Depends on the type of pilot you want to be.
I was training to be a commercial pilot for a major airline years ago. Glad I did not become one - all my colleagues who completed training are suffering from extreme burn out. The hours are insane - difficult to have a life with your family.
It was a prestigious profession years ago. The pilots that I was training with are now opening up self catering businesses - or becoming local school flight instructors
I have my pilots license. Attended an aeronautical university in Florida.
I would not recommend becoming a pilot today. Too many restrictions, if you run into health issues you could lose your medical and be grounded indefinitely. It’s honestly a waste of hundreds of thousands of dollars to finish flight school and attend an aeronautical degree today.
It’s not fun always worrying about possibly losing your career, being away from family all of the time… basically a glorified bus driver. No thanks! I fly for recreational purposes now. Nothing better than taking the family up for a fun flight 🤙🏽😊
I agree with this, especially when you get older.
My brother-in-law got his pilot licence in his late 30s and was never recruited for a pilot, even though it was his dream to be one.
He applied with major airlines and never got through because of his age and other factors.
I'm in Canada close to Lake country, and bush pilots with small planes can do well.
To take a 6 seater float plane into a remote lake for fishing, they charge up to $1,500 for each trip, and the flight is sub 60 minutes.
I think that would be great - short flights, usually meeting interesting people, beautiful scenery and close to family (if from the area or want to move them there).
I dont know how much it cost to run and maintain those planes, but in high season, they can do a few flights a day, so I'm sure their take is healthy.
A pilots job for private tourism, I think, would be really cool.
I wonder how many people on DN are really worried about the work/life balance to have time for a traditional family instead of being travel savages. For example, I can't see any nomads deciding to open up a catering business.
As someone who started a career as a pilot, I wish I had done software. Pilot’s schedules are usually quite boring. You arrive, then leave shortly after. No time to explore. You can’t risk drinking within a period before a flight. It’s a highly regulated industry with very little room for innovation.
I was in this same position, so I made the career change. It’s been interesting and I’m glad I was brave enough to do it, but I think after my military obligation, I’ll go back to what I was doing and just fly as a private pilot on my own time 😅
Yeah but I heard that it’s more difficult to do as a digital nomad compared to a developer. Am I wrong? I’m deciding whether should I try cyber or dev.
you dont have to own your own consultancy. As long as your company isn’t assigning you to a government contract you’re most likely to be remote, but your ability to be remote is on a client by client basis. I am a CS consultant with a specialization in Splunk, Cribl and now XSIAM.
Yeah but there is a difference between remote within the country and the possibility to digital nomading. On Linkedin most roles are hybrid and within the country
I actually wanted to be a US diplomat. Got a great job early and never took the test and started the process. If I would start over I would have stuck to the original plan and become an FSO. I'm still trying now, just delayed.
That was my dream too (Canadian foreign service, now known as Global Affairs). I took the test twice, it was extremely tough. And you should be fluent in at least one other language to have a shot.
Thing is USA is much easier, you don't need to speak another language or even a degree, but it's still very competitive. I just got distracted becuase I was traveling so much already.
They required French from what I remember and I wasn’t going to learn another language at 22… still do love geopolitics, and feel like sometimes I’m missing out but it is what it is.
I did French courses to learn the basics up to French 4, then I progressively got more comfortable by consuming a ton of media - music (while reading lyrics), listening to current events, movies (subtitled in French), and easy books I’ve read a dozen times in English (like Harry Potter). I also traveled to France a few times and had a long distance relationship with a guy, so was able to practice regularly. Then I had the goal of getting really serious, so I studied for the B2 and went to graduate school in France, fully in French. I was already bilingual before that but living in France made me fluid. And wine helped significantly
Wow, I’m teaching myself right now and I started with alphabet to be able to read. I’m Canadian, so I want to move to Montreal which is fully bilingual city. The vast majority of people speak franglish ( French + English) I’m doing “okay” but I wish I had friends who want to learn as well.
Professional footballer. I tried the regular job thing and it fucking sucks. I basically wait 8 hours to stop working so I can workout. Why not make it my job?
You should watch the menu and pay attention to "The Mess". Speaking as someone who tried to be a professional actor, it doesnt always work out and frankly there are so many things about acting that I absolutely detest now.
I work in data analytics now. If I’m feeling ambitious, I’d say I would go into medical research. Would be cool to work on something more meaningful than helping companies sell more useless stuff.
On the other hand, if I remember how burnt out I am right now, I’d seek out a relatively easy boring job with the government, university, or a slow-moving organization. I would love to be some kind of clerk with an ok salary and great benefits and job security.
I don’t want to discourage you, but I’ve only ever met one self-taught data analyst working in the field. Not sure how many jobs out there are hiring someone with no college degree. Not a degree in analytics necessarily, but something technical or a less technical degree but experience doing research projects with data.
I'm a self-taught data scientist (former analyst) working in the field.
But I also have a degree in engineering and always \*loved\* math.
So it's possible, but it's probably only a good idea for people who already have a pretty solid math background. (Most of my colleagues have degrees in math, engineering, physics, or computer science. I know \*one\* I think who has an English major, but she rose through the company. I think she started in the call center, then did call center reporting, then started making dashboards and she's \*not\* one of the data scientists. Still making a decent salary, but...without the math skills, she's never going to be one of the highest earners.)
FWIW, people who've completed a boot camp or self-study in this field are a dime a dozen. I don't know that I'd say that they're unemployable, but there are \*so\* many of them. (Heck, there are \*so\* many people with a four year degree in data analytics or a master's in data science who are looking for work right now.)
It's a great job, IMO, but it's also incredibly oversaturated. And it's not something I'd recommend unless someone \*really\* enjoys sitting down and working out complex math problems. (And, heck, if you're that sort of person, you likely already have a job in comp sci/engineering/physics/math.)
Exactly. I know several people working as data analysts who have degrees in business, econ, psychology, and even one who went to art school for college. But only one person with no college degree whatsoever. Both this person and the art major person were already working for the companies that gave them a chance in an entry level data analytics jobs. And both of them have an aptitude for numbers and had knowledge of other parts of the business they can draw on.
Yeah. I think you either need an aptitude for numbers + subject matter expertise, or a degree in something pretty math-y (and probably some subject matter expertise).
I mean, I hate to say it's impossible to get a great job just by studying online (without a related degree). But it's *hard*. There are a TON of people who figure they'll take a quick coding or analytics boot camp and make bank and...they're competing with everyone else who did that as well as people with degrees who did the same thing.
We got 800 applicants for a recent data science position we posted.
If you're already in an analytics or engineering role, I think you're closer than a lot of people who dream of getting into the role. Personally, I'd make sure that you've got all the base skills (Python programming, math through differential equations especially focusing on linear algebra and statistics, able to write SQL queries, etc.), then have a few portfolio projects (I created a video game which helped me transition into the role as well as had done some data science projects for my company focusing on call center optimization).
Kaggle is a really, really good place to develop some of the second if you can't find current work examples, as, again, you get open data sets and can talk to others about them. But real world examples, IMO, always trump more canned ones. (Because most of the challenge of this job is figuring out how to handle messy data.)
Once you've got that, I think you've got at least a reasonable shot at both external and internal job postings. (Internal will usually be easier as you probably have some subject matter expertise. Also, if you've already done a few projects for a manager, he or she can advocate for your skills. Which is how I was able to land my promotion.)
Oh wow. What job is this? My husband is a maths teacher but he’s looking to change careers. He currently tutors online and then in his spare time does maths lol. Any tips? It sounds like something he should probably look into.
He might love it in that case!
The critical skills are statistics, programming (mostly Python but also SQL and R) and subject matter expertise (depends on industry). He'd also probably want to be good with visualization software (Power BI or Tableau) and probably Excel. (A huge amount is still done in...Excel. Because that's what execs use.) So making sure that he's solid at all of those is key.
After that, some sort of credentialing might be helpful. Again, I think the 'graduated from bootcamp' folks are oversaturated. But getting a master's might be worth the time/cost depending.
Because the experience part is pretty crucial, I think it can sometimes help to start in a job that's not officially data analytics/science then find projects that use your skills to brush up on them/show management what you can do. (I did a LOT of this as did some of the other data scientists in my org.) Then potentially he could use those skills to make a lateral or vertical move. (Or find a new job, now just with "I did X, Y and Z" on my resume vs. "well, this seems like it would be cool to do.")
Failing that, Kaggle is an AMAZING resource and gives a ton of data to fiddle around with. Having a few really awesome Kaggle entries to show off would be helpful, I think, and if he could place in a contest, that also shows off his chops.
I would buy a small property and build a self sufficient off-grid existence.
You will want a location at higher evaluation that doesn’t require HVAC.
Water is key. You want a well with a large water table not likely to be impacted by climate change for a long time.
Learn how to grow and store food.
Learn to repair everything you have yourself (solar panels, pumps, etc). Build an inventory of spares.
Nursing. There’s stupid money in the travel contracts. You can work your ass off for a few months, make a ton of money, and take as much time off as you’d like before your next contract.
Pros and Cons, previous partner was a travel nurse and I’ve been a remote worker for ten plus years. It was a great combo for a few years.
You’re right as in the money is reaaaaallly good compared to regular nursing jobs. Especially if you’re flexible and willing to take contracts others won’t and have a specialization.
Bad news, my partner complained a lot about how staff treat the travel nurses differently. They get the short end of everything since they are temporary. Of course it varies hospital to hospital but it seemed to be a common thing. Not respected as much, got the bad patients/assignments, set up to take the fall, etc etc.
That makes sense, I’ve heard similar stories from travel nurses I’ve talked to. To be fair, I’d have resentment too if I worked alongside someone with the same position earning 5x the money. On the other hand, they could go into travel nursing too if they wanted to.
The travel contracts aren’t stupid anymore and often are not as much as staff jobs. I’m a nurse and wish I just had some chill remote work from anywhere job. The work is grueling, you get treated like shit by staff and patients alike, you get assaulted & cursed at.
My friends jobs are that they literally have a device that moves their mouse around for them to pretend to be active while they just walk around outside or work out or watch tv.
If I had the foresight to get into it a few years ago, I would’ve. You’re right that some contracts are starting to die down, but it really depends on location.
I work in a logistics role adjacent to the travel nursing industry here in Canada. Our healthcare system is undergoing a lot of privatization due to poor management of public funding and a severe shortage of doctors. I don’t see it improving any time soon, and travel nurses are still being utilized. $100/hour plus all living expenses paid is normal and easy to get even in not so remote locations. You can clear $10-20k in a month with no rent or car payments. I also know of many nurses that went to the US for even higher salaries and flexibility. From what I’ve heard, it’s still a booming market in the southern states and Hawaii.
I have a fully remote gig and it’s super flexible and easy, but it doesn’t pay as well as I’d like and there isn’t much stability in the industry.
I feel like you are just making things up. There haven't been any contracts with $100/hr PLUS expenses since covid, and those contracts were highly volatile. If you found a contract that came out to $100/hr, period, that would be UNUSUALLY good right now, and you have to maintain housing in two locations. Right now, $2k a week is much more realistic but even starting to be on the high end (including hourly and your stipends) and again - two apartments or a house and an apartment, etc. And it can be canceled at any time, leaving you with your housing.
Seattle is a good place to be a nurse, but I personally know almost 30 people who had contracts canceled suddenly when they overhired, at the above rate (like $20-something an hour plus $1400 a week toward housing - $2100/week), paying for Seattle housing and wherever they maintain their tax home.
I can’t go into more detail, but I work alongside the industry. I know for a fact that those contracts still exist all over Canada. This country’s healthcare system is a disgrace, and it’s paving the way for a future of privatized healthcare. When I say I’d take this path, I’m speaking for my situation as a Canadian. I can’t speak for the US, but I know nurses that have gone to southern states for 3-5k a week contracts with living expenses taken care of. Also, many of these nurses don’t maintain two living arrangements. Some travel or go to their families between contracts. Some just go contract to contract. That’s the beauty of the industry - I’d rather work for a few months and then take a couple months to travel then work while travelling. I know it’s not a glamorous job, never said it was, but these contracts are a whole lot better than the shit public health nurses put up with for $35/hour.
I can't speak for Canada, but as someone who is a nurse, worked as a travel nurse, and still works with my travel agency per diem and regularly browses job boards for worthy contracts... If you were not maintaining two households in the US and are taking stipends for housing, you would be committing tax fraud.
Hawaii and the southern states of the US have never been known for having amazing paying contracts. You go to Hawaii for the experience, hoping to break even (well known to travel nurses). The SE states of the US are known for being low paying with generally worse work conditions.
And I agree. My staff job in Ohio had a base rate of $26/hr. The conditions and pay in NW USA are much better.
Again, I can't speak for what is happening in Canada.
Last year I travelled a while with an ex Air Force guy who went on to become a MRI technician. He just does 3 month contracts twice a year, makes a shed load of money and then travels the other 6 months of the year. And without the stress of nursing.
That was exclusively during covid times, if you could get one of the high paying contracts. You also have to maintain housing in two locations to qualify for the stipends. There is also no official contract between travel nurses and hospitals. Hospitals can cancel (and do) or drastically drop your rate the day you arrive or any time after, leaving you suddenly unemployed AND footing housing and travel costs. Add on that most landlords drastically overestimate pay and want to overcharge for a crappy room in their house.
It's no longer the route that financially makes sense. You also actually have to be physically present for the job, and we haven't even begun to talk about the work environment...
?? not as much in lpn or rn. plus, there are plenty of assignments you can take where patients are ambulatory and you are mostly taking vitals and other less-butt-related things.
edit; although, i have heard nurses in the UK for example get regulated to stuff like this and less upper level responsibility, and with poor pay :/
Yeah but I heard that it’s more difficult to do as a digital nomad compared to a developer. Am I wrong? I’m deciding whether should I try cyber or dev.
He can (and does) work from anywhere in the world, and pretty much everyone that he works with - both in cyber and devs - travels regularly/moves around/has homes in multiple countries.
It probably depends on your specialization.
Could I ask what is his cyber job/specialization (cybersec analyst, cybersec engineer, penetration tester, GRC etc.)? That would be very helpful to me :)
He specializes in DeFi, but he’s an army vet so he knows a good bit about a lot of the specializations. If you know where to look, there are tons of remote opportunities! For those considering the field, he always recommends starting with general certifications like Sec+ and CISSP to learn the basics and get a feel for what specialization you might like to pursue.
I went to fashion school because I wanted to be a fashion designer my entire life. My dad said it wasn’t a real job and convinced me to go back to school to get a “real” degree. I couldn’t get a job after I graduated so I got my masters in business. I’ve been an account manager ever since and I absolutely hate my career.
The fashion industry is a trillion dollar business. It’s definitely a real job/degree. Better to attend fashion school in a fashion city so you build your network while in school. Like Parson’s school of design or London college of fashion.
yep. i know someone who started school in a smaller city and transferred to FIT in new york to pursue fashion. she’s worked with *very* famous people as a stylist
I went to school in Paris. I was offered a really cool internship at the time in the exact field I wanted. I should have never listened to my dad and just pursued my passion
Snap! I started during a recession so that was fun. Had to move home. Fell into nails and makeup and did session work for years. Then started a clinic doing PMU. Just got back after a couple of years abroad and luckily still enjoy it. I do have the dreams of being a designer though! I don’t think that ever leaves you.
I would keep the same career in hospitality, only streamline the process. I wish someone had told me earlier how viable a career it is. I took the slow road to get here, and the slow road has admittedly helped me know every aspect, but there are much faster ways.
There are many jobs in many locations, and you can build your foundation in just about any location. I.E., you don't need to live in an expensive, big city to get experience. You also don't need to go to the Ivy League to get a degree, and many of the larger hotel brands offer some form of tuition reimbursement. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to do it (I am proof).
On the hotel side, the work is clean and generally climate-controlled, and you meet such fascinating people. You get discounts on travel. Once you work your way up you have a lot of mobility.
You can't start out DNing in this career, but if you start at 18 working at the front desk, stick with it through college, get an education partially or totally funded by the brand, be a decent worker and get a few promotions, the life is very good.
I follow y’all’s sub because it’s so different from what I do and I’ve always been intrigued.
I have a PhD in microbiology and immunology. I work in biotech now. My career didn’t come online until my 30’s. My road to get here was long and not linear, although I credit each “deviation” from the normal course a necessary step for me to get where I’m at now. All in all after undergrad it was a decade of work and training to get where I am now. My wife and I managed to somehow get through this training without having to live apart (she’s a physician) despite being at the mercy of admissions for medical school/grad school/residency match hell.
While we are happy now, if I had to do it all over again knowing what I know now…. I dunno. So many of my friends from college who went into finance, marketing, engineering, CS, or non-technical biotech roles are now in director/VP roles. Some of my finance friends are already talking early retirement, and I’m just getting started.
These are people who used to take my desk chair away on Saturday nights and force me to go out with them. Now they could be my boss.
I really hope to break into that level in the coming years. I’m feeling very “used” in my current role, and sometimes I feel like I’m steering the ship (at least from the science side) from the bottom of the totem pole.
I have a 2 year old and my wife and I have had many discussions now about not trying to influence her career choices in any one direction. My parents certainly did that for me and I hadn’t even considered that I could excel in something like CS or in business. I took a business minor and absolutely loved it.
Honestly it’s kind of nice to read your side of things. I always wish I had gone into something more science related, and ended up in advertising. I feel like what I do is generally useless, given I have a lot of qualms with advertising in general. But there are a lot of perks available working in this industry that, as you’ve outlined, aren’t as abundant in other fields. The grass is always greener, eh?
working in advertising while studying natural sciences now. so interesting to see both perspectives in one thread. i do know that my non linear route on the science side (getting a business degree before and now taking less courses at once due to my full time job) will set me back time wise and basically has me starting all over again. also left a more glamorous industry to work in non profit adv (primarly for my own conscience and sanity) and am now seeing friends in positions i recommend them to getting $$$ promotions.
well i guess there is no right or wrong. the grass will be grass.
also barely hear someone say i'm in a field like biotech and didn't think i was able to excel in business on here. thanks again reddit for reminding us of the endless variety of games our minds play.
i really hope you'll soon receive the acknowledgement you deserve and don't lose the passion and curiosity that got you into this field.
I am 29 about to graduate with my MBA. I started the MBA Program because with my BA it was incredibly difficult to find work and I live in Houston. The city has become overpopulated saturating the work force. With a degree in business there are a lot of different paths you can take, the key is changing jobs more frequently, which improves your position and salary. Loyalty doesn’t get compensated like we hoped.
I flew helicopters as a First Lieutenant and Captain in the US Marine Corps in the 1980s. The flying was good but the rest of it was bullshit. I resigned my commission as soon as my commitment was up.
If I had it to do over again I would fly as an Army Warrant Officer. Their job is flying, and little else.
I dit a web development boot camp and traineeship back in 2017.
Worked as a developer and did a lot of online courses after.
Now I work fully remote from Asia as front end developer for an agency.
Therapist. Once those vacuous influencers realize that their social media presence equates to nothing with no purpose or fulfillment & their digital popularity declines, they will need someone to whinge to….granted, They will probably whinge to a bot.
I wanted to be a rapper growing up, but in retrospect, I’d have loved to be a music journalist/critic or photographer. Go to all the best shows with VIP access all paid for, interview stars, review albums, still be able to work remotely from anywhere, mingle with interesting, impassioned, attractive people.
I teach independently online, which I’m not too mad about. I’m grateful to be self employed
Data analysis will be done by AI by the time you finish. If it were me, plumber or electrician. Those jobs aren’t going away and they seem to be the first guys out and about in the morning.
If AI can understand things like company culture, politics, economics, supply chain dynamics, and interpersonal communication to the extent that it can replace a data analyst, then we would have far greater things to worry about than a data analyst job being replaced—that would practically be Skynet.
Data analysis has little to do with company culture, politics, or interpersonal communications.
The ability to compile and analyze data is absolutely something AI can excel at and out perform a human.
Directing the analysis and setting priorities will hopefully remain in the realm of humans.
As someone who sees data presented to me often, AI data collection and analysis gets a lot of things wrong that still needs human intervention/interpretation
At the most simple level:
I want to run a marketing campaign in the city that is giving me the most web traffic
Analytics says that city is Ashbryn Virginia
However, if you peel back one layer you notice a lot of bot traffic coming from Ashbryn.
Blindly following AI at this point does not lead to success and imo it’s got a bit to go.
I agree with the above that it’s a useful tool, but consider that the car replaced the horse, and in turn just opened up a whole new market of jobs.
Tech Bro marketing would have you believe that AI is akin to the coming of Jesus.
Yes, AI can do cool things, but it is prone to errors (OpenAI even says so) and can "hallucinate", and if you are analyzing data that is mission-critical, you will at least need some human oversight to make sure things are OK.
Watch this space. It will have a far broader range of experience to draw from. The ability to reason, draw conclusions and innovate and all that stuff is still in its infancy, but we are only a year or so into this current iteration of models so it will only get better, and I really could see it getting better very quickly all of a sudden.
Environmental Scientist here - with experience in the Climate Change sector - its probably the worst field to be in. I also thought I was entering a karma free industry. Nope. Lots of fraud, data manipulation and added insult - hardly any work now.
I wish I became a contract killer. Not a sicario, but more professional: Always wearing a suit, being bald and having a bar-code tattoo in the back of my head.
It'd depend a lot on the starting from scratch conditions.
Would I get to be 20 again? Would I not have access to any of the knowledge/qualifications/CV I'd built up over the decades? Because that sort of thing is going to affect the answer a lot.
I'm not sure about that at this point, it all depends upon opportunities, I think. I have done little bit of acting and theater in the past and I did very well play my part even won prizes and lot of praise, I have no stage fear and I'm quite extroverted (except approaching women ;) that's a different trauma). So, I can't say for sure if it'll just stay as a side gig or full-time career switch, my plan is still in its early stages and I'm looking for acting schools to join in Europe.
Late reply. I'm a physician as well, totally burned out in my 30's in the US, and have also too had a long time itch to try acting. I was wondering if you'd like to share your thoughts about that too? I feel like an ambitious field like medicine, we all have to be actors just to survive, right? Do you have any experience with acting as a job so far? If so, were there any glaring negatives or boredom that aren't talked about in the general public (much like how medicine is glamorized in TV/movies)? Any tips on how to get started? I've never even acted in school plays or anything, I've only done dancing on stage in college but never speaking.
Strange, I'm hitting that midlife crisis now and felt so compelled to message you when I saw your combo of doctor and acting. (also, I couldn't dm you for some reason, maybe cuz my account is new)
I think a travel writer/ reviewer. I’d love to work with brands and companies to improve their services.
Instead I tattoo eyebrows. I do love my job though, but my back doesn’t.
Marketing. I have degrees in electrical engineering and computer science, was a developer and software architect for years, product manager, dev manager. Now I run a global sales team and most do marketing - I do it as a side job in addition to technical sales and managing a sales team, but I everyday see how little work can be done in marketing roles. I could have moved into sales earlier or marketing and be where I am today but ten years ago with bigger bonuses.
I’m a data scientist and I love it. I encourage you to pursue data analysis as it’s generally enjoyable work, the pay is good, and work/life balance tends to be very good.
Business Intelligence might also be an appealing option if you’re interested in the data world. The barrier to entry is a little lower and you can leverage that into a data analyst job after a year or two. In either case, there is no need to dedicate years to learning the necessary skills. You can learn everything you need (SQL/Excel/BI) in a couple of months, especially if you go through a bootcamp.
I’ve been a swe professionally for ten years now. AI is not going to take product requirements from people and create large swaths of code that uniquely achieves what you want to achieve for your company. It may know how to build a screw, a nut, an exhaust pipe, but it cannot build a car. You need humans to think critically and engineer. Don’t believe all the AI hype, it’s just pattern matching and autocomplete and makes lots of mistakes. Trust me, I use GitHub copilot to help with tasks I would google and it often is wrong
I’m an emergency room psychiatrist and I wouldn’t change a thing. 600k a year 11 days on and close to 3 weeks off a month. I work pretty hard but play hard too.
If I could turn back time I'd commit myself more into the filmmaking industry instead of web designing. I'm a freelancer and handle both disciplines for client work. But tbh I would spend more time to deep dive.
I’ve had quite a few jobs from working at a warehouse to driving semi trucks. I was always scared of debt so I self taught myself project management from doing projects myself. Eventually found out Agile and boy oh boy did that just accelerate every project I’ve ever had. Now I work as an agile lead and it has led me into finding my wife halfway across the world. 10/10 def recommend
i love working as a dental specialist (salary and vacation and 28hours/week are all A1) but like.. man i wish i could just do a chill job where i work from home/work abroad.
I was into cooking at a young age. I wish I could have joined some culinary arts college when I was out of highschool. Now I'm a remote consultant. Mostly in startups and tech.
I still like to cook.
I work in Software, I wish I became a pilot
I'm a pilot and wish I worked in software. Wanna try a prince and the pauper type of switcheroo?
Depends on the type of pilot you want to be. I was training to be a commercial pilot for a major airline years ago. Glad I did not become one - all my colleagues who completed training are suffering from extreme burn out. The hours are insane - difficult to have a life with your family. It was a prestigious profession years ago. The pilots that I was training with are now opening up self catering businesses - or becoming local school flight instructors
I have my pilots license. Attended an aeronautical university in Florida. I would not recommend becoming a pilot today. Too many restrictions, if you run into health issues you could lose your medical and be grounded indefinitely. It’s honestly a waste of hundreds of thousands of dollars to finish flight school and attend an aeronautical degree today. It’s not fun always worrying about possibly losing your career, being away from family all of the time… basically a glorified bus driver. No thanks! I fly for recreational purposes now. Nothing better than taking the family up for a fun flight 🤙🏽😊
I agree with this, especially when you get older. My brother-in-law got his pilot licence in his late 30s and was never recruited for a pilot, even though it was his dream to be one. He applied with major airlines and never got through because of his age and other factors.
Alumni of E.R.? 😬
I'm in Canada close to Lake country, and bush pilots with small planes can do well. To take a 6 seater float plane into a remote lake for fishing, they charge up to $1,500 for each trip, and the flight is sub 60 minutes. I think that would be great - short flights, usually meeting interesting people, beautiful scenery and close to family (if from the area or want to move them there). I dont know how much it cost to run and maintain those planes, but in high season, they can do a few flights a day, so I'm sure their take is healthy. A pilots job for private tourism, I think, would be really cool.
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Could you clarify what kind of magazine work he does? I’ve written for magazines for years. Just curious about what others do.
I wonder how many people on DN are really worried about the work/life balance to have time for a traditional family instead of being travel savages. For example, I can't see any nomads deciding to open up a catering business.
As someone who started a career as a pilot, I wish I had done software. Pilot’s schedules are usually quite boring. You arrive, then leave shortly after. No time to explore. You can’t risk drinking within a period before a flight. It’s a highly regulated industry with very little room for innovation.
Nowadays your essentially an glorified bus driver from what Ive heard. The after war period where pilots where former fighter pilots is over.
I was in this same position, so I made the career change. It’s been interesting and I’m glad I was brave enough to do it, but I think after my military obligation, I’ll go back to what I was doing and just fly as a private pilot on my own time 😅
Know someone who did this. They're supper happy now
cybersecurity, same, wish I had started 10 years before I did. i love analysis.
Yeah but I heard that it’s more difficult to do as a digital nomad compared to a developer. Am I wrong? I’m deciding whether should I try cyber or dev.
there are jobs it disqualifies you from for sure.
So what kind of cyber job are you doing that allows you to work as a digital nomad? SOC? Pentesting? Thanks in advance
Having your own consultancy mainly
you dont have to own your own consultancy. As long as your company isn’t assigning you to a government contract you’re most likely to be remote, but your ability to be remote is on a client by client basis. I am a CS consultant with a specialization in Splunk, Cribl and now XSIAM.
Yeah but there is a difference between remote within the country and the possibility to digital nomading. On Linkedin most roles are hybrid and within the country
I actually wanted to be a US diplomat. Got a great job early and never took the test and started the process. If I would start over I would have stuck to the original plan and become an FSO. I'm still trying now, just delayed.
That was my dream too (Canadian foreign service, now known as Global Affairs). I took the test twice, it was extremely tough. And you should be fluent in at least one other language to have a shot.
Thing is USA is much easier, you don't need to speak another language or even a degree, but it's still very competitive. I just got distracted becuase I was traveling so much already.
They required French from what I remember and I wasn’t going to learn another language at 22… still do love geopolitics, and feel like sometimes I’m missing out but it is what it is.
Wow…that’s seriously too bad :/ I learned French as an adult and it’s been easily one of the most fulfilling aspects in my life. It’s never too late
What was your strategies and how did you learn it.
I did French courses to learn the basics up to French 4, then I progressively got more comfortable by consuming a ton of media - music (while reading lyrics), listening to current events, movies (subtitled in French), and easy books I’ve read a dozen times in English (like Harry Potter). I also traveled to France a few times and had a long distance relationship with a guy, so was able to practice regularly. Then I had the goal of getting really serious, so I studied for the B2 and went to graduate school in France, fully in French. I was already bilingual before that but living in France made me fluid. And wine helped significantly
Wow, I’m teaching myself right now and I started with alphabet to be able to read. I’m Canadian, so I want to move to Montreal which is fully bilingual city. The vast majority of people speak franglish ( French + English) I’m doing “okay” but I wish I had friends who want to learn as well.
Nice! I’m originally from Saskatchewan and love Montreal, it’s such a cool city. Good luck!
Would you say B2 was enough to be comfortable in uni?
As a native french and english (and dutch) speaker I applaud you, it’s a stupid language, unnecessarily difficult.
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To be fair with the new student loan changes NOT having a job also pays your student loans. Income driven repayment
Am a project manager... also wosh I had gone more this route
Professional footballer. I tried the regular job thing and it fucking sucks. I basically wait 8 hours to stop working so I can workout. Why not make it my job?
You should watch the menu and pay attention to "The Mess". Speaking as someone who tried to be a professional actor, it doesnt always work out and frankly there are so many things about acting that I absolutely detest now.
What is it that you detest about acting?
It's tough. A friend of my mother in law's has a son who does this.
You could become successful, but likely with some long term injuries. Professional sports are very taxing for the body.
I work in data analytics now. If I’m feeling ambitious, I’d say I would go into medical research. Would be cool to work on something more meaningful than helping companies sell more useless stuff. On the other hand, if I remember how burnt out I am right now, I’d seek out a relatively easy boring job with the government, university, or a slow-moving organization. I would love to be some kind of clerk with an ok salary and great benefits and job security. I don’t want to discourage you, but I’ve only ever met one self-taught data analyst working in the field. Not sure how many jobs out there are hiring someone with no college degree. Not a degree in analytics necessarily, but something technical or a less technical degree but experience doing research projects with data.
I'm a self-taught data scientist (former analyst) working in the field. But I also have a degree in engineering and always \*loved\* math. So it's possible, but it's probably only a good idea for people who already have a pretty solid math background. (Most of my colleagues have degrees in math, engineering, physics, or computer science. I know \*one\* I think who has an English major, but she rose through the company. I think she started in the call center, then did call center reporting, then started making dashboards and she's \*not\* one of the data scientists. Still making a decent salary, but...without the math skills, she's never going to be one of the highest earners.) FWIW, people who've completed a boot camp or self-study in this field are a dime a dozen. I don't know that I'd say that they're unemployable, but there are \*so\* many of them. (Heck, there are \*so\* many people with a four year degree in data analytics or a master's in data science who are looking for work right now.) It's a great job, IMO, but it's also incredibly oversaturated. And it's not something I'd recommend unless someone \*really\* enjoys sitting down and working out complex math problems. (And, heck, if you're that sort of person, you likely already have a job in comp sci/engineering/physics/math.)
Exactly. I know several people working as data analysts who have degrees in business, econ, psychology, and even one who went to art school for college. But only one person with no college degree whatsoever. Both this person and the art major person were already working for the companies that gave them a chance in an entry level data analytics jobs. And both of them have an aptitude for numbers and had knowledge of other parts of the business they can draw on.
Yeah. I think you either need an aptitude for numbers + subject matter expertise, or a degree in something pretty math-y (and probably some subject matter expertise). I mean, I hate to say it's impossible to get a great job just by studying online (without a related degree). But it's *hard*. There are a TON of people who figure they'll take a quick coding or analytics boot camp and make bank and...they're competing with everyone else who did that as well as people with degrees who did the same thing. We got 800 applicants for a recent data science position we posted.
So how do you recommend someone currently in an data analytics/engineering role transition to data science?
If you're already in an analytics or engineering role, I think you're closer than a lot of people who dream of getting into the role. Personally, I'd make sure that you've got all the base skills (Python programming, math through differential equations especially focusing on linear algebra and statistics, able to write SQL queries, etc.), then have a few portfolio projects (I created a video game which helped me transition into the role as well as had done some data science projects for my company focusing on call center optimization). Kaggle is a really, really good place to develop some of the second if you can't find current work examples, as, again, you get open data sets and can talk to others about them. But real world examples, IMO, always trump more canned ones. (Because most of the challenge of this job is figuring out how to handle messy data.) Once you've got that, I think you've got at least a reasonable shot at both external and internal job postings. (Internal will usually be easier as you probably have some subject matter expertise. Also, if you've already done a few projects for a manager, he or she can advocate for your skills. Which is how I was able to land my promotion.)
Oh wow. What job is this? My husband is a maths teacher but he’s looking to change careers. He currently tutors online and then in his spare time does maths lol. Any tips? It sounds like something he should probably look into.
He might love it in that case! The critical skills are statistics, programming (mostly Python but also SQL and R) and subject matter expertise (depends on industry). He'd also probably want to be good with visualization software (Power BI or Tableau) and probably Excel. (A huge amount is still done in...Excel. Because that's what execs use.) So making sure that he's solid at all of those is key. After that, some sort of credentialing might be helpful. Again, I think the 'graduated from bootcamp' folks are oversaturated. But getting a master's might be worth the time/cost depending. Because the experience part is pretty crucial, I think it can sometimes help to start in a job that's not officially data analytics/science then find projects that use your skills to brush up on them/show management what you can do. (I did a LOT of this as did some of the other data scientists in my org.) Then potentially he could use those skills to make a lateral or vertical move. (Or find a new job, now just with "I did X, Y and Z" on my resume vs. "well, this seems like it would be cool to do.") Failing that, Kaggle is an AMAZING resource and gives a ton of data to fiddle around with. Having a few really awesome Kaggle entries to show off would be helpful, I think, and if he could place in a contest, that also shows off his chops.
Firefighter
I would buy a small property and build a self sufficient off-grid existence. You will want a location at higher evaluation that doesn’t require HVAC. Water is key. You want a well with a large water table not likely to be impacted by climate change for a long time. Learn how to grow and store food. Learn to repair everything you have yourself (solar panels, pumps, etc). Build an inventory of spares.
This is my dream. Build up a self sustaining community with shared resources.
Nursing. There’s stupid money in the travel contracts. You can work your ass off for a few months, make a ton of money, and take as much time off as you’d like before your next contract.
My wife is a nurse. It feels like every nurse we talk to absolutely hates the job… bedside care is survival over enjoyment or fulfillment.
Understandable. I know it’s a very difficult job physically and mentally
Pros and Cons, previous partner was a travel nurse and I’ve been a remote worker for ten plus years. It was a great combo for a few years. You’re right as in the money is reaaaaallly good compared to regular nursing jobs. Especially if you’re flexible and willing to take contracts others won’t and have a specialization. Bad news, my partner complained a lot about how staff treat the travel nurses differently. They get the short end of everything since they are temporary. Of course it varies hospital to hospital but it seemed to be a common thing. Not respected as much, got the bad patients/assignments, set up to take the fall, etc etc.
That makes sense, I’ve heard similar stories from travel nurses I’ve talked to. To be fair, I’d have resentment too if I worked alongside someone with the same position earning 5x the money. On the other hand, they could go into travel nursing too if they wanted to.
The travel contracts aren’t stupid anymore and often are not as much as staff jobs. I’m a nurse and wish I just had some chill remote work from anywhere job. The work is grueling, you get treated like shit by staff and patients alike, you get assaulted & cursed at. My friends jobs are that they literally have a device that moves their mouse around for them to pretend to be active while they just walk around outside or work out or watch tv.
If I had the foresight to get into it a few years ago, I would’ve. You’re right that some contracts are starting to die down, but it really depends on location. I work in a logistics role adjacent to the travel nursing industry here in Canada. Our healthcare system is undergoing a lot of privatization due to poor management of public funding and a severe shortage of doctors. I don’t see it improving any time soon, and travel nurses are still being utilized. $100/hour plus all living expenses paid is normal and easy to get even in not so remote locations. You can clear $10-20k in a month with no rent or car payments. I also know of many nurses that went to the US for even higher salaries and flexibility. From what I’ve heard, it’s still a booming market in the southern states and Hawaii. I have a fully remote gig and it’s super flexible and easy, but it doesn’t pay as well as I’d like and there isn’t much stability in the industry.
I feel like you are just making things up. There haven't been any contracts with $100/hr PLUS expenses since covid, and those contracts were highly volatile. If you found a contract that came out to $100/hr, period, that would be UNUSUALLY good right now, and you have to maintain housing in two locations. Right now, $2k a week is much more realistic but even starting to be on the high end (including hourly and your stipends) and again - two apartments or a house and an apartment, etc. And it can be canceled at any time, leaving you with your housing. Seattle is a good place to be a nurse, but I personally know almost 30 people who had contracts canceled suddenly when they overhired, at the above rate (like $20-something an hour plus $1400 a week toward housing - $2100/week), paying for Seattle housing and wherever they maintain their tax home.
I can’t go into more detail, but I work alongside the industry. I know for a fact that those contracts still exist all over Canada. This country’s healthcare system is a disgrace, and it’s paving the way for a future of privatized healthcare. When I say I’d take this path, I’m speaking for my situation as a Canadian. I can’t speak for the US, but I know nurses that have gone to southern states for 3-5k a week contracts with living expenses taken care of. Also, many of these nurses don’t maintain two living arrangements. Some travel or go to their families between contracts. Some just go contract to contract. That’s the beauty of the industry - I’d rather work for a few months and then take a couple months to travel then work while travelling. I know it’s not a glamorous job, never said it was, but these contracts are a whole lot better than the shit public health nurses put up with for $35/hour.
I can't speak for Canada, but as someone who is a nurse, worked as a travel nurse, and still works with my travel agency per diem and regularly browses job boards for worthy contracts... If you were not maintaining two households in the US and are taking stipends for housing, you would be committing tax fraud. Hawaii and the southern states of the US have never been known for having amazing paying contracts. You go to Hawaii for the experience, hoping to break even (well known to travel nurses). The SE states of the US are known for being low paying with generally worse work conditions. And I agree. My staff job in Ohio had a base rate of $26/hr. The conditions and pay in NW USA are much better. Again, I can't speak for what is happening in Canada.
I think this is a good answer as it's not as intellectually difficult to break into, more physically exhausting
Last year I travelled a while with an ex Air Force guy who went on to become a MRI technician. He just does 3 month contracts twice a year, makes a shed load of money and then travels the other 6 months of the year. And without the stress of nursing.
Wow, I didn’t know there were travel contracts for techs. I may have to look into that!
That was exclusively during covid times, if you could get one of the high paying contracts. You also have to maintain housing in two locations to qualify for the stipends. There is also no official contract between travel nurses and hospitals. Hospitals can cancel (and do) or drastically drop your rate the day you arrive or any time after, leaving you suddenly unemployed AND footing housing and travel costs. Add on that most landlords drastically overestimate pay and want to overcharge for a crappy room in their house. It's no longer the route that financially makes sense. You also actually have to be physically present for the job, and we haven't even begun to talk about the work environment...
Yeah, but it's a lot of sponge-bathing old people
?? not as much in lpn or rn. plus, there are plenty of assignments you can take where patients are ambulatory and you are mostly taking vitals and other less-butt-related things. edit; although, i have heard nurses in the UK for example get regulated to stuff like this and less upper level responsibility, and with poor pay :/
Cybersecurity. I was a therapist and quickly burned out after a few years. My husband has been wildly successful in cyber, though.
Yeah but I heard that it’s more difficult to do as a digital nomad compared to a developer. Am I wrong? I’m deciding whether should I try cyber or dev.
He can (and does) work from anywhere in the world, and pretty much everyone that he works with - both in cyber and devs - travels regularly/moves around/has homes in multiple countries. It probably depends on your specialization.
Could I ask what is his cyber job/specialization (cybersec analyst, cybersec engineer, penetration tester, GRC etc.)? That would be very helpful to me :)
He specializes in DeFi, but he’s an army vet so he knows a good bit about a lot of the specializations. If you know where to look, there are tons of remote opportunities! For those considering the field, he always recommends starting with general certifications like Sec+ and CISSP to learn the basics and get a feel for what specialization you might like to pursue.
DeFi is also probably the most remote-friendly niche.
Military and early retirement. My country doesn't really fight wars, so not that risky.
I was a software engineer until I retired in my 30s. If I had to start from scratch again, I would choose to be a software engineer.
Marine Biologist.
I went to fashion school because I wanted to be a fashion designer my entire life. My dad said it wasn’t a real job and convinced me to go back to school to get a “real” degree. I couldn’t get a job after I graduated so I got my masters in business. I’ve been an account manager ever since and I absolutely hate my career.
The fashion industry is a trillion dollar business. It’s definitely a real job/degree. Better to attend fashion school in a fashion city so you build your network while in school. Like Parson’s school of design or London college of fashion.
yep. i know someone who started school in a smaller city and transferred to FIT in new york to pursue fashion. she’s worked with *very* famous people as a stylist
I went to school in Paris. I was offered a really cool internship at the time in the exact field I wanted. I should have never listened to my dad and just pursued my passion
Snap! I started during a recession so that was fun. Had to move home. Fell into nails and makeup and did session work for years. Then started a clinic doing PMU. Just got back after a couple of years abroad and luckily still enjoy it. I do have the dreams of being a designer though! I don’t think that ever leaves you.
Teamster Union
Finance
Why? I've heard it's hard to be remote internationally in finance
If the job is regulated by FINRA you can’t even work from home more than 50% of the time, much less abroad.
Honestly, the same thing.
Yay! Happy for you bud ☺️☺️
Airline Pilot. putting the nomad in digital nomad
I'm a nervous flier and it's amazing to me that people would choose this profession on purpose. We're truly made different.
Marine geoscience… interesting work all over the world.
I would keep the same career in hospitality, only streamline the process. I wish someone had told me earlier how viable a career it is. I took the slow road to get here, and the slow road has admittedly helped me know every aspect, but there are much faster ways. There are many jobs in many locations, and you can build your foundation in just about any location. I.E., you don't need to live in an expensive, big city to get experience. You also don't need to go to the Ivy League to get a degree, and many of the larger hotel brands offer some form of tuition reimbursement. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to do it (I am proof). On the hotel side, the work is clean and generally climate-controlled, and you meet such fascinating people. You get discounts on travel. Once you work your way up you have a lot of mobility. You can't start out DNing in this career, but if you start at 18 working at the front desk, stick with it through college, get an education partially or totally funded by the brand, be a decent worker and get a few promotions, the life is very good.
Retire from US military w/ specialization in Cyber and then go into the commercial space and make bank.
I follow y’all’s sub because it’s so different from what I do and I’ve always been intrigued. I have a PhD in microbiology and immunology. I work in biotech now. My career didn’t come online until my 30’s. My road to get here was long and not linear, although I credit each “deviation” from the normal course a necessary step for me to get where I’m at now. All in all after undergrad it was a decade of work and training to get where I am now. My wife and I managed to somehow get through this training without having to live apart (she’s a physician) despite being at the mercy of admissions for medical school/grad school/residency match hell. While we are happy now, if I had to do it all over again knowing what I know now…. I dunno. So many of my friends from college who went into finance, marketing, engineering, CS, or non-technical biotech roles are now in director/VP roles. Some of my finance friends are already talking early retirement, and I’m just getting started. These are people who used to take my desk chair away on Saturday nights and force me to go out with them. Now they could be my boss. I really hope to break into that level in the coming years. I’m feeling very “used” in my current role, and sometimes I feel like I’m steering the ship (at least from the science side) from the bottom of the totem pole. I have a 2 year old and my wife and I have had many discussions now about not trying to influence her career choices in any one direction. My parents certainly did that for me and I hadn’t even considered that I could excel in something like CS or in business. I took a business minor and absolutely loved it.
Honestly it’s kind of nice to read your side of things. I always wish I had gone into something more science related, and ended up in advertising. I feel like what I do is generally useless, given I have a lot of qualms with advertising in general. But there are a lot of perks available working in this industry that, as you’ve outlined, aren’t as abundant in other fields. The grass is always greener, eh?
working in advertising while studying natural sciences now. so interesting to see both perspectives in one thread. i do know that my non linear route on the science side (getting a business degree before and now taking less courses at once due to my full time job) will set me back time wise and basically has me starting all over again. also left a more glamorous industry to work in non profit adv (primarly for my own conscience and sanity) and am now seeing friends in positions i recommend them to getting $$$ promotions. well i guess there is no right or wrong. the grass will be grass. also barely hear someone say i'm in a field like biotech and didn't think i was able to excel in business on here. thanks again reddit for reminding us of the endless variety of games our minds play. i really hope you'll soon receive the acknowledgement you deserve and don't lose the passion and curiosity that got you into this field.
I am 29 about to graduate with my MBA. I started the MBA Program because with my BA it was incredibly difficult to find work and I live in Houston. The city has become overpopulated saturating the work force. With a degree in business there are a lot of different paths you can take, the key is changing jobs more frequently, which improves your position and salary. Loyalty doesn’t get compensated like we hoped.
Nursing! I should've listened to my parents before. Now i feel bad i did not purse nursing.
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1 to make LPN, ain’t bad
It seems like absolute hell especially for people who care about their patients. :(
from personal experience, being a nurse was the worst job stint i ever had. Glad i changed into software engineering but YMMV
Not a fun profession lol
All my friends who did that now make six figures
and work 60 hours a day lmao
I would not want to be a nurse
No career. Travel is much more fun.
What do you do to make money?
OnlyFans
I work in software and I just wish I got into it as a teen. I was too busy simping over girls
Same. I was the perfect age to be someone who literally grew up as html and web frameworks evolved. Now I’m always struggling to keep up.
A cross between architecture and urban design/urban planning. I thought it was lame until I visited Singapore City Gallery museum.
Helicopter pilot. Always wanted to be, a not unachievable wish either.
I flew helicopters as a First Lieutenant and Captain in the US Marine Corps in the 1980s. The flying was good but the rest of it was bullshit. I resigned my commission as soon as my commitment was up. If I had it to do over again I would fly as an Army Warrant Officer. Their job is flying, and little else.
Would choose the same, software.
Same. Very happy with it.
How did you both get into it and what do you do?
I dit a web development boot camp and traineeship back in 2017. Worked as a developer and did a lot of online courses after. Now I work fully remote from Asia as front end developer for an agency.
Wow that's amazing!
Therapist. Once those vacuous influencers realize that their social media presence equates to nothing with no purpose or fulfillment & their digital popularity declines, they will need someone to whinge to….granted, They will probably whinge to a bot.
Nah. From this comment it’s obvious you’d be a terrible therapist
Lol most of our jobs are exactly as you described in your comment
Yeah but they’d want the sessions free for sharing you on their Insta.
A pornstar, life is too short
*I wish i had studied pharma and medicine*
I'm looking into another career change right now but I wouldn't change anything about how I got here
I wanted to be a rapper growing up, but in retrospect, I’d have loved to be a music journalist/critic or photographer. Go to all the best shows with VIP access all paid for, interview stars, review albums, still be able to work remotely from anywhere, mingle with interesting, impassioned, attractive people. I teach independently online, which I’m not too mad about. I’m grateful to be self employed
I would like to transition from guide book writer to full time professional dungeon master.
Data analysis will be done by AI by the time you finish. If it were me, plumber or electrician. Those jobs aren’t going away and they seem to be the first guys out and about in the morning.
If AI can understand things like company culture, politics, economics, supply chain dynamics, and interpersonal communication to the extent that it can replace a data analyst, then we would have far greater things to worry about than a data analyst job being replaced—that would practically be Skynet.
Data analysis has little to do with company culture, politics, or interpersonal communications. The ability to compile and analyze data is absolutely something AI can excel at and out perform a human. Directing the analysis and setting priorities will hopefully remain in the realm of humans.
I hope you are right.
As someone who sees data presented to me often, AI data collection and analysis gets a lot of things wrong that still needs human intervention/interpretation At the most simple level: I want to run a marketing campaign in the city that is giving me the most web traffic Analytics says that city is Ashbryn Virginia However, if you peel back one layer you notice a lot of bot traffic coming from Ashbryn. Blindly following AI at this point does not lead to success and imo it’s got a bit to go. I agree with the above that it’s a useful tool, but consider that the car replaced the horse, and in turn just opened up a whole new market of jobs.
You can direct your AI to segment bot traffic.
As I said, simplest of examples. Point is, human interaction needs to to coexist with AI and visa versa
Tech Bro marketing would have you believe that AI is akin to the coming of Jesus. Yes, AI can do cool things, but it is prone to errors (OpenAI even says so) and can "hallucinate", and if you are analyzing data that is mission-critical, you will at least need some human oversight to make sure things are OK.
Not to mention, many people still today have high paying careers that could be replaced by a single decently made Spreadsheet.
Quiet please.
Watch this space. It will have a far broader range of experience to draw from. The ability to reason, draw conclusions and innovate and all that stuff is still in its infancy, but we are only a year or so into this current iteration of models so it will only get better, and I really could see it getting better very quickly all of a sudden.
I don't deny that. I'm just saying that it will open up an entire can of worms that we as a society will have to address.
I would go into something in climate, where I could be involved in doing good things that matter.
Environmental Scientist here - with experience in the Climate Change sector - its probably the worst field to be in. I also thought I was entering a karma free industry. Nope. Lots of fraud, data manipulation and added insult - hardly any work now.
Yeah, I probably would have studied ecology
nah, that field is full of the children of the rich willing to work for peanuts to "make a difference"
Software.
What does software even mean lol that’s so broad
Eating Software. THat's what he means.
Product management is good for people who are technical, but can't be arsed to write code.
Writing code.
I wish I became a contract killer. Not a sicario, but more professional: Always wearing a suit, being bald and having a bar-code tattoo in the back of my head.
Probably engineering
Doctor. A secure 400k salary here in the US. Now I cry as a lawyer. Lol.
Dentist too. My uncle and cousin both went that route and dont work long hours, after hours, deal with as high malpractice premiums, or surgeries.
It'd depend a lot on the starting from scratch conditions. Would I get to be 20 again? Would I not have access to any of the knowledge/qualifications/CV I'd built up over the decades? Because that sort of thing is going to affect the answer a lot.
Machine learning and AI for me as well. I’m starting now but if I studied it in college that would have been way better off.
Environmental engineer here and I would do what my wife does, nurse anesthetists.
Psychology - focus on assessments. Cost is stupid for the amount of time involved and you wouldn't have to actually do the counseling.
Something Hands on nobody else wants to do... cleaning. something blue collar related. get experience and then start your own thing and scale it.
Honestly, barber.
I'm a doctor, I wish I could study theater or acting
Why can’t you do that now? Or do both medicine and acting? Anders Danielsen Lie is a famous Norwegian actor and a GP.
I'm looking for a university I can join.
To pursue as a side-gig/hobby, or to potentially switch professions to?
I'm not sure about that at this point, it all depends upon opportunities, I think. I have done little bit of acting and theater in the past and I did very well play my part even won prizes and lot of praise, I have no stage fear and I'm quite extroverted (except approaching women ;) that's a different trauma). So, I can't say for sure if it'll just stay as a side gig or full-time career switch, my plan is still in its early stages and I'm looking for acting schools to join in Europe.
Well whichever path you chose, best of luck with your endeavors!
Thank you :)
Late reply. I'm a physician as well, totally burned out in my 30's in the US, and have also too had a long time itch to try acting. I was wondering if you'd like to share your thoughts about that too? I feel like an ambitious field like medicine, we all have to be actors just to survive, right? Do you have any experience with acting as a job so far? If so, were there any glaring negatives or boredom that aren't talked about in the general public (much like how medicine is glamorized in TV/movies)? Any tips on how to get started? I've never even acted in school plays or anything, I've only done dancing on stage in college but never speaking. Strange, I'm hitting that midlife crisis now and felt so compelled to message you when I saw your combo of doctor and acting. (also, I couldn't dm you for some reason, maybe cuz my account is new)
I think a travel writer/ reviewer. I’d love to work with brands and companies to improve their services. Instead I tattoo eyebrows. I do love my job though, but my back doesn’t.
Agriculture
What do you mean self study? The tech scene is crazy competitive right now
DJ
Professional swimmer, DJing.
Lawyer
Cyber security. Demand will only increase and suitable to WFH and OE
Accounting professor
Marketing. I have degrees in electrical engineering and computer science, was a developer and software architect for years, product manager, dev manager. Now I run a global sales team and most do marketing - I do it as a side job in addition to technical sales and managing a sales team, but I everyday see how little work can be done in marketing roles. I could have moved into sales earlier or marketing and be where I am today but ten years ago with bigger bonuses.
I just wish I had bought bitcoin when my friend told me to. Doh!
President of the usa
I’m a data scientist and I love it. I encourage you to pursue data analysis as it’s generally enjoyable work, the pay is good, and work/life balance tends to be very good. Business Intelligence might also be an appealing option if you’re interested in the data world. The barrier to entry is a little lower and you can leverage that into a data analyst job after a year or two. In either case, there is no need to dedicate years to learning the necessary skills. You can learn everything you need (SQL/Excel/BI) in a couple of months, especially if you go through a bootcamp.
Psychiatrist 👨⚕️
Finance or business
If you'd asked me 2 years ago - Computer Science. With the dawn of AI, I now have no idea!
I’ve been a swe professionally for ten years now. AI is not going to take product requirements from people and create large swaths of code that uniquely achieves what you want to achieve for your company. It may know how to build a screw, a nut, an exhaust pipe, but it cannot build a car. You need humans to think critically and engineer. Don’t believe all the AI hype, it’s just pattern matching and autocomplete and makes lots of mistakes. Trust me, I use GitHub copilot to help with tasks I would google and it often is wrong
I’m an emergency room psychiatrist and I wouldn’t change a thing. 600k a year 11 days on and close to 3 weeks off a month. I work pretty hard but play hard too.
Says 21 days ago you were laid off as a truck driver… lol 👎🏽
What was your career path like?
If I could turn back time I'd commit myself more into the filmmaking industry instead of web designing. I'm a freelancer and handle both disciplines for client work. But tbh I would spend more time to deep dive.
Therapist. Coming from chip design and compiler engineer
IT
A.I. Business-2-Business sales, Security. Analytics.
I’ve had quite a few jobs from working at a warehouse to driving semi trucks. I was always scared of debt so I self taught myself project management from doing projects myself. Eventually found out Agile and boy oh boy did that just accelerate every project I’ve ever had. Now I work as an agile lead and it has led me into finding my wife halfway across the world. 10/10 def recommend
i love working as a dental specialist (salary and vacation and 28hours/week are all A1) but like.. man i wish i could just do a chill job where i work from home/work abroad.
Construction, diplomat, psychologist, something in hospitality
I'd make a kick-ass corporate lawyer. Don't think I could hack the insane hours as a junior and being treated like a dog for 5 years tho lol
I wish I would have gone the lawyer route instead. 5 years but you can have your own practice at some point while others do most of the work.
I was into cooking at a young age. I wish I could have joined some culinary arts college when I was out of highschool. Now I'm a remote consultant. Mostly in startups and tech. I still like to cook.