New to the program

[Harold]

Hello, all.

I'm new to this and was wondering if there was anyone else in a similar position. I'm a 23 y.o. with an engineering bachelor's degree. I've realized that I don't want a 9-5 type dry career. Currently, I've got a few thousand in college loans/charges and work at a hotel to pay the bills. However, I've got a lot of free time. Bit of a heterodox, but a good guy and wondering what you guys did to get motivated. Trying to figure out what to do w/ the rest of my life. Regards,


Harold

[kamakiri]

Get out and get some experience. Why are you working at a hotel with an engineering degree? For me 23 was a great age, I felt like I knew everything, but really didn't have the first clue about life and living. At 23 it is really tough to find a good mentor to teach you some of the ropes about going out on your own.

You will have a hard time through out your life if you can't get yourself motivated. The good news is that it gets easier the more you do it. It is one of those habits that is like interest. It compounds on itself, making it much easier the more you do it.

Try reading a few books to expand your horizons as well. Some of the best are How to Win Friends and Influence People - by Dale Carnegie
Think and Grow Rich - by Napoleon Hill
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - by Stephen Covey

Think and Grow rich is out of copyright, here is a great free version: http://www.soilandhealth.org/03sov/0304spiritpsych/030413.Hill.Think.and.Grow.Rich.pdf

Hope that gives you a start.

[Harold]

Thanks for the kick in the pants. I've heard about the Steven Covey book, I'll check out those books.

[caustin]

You really need to quickly figure out what you'd like to do.

Years ago I would have been all over you for not putting your degree to work. But, as a person who has an MS in Physics and no longer working in the field I'd feel like a hypocrite.

If you don't think you want to do the 9-5 thing; don't. I hated it, and was never a committed employee because of it.

However, I've got a lot of free time.

Great, make the most of it. I wasted my free time when I was younger in front of the Playstation.

Trying to figure out what to do w/ the rest of my life.

You really don't have to commit yourself like that. Personally, I've found that the things I love to do change more often than I realized. If anything figure out what you want to do now and set your sights on that. You can always adjust your course as you go.

Good luck.

[webgal]

I will say that some experience in the engineering field might spark some ideas for a future business of some sort. Perhaps a b2b idea (business to business). A lot of the contract firms are always looking for engineers. And they travel to some pretty neat locations. If you were to work for one of those, there might be an opportunity in Belgium or whatever. As you're in the industry, look around. There are probably many muse ideas waiting to be executed.

[jonparker83]

Some similarities and differences between us two...

I'm also 23, 1 year out of uni but I'm working 9-5 at the moment and not having enough spare time is one of my biggest problems

I take motivation from the existence I'll have to face if I don't get out employment now... The only alternative to not being successful with my 'muses' is what everyone else currently does which, as I see it, is work so that you can afford the house you live in and the car you drive, so that you can get to work and have a roof over your head, so that you can work to pay for the house you live in and the car you drive, so you can get to work... etc etc etc (vicious cycle)

I've had some time out of the country while I was at university, and was fortunate enough to spent five months in Thailand over two summers with a friend doing a WIDE range of activities.

This included tsunimi relief volunteer work, completing my F.R.E.E Master Freediver award, and all sorts of other experiences like bathing elephants, full moon beach parties, surfing, spearfishing and getting literally face to face with a whale shark (one of the most amazing experiences of my life)

So for me it's easy... I've got my dream life out there, or an boring existence if I carry on along my current path

[jonparker83]

Quote:
Trying to figure out what to do w/ the rest of my life.
You really don't have to commit yourself like that. Personally, I've found that the things I love to do change more often than I realized. If anything figure out what you want to do now and set your sights on that. You can always adjust your course as you go.

This really rings true for me as well... I could quite easily plan where I want to go and what i want to do for a few years but after that I haven't got a clue

What is important for me though isn't knowing what i DO want to do for the rest of my life, but knowing what i definitely DON'T want to do

[Christoph]

I’m in the same boat. Just graduated with two degrees, and do not use them one bit. Ahh, I love debt with no purpose. Essentially I have two pieces of paper with my name on them. If I remember, I got those in pre-school if I did good.

Anyways, the biggest kick to my balls was realizing that (I’m 23 also) I have almost 42 more years left of working, provided I stick to the conventional 65 year retirement age.

HELL NO!!!

My biggest weakness is thinking that I have to have my life planned out by next week. Once I realize that I am in fact VERY young (In the overall scheme of life), I ease up just a bit. I am with a decent company now, although I am constantly looking for somewhere to make more money and use my skills. Hell, I am debating whether or not to try something completely new just to get out of the funk I’m in. I don’t know exactly what I want to do yet, and I don’t want to dedicated years upon years to something I think I might like, only to find out that it is not for me.

Most of all, my biggest fear is not being able to live my life to its fullest. Again, life is meant to be experienced; not confined by the norms and expectations of tradition. For not being military or wealthy, I’ve experienced some incredible things in my life, and as I grow older, I want those experiences to continue. If I could retire at 30, I would do it in a heartbeat.

Taking the first step will always be the hardest.

[Harold]

Thanks for the words of encouragement. I've done enough 9-5 to know it sucks. I'm doing the news fast thing, used to spend time on political websites/talk radio. It certainly does change my perspective.

:)

[cchapman84]

Wow, lots of 23 year olds on the board here. I'm 23 as well, and unlike what it seems many of your did, I didn't bother finishing college, and so only have one year worth of college loans to pay off instead of 4! I also was in college at 16, so I've been out of school and living on my own for over six years now (not including time living in the dorms). I've had one failed business, one semi-successful business, that I just got bored with, and have had the same full time job for the past three years (in publishing). I am working on two different muses at the moment, and will be test marketing very soon. I'm hoping to have complete automated income set up for both my husband and I by spring, and to be done with the whole 9-5 routine.

I guess for me the big motivation is that I love where I live (northern VT), but opportunities here whether you have a college degree or not are very limited. Pretty much the only career option if you want to make decent money is to either be a doctor, lawyer or banker. I have no interest in any of the above. I do have quite a bit of web experience, and my husband is a web designer/developer, so we've got that going for us. I just don't want to spend the rest of my life in the same job. I've pretty much gone as far as I can at my current company (I've outlasted every other person in the company who isn't family, with the exception of one part-time employee - everyone else has been laid off). And I've figured out that work isn't really that satisfying for me. I would rather spend my time traveling, writing (without having to make a living at it), and volunteering.

Just figure out what your dream life would be. You can even separate a bit from what Tim suggests and plan a bit further ahead than 6-12 months (just keep it very broad). I know that in six months I want to have sold my current house and upgrade to a larger, nicer home with a lot more land (I'm currently in a 2400 square foot home in town, nice but we're still working on fixing it up - the kitchen and bathroom were both a nightmare when we bought the place, the kitchen is now great, and the only bathroom is about half gutted at the moment!). I also know that I want to buy a Jaguar next year (XK, about $50K on eBay), and that's about it. I also want to have time to spend with my husband and our families. We currently work 40+ hours a week (I do a lot of freelancing, so I work closer to 80 hours a week, but some of that is from home), and we have almost 2 hours worth of commute every day too (we carpool). I'd be happy working four hours a day, let alone working four hours a week.

Sorry if this rambled a bit, hopefully it's at least a little helpful.

[Harold]

cchapman:

Really impressive, only 23 and your own home and everything? :O Question: Do you regret not getting the degree? I'm going to get a job at the mall in order to build some quick income. My rent's low (Oklahoma) and I don't really have any other expenses, and I'll also have time to think about my muse. Thanks for the post. Regards,



Harold

[whiteblaze]

I read this book when I was 23 and it changed my life and my career in Mgmt seemed to really take off. I have made it a habbit to go back and re-read it or listen to it on audio at least once a year. If the whole world would read this book I dare to believe things would be a "bit" different! Whiteblaze