# Could U succeed on a job U hated? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 25, 2012, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077 "2012-12-25T00:22:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/61 "2012-12-26T17:45:01Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > If you’re already fortysomething and still living at home, they’ve probably given up on you. Maybe the situation is 99% **my fault**. But what could I do? In Scandinavia I could have lived on my own and pursued my interests – they have good unemployment benefits. But what could I do here? ---
**Author:** ![half-elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@half-elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/half-elf)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/62 "2012-12-26T17:46:09Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > But I just pretend to work and do some assignments in order to keep getting pocket money. So do you work in a family business then, getting paid “pocket money” rather than a wage? Is that why your previous attempts at leaving the nest failed, as you mentioned ? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/63 "2012-12-26T17:55:08Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > In Scandinavia I could have lived on my own and pursued my interests – they have good unemployment benefits. But what could I do here? Get a real fucking job like everyone else. I don’t usually participate in this threads, and when I do, I’m generally quite sympathetic, but if you can hold down a paid internship you can hold down a proper job and become a productive member of society. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/64 "2012-12-26T18:14:31Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > Maybe the situation is 99% **my fault**. > > But what could I do? In Scandinavia I could have lived on my own and pursued my interests – they have good unemployment benefits. But what could I do here? Right now, you’re sabotaging yourself. You have been coasting along, content to do as little as possible, while rationalizing that someone, somewhere should support you. You are going to have to make the decision to do whatever it takes to get out on your own and actually support yourself. It won’t be easy, and it won’t be fast. But every day that you continue to coast along is another day closer to dying before you’ve ever lived. Yes, your life would have been different if you’d studied something else. But as others have said, you can’t change the past. All you can change is the present and the future. And you won’t get different results unless you act differently. All of us have done things in the past that we wish we could change. The main question is whether or not you’ll do something different. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/65 "2012-12-26T18:40:04Z")
After all the energy I hve spent getting my PhD, I should start from a blue color job? Thanks but no thanks. Given that I only “work” few hours a day anyway I have planty of time to pursue my hobbies and talk online. ---
**Author:** ![half-elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@half-elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/half-elf)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/66 "2012-12-26T18:44:02Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > After all the energy I hve spent getting my PhD, I should start from a blue color job? Thanks but no thanks. > > Given that I only “work” few hours a day anyway I have planty of time to pursue my hobbies and talk online. All good then. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/67 "2012-12-26T18:46:22Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > After all the energy I hve spent getting my PhD, I should start from a blue color job? Thanks but no thanks. Or you could, you know, get a job which actually requires a Ph. D. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/68 "2012-12-26T18:48:50Z")
I’m completely unclear on what the issue is, then. So take your Ph.D. and use it as a basis to write a few meaningless intern-grade contributions for your modest stipend, and pursue your hobbies with the rest of your time. It really sounds like what you want is some lavish pension to fall on you so that Herr Doktor CCitizen can pursue his hobbies and hang out online. Not real likely to happen, even here in the land of opportunity. Merely hanging out in university classrooms and offices for 20 years grants no such reward. ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/69 "2012-12-26T19:17:03Z")
If the OP meant it to be a hypothetical, the answer is a simple yes/no. If the OP meant to solicit advice? That requires a much more involved answer. However, $500/month hardly qualifies as a high level job. That’s below minimum wage - by a lot. Even with rent and living expenses included as provided by the parents, unless he’s living a “Bruster’s Millions” lifestyle, it’s not exactly a “high level” lifestyle. Why not a post-doc? Why not a consultant? Why not seek a position at a college as a professor? All we know for sure is that the OP is not satisfied with his intern position. The possibilities beyond that are endless. ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/70 "2012-12-26T19:20:41Z")
> [@pancakes3](#): > > If the OP meant it to be a hypothetical, the answer is a simple yes/no. If the OP meant to solicit advice? That requires a much more involved answer. > > However, $500/month hardly qualifies as a high level job. That’s below minimum wage - by a lot. Even with rent and living expenses included as provided by the parents, unless he’s living a “Bruster’s Millions” lifestyle, it’s not exactly a “high level” lifestyle. > > Why not a post-doc? Why not a consultant? Why not seek a position at a college as a professor? All we know for sure is that the OP is not satisfied with his intern position. The possibilities beyond that are endless. Also. the OP’s demonstrated disdain for “blue collar” work guarantees that he will be (metaphorically) one of the first against the wall when the (metaphorical) revolution comes. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/71 "2012-12-26T19:37:53Z")
> [@pancakes3](#): > > Why not a post-doc? Why not a consultant? Why not seek a position at a college as a professor? All we know for sure is that the OP is not satisfied with his intern position. The possibilities beyond that are endless. It’s really hard to succeed given that my disgust for mathematics is hard to hyde. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/72 "2012-12-26T19:39:15Z")
> [@DrFidelius](#): > > Also. the OP’s demonstrated disdain for “blue collar” work guarantees that he will be (metaphorically) one of the first against the wall when the (metaphorical) revolution comes. What are you talking about? Please explin. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/73 "2012-12-26T19:42:19Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > After all the energy I hve spent getting my PhD, I should start from a blue color job? Thanks but no thanks. I can’t see that you’ve spent that much “energy” in getting the PhD, given that’s all you’ve accomplished in twenty years. At least a blue collar worker is contributing something meaningful to society. ---
**Author:** ![CCitizen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@CCitizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CCitizen)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/74 "2012-12-26T19:45:51Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > At least a blue collar worker is contributing something meaningful to society. Is there anything for which I should be greatful to the American society? ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/75 "2012-12-26T19:51:12Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > It’s really hard to succeed given that my disgust for mathematics is hard to hyde. I don’t think it’s your disgust for math that’s held you back but rather a) your lack of motivation (Jewish or not, disdain or not, you are not productive) b) your lack of imagination (Social sciences require math as well) c) your inability to write properly d) your lack of ambition ---
**Author:** ![DrFidelius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drfidelius/32/3447_2.png) [@DrFidelius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrFidelius)\ **Post date:** [December 26, 2012, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/76 "2012-12-26T20:01:14Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > What are you talking about? Please explin. Okay. When the Workers of the World unite and throw off their chains, it is expected that the parasites of society will be purged. Those who demonstrate useful skills, such as farmers, foundry workers, mechanics, etc will no longer need to tolerate the capitalists who feel entitled to live off their labour. It had been common to the point of cliché to have this expressed by pseudo-Revolutionaries as “(particular example of the privileged classes) will be the first against the wall when the Revolution comes!” I was using it metaphorically, as I do not believe a literal Marxist revolution of the proletariat is likely in these modern and decadent times. Television is a more potent opiate for the people than Marx ever imagined, and all class consciousness and revolutionary fervour have been bred out of the masses, leaving us with televised sports and Honey Boo-Boo. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2012, 11:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/77 "2012-12-27T11:12:05Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > I am sorry – perhaps this is the term we used in Russia. I am Russian, Jewish and part of “Jewish intelligentsia”. I know lots of people who can be described that way. Not one of them lives with his parents all his life. Don’t blame that on the culture. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2012, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/78 "2012-12-27T15:05:53Z")
Is it possible to convert to Intelligent Judaism? ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2012, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/79 "2012-12-27T15:13:08Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > > > At least a blue collar worker is contributing something meaningful to society. > > Is there anything for which I should be greatful to the American society? First of all, the word is spelled “grateful.” Those of us not in the so-called “Jewish intelligentsia” manage to learn to spell simple English words correctly. You might try it. Second, I said nothing about being grateful. I simply mentioned the fact that although the work those blue-collar workers (or blue color workers as you put it; spelling again) do is beneath a PhD such as yourself, they at least contribute something to society. You can tell they’re contributing something because someone to whom they are not related is willing to pay them money to do so. ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [December 27, 2012, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077/80 "2012-12-27T15:19:28Z")
> [@CCitizen](#): > > Maybe the situation is 99% **my fault**. > > But what could I do? In Scandinavia I could have lived on my own and pursued my interests – they have good unemployment benefits. But what could I do here? I don’t get what your question is. You _want_ to be unemployed, so you get more than $500 a month spending money? Or do you want to go back to school for a social sciences degree? Find a meaningful (although, heaven forfend, not a demeaning blue collar job) line of work using your current degree? It seems like you are approaching middle age, have long-term depression which is not being adequately treated, have always lived with your parents, never had a “real” job, have no friends and spent a shit load of time and money getting a PhD in a field that you’re not actually interested in. You can’t do anything about the first and the last, but you can (if you choose) start making changes going forward. I’d start with re-evaluating the treatment you’re getting for the depression/anxiety. /armchair diagnosis [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/could-u-succeed-on-a-job-u-hated/645077.md?page=5)