MAPNUT

I think people need to be much more accepting of the concept of working for a living. It's especially hard for young people to accept that they're expected to work for the next 40 years, after being told many times while growing up, "Reach for your dreams!" Really, how many people are able to make a living by following their dream? One out of 20? Work is just work, and someone has to do it. Think of all the people who do work for you - building your home, making your clothes, growing your food, teaching your children - even stocking the shelves in your grocery store. Should they all be doing something they love instead? Plain old work should get a lot more respect than it does. I always say "Thanks" to the supermarket cashiers, because without them I couldn't even get my groceries.

I don't live to work. I work to live. Work started out as a way to earn the money to do the things I liked such as putting food on the table and not freezing in the winter. Today, it still does all that and much more. My first job (age 16) was bagging groceries. In the 36 years since then, I've worked many different jobs (and different projects within the same job). These include:

Soldier (paratrooper)
Electronics technician
Communications (AUTODIN) in the Air Force
Teacher (Jr High/High school math & science)
Satellite Controller
Space Surveillance Crew Commander
Space Surveillance Program Manager
Computer Programmer (civilian and defense contractor)
Adjuct Faculty (Computer Science)
Enterprise Architect (a type of analyst) and my company's lead UML/EA trainer

I've had good jobs and not so good jobs. My current job is very good: it pays well, it can't be outsourced due to security clearance requirements, is technically and intellectually challenging, and I get to work with some good people. Some days are still better than others but I can truthfully say that I really like my job.

The funny thing is that just about everything I've ever done has come back to be useful in what I'm doing today. My old electronics technician experience proved quite useful in work I'm doing on a high speed data link project. My satellite operations and space surveillanc experience provide knowledge that I use daily. Even my teaching experience has come in handy in my role as chief trainer.