To ask whether you judge someone based on their occupation?

[lushilaoshi]

I am sometimes judged (I think) a bit harshly based on my occupation. It can be a bit of a conversation killer, sometimes.

So without revealing yet what I actually do, if I were to say (for instance) that I am a City lawyer, what assumptions would you make about me? Would you take an instant dislike? Versus if I were to tell you that I am, for example, a languages teacher?

I think I can predict some answers, but I am curious about what characteristics are attributed to certain occupations, and whether justified. And in particular, whether gender makes any difference to your judgement?

I don't judge, as such, but am fascinated by why people make the career choices they do.

It's perfectly natural to judge, to a degree. It's a basic survival technique. However, it's allowing that judgement to cloud or prevent you from seeing the true person underneath the label/stereotype.

Another IT person here!

I am a computer programmer. I build systems on our intranet.

Slightly off point, but I get depressed by the racial differences at my financial services organisation. The professional services staff white plus Asian plus a sprinkling of other nationalities, the catering staff Eastern European, and the cleaning staff black, the latter 100% so. If you gave me a name, I would probably be able to tell you their job by their nationality. Depressing.

Ok, I apologise to all IT workers. It is just such a huge and variable area and I'd be so willing to listen, even if I don't understand it all.

However, I've yet to meet someone who couldn't tell me for privacy reasons (as far as I'm aware). That would be interesting!

I own a recruitment agency that sources home help staff and am sometimes mistaken for being one of the cleaners. It is really sad, but people do treat you differently. I have told people that we have a waiting list and I can't help them because of it.

In the past I have done so many jobs though - I was a lap dancer when I was at uni (I know someone said they would judge that up thread) and a monster truck driver, I've also been an estate agent and a department store manager. What else? Oh! A travel agent and also an area sales manager. My cv is heavily edited

Quiero the CA I got at school was shit. It wasn't advice or even support for finding out about further training or education. We were given the previously mentioned tick box test then a print out of suggested jobs. If I hadn't known what I wanted to do (followed my childhood dream!) I would've floundered, like so many of my friends did. I take it that you don't like hearing how shit things were because things are different now but people still assume they're like the 'old days'... I delivered a talk at a 6th form 'choices' day not so long ago; I was really impressed with how many different people were there sharing their careers/uni courses etc. So many options shown to the students! I would've loved something like that.

Rask, totally. I used to work in a big firm in London and this was exactly the case.

on another sort of related note, I have noticed that some races\nationalities seem to gravitate towards certain jobs. like, why are there so many Vietnamese nail technicians? or Indian doctors?

cleaner here in a hotel. we're not allowed the same perks as other members of staff, such as toast or breakfasts, in fact we are not even allowed an official break even though we do, in one of the hotel rooms. We quite often work 5 or 6 plus hours. Apparantly we are just cleaners, there to clean not drink coffee and easily replaceable

I have a degree and A levels and everything.

Yes I've seen that, Asian opticians and pharmacists for example. No idea at all why. Sorry for derailing btw.

Friend almost always says he "works in IT" because he's heard every Finbar Saunders type reply to his actual job of penetration tester.

Mentioning that he sometimes works in a Faraday Cage usually creates a spark of interest though

Unless they're a career criminal, I tend not to judge people on what they do for a living.

Nope I wouldn't judge, don't really care what other people do for a living. I might be interested in the job they do but I wouldn't judge them as a person.

People do judge. I try not to, though I guess I may slip up. But having seen it in action....

Some years back, working in a fairly posh area...I had promised myself that if I ever passed a particular exam (which was a total bugger) then I would buy myself a diamond solitaire pendant. Yep, I was trying to bribe myself. So, having finally passed the damned thing, I went out shopping. Near work was a rather nice jewelry shop, with a cheap window, and an expenisve window (some of the stuff in there would have been way out of my reach!!). I'd been working all weekend, grabbed a shower, then went in the shop dressed scruffily, with still damp hair. So I asked to look at the diamond solitaire pendants, and they got the most minute microscopic dot of a diamond out of the cheap window. I explained I wanted a tear drop, not a princess cut, which instantly meant the next window. So they got out the smallest one they had, with someone casually standing between me and the door. Hmmm, I wondered, did it not come any bigger? As they started to get more nervous looking, I tried on a few items, and decided I actually wanted something marginally different, which they could order in for me. With a hint of arched eyebrows, one of the ladies pointed out that they would need a deposit. And paperwork. So I started filling in the paperwork, and got to my address. "Oooooooooh" she said "you live in the doctors' residence"...and the person between me and the door vanished.

I nearly walked out at that point...but I really wanted to buy myself that nice little present.

I once had to eat a post it note because a penetration tester came and sat next to me unexpectedly. Cool job but who comes up with the names!?

An abattoir worker may be judged by me…I honestly do not know how anyone could do such a job.

I agree with this. As a vegetarian it doesn't make me a hypocrite either.

I'm really interested in what people do for a living, just because there are sooooo many jobs out there and I wonder how people ended up doing what they do. I just fell into my career. It wasn't particularly something I chose, although I mostly enjoy it, and it's well paid and flexible so I appreciate the luck I've had along the way.

I used to be judged a lot when I worked in a shop and a pub as a student. I grew up in quite a nice area with a couple of private schools, so I suppose it didn't occur to some of our customers that some of us had to work as well as study. I remember working in a video shop (retro) and being patronised by someone who asked my opinion about a film about TS Eliot. I was
reading English at university at the time, so yes, I had heard it TS fucking Eliot thank you! I just smiled sweetly.

I also got judged when I was in the civil service. I was in a new role, and had organised a meeting with lots of high profile stakeholders. I was helping to ferry them from reception to the meeting room and one of them was massively rude to me, obviously assuming I was a secretary. When we did introductions and I said my job title (and got a massive talk up from the chair about my last job and how lucky they were to have me in this post) she looked visibly shocked and started to backtrack. Why she thought it was ok to be so rude to the secretaries is anyone's guess.

Penetration tester sounds better than tame hacker, forago

Are you a double agent working at GCHQ forago?

If not then forget this conversation ever happened.

Occupation is one of the many possible clues we use to size others up. I doubt occupation in isolation would make me judge someone - I rather like having multiple clues (preferably inconsistent) before trying to draw any conclusions.

I'm an IT consultant - I suppose that should make me a boring, socially inept, glib, useless money-grabber.

I would not mind an abattoir worker. A job is a job. I would judge a rapper thought, so I know I am not blameless...

Im a social welfare investigation officer. .. I investigate lone parent benefit fraud... Has been known to kill a conversation.:)

or a thread :)

Technically, my official job title is lecturer. However, in reality I'm a teacher (6th form only) and that's what I say most of the time. However, I find I get different reactions depending on whether I say I am ...

Teacher
RS Teacher
Lecturer
Philosophy Lecturer.

I find if I say teacher, people can be somewhat dismissive. If I say RS teacher, people assume I'm some kind of religious fanatic or lentil weaving hippy, and I can clear a room in 5 seconds flat. If I say lecturer, people are generally more impressed. If I say philosophy lecturer then people tend to think I'm really clever and either run away quick or make awkward jokes. Its funny, but whenever I'm asked in social circles I will always say 'teacher' and sometimes you can see people's impressions of me rising as they find out where I teach and what subjects I do. Funny, when all those things are exactly the same job.