The corporate employer is "the Devil" at this forum. To a point, that's OK by me. Wage slavery sucks a lot of life out of a lot of souls.
The other side of the story is that the pre-Retire Early years are a wonderful time of life too. It's a healthy impulse to want to escape wage slavery as one ages. It's not so healthy to ignore the good side of the pre-Retire Early stage of life.
Here's a list of five things that I miss since the day I handed in my resignation from corporate employment:
1) The Challenge. There are times when you are asked to accomplish the near impossible, and you pull it off. That's a neat feeling. It's a good thing to be tested, so long as the testing process is not causing health problems or interfering with important things like your family life or efforts at self discovery and creativity. Experiencing reasonable levels of stress is a sign of being alive.
2) Relationships Formed in the Foxhole. Corporate politics can be creepy, and some people allow the quest for the big office to ruin their personalities. Most do not. People called to work for a common goal usually develop connections with each other. You learn things about people you work with that you would not learn from the types of interactions you have at restaurants and picnics.
3) Confirmation of Worth. I never let my job define me. But it became easier after a few years of employment for me to define myself than it was when I was just starting out. One thing that a job offers to a young person is the opportunity to have an objective appraisal of his or her abilities. Today, the building of self-esteem is a big deal in the schools. But hearing someone tell you that you did a great job when you know in your heart that you only did an average job doesn't build confidence much. Having a demanding boss tell you that you're ready for a promotion does.
4)The Reach of the Corporate Job. On bad days, corporate jobs turn you into a cog in a machine. On good days, you can use the machine to your advantage to affect people you could never reach through your own resources. Corporate journalism at times tends toward pablum. But corporate publishers have large distribution arms. So when you are able to maneuver them into publsihing something good, it matters.
5) The Toughening of Intellect. Most participants of this board are pretty smart about how the world works. We weren't born that way, though. I've learned a lot of good negotiating tricks watching the masters perform at my places of work. There's a lot of goofiness published by the human resources and public relations departments. But there are some smart moves being made by the people who get things done. You can learn a lot from them in a few years if you keep your eyes and ears open.
The other side of the story is that the pre-Retire Early years are a wonderful time of life too. It's a healthy impulse to want to escape wage slavery as one ages. It's not so healthy to ignore the good side of the pre-Retire Early stage of life.
Here's a list of five things that I miss since the day I handed in my resignation from corporate employment:
1) The Challenge. There are times when you are asked to accomplish the near impossible, and you pull it off. That's a neat feeling. It's a good thing to be tested, so long as the testing process is not causing health problems or interfering with important things like your family life or efforts at self discovery and creativity. Experiencing reasonable levels of stress is a sign of being alive.
2) Relationships Formed in the Foxhole. Corporate politics can be creepy, and some people allow the quest for the big office to ruin their personalities. Most do not. People called to work for a common goal usually develop connections with each other. You learn things about people you work with that you would not learn from the types of interactions you have at restaurants and picnics.
3) Confirmation of Worth. I never let my job define me. But it became easier after a few years of employment for me to define myself than it was when I was just starting out. One thing that a job offers to a young person is the opportunity to have an objective appraisal of his or her abilities. Today, the building of self-esteem is a big deal in the schools. But hearing someone tell you that you did a great job when you know in your heart that you only did an average job doesn't build confidence much. Having a demanding boss tell you that you're ready for a promotion does.
4)The Reach of the Corporate Job. On bad days, corporate jobs turn you into a cog in a machine. On good days, you can use the machine to your advantage to affect people you could never reach through your own resources. Corporate journalism at times tends toward pablum. But corporate publishers have large distribution arms. So when you are able to maneuver them into publsihing something good, it matters.
5) The Toughening of Intellect. Most participants of this board are pretty smart about how the world works. We weren't born that way, though. I've learned a lot of good negotiating tricks watching the masters perform at my places of work. There's a lot of goofiness published by the human resources and public relations departments. But there are some smart moves being made by the people who get things done. You can learn a lot from them in a few years if you keep your eyes and ears open.
