. Sadly, having a home, and the bowls to smoke cost money, therefore I have to work...

I don't like my job, currently looking for a new one, because the pay is crap. There is no room to advance, and it's just a go nowhere place. But I DID get out of it what I needed. Experience...

My next job will pay what I expect and will also be fun to do, or I will move on again until I find what I'm looking for.

I strictly work my 40 hours. No more. I figure what I'm paid, I don't see any reason to do any extra because I'm paid this whether I bust my ass or just do what I do... Now if I was paid well, I'd put in 110% all the time. Now I put out about , well... it's below 100%...

I spend most of my freetime, when it's not with my family, working on my home network, tinkering and teaching myself more. I LOVE computers and like to learn as much as I can about them.

Just think, once my pay and benefits are worked out, I'll love my job, as I do enjoy what I do.

Mrafrohead

by oz_media

THat's my theory. When I was working FT in New Westminster I would put in extreme hours, then the boss would drop the ball and all my work would stifle. THis really Pis*ed me off and I started ot tell him so when he asked me to start new projects. He'd say, I pay you anyway, why do "you care what I have you do? I would just say because I can waste my time all day somewhere else for more money, but I choose not to."

My theory now is you get what you pay for, you want a $20/r employee, you'll get one. You want me to work, dish out the dosh and I will make it worth your while!$$$$$

I personaly hate most emploers, they really think the staff owe them something. For what a JOB!?

I even had one employer say that he didn't pay us much but at least we always get a paycheque, at the time of the big IT crash of the 90's where some people weren't paid.

My answer was if you didn't pay me religiously, I would be working for your competitors. Who the hell would work JUST because they got paid properly? You don't get paid, you sue for double and move on.

Everyone has a job to offer, how about respecting the fact that you don't have a company without the right people?

by apotheon

Most employers aren't anything like the way you say they should be. I agree with you: employers need to learn to value their employees. They generally don't, though.

That's especially true of certain types of employees, I find. IT is one of those types. Managers tend to view IT personnel as extensions of the hardware, to be used up and tossed out when done. They tend to view us as nothing more than office equipment, to be fed toner and have our buttons pushed until the warranty runs out.

I've always been of the opinion that employees should be valued for the fact that they are choosing to do work for you. Think about it: the employer isn't in the business of hiring people. He's in the business of selling a product, generally. The business offers a product and, if the customer thinks it's good enough, is willing to give the business what it asks for the product. This is a show of how much the customer values the product. By the same token, the business should realize it's in the position of being the customer, with its employees offering their work as a product.

The business can't survive without some of that product. It's in the best interests of a business to acquire the best work it can, and that quality should command a greater price than mediocre work. Of course, if someone is "forced" by circumstance to sell at a lesser rate, the quality of the product is going to suffer.

. . . but somehow managers don't seem to recognize that. Go fig'.

by mrafrohead

"Everyone has a job to offer, how about respecting the fact that you don't have a company without the right people?"

Dear God, I have seen the LIGHT!!!!!

That's so true. Just think, if I made about 25% more an hour, they would get well over twice the work out of me. Funny how that works out...

by oz_media

...I quit in a heartbeat. I despise working for someone else to begin with, It doesn't give you enough time to develop your own interests nd get ahead in your own ventures.

I will only go to work if I get enough time to enjoy the money I earn. I realized this at about 17 and haven't worked FOR too many people since. I do a lot of contract and private business stuff and that gives me what I want in life and the time to enjoy it.

When I was much younger I would put my herat and soul into work, for what, someone else's business to succeed at the expense of my life and my time? no thanks. Homey don't play that

by hal 9000

Would you like to join me for a little jaunt from Sydney on Boxing Day to Hobart?

Several days of extremely hard work which makes you wonder just why you where ever mad enough to consider it worthwhile. After you finish you swear you'll never consider doing it again but within a few months everything is forgotten and you are planning the next attack on the course.

While you don't have to be totally insane it sure as hell helps. On my last trip we hit a whale and holed the hull the only trouble was at the time I was below decks sleeping and the hole was directly over my head it is an interesting thing to be woken up with some one trying to drown you {well that is your first impressions anyway} then you have to work out a way to get the boat to land without it sinking.

Luckily I was not in that really bad one a few years ago as I think if I was it would have put me off sailing for life to see so many good ships disappear under the waves never to be seen again and what was worse was the fact that no matter what went wrong you had top continue to wards Hobart because any attempt to run for safer waters would only be bringing the problems on the beam rather than the bow. Not a very nice thought is it?

Col

by oz_media

I just did that with the Royal Vancouver Yacht club, after the sail I had to go into the reception room, emcee and DJ for a few hours and then take care of th erest of the evenings live entertainment. I don't know what is more work, handling the client or dealing with the Prima Donna band members.

While on the boat, I managed to kill a bottle of Johnny (yes we were working hard)and then had to work on speech inflection and annouciation for the awards ceremony, followed by spinning music (okay it's all DJ'd by computer now) and then making sure the band is on stage in time, make sure sound checks are still okay since tables and stuff were moved etc.

I'll tell you sailing is HARD WORK !!!

But I did manage to get hooped befor ethe night was through and pulled it off all the same. After while it all becomes second nature and no matter how much people worry and stress it just happens without a hitch.

Guess that's the nice part about working with professional musicians, they can just get up and do it, everytime without a hitch. Whatever happened throughout the night is forgotten right away.

by hal 9000

I work to live and live to work but then I can say the same for riding motorcycles or sailing when I did it.

Because I do what I love I do not consider it work "Sure there are days when nothing wants to go right" but they are in the minority over all and the getting to play with expensive new hardware and being paid to do it when I would quite happily pay to do the work tends to put me in a position of being happy.

If this was something like 25 + years ago right now I would be hard at work sailing and getting ready for a short "Blue Water" sailing jaunt off the south coast of AU starting Boxing Day and continuing for several days till you got to the Derwin River drank some Champs and then turned around and sailed back to Sydney well that was the idea but one at least one occasion we didn't make it to the Derwin River.

In anything that you do you have to do it with 100% commitment or you are just going through the motions and I've personally walked away from more jobs than I care to think about.

There are the funny jobs where you are sent to purgatory that turn out to be the really good jobs that you never want to ever consider leaving and on 1 occasion I've actually resigned rather than go back to my real work.

However if money is your bottom line you are bound to never be completely happy in life but if you just do what you love I've found that then all things come to those willing to put in the hours to keep their skill level up there. IT like medicine is one of those "Black Arts" where you never ever stop learning. There is always something new coming or has just been released that you have to keep up with but if you really love the job it really isn't work and I see it as a "Learning Experience" which is something to be savored rather than worked at.

Col

by bfilmfan

Considering the large number of companies that won't be in business in 5 years, their short term vision of use it up and move on is rather akin to hunter/gatherer society.

What a large number of companies are not taking into consideration is the retirement of baby boomers. When the waves of boomers start retiring, a lot of companies are going to suddenly find themselves desperate for employees. And their reputations in the IT community are going to come back and haunt them. I fully expect a minimum of 25% of American businesses to fold in the next 20 years due to their treatment of the employees.

Or as my Lakota grandmother once explained, "Coyote dance in field in summer, and starve in winter."

by apotheon

I think the late retirement of baby boomers may be the only major bright spot on the horizon for employment rates in IT here in the US. If/when that has the effect you describe, I'm sure a lot of us will be dancing in the streets at the effect it has both on our paychecks and on the solvency of companies that have been mistreating their IT employees all these years.

Somehow, I didn't expect to see American Indian mythic analogies being applied to anything I said on TechRepublic. Heh.

by nd_it

I work to get the satisfaction of doing a job well and knowing that I have an impact on the compay sucesses. The job at time can be very frustrating of course, there is always some issues. Budgets, pay, office politics, but they way I look at it is, it doesn't matter what kind of job or career I have or will have later on, there will always be some things we don't like about it. People always talk about pay. Yes, being well paid is nice, but not the most important factor. I get paid a decent wage. I have recently bought a small house in a small town and a new car. I live within my means and am very satisfied with what I have. I only work 40 to 45 hours a week, which gives me spare time to spend time at home, which is where I like to spend my spare time, whether it's reading, being invloved in dicussion boards, watching movies, and just plain napping :)

by mirrormirror

ND_IT, you hit it right on the head. You simply have to be satified with what you have and are doing.

Dissatifaction can come about for a host of reasons that many times we can not control. I am all about making sure that I am confident in what I am doing at work. I have found that if I am confident in what I am doing, my attitude is good and work output is high quality. I do not mind doing challenging work or things that I have never done before, but I do believe that I should be allowed to train on and "get to know" the new things before I am expected to have high quality output on it.

As far as the rest, my job is there to allow me to provide a comfortable living for my family. I would flip burgers gladly as long as my family is provided for. I DO NOT live to work, I work to live. But, it is nice to feel decent about work. I have been through several jobs where I have worked 50-60 hours a week only to be laid off. That is why I have no particular need to be the macho worker who sacrifices their personal life for work. Work has NEVER sacrificed itself for me. And, it never will.

But, I do have a nice house and am hoping to buy a new car soon. I don't worry about my bills and I have really great kids and a wonderful husband. Life is good. Right now, my job is pretty good, with a short drive, good office and co-workers and a chance to expand my horizons as well as sharpen my skills.

by nd_it

This morning we had our weekly staff meeting with our projects and goals outlined. That gets me excited and motivated to work at those goals. Because we all know about how some people view IT, as an expense and people always ask "what do you do all day?" We I have my projects outlined, and instead of measuring downtime, our department measure uptime instead. We like to "brag" about our deparment and it shows people our accomplishments and makes me feel like my job is worth sometime that I only have to put in 40-45 hours a week on and still enjoy my home life as well. I find a balance between my career and my home life, both of which gives me satisfaction.

by apotheon

When you aren't making enough, pay is definitely among the most important items. Once you get to a point where you're surviving without too much concern for where your next meal is coming from, though, pay quickly slips down the priority ladder (at least, it does if you have your head screwed on straight).

There are people that overvalue pay, though, never letting other priorities arise even when making decent wages already. As far as I'm concerned, these people have some problems. They're welcome to their problems, though, as long as they don't cause problems for me.

by dafe2

Agreed. I used to "live for work and chase $$$"

Bottom line today I exchange 40 hours a week (Sometimes even less) for X ammount of dollars. That's it. I spend some other time keeping my skills sharp. In the summer, my family and I can be found on the water kicking back. The winters are spent mostly studying & reading up on the stuff I "missed" (read ignored) through the summer. A balanced life should be the most important. I stay fit at home in our gym, I believe in healthy body, healthy mind. I'm not a health "nut". I just think that staying fit helps keep our minds sharp and keeps us "energized" for some the the "rougher" days we sometimes face.

Bottom line though, warts & all it's the best business in the world to be in. Most customers have turned into great friends. Think about how many DIFFERENT people you met today.

Days when I feel down about my work or the state of the industry.....I think of the doctor in his office preparing himself to look someone in the eye and telling them they have three months left to live. Pretty much puts things into perspective for me........no matter what side of his desk my mind wanders to.

by apotheon

When I take those moments to find perspective, it doesn't typically have much to do with doctors. The thought that crosses my mind is more like this:

"Well, at least I'm not getting shot at in this job. It's a good thing I'm not a garbage man, too. Those guys have it rough. It's more dangerous to be a garbage man than an infantryman, and they don't even get to play with guns."

by packratt

At least as a doctor I would have the opportunity to truly help people in very meaningful ways even if I had to deal with the fact that sometimes that help can only be for emotional healing when physical healing isn't possible. At least if I were a good, decent, humane doctor I would be valued in society.

As a techie, the only contributions I make don't really help people in very meaningful ways except as a cog in some corporate machine improving their profits and productivity. There was a day when I gave old computers away and taught people how to use or repair them to lift them out of poverty or homelessness. But now I wouldn't torture someone like that considering I'm one small step away from that situation myself and I had over 10 years in the field.

Besides, as a techie, nobody respects you or even understands or cares about what you do, especially the people that pay you.

by jkaras

bottom line its about the benjamins. If you love to do something that paid next to nothing would you risk your future and your families future for that freedom? Most likely no, life is survival, just because we dont have a preditor in nature, we created our own, money. I used to give, and give, and give to places I worked for and all it got me was more work, more expectation, more stress, and nothing but excuses from management. I passed up relationships, other employment endevors, trying to get ahead believing that they had my back if I had theirs. Its just a lie and you have a responsibility to yourself to be more and an empoloyer just wont invest in you the way they want you to invest in them, its sad. I know am wiser thta you put yur time in, doing the best you can and just go home at the end of the day, and its easier.

by nd_it

Money is what motivates us humans. We put a price tag on our time. I really enjoy my job, but don't work for nothing, but not getting rich either. As long as I can make a decent living and find a balance between my career and my home life, I am happy.

by hal 9000

If a job is worth doing it is worth doing properly. If I agree to do a job I either chose to get paid what my time is worth or I do it for free.

To my way of thinking it is worse doing cut price work than a cut price job. I chose to do quite a lot for nothing other than the cost of parts as I consider it an insult to my intelligence to work for a few $ per hour. If I do not charge for it there can be no complaints but if I accept even as little as a $1.00 per hour the person them seems to think that I am under some obligation to come back and fix things up when they mess them up.

They either pay the full rate or nothing at least when I charge the going rate I accept that I have an obligation to return for any problems but when they do not pay for a job they can not expect me to come out and fix things up. Of course there are always exceptions to this rule when I run across companies who have been ripped off by some unscrupulous supplier but even then I do the work for little more than petrol money and show that I'm willing to fix a mess up provided I'm allowed to do it properly, otherwise I just walk away and allow then to get someone else to fix their problems.

Col

by oz_media

It's alos your job to prove just how much of an integral oart of the company you are. If you are one of those people who only handles IT chores, then oyu will always been seen as such. If you can perform anyone's job in the company, do it.

Most of them can't do YOUR job.

It is YOUR duty to prove your value to the company, if your value is centered on IT, you will never be respected or looked up to until you're gone, most managers don't understand what you do.

Multi-task and prove that you can do all the other tasks, as WELL as IT. Even in an office where people are very set on their job descriptions, once you help the receptionist do her job, the shipper do his etc. You will be seen as someone with multiple talents, and this greater value.

I don't work FOR people, they HIRE me for MY skills that I bring to the table. IF they don't respect those skills, someone else will, they catually catch on pretty quick that you don't NEED their job, you chose it.

by apotheon

It doesn't always work out that way, unfortunately, but that's at least a means of bettering your chances of being treated well by management.

by oz_media

If you want BUZZ words that is.

You'll get more than your money's worth if you pay me properly,if not, you will get what you pay for, if you are lucky. Employers know that I won't bat an eye at walking out their door and working by myself. They usually don't touch that button though once they know how serious I really am about it.

by oz_media

I went to a company in RIchmond a few weeks back, to look at some work rebuilding their marketing department and call center.

The office was a HOLE, and I mean an absolute DUMP! I wouldn't even know how to begin describing what they consider a decent working environment.

So I am sitting there with the sales manager and explaining all the INTERNAL changes I would need ot make, he is very receptive and very interested. He is very keen on the types of sales atff I am looking for, he is keen on the call center changes and supervisor changes.

We then started to talk money. He was sa little shocked that I would want to pay Telemarketers $12.00 hr, plus commissions. Well even a SOMEWAT decent telemarketer wouldn't work for less.

He said he believes in payng low salary and then high commissions, which works for an outside force bu not telemarketers, they can't SOUND hungry, they must be well taken care of and the rest just falls into place.

So he starts to see my anlge here and comes around.

An hour later, note: we have discussed MY salary range already, we decide to get down to the nuts and bolts of MY pay. He throws out a figure of...get this, $24,000.00 A YEAR!!! 24 grand! to rebuild his entire freakin' operation!

I busrt out laughing, apologized, and walked out the door. He approached me in his parking.....lot/gravel pit/mudhole, and said he was willing to pay a little more if I could also increase efficiency in the administration area.

As I drove away shaking my head, I wondered how someone could place such little value on his company. Anyway, I got home to another offer from him in my voice mail, I politely turned it down and sent him the bill for my time.

Some people just don't get it ! Therefore they don't get me. I know it's sounds pretty arrogant but I have a right to be, I am bringing skills to their sinking company that can help it succeed.

If he had such skills himself he wouldn't need me to begin with.

Once you give the impression that you don't NEED a job, but your employment should be a mutual benefit, you will get more respect, if not....NEXT!

by apotheon

"I politely turned it down and sent him the bill for my time."

I love that. This end to the ongoing haggling is just perfect.

by hal 9000

And have had it for a long time now.

When on the very rare occasions I go to a job interview I ask just why I should want to work there and what is being offered to keep me active.

Well at least I used to do that when I worked for a Boss or Government Agency, it never went over at all well but I very soon made it clear that I wasn't prepared to waste my time on want to Be's when I had plenty of already well established firms chasing me for my experience and opinions. The very last time was about 15 years ago now and I made a suggestion for a Government Department which was thrown out completely and I walked out the door in disgust. Now some 15 years latter they are going to do exactly what I told them was required but instead of only costing them the materials to do it they are going to be out of pocket by a couple of hundred million $ more and then add in the materials. It is short sightedness like this which just gets under my skin and the penny pinching mentality of a lot of these places.

The funny thing is I've been asked to supervise what I suggested was necessary all those years ago and go back as a Government Consultant. Talk about a massive step back wards I've moved on from that time and I do not need them but they sure as hell need someone like me who just tells them straight rather than what they want to hear.

Col

by jdclyde

I can't speak for anyone else here but I don't WORK in the tech field.

I get paid to play with all these cool toys.

I do this because it is interesting and a challenge.

Hours are balance between home and "work", and just using up the rest of my vacation days so I didn't work any mondays or fridays this month. So cool.

I have twin boys (age 12) and they think it is cool too, so we build computers and run networks and they can already make a patch cable quicker and better than my coworkers.

by rcsoar4fun

I think most techies truly love the work aspect of it. Nothing makes me happier in a day than fixing some really complex problem that "can't be solved". Dealing the the BS that goes with the employer? Thats another story....

Kristopher

by skysharkdude

rcsoar4fun: You are so very correct. I think that most all IT Professionals fit this description.
I started my own consulting business, on the side, and hope to someday be successful enough to leave my 'day job' and work for myself. Currently I work 40 hrs/wk for the day job and 15 - 20 hrs/wk for myself. I enjoy it, but it will make an 'old man' out of you pretty quick.

by hal 9000

Just walk out for a few days turn off your phone and remain uncontactable. You'll be amassed just how you are treated when you get back.

Col

by apotheon

I wouldn't be amazed at all. I'd be expecting it when I got fired. What kind of advice is that, Col?

by hal 9000

If you suffered a serious accident. What would be the good of spending several weeks/months in hospital it's far too painful.

On the other hand a few hours/days off which can even be organized prior has the same effect but without the worry that you will not be back in the foreseeable future. Some time ago the Upper Management used to go around saying no one is irreplaceable which is quite right but at the same time the loss of an individual can hurt. If it is the right individual.

None of us are 18 Feet Tall and Bullet Proof any one of use could end up in hospital for any number of reasons even one of my staff was hit by a semi and totaled my classic car which he shouldn't have been driving at the time I was at a MS Partners Meeting when I got the phone call and I naturally left immediately and went to the hospital just to see how he was.

Could we get by with out him YES but it did hurt and made more work for the rest of us Hell yes.

Col

by dafe2

It's just perspective (Apotheon said that better than I)

For me, some days that works when delivering "bad news" to Governance or whatever.

On other days, I may think of some other scenario such as (me) asking someone if they want their fries super sized........who knows? I'm thankful every day for the privileges afforded to me.

Bottom lines though..........never take your job "too" seriously. And never believe your own press. Good or bad. It's un-important.

It's what we DO, not who we ARE.

PS

"Taught people how to use or repair them to lift them out of poverty"

IMO that shows who "you" are. That's a very generous thing you (used to) do with your time. Some things ARE important in the "big picture".

by aceskaraoke

I have had a deep passion for technology for more years than I can remember. I started dismantling things (phones, radios, etc.) at an early age to see what made them tick. Unfortunately, it took a few years for my reassembly skills to catch up, which left me in hot water with my mom very often growing up.

I was very active programming in high school on the Apple IIe (showing my age), but fell away from it after graduating because I got out on my own and had to make ends meet.

I finally got back into computers 10 years later and Apple had basically fallen by the wayside and PC's and clones were dominating the market. It was a whole new ballgame when I bought my 1st PC used, it was a 386 which was a total dinosaur when I bought it, but really helped me learn DOS cause it was still running Win 3.11. I started upgrading my own PC and then on friends.

Finally, now I'm in a position to get some formal training and work in field I love. I started at ITT earlier this year and will be starting an internship and the end of the month. I love the fact that I'll need to get up with constantly evolving technologies and a fast moving market. Who wants to do the same thing day in and day out for 20-30 years anyway.

For me, I've always looked at work as what I have to do to fund what I want to do. I suspect that now I'll actually enjoy work AND be able to keep food on the table, but I'm one of those who doesn't mind hard work and using my head for something other than a hatrack. If work was always easy, why would anybody pay you to do it?

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