Changing Positions
Thanks, everyone, for your support about the sucky joblessness. Simon is currently--as I type--on a phone interview for a good position, which would have him doing basically the same thing he was doing before, only on a larger scale and in a more supervisory than hands-on role--i.e., instead of fixing the flickering lightbulb in the building's conference room, he'll direct one of his minions to do it, which, you have to admit, has a certain allure to it. That's climbing the career ladder by not climbing the ladder, I guess, ho ho ho.
Unfortunately, Simon kind of likes changing lightbulbs as a way of interrupting the monotony of the more technical parts of his job, and isn't it unfortunate that neither of us has the commitment toward workplace success that might result in at least one adult in the family reaching his or her greatest potential in the workforce? As an editor, for instance, it should be my deep passion to scale the ranks from lowly editorial assistant to proofreader to copyeditor to developmental editor to editorial director--the apex being, at most presses, to eventually attain a position in which I would do very little actual editing. I mean, I guess if someone wanted to pay me a truckload of cash to merely supervise others in doing what I'm trained to do, I might be willing to relinquish the real, basic, unabashed enjoyment I (most of the time) get from line editing manuscripts to make them better in a visible, tangible way. But still, how much would it take for me to be bought out of doing what I love? Not any numbers that I've seen lately.
Of course, there's very little social prestige in stagnating as an underling for an entire decade (it's not a rut, it's a groove!), but alas I never quite got the hang of giving a crap about what others think, so outside pressure is small impetus for me to raise my game, at least anytime soon. Sure, perhaps once my babymaking and babyraising days are behind me I'll wake up one morning filled with ambition to become an all-powerful Grammar Czarina, but for now, of course, I'm happy to just nose-to-grindstone my way through this rough patch (my awesomely awesome employer has allowed me to go full-time for as long as Simon is unemployed! yay them!) and in the meantime hope that my better, higher-earning half will catch the big fish, which I promise, here and now, not only to praise lavishly, with generous oohing and aahing, but also to cook up and serve (the fish) while he (the Simon) kicks back with a martini (which I will not make, as no matter how many times he teaches me the procedure, I forget it immediately; and in this way making a martini is like checking the oil in my car).
The other example of our dedication to mediocrity: After undergrad, Simon did two years of full-time, full-load pre-med as a foundation to becoming a neurologist. It wasn't until he was ready to apply to med school that he realized he didn't want to be a doctor at the expense of having a life (which, according to the doctors and med students he interviewed, was the only way of it), and so he quit. He didn't then run out to become a hot dog vendor or anything (no offense to hot dog vendors, but that's hardly a good use of Simon's education), but it's nevertheless hard for most jobs to compare--salary-wise--with neurology. Plus, it sounds really good when introducing oneself at a cocktail party.
Yet, it's this sort of attitude that will likely keep us perpetually poorer than we want to be but happier than we deserve to be, cocktail partiers be damned. For now, for me, that's still a manageable tradeoff.
Have you heard of the book Shop Class as Soulcraft? A co-worker of mine is reading it, and we talked about the subject matter -- manual competence, or the ability to work with one's hands -- just this morning. I'm totally going to recommend my mother-in-law read it, as she has wondered why her son (my brother-in-law) would waste a perfectly good degree in Social Science on a job as an auto mechanic. Surely, he could make more money in an office job that utilized his education, but he loves working on cars, and he enjoys the lifestyle it affords him -- freewheeling, little responsibility, etc.
I don't think there's anything wrong with career "stagnation" as long as what you do makes you happy. I've had the opportunity to move into a high-level sales position at my company (book packaging), and while I was dazzled by the prospect of European travel and a bigger paycheck, I'm actually quite happy where I am, in a mid-level position with some big responsibilities (trade show coordination, bi-annual catalog coordination) and some not-so-big responsibilities (printing my boss' letters on letterhead, scheduling trade show meetings). At the end of the day -- and my work day does have an end every day, thank goodness -- I don't have to take my work home with me, and that's much more important to me than a private office and a gleaming nameplate.
I thought, at the age of 27, I'd have a job with a real title, and a career path. Instead, when people ask what I do, I more describe what we as an office do, because there's no title for what I do. Like you, I'm hoping post-baby years I get the career gene. Right now I just want to be home, or doing something part-time that'll allow me to be with my baby as much as possible.
Oh and the husband is a lawyer, but he very much chose the fun workplace, that allows for weekends, and no billable hours. Paying the loans is harder but it's worth it to have a life. I totally see where Simon was coming from.
Considerably, one of the best article l have come across on this deserving topic. I quite go along with with your assumptions and will thirstily look forward to your upcoming updates.
To Michael SImon (Author) and all at 1-800recycle I thank you so much for th is terrific blog site about my perform. I recognize the chance and publicity to your readers in enabling them to discover how a single Art ist Thinks Exterior the Box.??? My quite greatest for all