Following in parental footsteps

In My Humble Opinion
1

Some people take over the family business from their folks, some follow a similar profession, some go along a completely different path. What did you do?

My dad worked for a foreign freight forwarder most of his professional life, rising to department manager, then VP before retiring. My mom was a homemaker who used to do sewing for a few clients, and eventually, she started a catering business after all the kids left home.

I’m the only one of 5 siblings to leave the area where we grew up. I spent 11 years in the Navy, got a degree in engineering, and did that for 26 years. One sister has held various fairly menial jobs her entire adult life. My brother became a CPA very soon after college, served as a CFO and CEO in different companies, and recently became president where he works now. Another sister has done work similar to what our dad did, and the last sister has been a bartender for almost 3 decades.

My husband’s father worked for Burroughs as a field engineer and his mother quit work as a bank teller when she became pregnant with her first child. My husband worked as a machinist, a welder, a toolmaker, and finally an engineer. One brother was a teacher, and the youngest has worked mostly retail.

Our daughter became a teacher, despite our hopes that she’d go into engineering also. Not that there’s anything wrong with being a teacher, but after 6 years, her frustration is mounting.

Maybe it would have been different if our parents owned businesses. Maybe not.

What path did you follow?

2

Both my parents worked in the medical field. My dad worked as an RN, my mom a lab technician. Off and on I wondered about following in their footsteps. They had tons of old textbooks in the house, I knew about diseases and medical procedures from them. The reason I didn’t pursue that field was a lame one- in elementary school I was teased for having a dad that was a nurse. It made me so angry, because even as a kid I knew his job was highly skilled and technical, yet even in the eighties there’s a stereotype about male nurses. It made me self conscious I’d be fighting this stereotype as a nurse myself. My mom’s job was stressful; much of her career involved phlebotomy and she always had to deal with grumpy people (fasting for cholesterol tests and stuff) babies and whiny old farts. It didn’t seem like an appealing future for me. I went to college, but a few years after graduating ended up as a bus driver. Ironically, my current job likely pays far more than what I would make in a job that requires a degree (made about 90k last year driving a bus…not bad! :smiley: )

Both my wife’s parents were day laborers that immigrated from Mexico. Her dad is now a janitor/groundskeeper and her mom a factory worker. Because of the struggles of her parents my wife was driven to get a good education and career. She double majored in college and worked as a social worker for several years. She then went back to school and got a Master’s in Social Work and now makes even more than I do.

We both still live near our families as we are both close knit to them, and really love living in the Bay Area.

3

My father was a career Army officer (retired as a Colonel). My mom was a career professional secretary (actually has an advanced degree from Katherine Gibbs in NYC). My brother is a social worker, sister is a teacher, and I am a lawyer. Go figure.

My husband, however, totally followed in his father’s footsteps. My FIL was a prosecutor, public defender, town attorney, and then had (still has) his own small town general practice law firm. My husband went straight to law school after college, worked briefly at another firm and the public defender’s office, then opened his own firm.

My husband is convinced our son will follow in his footsteps. With two lawyers for parents, however, I am convinced he will be an artist or musician just out of spite. :slight_smile:

4

My father was an engineer for the state highway department, eventually rising up to the title of district engineer meaning that he was in charge of all the state highways for a rather large geographic area. My mother was a school nurse.

My 2 older brothers both in education. One a much loved high school teacher with many accolades. The other a hard nosed High School Principle and then Superintendent with a reputation for turning around bad situations straightening them out in 3-4 years them moving on to the next. I started a small software and data business in a very narrow niche of the business world.

5

My dad managed an auto parts store for many years. My mom stayed at home until I was in Kindergarten, at which point she was a lunch lady, then moved on to be a payroll and account clerk for a variety of city and county offices. My dad only went through 6th grade before literally being farmed out to relatives, never completing his schooling. Mom had a high school diploma.

My sister got married right out of high school, had kids, stayed at home until she divorced. She went back to college (where I was attending), graduated with a Psychology major / Communication minor… and is working at Target. Hating it. She had worked for a large metropolitan 9-1-1 office and was doing very well, until they changed their requirements. She left, and has not found a decent job since. I honestly have no idea what she want to be when she grows up (she’s 53). She does a fair amount of volunteer work that she enjoys, but it doesn’t put food on the table.

I planned on becoming a teacher, but left college just shy of starting student teaching. Then I became pregnant. Stayed at home for 10 months, couldn’t handle it anymore. Became an account representative for a jewelry manufacturer, then an account representative for an opthalmic lab, then went to work for the county 18 years ago.

My mom always pushed my sister and I towards government work of some sort. My sister fell more to the community safety side (she was a police reserve for 25 years, following in the footsteps of our grandfather who was a reserve for 40 years) and I fell more into the social service side.

6

Both of my parents had some college.
Neither one had a degree.
My father worked for GM first in the computer room, I know he was an operator but he did some programming as well - back in the days of wiring boards. Then he went into some kind of quality control position where he tracked down missing screws (being stolen) and fans that didn’t spin properly (warped in shipping). He hated his job and didn’t talk about it too often. he stayed there for 30 and a half years, retiring when he was 50 and a half being that when your age and years of service equaled 81 you could retire
My mother was a clerk/typist until I was born. She went back to work when I was 12 or 13 and worked her way up from data entry clerk to branch manager with the state.

What is interesting is that they both stayed so long at their jobs.
While I’ve done the same kind of work for many years, I’ve never stayed at any company for more than 5 years.

Some college but no degree.
I have worked on a horse farm, fast food, restaurant work, bank teller, computer operator, computer programmer, belly dancer, stripper, bouncer, telephone answering service (out of my home), telephone psychic, Gypsy fortune teller/tarot card reader, pet sitter and dog walker (my own company), newspaper delivery/recovery, personal shopper, owned an entertainment company, bartender, landlord and property manager for other people, did home party sales - Tupperware, Christmas Around the World and Parke Lane Jewelry.
Now I work from home at a job I’m not allowed to talk about, can’t tell who I work for or what I do other than I deal with customer service.
I didn’t get the longevity gene, I got the I’m easily bored, routine work plucks my last nerve, seeing the same faces day after day makes me crazy gene. Up until recently I’ve always had two sources of income, sometimes three. I don’t like having only one job, I feel more secure with two. Had I stayed with some of my jobs I could be close to retirement now.

My sister didn’t go to college at all until she was in her 40s? I don’t know, her husband bitches about paying for it. For a while before she married her current husband she was a bank teller, but mostly she didn’t work. I know she has at least one degree, in accounting? maybe another in something else?. Now she works as a dog groomer?.

7

Dang - that’s a real interesting mix. All that’s missing is international spy and reality TV star! :wink: Suddenly, my resume looks soooooo boring!

8

I ain’t dead yet. Who knows?

9

I mostly followed my dad’s footsteps. He was a pharmacist (now retired, he hated that job) and I am a chemist but not a pharmacist.

My brother works in a medical field which is kindof related. One of us went into chemistry, the other into medicine. My dad was a mix of both.

Other brother struck it out on his own and did something totally unrelated.

I’m starting to regret my decision. I think I’d be happier as a psychotherapist, but don’t want to go back to school anytime soon.

10

My parents had a marketing business for most of my youth. I was in marketing for a while there too.

I knew my father wanted me to join the biz, but I would never, ever, not in a billion years, ever consider working for my father. Me and my brother discussed it many times (he is also in the marketing biz, but on the design side). I’ve moved on to another career.

The whole idea of having “one thing” you do is from another generation. I have a college degree and a JD but here are some of the things I’ve done, in rough chronological order
-babysitting
-gofer in an office
-bank teller
-buying books for a library
-customer service for a bilingual bookstore
-lab assistant (did certain simple tests and procedures, cataloging, photographing, washing lab glassware, tidying)
-Teach horseback riding
-political polling
-cataloging artifacts for a museum
-follow-spotlight operator for a theater
-barn manager/riding teacher (different place)
-QA for a website (basically testing that links are valid and go where they’re supposed to)
-Public relations (mostly placements for events, sometimes writing press releases)
-marketing copywriter
-media interviewer
-proofreading
-legal research
-gubmint attorney

11

My mum has been a stay at home mum all my life. I am presently a stay at home mum, but have no intention to remain that way.

My dad is a fitter and machinist at a paper mill. I have worked AT that paper mill in the past, though not for it (employed by a contractor), as an office worker rather than a manual labourer.

12

My father’s father died when he was young and his mother lost all her money in the Depression. He couldn’t afford to give up the earnings he would have had to give up going to college, even though City College was free. He did work himself up to a good job. I bet he could have been an engineer if he had gone to college. I had more opportunities than he did, so I feel I followed in his footsteps if his life had been easier.

My daughter kind of has followed in mine - different field, but a PhD and doing research.

13

My father was a school teacher. My mother stayed at home. My older sister was a school teacher. My little sister was a school teacher. I’m a college professor. My son works at a college though in IT not as a teacher so it’s sort of all in the family.

14

Both of my parents were artists. In fact they met in 8th grade art class. Over the years they worked in quite a few art media, including commercial art and teaching. They both moved to NYC after high school, returning here when World War II began.

When I was a kid, all I wanted to be was an architect. I was somewhat of a prodigy in art and math, and was, at the beginning, at the head of my class in the Ohio State architecture school. But after my freshman year my focus changed, and I wound up having five majors: architecture, philosophy, math, fine arts and psychology. I became the layout editor of the Ohio State yearbook, which served as my portfolio when I moved to NYC. I got a job as a commercial artist the second day I arrived, and became Art Director after about six weeks. Then I transitioned into the area of Typography, finally doing work with type designers, specializing in letter-spacing and kerning.

Over the years I took Continuing Education classes in a wide assortment of subjects . . . always returning to the arts. I was encouraged by my teachers (“Come on, you’ve done this before.”), but never considered myself a professional artist until the early 90s, when I quit my proverbial day job, and stayed in my cramped apartment doing my art. In the mid-90s, I moved back here to help my mother take care of my father, who had Alzheimer’s.

Once here, and not confined to a 1-bedroom Manhattan apartment, my artwork blossomed. I’m still amazed that it took me so long to live out my “destiny” as an artist. It’s very telling that the art I create shows similarities with both of my parents . . . something totally unintentional on my part. I work in several media that I’ve invented and developed myself, without getting any help or inspiration from other artists. I rarely go to museums or galleries.

I’ve found it impossible to verbally describe the art I make; you have to see it. So in the coming weeks I’ll be working on my own web site, so you all can understand what I do.

15

Dad worked for the state as a geologist. Mom was a 5th grade teacher and a good one. My youngest brother, after waiting tables/acting/singing for 25 years, just became a music teacher and I know he will be a good one. My middle brother works for himself in a number of different ventures and is a success.

I dicked around, cooked for a long time, went back to school for a useless MFA, taught for a little bit, finally landed in a career as an AOD counselor. So no, I didn’t follow in my folks’ footsteps.

16

My mom was stay-at-home, then worked at a bank when my brother and I were in high school; her dad was a farmer who also did road maintenance for the county. My dad was an engineer who designed bridges, then went into pharmaceutical sales before I was born; his dad was a (choo-choo train) engineer.

I became a chemical engineer, my brother became a lawyer. I didn’t really follow in anyone’s footsteps, so much as become an engineer in spite of my dad having once been an engineer.

However, my brother’s father-in-law is also a chemical engineer, and my brother’s brother-in-law is a lawyer. As neither I nor the latter have kids of our own, we all have been working our influence over my nephews and niece. Number One Nephew, who is 11, shows “engineer” signs, much to the lawyers’ collective chagrin.

Number Two Nephew is going to be a superhero, and The Niece has decided she will be a Princess. Unless there are family mysteries I’m not aware of, those won’t be in anyone’s footsteps.

17

Both my parents were nurses, and I worked in hospice for ~ 13 years, up until just a few months ago. Now, I work for a local community college as a math and writing tutor, which is something I hope to be able to continue to do for a very long time to come. My brother pulls green chain at a local mill. So neither one of us really followed in our parent’s footsteps, although I suppose I did more so than my brother – working in health care, going to college, etc. which he never did.

18

My father is a MSW/LICSW and has worked for many years for the county in the public school system as a therapist and counselor for troubled students. He left that job when I was in high school to become a family and couples counselor through Catholic Charities but went back to the county after the new priest made it clear that the only therapy he wanted was bible reading.

My mom has a bachelor’s in biology and worked as a lab researcher for 25ish years before going to grad school and now she’s working on her PhD in immunology.

I got myself a bachelors in theater and currently work in clinical trials software as a study database developer and tester. My sister got a bachelors in International Relations but is going back to school for a el. ed degree. My brother is still in high school but the expectation is that he will go to college for physics or math or engineering or something else very STEM-y.

My mom’s family are all very STEM-y. Lots of bachelors in math, computer science, biology, chemistry and so on. My dad’s family has a lot more people with degrees in social work and education and careers as counselors and teachers. Even my grandfather who worked for honeywell for most of his life became a deacon after retirement and does Jesus-based counseling.

So I don’t think I’m really following in anyone’s footsteps but I also don’t know that I see what I’m doing now as what I want to be doing in 20 years, either, so who knows.

19

My dad worked variously as a skipper, driving tour boats and a floating restaurant, then went into fisheries research as a technician. My mum was a vet, who retrained in her 30s as a primary school teacher.

I work in environmental education, so I do kind of split the difference. We did a lot of nature exploring as a family, which without doubt influenced my career path.

20

My dad was a tool & die maker (now retired). No college; he only went through a skilled trade apprentice program.

My mom was an RN (now retired). Three years of nursing school. I worked with her one summer in college as a Nurses’ Aide… which taught me that I did not want to be a nurse.

I went to college, unlike my parents, and majored in journalism. Am now an editor.