Tell me about your non bullshit jobs

[MrsCremuel]

I have a meaningless job that is crushing my soul. It pays the bills and that’s what gets me through.

I’d love to hear from those of you that have jobs that give you a sense of purpose and that have meaning. The good and the bad aspects! I’m trying to be realistic before I plan my escape.

I do an absolute bullshit for-the-bills day job but I write novels which supplements my income/gets stashed away in pension, and fulfils the creative/meaningful urge.

MrsCremuel I totally get you, it was very demoralising after a while.

As itwasaluckybuy says, there may be great companies who actually do what they promise, but I never came across them. I had lovely colleagues, but there was too much apathy to actually get things done.
They get you at the interview with the gushing about company culture and what amazing initiatives they are working on, and after a few months working there you realise these initiatives have been left to rot, with nobody allocated proper responsibility, little or no funding and no motivation to actually complete them. But hey, it sounds good right?

Coupled with senior management who showed blatant favouritism in promoting friends over colleagues with proper qualifications/ experience (in some cases we pretty much knew who would get the role before doing the interviews), or who were known bullies but nothing was done about it as they were too senior, or were friends with the right people.

One place I worked at had signed up to a workplace excellence award, and as part of the external review they surveyed staff who had highlighted issues to be addressed. In the two years I was there, none of these were worked on, or seriously looked at, I'm not sure if that company kept the award as it was reviewed every 3 years, but they just wanted to put the shiny certificate on the wall, seemingly no interest in actually making the workplace better.

Sorry that was a rant and a half!! As I say, I had to get out.

Work for a charity. Love it! You could dip your toe in by becoming a trustee, you would gain valuable experience to help you decide if you wanted to move into that area.

I work in International Development- essentially I design, help implement and monitor projects and programmes that support people living in conflict. It does have bullshit elements, especially now I'm a senior manager, and you have to develop a fairly tough exterior, but I'm never bored, have travelled extensively and for the most part enjoy it. It is mostly office based though, unless you're on a surge assignment or based overseas (which as it should be is much less common for staff from the Global North). And even then you'll mostly be in some sort of office. I do get out and about a lot though.

DH is a librarian and LOVES it. Quite badly paid though.

Have you thought about HR in the not for profit sector? At least that's not about turning a buck for shareholders, and if charities want to keep people they usually have to do better at the benefits because the pay isn't so good.

I’m a journalist. I absolutely adore my job. I get to genuinely make a difference to people’s lives every day. Usually coming to me is a last resort for them when they’ve knocked on every other door and it sometimes just takes the threat of publicity to get their issues sorted. I also get to find out loads of gossip and sit in on incredible court cases.

The pay is absolutely dreadful. Barely above minimum wage tbh when you take into account how many extra hours you work. And the abuse is off the chart. It oh have to develop an incredibly thick skin.

There are several ways into the industry - traditional route is NCTJ qualification but there are also lots of journo apprenticeships going at the moment.

Midday Supervisor in a primary.My purpose is to stop the little tykes from killing each other before the bell goes

@Brown76

My role involves mentoring business owners, I love seeing people get the confidence and clarity to progress their careers, most clients are wonderful, little bureaucracy/management or rules around it which works best for me.

Ooh...how do I find someone who can help mentor me? I Co own a successful interior design business (going 9 years) but we have no idea how to grow as it's just the 2 of us doing everything right now.

I’m a civil engineer, working on the maintenance /repair/refurbishment and construction of new critical flood defences infrastructure schemes. I always say, if I fo my job properly, no one need know I’ve done it. It is very satisfying when river levels pass levels they’ve normally flooded at, and don’t.

@cality

You could look into training to be a Psychological well-being practitioner (PWP) This is what I do. You can either self fund or get a trainee post where the training is funded. It's one year where you do 1 day at uni and the rest on the job and your role is working with patients for approx 6 weeks to teach them different tools to support their mental health. Loads of room for progression, to either become a 'senior PWP', a team lead or go onto to do more intensive (funded) training to deliver full CBT therapy to patients for a much higher salary. Could then later offer this self employed if you got that training under your belt. All very worthwhile and has a sense of purpose. Great employment prospects. Can do it anywhere in the country. Fits with your interests etc..

This sounds great. Are you able to do this if you have had your own MH struggles?

I work in museums and galleries on various community and learning projects. The difference participation in creative and cultural activities can make to people's health and well-being is really valuable to me. Also the preservation and sharing of heritage and history is personally important to me and I hope to society in general.

It is also lovely to see people having quality leisure time and time with family. (making memories, cringe as that term is) visitors often share memories of visiting as children or with family, so it seems to mean something to them.

So my job might not be keeping people alive. But I think it does have an impact on people and society. As we do need to not just survive (as covid has shown).

I’m a therapist. Did years of admin’ jobs that slowly eroded my soul before getting into a learner support role at colleges and then a university. I got the therapy bug when we were invited to do a short ‘introduction to counselling skills’ course as part of my job.

I work for a charity part-time and have a few private clients. It’s a very long way from a ‘get rich quick’ scheme! However, it’s the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done.

Routes to training are bewilderingly diverse! The good news is most courses are part-time because most people go into this line of work a bit later in life (I was in my 40s). Ie you could stick with a secure-but-dull job knowing you’re training for something better. The hidden costs of therapy training can be eye-watering: regular therapy and regular supervision plus lots of hours of voluntary work in order to get the required number of hours of practice to qualify.

I’m in charge of Fundraising and Comms for a charity. It’s great to be securing the future support for some really vulnerable and sick people. I love the creativity and the fact there isn’t that much bureaucracy. Charities only do 2 things, they raise money and they spend money and it’s my mission to make the raising as vital as the spending. Lovely thread

I work in mental health and it's hard but highly rewarding. If you are looking to change career you could try being a support worker in mental health and depending on how far you want to go to retrain maybe uni and a degree in mental health nursing? Support work would be a good way of testing the waters because you get an idea of what's involved.

I work for a trade union as a full-time official. Very rewarding, sometimes frustrating. I do feel I am making a difference. Pay and terms are also pretty good, as you might expect.

@PullTheWeeds

I work in a school as a pupil support assistant. It's 9-3, Mon to Fri, term time. I enjoy my day in school, love working with the kids, I have lovely colleagues and I walk out the door at 3pm with no worries about deadlines or planning for the next day, able to enjoy my life outside of my job and of course we get 13 weeks holidays and don't have to worry about holiday childcare for my own children.

However, the flipside to that is that I earn £13k per year and there is no room for progression. Sometimes I do feel a bit restless and that I could do more but actually I think I find more enjoyment in this work/life balance. This may change but for just now I enjoy what I do.

Me too. I'm a TA with Sen pupils. I really do enjoy my job and it's really rewarding. The benefits are excellent too. I earn over 2Ok which is great for short hours and long holidays. I have a degree and have toyed with doing my pgce in the past as a lot of my colleagues have said I should do it. However, I'm in my late forties and really don't want all the data, paperwork and home working that comes with being a teacher nowadays. I love walking out of the door at the end of the day, knowing I've done my best for the children in my care and I can just relax and enjoy my home life.

@OldChinaJug

I'm a primary school teacher. Love the children, the teaching, the parents (mostly...) don't love the bureaucracy.

But there won't be many people who went to work today and played on a field with a hosepipe with their colleagues and 'clients' to cool down in the heat..!

Haha. You're right! We had water soaked sponges yesterday to cool down with! So much fun and the children loved it!

I am an ex HR manager OP.

I did enjoy some of my jobs but the final one crushed my dreams!

I left and started my own business. I sell my own products but I also license work and design ranges for a couple of clients who are EU based.

It’s a bit of a hodge podge but it works for me.

I did have a degree in graphic design which I did before I went in HR.

Love this thread. Reading this made me think of it, so I came back to share as it's an interesting perspective I think.
www.theguardian.com/education/2021/jul/14/leaving-burnout-behind-the-pain-and-pleasure-of-starting-a-new-career-in-my-50s

@PieceOfString I love her attitude. Retraining is almost taboo these days, like you’ve quit at your first career or are recklessly throwing away the achievements because the grass is greener. But the working life is long and it seems so obvious a lot of people would want multiple careers.

@Tulips2019
I think the bugbear with the Idva role is there is no caps on numbers so the referrals just keep coming even if you have a massive caseload, it’s not an safe or sustainable way to work really, and they just burn through us every couple of years.
I did look at that think ahead programme but it’s just for England I think. I’m looking at Social work, as if im going to be stressed out of my brains I may as well be paid a decent wage

@ImBoiling is the Think Ahead for adults with MH needs?

My bullshit is genuine. I use a tractor to harrow it.
I'm a podiatrist transitioning to farming. Was a reasonably content podiatrist and because I am self-employed the job worked well around my children's needs. It also paid well enough to support me, my now ex husband and our two children.
Children are adults now. Husband is ex and no longer my problem. So I'm free. I bought a small property of 100 acres and I breed Wagyu cattle by embryo transfer. Never been happier in my life.

@Whitedeer very good.

Sounds totally amazing. And book worthy too!

Love that’s comment @Whitedeer

Also at 100 acres being ‘small’!!

Nurse in General Practice. I do all the things you would expect and I also manage complicated respiratory conditions from diagnosis to treatment to referral if required. It's a fab job