Do you love what do you do for work? Tell me about it 😅 I’m thinking about a total career pivot, going back to school etc… and looking for inspiration

Question

Clara · Answer

Derrick Bell’s “Ethical Ambition”: Not about my career exactly, but given your question I thought this might be of interest for you!

Jess · Answer

Transformational play: I have my dream job: designing and studying transformational play experiences, teaching game design, and training some truly amazing students (two of whom are shown here!). My workday might include writing, advising my doctoral students, teaching, research planning, playtesting a new game, or consulting with our non-academic partners.

What I love most about my job: watching people play something I've made, and hearing back how it affected them.

What's most frustrating about my job: the current political climate, in particular how it is affecting my students and my team.

You don't have to be in academia to work on transformational play, which is good because American academia is in crisis. I have colleagues in industry, the non-profit world, and (formerly) government. You do, however, need to develop both your play literacy and your taste in games. It's easy to fall into the trap of "let's add points, badges, and levels" when you're designing a playful transformational experience. Your job is to think harder and dig deeper than what's on the surface; a good grounding in cognitive psychology, social psychology, and sociology will help.

Hellomotto · Answer

Government Tech Sales + Hospitality service business owner: I have grown into my career and can say now that I’ve found a way to marry the two I love what I get to do for income! Traveling for sales staying in hotels and gathering research on hospitality then transferring that into my actual business and how we present ourselves in servicing guest stays. My parents are still waiting for me to become an attorney tho…😅

Spines, Flicks, and Wax · Answer

Writing Independently: In August 2016 (ten years ago!), I had a short story idea and said, "If this gets picked up, I'm going to pursue writing".

The story was published in this anthology and I've been chasing submissions ever since. Sometimes I write a piece and look for the right fit while other times, I browse submission calls and take a stab at something outside my comfort zone.

Originally, I thought I was going to stick with only horror but I realized writers, especially in the present day, don't have to pigeonhole themselves. Go where the story is and everything else will fall into place.

I work part-time at a public library and write on the side, hoping to one day write full-time...but, I'm not in a hurry 😊 I love juggling both because I love the social aspect of helping library patrons and love unwinding in my writing world.

amber flack · Answer

I chased my side hustle and became a florist! : Now I own the flower shop. It was scary separating myself from the golden handcuffs of my startup job, but my mental health has never been better. I got started doing flowers for fun on the side, took a few classes, and freelanced with some events florists to get an idea for the work.

Sarah Cooney · Answer

Working at a Non-Profit (Museum/Historical Society): I love what I do. I've been in the museum/historical society side of the nonprofit world for most of my career (minus three years in academic publishing). I'm always interested, I feel good about myself and what I'm doing because it's contributing to human knowledge, I can help scholars with funding to research, I get to plan fun events, and I get to do a lot of different things every week which keeps me from getting bored. It's not as well-paid as the private sector, but I also am not stuck in a cubicle all day doing the exact same thing, year after year. There's scope to grow, to develop all sorts of skills, and the benefits are really good--lots of flexibility and time off. Plus, unlike mission-driven non-profits, it's not a place where you are going to feel a lot of pressure to get things done. The day-to-day life of the organization where I work now looks pretty similar to the way it always has (just newer technology). Highly recommend! I feel like I have a great work/life balance.

Sara Quinn · Answer

Being a teacher: Hear me out. I’m fifteen years in and I’m really good at it. I no longer need to bring work home. I have a specialized position so I’m not teaching a class all day long, I work with small groups. While my friends with corporate jobs stress out, I have never been laid off. I love what I do, it’s meaningful and fun. I get to be myself at work with my students and colleagues. We live life together and I love the rhythm of the school year. It’s super creative. I have the best time off of any profession I can think of and I conceptualize it as being paid in time instead of money. My schedule coordinates with my kid. And honestly the money is not terrible depending where you live and the degrees you have. I feel really proud of the work I do and I have space for my life. Just saying… picture of my first year teaching back in 2011 🥹

Rita Zwiefel-Macdonald · Answer

Learning & Development: I previously worked in higher education as a career counselor + have my master’s in higher education/curriculum development, which I got in my mid-20s — and recently pivoted to corporate leadership training! I essentially teach adults soft skills in hour-long workshops and support early career development.

I love nonlinear career paths and I’m proud of mine. Every experience is a stepping stone, getting you closer to your next move! I’ve worked in restaurants and coffee shops, nonprofits, education, and now MEP construction & somehow it all fits together. There’s a podcast I love called Second Life that interviews women who have made major career pivots and it’s so inspiring!

Brigid · Answer

finding something easy for your brain: I’ve done ~4 significant work pivots, and even though I have loved and cared about other work more, UX content design has been such a straightforward place for my mind to slip into. I understand how it works intuitively, and I think that is true for many writers and editors, which means my colleagues are thoughtful and fun word-people. It’s great having a job that makes sense with people I like.

SammyBoBammy · Answer

Having a boss who is nice and normal: This is the only thing that matters. At least for me personally, it turns out that I don’t care what I do all day as long as my coworkers are cool and my boss is normal.