Thomasthetank

I dunno, but one piece of advice I would give you is not to chase something for money alone. I did that, I think as a big **** you" to my homeless years, now I have money and no time to spend it. Instead I spend all day in a job I hate. You need enough to eat, pay rent/bills and enough to keep yourself entertained and go for a cup of coffee with your friends. That car and 50 gazillion inch tv? A lot of people want to make you think you need those things, but they are using you to ironically fill their own void with cash.

Pick a lifestyle, not a salary.

grubby

To all the people beating themselves up in this thread, remember....... a lot of this isn't your fault. I struggle with these same existential thoughts from time to time myself, thankfully I am still in my 20's so i suppose i still have "time on my side"........... but still, the "what will i do with my life?" question pops up in my head here and there.

The truth is, the world is a very different place now - it's certainly not as stable of a place as it used to be. The concept of a "career" just seems to fade a little more with each passing year. The truth is a significant number of people don't really have "careers" these days in the sense of something that lasts 20-30 years without any hiccups/employment gaps along the way. Instead most people have a "job" nowadays, which is not the same thing as a "career".

What is the answer?

Go back for more school/degrees?

Try the army?

Try for a government job?

There are no easy answers when you think about it....... so don't beat yourself up because it is likely there are millions asking themselves these kinds of questions in private right about now.

herradura

Grubby What complicates these types of decisions is often the fact that experience has shown us a plan must be in place. Without a plan, often people wander, and while wandering is good for exercise, it harms progress.

There are no easy answers. I have found in the last 5 weeks on this site I again have become introspective of my life. Before, it was a party 3 to 4 times a week. Now that I am getting that out of my life, the questions of value are entering my mind.

I would really like to study the addictive brain and how it affects peoples decisions making. I guess I will study this as it is something to do. In my case if it will kill me, I will do it. Food, drugs, alcohol, sleep, speed(driving not drug), nicotine. I wonder if there is a causal effect to having a brain like this? Do people who have an addictive brain also become more existential when they sober up. Or do they drink and drug to alleviate the stress and anxiety of having these thoughts of "what the hell am I going to do with my life".

BTW in my 20's I went back to school to get a grad degree. It was costly, but one of the best things I ever did in my life as it taught me how to think differently than I had before grad school.

You are correct IRT careers etc. The world is a changing!! In the 80's and early 90's the career thing also changed where people no longer worked until a pension. Now it has gotten even worse, perhaps better?