A few months ago, someone started a thread whose exact subject now escapes me, but the discussion evolved into one about the state of peoples' lives once they've finally "made it" by finishing school and/or finding a job. People were being very honest about their insecurities, concerns and disappointments.
A friend of a friend recently brought up this very same subject. She talked about being in the throws of a "quarter-life crisis." She has a degree in biology from the University of Toronto, but can barely make ends meet, because it's so hard to find work. She resents that when she can find work, her employers make unreasonable demands that compromise her sense of personal integrity. She can't seem to find a healthy compromise between happiness and survival--and it's driving her crazy.
As I talk to more and more people, I realize that this sentiment permeates the thoughts and feelings of so many people. They seem surprised that they're not the only ones who feel that way--as if they've brushed it off by convincing themselves that they're just being unreasonable or picky.
When I was in high school, "they" promised us that if we "worked hard," went to university, and earned a degree, we would get a "good job" working in the feilds that interested us. They promised us that if we did all that, we would have the opportunity to fuse our passion into a profession that would secure our futures and promote a sense of personal satisfaction. Instead, so many of the people I know find themselves lost. (get it?)
They finished university and discovered that their degree has gained them almost zero advantage, because so many people have one. Some, feeling the lack of demand for their skills and passions, decide the only thing to do is continue going to school. They give their money to a graduate school in the hopes that the extra qualification would open more doors. When they get close to finishing, they discover that they are staring down the very same barrel as before: no opportunities for meaningful and rewarding work. So they accept "internships" and allow themselves to be over-worked and exploited for virtually no compensation--again in the hope that yet another sacrifice will bring them closer to an existence in which they can find some validation.
I'm about to finish a degree in International Relations at UofT--it's supposed to very prestigious and whatever--and I have no clue what on earth to do. The obvious suggestions are very unpalatable: work for the government. (They suck you into this huge bureaucracy that does sees you as a unit of human-resource. The diplomatic corps, for example, does not consider what part of the world you have specialized in: you get sent wherever they need someone, regardless of your expertise, and to avoid getting too "attached", they move you ever few years.) The other options--like journalism, social work, therapy, intelligence analysis, etc--require a level graduate certification for positions that offer career mobility.
Deafplayer summed it up really well once, "Can we do some good work, please?" While I do not suffer from any doubt about my intellectual capacity, I feel a tiny bit humiliated to bei n this position. I feel that way because it seems like I've been wasting my time--and my family's money--by enthusiastically pursuing a subject that really motivates me. At least it's not a degree in history, eh?
Many of you are older and already have jobs, but you're not satisfied with them. You thought you would be, but find yourselves recognizing that either the compensation is inadequate, or the demands are too high. Many of you have the visceral--even if fleeting--knowledge that "making it" has come at an unacceptable cost in terms basic human social needs. Many people admit to feeling isolated and adrift—not knowing what to do with themselves--despite having found a career. Unfortunately, I also notice people running away from that uncomfortable dissonance and succumbing to patterns of functional addiction: I remember someone remarking that they drink more now than when they were students.
So what are we gonna do? Have you older types come up with anything interesting?
A friend of a friend recently brought up this very same subject. She talked about being in the throws of a "quarter-life crisis." She has a degree in biology from the University of Toronto, but can barely make ends meet, because it's so hard to find work. She resents that when she can find work, her employers make unreasonable demands that compromise her sense of personal integrity. She can't seem to find a healthy compromise between happiness and survival--and it's driving her crazy.
As I talk to more and more people, I realize that this sentiment permeates the thoughts and feelings of so many people. They seem surprised that they're not the only ones who feel that way--as if they've brushed it off by convincing themselves that they're just being unreasonable or picky.
When I was in high school, "they" promised us that if we "worked hard," went to university, and earned a degree, we would get a "good job" working in the feilds that interested us. They promised us that if we did all that, we would have the opportunity to fuse our passion into a profession that would secure our futures and promote a sense of personal satisfaction. Instead, so many of the people I know find themselves lost. (get it?)
They finished university and discovered that their degree has gained them almost zero advantage, because so many people have one. Some, feeling the lack of demand for their skills and passions, decide the only thing to do is continue going to school. They give their money to a graduate school in the hopes that the extra qualification would open more doors. When they get close to finishing, they discover that they are staring down the very same barrel as before: no opportunities for meaningful and rewarding work. So they accept "internships" and allow themselves to be over-worked and exploited for virtually no compensation--again in the hope that yet another sacrifice will bring them closer to an existence in which they can find some validation.
I'm about to finish a degree in International Relations at UofT--it's supposed to very prestigious and whatever--and I have no clue what on earth to do. The obvious suggestions are very unpalatable: work for the government. (They suck you into this huge bureaucracy that does sees you as a unit of human-resource. The diplomatic corps, for example, does not consider what part of the world you have specialized in: you get sent wherever they need someone, regardless of your expertise, and to avoid getting too "attached", they move you ever few years.) The other options--like journalism, social work, therapy, intelligence analysis, etc--require a level graduate certification for positions that offer career mobility.
Deafplayer summed it up really well once, "Can we do some good work, please?" While I do not suffer from any doubt about my intellectual capacity, I feel a tiny bit humiliated to bei n this position. I feel that way because it seems like I've been wasting my time--and my family's money--by enthusiastically pursuing a subject that really motivates me. At least it's not a degree in history, eh?
Many of you are older and already have jobs, but you're not satisfied with them. You thought you would be, but find yourselves recognizing that either the compensation is inadequate, or the demands are too high. Many of you have the visceral--even if fleeting--knowledge that "making it" has come at an unacceptable cost in terms basic human social needs. Many people admit to feeling isolated and adrift—not knowing what to do with themselves--despite having found a career. Unfortunately, I also notice people running away from that uncomfortable dissonance and succumbing to patterns of functional addiction: I remember someone remarking that they drink more now than when they were students.
So what are we gonna do? Have you older types come up with anything interesting?
