What is your job?

[Crossbreed]

I am a semi-retired electronic tech/programmer. I get disability and deliver free papers. I am a caregiver for my daughter and an unofficial one for my wife.

...if you want to make a career of programming is that every 10 years or so, most of what you know will become irrelevant, and you'll need to learn the next thing.

I have learned multiple languages. They change, but programming techniques change only superficially, if at all.

 

[puzzlingbill]

... I have learned multiple languages. They change, but programming techniques change only superficially, if at all.

I agree. Over time, I developed what I thought of as an understanding of how the machine thinks and how to communicate with it, and some of that is constant. What's changed radically, with changes in technology, is the environment in which it happens. It used to be that an application's processing happened in one place. Now it can happen all over the world, small bits at a time, so you have to handle the logic in a completely different way.

 

[hiraeth]

I struggled with this a lot over the years, but these days I see it as quite a positive thing.

I'm notoriously bad with change (aren't most of us?) but I was unfortunately born as a "young person" into an era where the pace of change is accelerating - in everything, everywhere - and given such a lot in life where many of the ways that others have managed to organise their life arrangements to minimise the amount of impact that environmental change (in the short-to-medium term, anyhow; I've come to doubt there is any long-term strategy which is guaranteed) affects their life directly is completely inaccessible to me. This has caused me despair and misery in every aspect of my life, everywhere I turned - survival is demanding something of me that seems to be my greatest weakness / shortcoming, and every year for the rest of my life, which has just begun.... it's going to get harder. Then I looked at my job and felt that this just made everything worse.

I remember having gone to social anxiety support groups where people talked about taking a job in sales to overcome their social anxiety; and that it somehow worked because it was "a job" and they could see themselves as just playing a role (or a game) without as much of the limiting, hardened concepts of "self" that would stand in the way if they were to for example practice talking to strangers as themselves, not as a role. Then I tried to think of my job the same way - I am practicing flexibility and comfort with change within this defined role - and I can't quit the moment I feel the slightest discomfort because my livelihood depends on it, so I have to keep going... until, ever so slowly, this giant weakness of mine is learning to become less weak. I am sort of getting better at my job - but much more so, getting better at living, and making sense of the modern world.

It's good, I'm glad I stumbled into this career by total accident.

 

[puzzlingbill]

I struggled with this a lot over the years, but these days I see it as quite a positive thing.

I'm notoriously bad with change (aren't most of us?) but I was unfortunately born as a "young person" into an era where the pace of change is accelerating - in everything, everywhere - and given such a lot in life where many of the ways that others have managed to organise their life arrangements to minimise the amount of impact that environmental change (in the short-to-medium term, anyhow; I've come to doubt there is any long-term strategy which is guaranteed) affects their life directly is completely inaccessible to me. This has caused me despair and misery in every aspect of my life, everywhere I turned - survival is demanding something of me that seems to be my greatest weakness / shortcoming, and every year for the rest of my life, which has just begun.... it's going to get harder. Then I looked at my job and felt that this just made everything worse.

I remember having gone to social anxiety support groups where people talked about taking a job in sales to overcome their social anxiety; and that it somehow worked because it was "a job" and they could see themselves as just playing a role (or a game) without as much of the limiting, hardened concepts of "self" that would stand in the way if they were to for example practice talking to strangers as themselves, not as a role. Then I tried to think of my job the same way - I am practicing flexibility and comfort with change within this defined role - and I can't quit the moment I feel the slightest discomfort because my livelihood depends on it, so I have to keep going... until, ever so slowly, this giant weakness of mine is learning to become less weak. I am sort of getting better at my job - but much more so, getting better at living, and making sense of the modern world.

It's good, I'm glad I stumbled into this career by total accident.

I was never in sales, but I realized that "me at work" is a role I play (and different from "me"). That helped me a lot to understand things. Sounds like you got there too. Good for you!

 

[Aeolienne]

I work in the civil service and my job title is "junior developer" which implies software developer, yet I've developed far more software in previous roles where I didn't have that job title.

 

[tducey]

Currently unemployed but I'm an office worker by trade.

 

[Aeolienne]

Currently unemployed but I'm an office worker by trade.

How is that a "trade"?

 

[Mr Allen]

Currently unemployed as of today, but I'm a shop worker by trade (like Mum was most of her working life) having done NVQs (National Vocational Qualifications) in retail and customer service at College.

 

[Moomin]

Field archaeologist. I’ve also done time as an assistant collections curator (I’m the poor person who repairs. Displays). I’m also assisting with tennis coaching.

 

[Bookmaker]

Manager in a government data center. I’d rather be a technician or an analyst.

 

[tlc]

* Worked at Argos.

Not sure if it's the same Argos, but I designed equipment that our shop built for Argos Cement. I've been a mechanical design engineer here for 20 years. Before that I did engineering for another place for a couple years. Before that, I worked in metal fabrication, and some other odd jobs as a kid, like property maintenance, dishwasher, and woodworking assistant.

 

[Highway Cowboy]

I've been through several jobs so far and am now stationary as a singer. Now before I go any further let me explain. I sing, but not like a proper singer say like Adele. I'm not famous. I'm popular in my village which is nice but nowhere near starlight fame...

In my village I get paid to sing. Last year I did a live performance in the park on Christmas Eve and I usually do birthday parties, weddings and retirement parties. I like singing for older people as they tend to prefer music done by people like Elvis Presley, which is great because he's one of my favourite singers and my voice is similar to his - which is hilarious because when I speak my voice is so soft and gentle, most people look so surprised when I start singing

My work brings in good money, and maybe one day if I can cope with big crowds and the pressure I might look at trying to become a bigger singer in the world. But for now I am happy where I am currently

Other jobs I've done.

* Worked for an opticians called A303 Optical Services.
* Mortician's assistant.
* Medical laboratory technician.
* Worked at Morrisons.
* Worked at Argos.

It is absolutely lovely that you are doing a job that you enjoy and are passionate about and making a living from it. Somebody once said to me that if you do a job you love you'll never work another day in your life.
I have done several jobs in the past including Firefighter, store manager, bus and coach driver and for the past few years I do a job I now love, I'm a HGV truck driver.
I have always loved and been obsessed with trucks, lorries and anything to do with Trucking since I was fresh out of the womb so I suppose it was inevitable i would end up driving them. For me it is the perfect job as I love trucks, being an Aspie I find I hate being around people so being sat on my own in my cab is ideal. I get to listen to whatever I choose on the stereo, I find talk radio suits me as I find radio music irritating. I also get well paid for going to some really beautiful places and get to see some wonderful places I would otherwise never get to visit. Being sat high up in my truck also gives me a feeling of being in control, the office don't tend to bother me once I'm out so I'm pretty much left to it.
I couldn't think of anything worse than being stuck working in an office for 8 hours a day looking at the same old drab dreary faces, discussing paper clips and whose turn it is to bring the biscuits in next. That would be my hell on earth.
I'm really happy that you have found something you love doing and I bet you sound Absolutely Awesome aswell. Maybe I'll hear you singing one day

 

[Mr Allen]

I'd love to get more into Python; I have several eBooks on it, along w/ a thick Magazine about it as well, some of the other eBooks I have also explore some other Languages like Erlang, C#, R, Lisp, Haskell, along with one on Ruby

Hi.

I'm trying to learn Python at the moment, I think it was you that sent me that eBook about Python game programming ages ago? Thanks for that, do have any other good beginner friendly books to pass on copies of?

 

[Vindicator Phoenix]

Grocery store: night shift only - cleaning and stocking shelves

I'm not good, at hands-on jobs, but my supervisors and managers appreciate my efforts, so that's good.