I have always been under the impression that most people lie when they say they like their jobs and that they only do their job for the money (thanks to my Father's constant lectures). My father purports that everyone may "love" their job in the first year or so, but after that, their love will always boil down to making large sums of money. Sport players, doctors, lawyers - it's all about the money. He also goes on to say this is what people call off from work and take vacation days.

Over the years, I came to realize that maybe this isn't the case. There are people out there who seem genuinely motivated and interested in their work. Take for instance my colleagues who somehow find programming interesting enough that they do it in their spare time. Then there are those people who will enthusiastically talk about projects at work to friends even when they're not working. I also recall how in college football that Joe Patterno is still coaching despite his age.

Then again, maybe I'm wrong and all these people possess ulterior motives of making themselves appear interested in their jobs so they can perform better and net higher salaries. Or is my Father full of **** as always and that most people actually like their jobs?

I love my job.

I don't think most people do, though.

I'm really hating my job right now because I've worked like 30 hours in the past 2 days

Edit: and am still working.

I, for one, love my job.


A better question might be: do the majority of people love their teachers?

I really loved my current job in my first year there. It's only a part-time bartending job at my university's student guild, but I always felt appreciated and valued by the managers who I had a really good rapport with. This was furthered when I was offered a supervisor position above the rest of the staff who started at the same time as me (although a couple of others got it a month or so later). The thing was, I was always really enthusiastic about my work, always glad to be the first person my manager called when they needed cover, or if something unexpected came up, or they just needed someone they could count on.

This year, not so much. Now it just feels like we get taken for granted, our hours get cut with no explanation, we get **** from above and from the customers (since we're the "front line" we're always the ones dealing with complaints). I still provide the best service I can to the people I deal with, I just got so sick of being burdened with more and more responsibility without the same kind of increase in reward. I mean, we're now expected to "supervise" all the time, but we'll only be receiving the appropriate pay level for club nights or gigs.

I guess the point I lost somewhere in all of that is that most people do love their job at first, whether it's because of the excitement of a new challenge or because they feel they are doing something for the betterment of themselves, other people, or society at large. Maybe that continues but I guess it loses the initial luster, or it fades away as part of a general routine so they fail to notice it anymore.

I still believe there are people who continue to love what they do. Examples being those really loyal sports players who carry on for years with their club, scientists who keep that burning desire for their research in order to provide answers, or wildlife experts who spend their time isolated from the world for love of their work. Unfortunately it seems only a small selection of people are ever lucky enough to devote themselves in such a way.

Cloud does.

I've worked as a theoretical physicist, and that's something you can't do unless you love it. You also have to love coffee. A lot.

Science is really only a career option for those that love science. There aren't really that many perks to it.

The only job I didn't enjoy was working for my family.

My first job it was at a vacation resort, I worked in a snack shack, basically a small scale fast food joint. I worked with my best friends, and there was lots of sex, drugs, and alcohol involved. And free food. I'd go to work when I wasn't scheduled and help out.

My next job was at a university dinning common. I liked it because they employ as many students as apply. So basically.... 20 people doing 5 people's worth of jobs. You'd just chill with your friends and have to do a minutes worth of work every half hour or so. Again, I didn't have to pay for food (meal plan)

I worked at Home Depot after that. I was hired as a lot boy. So I was just chilling most of the time, and would go out to collect carts. Usually I'd call a friend and blaze with them in their car. After like 2 months I got bored of doing nothing, so took my cashier test. I was assigned to outside garden since everyone hated it. I loved it. No supervision. There was this cool old guy they hired to keep the plants in good shape I would always talk to. And I got to play around on fork lifts as I was one of the few people with their cert.

I worked at a Coffee Shop/Cafe in Montana next. QUALITY free food. Good free coffee. I love the food service thing, so I enjoyed it. It was a small place, only like 10 of us. We all got along well and had a fun time. Also I brought home about $10 cash in tips each day.

I won't go into details, but I had to leave this job.
Went to work at a Truss factory after that. Aside from Food Service, I enjoy physical jobs (since it doesn't really require you to "do" stuff). Six friends and I worked there (Everyone else was a crazy *** tweaker) We got free Popsicles. We blasted good music. Fresh air (working in factory with the big doors open). We took a lot of breaks too, so we chilled for an hour total in a shift instead of the half hour I'm used to.

Again, complications.
Worked at a sticker factory for a couple weeks before I moved back to Maine.
Was just a unique experience. Cool guys working with. I enjoyed it. I wouldn't have wanted to work there any longer though.

Worked for family. OMFG MISTAKE.
A whole year of miser.

Have not worked in a year. All the money I had saved up is gone. I'm stupid like that.

obama's asu speech inspired me to do something i love
but i don't know what i love

I mainly love my job. Everyone has moments where they go GGAGAGOWIGOAWGAGAAAAAAAAA!!! and think "why am I doing this?"

But by and large being an engineer is aces.

Haha, are we gonna get an update on that soon? Its been a couple of years XD

I love my job. AZ taxpayers paying me to drink - awesome.

I think there are lots of people who don't love their job. Love is a very strong word as liking your job is less than loving it. Loving your jobs means having a passion for it, day after day, year after year.

I love my job. It keeps me fit, I get to go places few other people do and I get paid to do it.

I love my job.

I spend about half my working time volunteering for a charity, which, apart from being a necessity due to how hard it is to get in to the work I want to do, is something that I would only do if I enjoyed it. I hate getting up for work on a Monday morning as much as the next guy, but I regularly find myself throughout the day thinking "bloody hell, it's awesome that I get to be involved in this work".

Oh, and even if I get my dream job, the money is guaranteed to be crap, so salary certainly isn't a factor in my career choices!

People who are motivated to work in order to make money (or those who are forced to do whatever job is available to make ends meet) are inevitably not going to enjoy the day to day tasks. Enjoying your job is about personal satisfaction, a sense of achievement, your passions, etc.

More of a love-hate relationship, really.

I don't. I am content, but I certainly don't love it.

I could love it, but many things would need to change before that happened, sadly. Namely the people I work with. Thankfully, for the most part they answer to me rather than I to them.

I wouldn't say this is true for everyone though. For the most part, yes.

Haha, I used to work in the Home Depot lot! We didn't get to slack off, though. I only lasted two months.

I have a degree in playing guitar, so the main jobs I do are teach lessons and play/write music. It rules if you like it enough (it's a24/7 job, not 9-5 with weekends off) . I'm glad I don't work in an office somewhere, or do retail.

I've been working at IBM for almost two years in Storage Area Network and distributed monitoring services, and when I can actually work on development, I really enjoy it, but lately I've been swamped either attending training for new clients, or training the new waves of cheaper hires who will inevitably phase us more experienced and more expensive folks out, given IBM's inflamed axe-hand every quarter of late. So. Right now, rather unhappy with it.

I started a LEGO eBay store that makes me plenty enough in profits so that I don't need an actual job while I am going to school. I spend an hour a day managing ebay listings and putting stacks of bubble mailers full of random LEGO pieces in the mail box, driving to the post office once a week for international packages.

How can you not love that

I hate my job. However, I'm not really qualified for anything outside of computer repair & I can't really go back to school at this point. It's rather depressing when you mention it. Thanks!

I despise my "job".

Thank god its only temporary.

Job?

What job?

Did you get to play with Lego all day? My dream job would be to be the guy that builds those Lego statues at Legoland.

I recently bought a Lego Mindstorm kit on eBay, and that is my summer project.

Numerous polls clearly indicate that a majority of people hate their jobs.

This is a stupid question.

There will always be people at the top of the pile doing jobs that they enjoy and the rest of us have to pick up their slack.

I don't play with the pieces as much as you would think I would, but it is pretty cool having a whole room full of bins of new sorted LEGO pieces at my disposal when I do feel like building. I specialize in Technic so I have an entire wall full of stacked bins full of thousands of gears, liftarms, axles, motors, you name it.

I just bought the NXT Mindstorms set. It's pretty cool, but you will find yourself wanting to purchase additional sensors to build really cool stuff. (I don't sell sensors, this ain't some plug :p ) It comes with enough sensors to fill all the available slots, but each one is different. I find myself wanting to build things with 4 of the same sensors as opposed to 1 each of all the different sensors.

I write statistical simulations at Lockheed. It rocks.

Insightful responses, everyone. I guess for now I have to keep on working towards my dream job (screenwriting), while I endure programming for Booz Allen Hamilton.

Oh you just had to throw that in, GBK.

It's ok, GBK is going to dedicate a level to his job.

I still envy you.

You'd envy me more if 86% of our department weren't contractors without benefits, and with no chance of ever being hired on as regs. :p

I'd still rather work with you, if it didn't involve moving.

I don't think I could have a job I didn't enjoy. I hate doing something half-assed, I hate not working to the best of my ability...but I can't give something my all if I don't care about it.

Currently, my job sucks horribly, but I enjoy it.

I enjoy my job pretty thoroughly. It's not glamorous, but the life of a computer forensics investigator is turning out to be pretty interesting. And it's definitely a good change of pace from training development.

We act like fighter pilots and get "kills" when an investigation we do results in an employee termination. Fun fun.

Oh my god investigation is the best thing ever. It's so satisfying. That's one of my favorite parts of my job. You wouldn't think parking enforcement officers would need to investigate anything, but we bust people who thought they'd never get caught. That's the best kind of bust.

My job by all accounts should be good, we have a small number of websites with fairly diverse functionality. The problem is, the company has incredibly low standards and micromanages everything to the extent that I haven't produced anything I'd be comfortable showing people in over 2 years.

i to the store yesterday, omfg i want the Jango one the Mall of America has

i enjoy my job, but don't love it, theres plenty of perks and good things, but many annoying ones to even it out