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Winemaker.
It's not unpleasant.
Freelance journalist and moving into social media management.
I've always enjoyed the craft of journalism but don't always enjoy the subjects I get paid to cover and I'm tiring of the freelance life after seven years odd.
What do you do for a living
Police (CID)
do you enjoy it
Not any more
Solicitor in corporate finance - primarily dealing in complex debt restructuring and various forms of loan transfers. The job is feast or famine - I am either sat here face-showing surfing the internet or am being beasted and having to work all night.
Well paid but utterly morally bankrupt. Would happily do virtually anything else but my family benefit from the money so to give it up would affect the quality of life of my kids. Basically I made a mistake choosing law as a career when I was 21 - wtf did I know about anything to choose what I was to do for the rest of my working life then? I pity the poor trainees that turn up having made it through the ludicrously difficult academic process all for the privilege of a life of drudgery and a rolex.
Now would much rather have gone into the medical profession or the police force but no doubt they have their shortcomings too.
Air traffic controller. It's amazballs.
'Technology Project Lead' (basically project engineer) at a composite materials research centre.
Basically it's probably my ideal job - working on ways to make stuff from composite materials faster, better, cheaper etc using big robotic machines and developing new processes and bits of kit to do them.
Little did I know when I was 16 and DIY making carbon fibre undercarriages for my RC planes in the shed from bodged together balsa tooling, some bits of dry carbon fabric and some epoxy, where I would end up...
Technical Manger/Geochemist/remediation science bod for a contaminated land remediation contractor.
yeah I enjoy it, can be quite challenging at times and I get to think about geeky stuff all day 🙂
Quality Manufacture Director.
No idea, as I'll start next month.
I have been a Quality Manufacturing Consultant for the last several years, here in China, which has been fun as it has taken me to lots of different factories, and dealing with lots of different problems.
Mainly dealing with Cultural Issues, Process Development and Lean Manufacturing.
Job title is a Technical Architect (IT not buildings) but mostly seems to be resourcing and dealing with project managers at the moment. Only really enjoy things when getting hands on setting up stuff but I'm not supposed to do that these days and rarely get the chance - I'm shit at drawing stuff in Visio so that doesn't help my enjoyment of things...
Run a gift shop with Mrs Zip . We sell nice things to nice people, so yes I like my job.
Compared to my previous job of painting cars it's not even really work!
My commute is 3 miles off road which can be extended to any length I like, so that's another bonus.
Weird STW has eaten my post and logged me out in the process....
Repeat:
Lead the commercial negotiations for the mobile division of a UK telco. Currently we're working on some major transformation projects, so super busy.
Used to be a lawyer, and switched to this last year. Would never go back - love the challenge.
(@ medders - feel your pain!)
A part-time minor ZM bureaucrat dealing with certain people ...
It's a job that keeps a roof over my head and I don't dislike it nor like it.
I rather earn my money running my business if I can.
IT related, not very hands on anymore due to the way the company is going but I mostly enjoy it.
It is varied, they pay me well, I have a reasonable work life balance and I work with some good people.
I am surprised at how many people dislike what they do for 40 hours a week.
CNC programmer/operator
I was getting a bit bored after 10+ years but last year we got full 5 axis machining centre and some CAD/CAM software to go with it. It's certainly been a learning curve but I'm really enjoying it. 😀
I operate the button that randomly logs people out of Singletr
Fire alarm designer.
I don't hate it, so think I'm pretty lucky. Also I have a pretty good work/life balance which I like.
fireman and still like the job. worked in engineering and aerospace before, so still remember my roots in the dirty, noisy factory.
family circumstances (kids grrrr) have unfortunately made the job a difficult lifestyle for me and mrs ex-punk, so id be willing to try something else for a better work/home balance, but at 50 its a bit late to switch careers now.
Self employed pest controller. I like the practical aspects of the job and helping people to solve problems. Would be nice for the money side of things to be more stable which has made me consider taking on another salaried position if the right one comes along; enjoying your work is no good if you can't make it pay. Being self employed also has the downside of work swallowing up all of your spare time including weekends. I can only just remember what my bike looks like...
Electrical Fitter, and changing to a different company after next week. The work is slack, and whatever work we have seems to require a plethora of supervisors/managers to dish it out, with no planning or consistency at every level.
I want to get myself involved with the programming and fault finding of automated machinery which could lead to a good variety of jobs, and get some higher education under my belt before the joys of a family and taking life seriously become reality 😯
City W4nker
Do I enjoy it? ... Not really ... two main reasons
1) City w4nkers
2) the job is like golf ... unless you hit 18 holes in one, which is impossible, you could have always done better.... so even when you make money on any given day (like I have the past two) you could have done better ??
Charity sector, international development - so spend a lot of time in various African countries. Enjoy the work, but can't help wondering if something outside, standing up and without a screen would be better.
Rope access technician, self employed.
Has its ups and downs....
His Boss 8)
General Manager - so I manage stuff, generally. Work for a large Arts Festival in a Capital City of the UK - bit of Facilities Management, bit of Capex/project stuff, bit of Hospitality and Events.
At other times I dream of having the kind of job where I could wear shorts 365.
Mental Health Nursing Assistant, get to be hands on, rather than tied to a desk doing endless amounts of paperwork like the nurses, i like that, 3x 14 hour shifts per week, meaning i get to see the kids more than a daily job
Rope access technician, self employed.
Has its ups and downs....
Have you considered a move into comedy?
Work for a large Arts Festival in a Capital City
I've [i]just[/i] finished writing a feature about arts festivals.
😆
Account manager / supply chain analyst
Hate it with a passion at the moment despite having great flexitime. It's become too easy/boring and I want a change, I just don't know what to do or how to change it.
I line em' all up and shoot em' all down.
I love it 😆
Actually I'm a Portfolio/Programme Manager in Corporate Banking. Specialising in Regulatory Change.
I'm clearly a very busy bouy.
Writer designer photographer
Used to have a studio in Soho, threw it in to be a windsurf magazine designer and sail tester for 20years then edited a kitesurf mag. Now I write features and design ads in the local newspaper industry and rework tech press releases and manuals for assorted clients. And for two years I 'moved' cigars between Cuba and Nassau.
Police officer.
I've had enough and am now looking for something else.
I potter about in a small but well equipped workshop all day. Occasionally someone gives me a lot of money to build them a bicycle.
It's not really a job, more a hobby that pays its way. Love it. Which is just as well, as I'm probably pretty much unemployable.
Interesting, one of the few threads I've really read every post of for a while.
I'm a Director of an engineering recruitment company, supplying engineers to most industries including defence, aviation, and the rail industry.
I used to love it, but have recently handed in my notice to pursue something on my own.
Design engineer for a metrology company. Its a great job in terms of sensible hours, interesting work, not too much pressure and 15 minute commute ... But I'm soooo tempted to rent out my house and become a Alps bum 🙂
Offshore oil and gas sub-sea construction, enjoy it, meh sometimes, $40 a barrel has killed it for now and the foreseeable, could be jotters after this project comes to an end.
Builder, love it.
I have read all the posts, some of your jobs sound far to important and stressful to me.
I am so glad I didn't aspire to much... 😀
Quantity Surveyor - Hate it with a passion. When you boil it down to it's barest essence it's fundamentally arguing with people about money.
I'm a building services engineer but seem to spend very little time actually designing and very much more time doing the above, one of our directors even sold our services as a QS which means me basically trying to nail down small local contractors at the behest of a very large global firm with a dubious track record on corporate ethics, can't say it motivates me to try very hard 😳
Buuuut... my one attempt to move sideways into a more rewarding role would have resulted in a 20% paycut with a wedding on the horizon and a deposit to save for, so I'll sit it out and keep my eyes open, saw a role as a sprinkler design engineer being advertised but would require a huge amount more commuting than present which kinda put me off.
Criminal lawyer . " I enjoy it?" Very hard to say success depends on managing any number of random people with disparate agendas while remaining true to some very demanding ethics . I can be brilliant and still get the " wrong " result or be rubbish and have a client loudly proclaiming me the best brief ever . The pay and method of payment is also rubbish and soul destroying .
Feel for you Scotsman. My little bro works as a project engineer for Foster Wheeler. They've had massive staff cuts. He told me last week though that they are starting to be asked to start looking at new projects. He thinks it may be about to start slowly winding up to speed again.
Criminal lawyer .
The pay and method of payment is also rubbish and soul destroying
Well that's my image of Lawyers shattered then.
technical author - basically i research stuff and write it up for our clients enjoyment, almost like being back at uni. very laid back office and well paid. really enjoy it & learn new stuff constantly 😀
Currently work in a corner of the civil service. As recent posts bare testament,I hate it.
But I have a second interview lined up for a transfer, the day I get back from holiday. Hope springs eternal!
Town planning and environmental impact consultant in a big multi-d consultancy.
I do generally enjoy it but am getting pulled more and more onto managing numbers with less technical involvement, which is tedious.
I work in a police station as a mild mannered janitor. Pays the bills and keeps me in noodles.
Recently made redundant from teaching carpentry and construction at FE college. Now back on the tools and doing the childcare once the kids go back to school. Enjoying being a carpenter again and looking forward to spending lots more time with my 2 children.