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September 2011 Moms
How did you know what career path you wanted to follow? Kind of long
I have got to get my butt back in school. There are a couple of things I'd love to do, but I'm just not sure they are the right thing to do right now. Example:
1) I'd love to be an elementary school teacher, maybe 1st or 2nd grade. I heard everyone in RI is getting a pink slip this year and it's just not the time to get into this. Teachers, is this true?
2) I'd love to be an ultrasound tech. You have to have a Bach. degree already in something or a certificate in another field already. I have neither, so that would have to wait, or I'd have to get started on that ASAP.
3) Business - It's a good degree to have but the classes are BORING. I'd love to own my own business someday, though, so maybe this is smart.
How did you know what you wanted to go to college for and how did you pick your job or know that it was the right thing for you?
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Re: How did you know what career path you wanted to follow? Kind of long
The average person changes careers several times in their lifetime, so what you're going through is not unusual, and you'll likely feel as if you're at a crossroads again in the future! Don't stress too much.
As for me, I've always liked business, because I worked in a small business since I was 15, but wanted to do something slightly different with it. So I got a BS in Health Administration. Same type of cirriculum, only in addition to econ, finance, etc., you also took health econ, health care finance, etc. I'm a few months away from my MBA, which is often a logical next step in that career path. I'm actually glad I did the MBA because by doing that, I met some entrepreneurs and realized my new goal is to own my own business - not in health care! So I say go with what gives you the most flexibility, but that's JMHO.
I went back and forth on what I wanted to do after college so I knew I needed to get a degree with a good base. I ended up with a business (accounting) degree. My accounting degree got my foot in the door for a company which lead me to my career in real estate development. I never thought about real estate development in college but it is what I love. My advice would be find something that is interesting...in regards to classes and get that degree. Most doors open with the word "degree" on your resume not so much what degree. Your #1 and #2 picks do require something more specific but you need to know that is what you want before you start those paths.
Best of luck! I loved college - if I could have stayed a college student I would have!
To speak to number 1, I think it's a bad time for teachers everywhere. But, if you think about it, by the time you're done school, things should have (hopefully!) turned around. Also, if you're willing to teach at alternative schools and/or relocate, you shouldn't have too much of a problem.
Also, I'm still not sure what I want to do. I love teaching, but I am so sick of the bs and the politics. I'm thinking of either moving up in the career ladder or switching careers entirely once I get laid off in June.
I'm 32 and I still don't know.
I'm an artist, and I'll always have that, but I'm always torn between doing it as a career or just keeping it as something I love to do. I was a retail buyer when I worked, so I guess I always have that to go back to. Right now I am a SAHM and it is the best job I've ever had.
I was always more into math and science and one of my teachers encouraged me to go into engineering. Since I was like 16 at the time and had no better ideas I decided to try it! Once I was in college I defintely like biomedical engineering best. Since then I worked in a lab/cube 9-5 and didnt really love the day to day so I switched to a field position where I work in hosptials. I don't LOVE it, but I do enjoy it most of the time. I'm still not sure if this is the 'right' thing for me! Will I ever really know if there isn't something better out there? haha
As far as being a teacher- it sounds like you would have some time back in school and student teaching before you would be looking for a job and maybe things in RI would have turned around by then. GREAT job schedule since you'd be on the same schedule as your kiddos. My mom was a teacher and it was so nice to have her home in the summer with us. Of course- teachers work HARD so def not a good idea to do it just for the summers.
Ultrasound tech- I have thought of this myself! I think it looks fun in that you are working with new patients all the time. However, it could be a little sad if you are able to diagnose problems. I also think this can be satisfying- you go in for work for the day and when you are done, you're done. And can be done part time.
A business degree is great in that it is general and you can do a lot. However, it doesn't sound like you like business! Definitely not worth it. Good luck!
I always, always knew I wanted to be in sales. I'm as ADD as they come so a 9-5 desk job is not for me. I get bored super easy and need to be challenged with goals to reach, so sales has always worked in my favor. That being said, I am getting promoted to VP of Sales and Marketing at the first of the year and will take more of a backseat in my job with much less travel and much more managing the sales reps, but I welcome the change now that I am more seasoned and will have a lil guy at home.
Geez... I just made myself sound like I'm super old. : )
Do you have any hobbies that you could turn into a profession? I feel like a few of my friends have done this lately. Going back to school is always a great decision, but I also think there are a lot of opportunities out there that you could turn into a very lucrative career without having a college degree.
I am totally looking into becoming an Ultrasound tech.
I have been in my current position (I wouldn't call it a career) for 8 years and it's not at all what I pictured for my life. We call it the 'golden handcuffs' because the work is not at all satisfying, but the benefits and salary are honestly enough to keep you in this job forever. And, I feel SO lucky to have them and job security, too.
But, I have got to get out of this rut at some point. I do want to be a nurse, always have, and DH and I have rekindled that dialogue. We plan to move away from Boston and hopefully go to a place where the cost of living is a bit less and make some adjustments so I can do school full time and teach aerobics part time. I am certified and I taught before starting fertility treatments, and never, ever want to quit doing it. It's been so fun for me.
I think being an ultrasound tech would be a great start for me in the medical field. I can't believe I didn't think of it!
I don't know too much about the u/s tech or teachers, but thought I'd throw this out if you go on to consider business (although it doesn't seem like you are too into this one!) Although the business classes are useful, it's better to go into something within the business realm that is a little more specific. A business degree is good to have your own business, but is usually not too highly regarded if you need to work for someone else before hand because it is so vague and you really only learn a little about everything instead of a lot about one subject in particular. So if you do choose to go this route, I would suggest picking a specialty - like human resources, accounting, finance, etc. Whatever tickles your fancy! :P
I went to school for accounting, got my BS and MS. I work in accounting but I don't like it. I don't really know what I want to do.
I got laid off 2 years ago and almost went to school for dental hygiene. But the local market is really saturated and people are having a hard time finding full-time work, and then my current job came up and I took it.
I'm hoping to take a few years off when the baby comes and hopefully figure it out then. DH and I eventually want to own a winery. I think that would be awesome but it's a huge investment.
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As I grew up numbers were always really easy and I have a bad habit of counting things, some call it an eye for detail. So I went into accounting (my grandfather was an accountant so I had a clue about what they did when I was little) where I focused on cost based accounting. Thanks to this I have worked in 5 awesome factories all making different things (chemical and paper pumps, sneakers, firearms, and helicopter parts for the military).
The business classes can be really boring, especially accounting and finance, but it was what I wanted. When I was 23 I had reached the goal I made when I was 5 and saw that episode - to be an accountant in a well-known world wide company and live in Boston. And 11 years later I still love it.
At an early age, I always knew that I wanted to be able to provide for my future family in case something ever happened to my husband for some reason or another. When I went to college, I decided I wanted to do accounting. Everyone always says they are good in math, so its a good reason to go into accounting....HA. I just LOVED the early accounting classes and even high school accounting, but as the years went by I enjoyed it less and less. But I had a goal and I had to stick it out. When I graduated from undergrad, I went pursued my MBA-Accounting Emphasis program and once I finished I was faced with 2 "big 4" offers and one government offer. The big 4 offers meant my golden ticket (pretty much) to do what I wanted to do, but the govt. job meant quality of life, great benefits, and a very competitive salary. So I went with the govt. job. Do I like it? Sometimes....I like to find bad companies and such. My biggest complaint is that I don't know what I REALLY do that makes a difference. But ideally, I wish I would have gone to nursing school.
As I sit here typing this, I just think about how I would make a difference in someone's life. In the current job, people do not want to talk to me or work with me or are mean to me bc of what I do. I would love to have a job where I am running around and constantly moving; I am not a fan of desk jobs. Nursing people back to health, cheering people up, having compassion for struggling families, I could do that. The end result is that I can provide for my family, which has been a blessing when times are tough, but I could have also provided in another career (nursing).
When I was in high school, I knew I wanted to be in a helping profession but I wasn't sure what it would be. I decided to pursue my BA in Psychology and hopefully something would be clear to me at some point. Going in to my senior year of college, I volunteered at a summer camp for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. I realized shortly after that that I wanted to pursue a career in Social Work and obtained my MSW.
During my studies, I realized working with terminally ill children would burn me out really quickly and my 2nd year placement was at a hospital without a peds floor-- mostly geriatrics. I've come to have a passion for geriatric work and even when I'm done here at the hospital, there are so many avenues to pursue in that field.
I would love to do something fun like this! I've thought about a "make your own wine" type of place, so you don't need to own the vineyard, you just source the grapes from whatever region you want. Even wrote a business plan for it, but eh...I'm with you, it's a huge risky investment, and I'm a chicken.
I went into nursing because I wanted a stable flexible in demand job that allowed me to help others. It was also great for me because there are so many entry levels into the field. I started out as a nurse's aide while I was in college. I hope to go back to school one of this days and get my bachelor's degree in nursing. I've been a nurse for over 5 years and have seen and experienced so many different things - from holding a hospice patients hand as they take their last breath to assisting in the birth of a brand new baby.
I would not recommend it for everyone though. It can be a very physically and emotionally draining job that has a fairly high burn out rate. Sometimes I really wonder how I can be doing this job for the next 30 years! Fortunately there are so many different areas of nursing and educational advancements. I will always love that I can basically get a job anywhere we move. Right now I work per diem so I choose exactly what days I want to work and how often. Usually I only choose it about a week or two in advance so I can have freedom and flexibility - love it!
Peanut Butter and Jelly!
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I didn't go to college. I had DD pretty soon after graduating HS.
I kind of just lucked out and started as a teller at a credit union and eventually worked my way up to executive assistant for the CEO.
Not a dream career but it pays the bills and lets me shop so...
We'll always remember our angel baby: BFP 9/24/10, M/C 10/23/10 8w4d
This is a really interesting topic and though it wasnt meant to be as such, a good GTKY as we are hearing how everyone thinks/makes decisions.
To start, I figured out what I wanted my day to day to be like. I figured out at some point that I liked working in a nonprofit/service type setting because of the culture, but that sitting at a desk/computer and writing/talking all day wasn't for me. I wanted to interact with people and do something hands on, and to feel like I had a purpose. Also, I like working with teams, being challenged, and constantly learning.
Then I did a lot of shadowing/interning/talking to people. Thought a lot about dental school, physical/occupational therapy, etc, and eventually decided to go to medical school. How I picked surgery is somewhat an extension of that and an issue of fit and what is fun for me. I plan to be in academic medicine and incorporate teaching and clinical research into my practice. I didn't really factor in lifestyle/hours and perhaps I should have, but I'd rather be happy and working more than less happy and working less. And I don't have many hobbies.
Congrats on going back to school! A degree is what you make of it, and you can always add on in 5, 10, or even 20 years if you need it to take the next step. So, you are interested in elementary education--what about that appeals to you? Same for ultrasound tech? What other things also have those characteristics? Could you combine in some way?
(some mixed healthcare/education ideas off the top of my head---Child Life Specialist, Nurse educator working with kids/families regarding new diagnosis, RD/Nutritionist) If the idea of buisness is interesting, could you get some sort of degree in nursing and buisness and work for a pharma or medical device company?
What a good idea! Do you ever make wine? DH just started last year making wine with his dad and he loves it. It's great wine, too. One batch was a bit strong but the rest has been awesome. He started a batch of strawberry wine last week. It should be ready a few weeks before the baby gets here, just in time for me to have a sip!
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Have never made it myself, but tasted homemade wine from a friend. It was awesome. I can't wait to drink wine again...ahhh...and that strawberry wine sounds delicious...
I had an epiphany while in the Chik-fil-a drive through with my Mom. Seriously.
I was a sophomore in college studying journalism and economics because I always thought I wanted to write for a magazine. During the summer I had an awesome internship writing for a local magazine where they were actually letting me write articles - I was published several times, it was every future journalist's dream, but I broke into tears when my mom asked me about it while we were ordering chikfila. I hated it. I hated the job, I hated the environment, the people, I just had this overwhelming sense that there was no way I could do that for the rest of my life. For some reason it felt like I wasn't doing the "good" I had expected to be doing. I thought that journalists were respected for sharing information with the public, but when I did it, I didn't feel like it was helping anyone. I wasn't getting any emotional satisfaction from the work at all and I realized how important that was to me.
So, after talking over some lemonade and nuggets, my mom asked what I thought I might want to do and I told her I thought I'd be happier teaching high school kids how to write. My parents were thrilled (my Dad teaches high school English) and I changed majors the next semester to English and finally felt "at home".
Looking back, I think I always WANTED to be a teacher, but I didn't think the job was prestigious enough. I was a great student, I had a 4.0 in college, and thought being a teacher was a cop out, so I tried something else.
So, for me, having a job that I hated was what showed me what I needed in a job - emotional fulfillment. I have to feel like I'm helping people in order to be happy.
Since I feel like I'm sounding like a total do-gooder who wants to change the world, I will point out that I found that it was much easier to come to terms with being a teacher once I was engaged. I DO care about money and it wasn't until I came to terms with the fact that I was going to get married (it was totally off my radar until I met DH) that I became OK with earning less money than I had originally planned.
OK that was way longer than intended.
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