Dream jobs

A lot of my friends seem in various levels of disappointment/distaste/dissatisfaction with their jobs. Some of them don't have jobs at all. Some of them just got laid off.  Whatever way you put it, it sucks and I feel sad for them that they can't be happy in their careers considering how highly I think of them.

It got me thinking about how lucky I am because I really truly love my job. If you had asked me when I left my last job what I wanted my next job to be, it would be the job I have now. No, seriously. The only thing I would tweak is that it would be nice to see my coworkers face to face, but let's be real... working in your pajamas ain't too bad either.

I was talking to Katie tonight and I think there are a few different reasons my friends don't like their jobs. Some of it is normal stress that comes with any job. I have it too ... I work long hours sometimes, and sometimes things don't go my way. But that's life. Some of it is stress going on outside the job that affects the job itself. Sometimes they are under-appreciated or underpaid or they have a terrible boss. And sometimes they just hate their jobs.

I really firmly believe you don't have to hate your job or take a job you don't want. I've only had one job I truly hated: the month I worked writing hockey cards for Upper Deck. I hated it because I was doing the exact same thing every day, I wasn't allowed to be creative and what I was doing I wasn't interested in at all. I really liked the people I worked with though, and I got paid a decent wage. But I couldn't stand to stay there longer than the month I did. So I did everything I could to get out, and I did, finding a job as a sports reporter. And I stayed at that job as long as I enjoyed it. Then I left.

I made it my mission for over eight months to get my current job. Before I was offered this job, I was offered a job for a Boston book publisher. My job would have involved reading, editing and producing textbooks. I didn't want the job at all, I was just fearful I wouldn't get my current job and I needed money. I was put in a position where I had to decide to turn down that job without being officially offered anything from my current job. It was a tough choice to make but again, it wasn't really. I wanted to find a job I was really happy with. And I made sacrifices to make that happen, even if it means I'm still righting the financial ship after six months of unemployment.

I'm not sure what I'm getting at here. I'm not trying to make it sound like I try harder than anyone. I know one of my friends has tried as hard as he could and can't seem to catch a break. And I know how hard dream jobs are to come by in these times. 

But I would like my faithful blog readers to let me know what your dream job is in the comments, and then I want you to think about why you don't have that job. Maybe think about getting that job in 2009.

I mean 'dream job' as in a realistic thing. Obviously I'd love to be a VP with a private jet and an infinite bank account. My current job is my dream job of the moment. I want to stay put at the company I'm at indefinitely and my dream is to go up as far as possible. 

So give it up.