Comments on: Ambition — is it all about the money?

By: Diane

Diane — Mon, 09 May 2011 16:19:09 +0000

One of the most enjoyable jobs I ever had was a part-time seasonal job at a small company. I could set my own hours. I had no boss breathing down my neck. Everybody I worked with was incredibly nice. I would show up, work for 4-6 hours and go home. Since the work was tedious and boring but took no brainpower, I could let my mind wander. I thought up all kinds of creative ideas that I would do later when I went home. I daydreamed and listened to music with headphones while I worked. There was a sense of hope in having a job that had a definite end time. A light at the end of the tunnel. I just wished there were other similar jobs like it that I could go to after, but there weren’t. I suppose it’s similar to freelance work, but with freelance work you kind of feel compelled to scramble for more work all the time. The seasonal job comes up again each year. If I had a series of them, I could just string them together. Alas, it is not meant to be.

By: George

George — Sun, 08 May 2011 14:44:07 +0000

Hi Jacob,

I totally agree about being a part time capitalist. I am always looking for ways to make money or build a business. That could be a new revenue stream from my blog or a programming idea that can become an online service.

Also, I don’t know if it is really harder to find a part time job than a full time job. For an employer, it is a much easier decision to hire a part timer. Especially in uncertain financial times (like now). They don’t have to worry about benefits and it is easy to fire the employee.

George

By: Gene

Gene — Sun, 08 May 2011 03:07:53 +0000

because of the kind of work I do, I consider the money to be a way of working on and measuring personal/psych development. I don’t consider money to “taint” work because I don’t consider money to have any meaning, and certainly not a negative one. What you DO with the money can taint YOU, but that’s not the moneys’ fault.

By: Piper

Piper — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 20:12:14 +0000

I have always done work that I enjoyed doing. Enjoying it has been my primary objective. In other words, everything I’ve done I’ve done from a place of passion, not for the money. When I stopped having the passion, I moved on to other work. Maybe this was the wrong approach, but it has been the only way I have been able to do anything in my life.

I’ve run out of things to be passionate about that I can trade for money at a job. So now I’ve taken a different approach. I try to live frugally so that I can work minimally doing stuff that people will pay for that I can tolerate for a few hours a day. I have more time each day to not be stuck in a place I would rather not be.

I can make money accumulate in my account and enjoy a life of freedom right now working part-time and being frugal. It will take me a bit longer than doing it the way it’s described here. But it works pretty much the same as what is described here and I get to be happy right now, not in 5 or 10 years. At the other end of this, I see myself continuing to live super frugally, possibly living a mobile lifestyle (I love being a nomad). A permanent frugal lifestyle is the key, it seems.

By: Concojones

Concojones — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 14:29:58 +0000

Brauhster: thank you for the tip – I’ve heard it before, and I can see how it would work. A similar tip I’ve tried is imagine yourself as the manager of your department. The reason why things like these work, IMO, is because what KILLS motivation in today’s corporate world is the lack of empowerment, and by creating a feeling empowerment things become more fun, you’ll take more initiative, which in turn reinforces your motivation. Within certain limits (of the corporate culture) of course.

By: Jacob

Jacob — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:49:30 +0000

@TylerOSU – Some combination of stoicism and cynicism (the latter should probably be looked up). The closest thing I get to religion is probably zen buddhism, but I am not actively religious.

By: TylerOSU

TylerOSU — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:34:03 +0000

Jacob, what religious/philosophical do you operate by, if any?

Personally, I am an agnostic, but I think I throw in a lot of Bhudism as well as some well known things from Christianity, like the Golden Rule for example.

By: brauhster

brauhster — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:37:23 +0000

After getting a BS degree in Math & Physics, I worked for 3 industries, (5 years, then 19 years, & 23 years). During this 47 year career, I mostly considered myself, self employed. IE by setting my own goals, effort, extra hours, etc. This was in a salaried position. The creative part was not only in the projects, but in working within the politics of what was possible in the organization. Many times I stuck my neck out by bucking the system (I knew I was right), and failure meant job loss. However this style worked for me and gave meaning to what I was paid to do.

By: frugalscholar

frugalscholar — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:13:20 +0000

I’m lucky in that my job–prof at low end college–is quite flexible. At this point, I can publish–or not (or at least, not much); I can teach new things–or not. I will soon be at the point where work will be a choice, not b/c I make a high salary, but b/c it is amazing how well one can live on little money (assuming modest housing choice here).

Sometimes I think that people don’t want to know the truth of what you are talking about here because it would open too many choices. For many, it’s easier to stay in bondage to “bills.”

By: Mo

Mo — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:09:33 +0000

@Jason: If you haven’t already done so, maybe consider reading Paul Terhorst’s book ‘Cashing in on the American Dream’. He retired at 35ish, and he wrote a lot about the mental/emotional process of making the decision, and how his friends and family responded, and how he dealt with it. The book is out of print now, but you can get a used one on amazon or similar sites– I got mine for about $5. He wrote the book in the 80s, so some of the financial stuff is a bit dated, also you have to adjust for inflation with regard to his numbers (just multiply by 2– close enough).

By: Mo

Mo — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:04:11 +0000

One reason I work toward early retirement is a desire to continue my work without pay, or without requiring pay. I don’t think of my job as “awesome” though. I would describe it more as rewarding.

I am conflicted a bit though because I don’t know if I can fully separate the pay from the responsibility. That is, will I feel less responsible to do a good job without pay? Also, I often think that these desires are just me being idealistic, and that the first whiff of conflict or missed vacation day will bring an end to my niavete.

Fortunately, I have a few years to figure it out…

By: Jason Phipps

Jason Phipps — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:01:04 +0000

My story is pretty identical to tlblack’s and stephanie’s. I work as a graphic artist in the advertising industry. I got where I am by having loads of ambition and a strong work ethic. The truth is, my self-worth was tied into my job performance. But eventually that love passion turned into hate passion.

I resent that my creative energy is used up by the end of the day. I yearn to work on my own ideas and projects, but after a mind-numbing 9-to-12 hour day of corporate retardedness, I can’t even remember what I was excited about in the first place. Now, I only care about the paycheck. My productivity has plummeted, and I’m surly at work.

I’ve tried to quit. I put in my resignation about once a year. The plan is always the same, to take on stimulating seasonal work, usually outside, and freelance in the off season. But, I get cold feet, and people with “my best interests in mind” manage to convince me that my dreams are unrealistic.

That’s why I visit this blog daily…It reminds me that I’m not alone, and that dreams ARE possible.

By: Concojones

Concojones — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:31:17 +0000

I haven’t found a job I can be really passionate about, but I still believe it’s possible, so I keep trying, even though it’s tough at times. I mean, in theory, it should be possible to get paid for doing something you love, say a hobby? *thinks of Jacob’s piano story* If you’re starting to hate your paid hobby, you’re probably doing too much stuff you don’t want to do. If that’s true, the solution is work only on the good stuff, and live on less.

By: Jacob

Jacob — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:15:51 +0000

@AlexK – I have never noticed an annual variation in the number of new subscribers. The only correlation I have found is participating a lot of carnivals.

By: AlexK

AlexK — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:10:43 +0000

I like my job 80% of the time but at the start of daylight savings time it’s rough. I see nice sunny weather outside while I’m working inside. I can’t do what I want until it’s dark.

Do you get a lot of new subscribers this time of year? I’m guessing so.

By: Jacob

Jacob — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 07:54:20 +0000

@tlblack – I was in a similar situation. A creative job based on an “up or out”-model. More work resulted in the next position, not higher pay, because the competition was very high. And if you’re not thinking about the work 100% of the time in such a situation, you might as well forget it because someone else will. Ditto for 12hr days. Regardless, the direct problem is that there’s little creativity left after work (because work never stops). Of course creativity is not exhausted like that. A more nefarious problem are creative jobs that do not allow you to think about anything else during “work hours” even though the inspiration may suddenly strike.

By: Marcy

Marcy — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 01:50:51 +0000

stephanie said: “Maybe I’m overly cynical, but I just don’t buy into that idea. When there’s money involved, the work must ultimately become tainted somehow. I.e. compromises must be made, businesses must stay afloat, original visions get corroded over time. I’m not sure there’s ever a perfect job or an ultimate passion.”

I agree totally. I like what I do for a living, but I don’t jump out of bed eager to start my day. I’ve had jobs that made me miserable, depressed, and suicidal, so I’m happy to have something that I like.

I do have a couple hobbies that I’m paasionate about, but I really don’t think it would bode well to try to make money doing them. The spark would be gone, and like you said, too many compromises.

By: alyssa

alyssa — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:54:53 +0000

Great post! “Money is not the only solution” Just the reminder i needed!

By: tlblack

tlblack — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:47:33 +0000

Stephanie–for me, I don’t even know if it’s the money that is the problem–at least for me. But I was in education, so it’s really not a question of ‘do it this way and make more money.’ Although sometimes because of my specific field it was ‘be THE BEST at what you do or loose your job.’ Talk about an energy drain.

Also, the thing about creativity and creative work (at least for me) is that I’ll ruminate on them ALL THE TIME. If I’m brushing my teeth, sleeping, cooking, running whatever, the creative activity I’m focused on will be running in the back of my mind. If the creative activity is my novel, then fine, that’s actually kind of fun to think about and I get good ideas that way. Same thing goes with my blog or pottery etc.

If the creative activity takes me back to work except I’m supposed to be sleeping or spending time with DH, that’s BAD. I think that’s the thing, work gets a free ride on the creative process and uses it to intrude into your life–well, at least my life.

You also mentioned doing something directly related to your survival in order to have it become meaningful. I know what you mean. I love gardening, cooking–and now that I’m not working–finding new ways to be frugal. It’s work because it contributes to our survival, but it’s something I enjoy more than doing work for pay.

By: seb

seb — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:29:36 +0000

@Jacob

The people may think that there job is awesome because their mind changes their perception about the job they have. See this video, where this is described http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_gilbert_asks_why_are_we_happy.html