financial zen

I participate on a few online communities that receive lots of broad comments – local boards, financial boards, and web design/development boards. It’s great to have a helping hand, and it’s nice to be able to assist when you can.

However, often you come across someone who decides to post how down-trodden they are in their current state. They can’t get hired because they’re a particular sex/religion/race/age, or “how dumb I was to get an Art History degree” or other “woe is me” type posts. As a friend pointed out, this person was getting interviews based on their resume – meaning that the company obviously was interested (they wouldn’t waste time interviewing someone ‘as a courtesy’). This person wasn’t hired, so she started listing the reasons for why it was so horrible for her, and she was relegating herself to be stuck in a server position for the rest of her life.

It’s very quick to judge online – and even more difficult to express emotions, sarcasm, and seriousness. So it’s no surprise that any comment that tried to help her was taken as a negative, which only reinforces the idea that “whoa is me – nothing can help me, and you’re an asshole for trying.”

Plain and simple – a degree is merely a piece of paper. I’ve met CEOs that held bachelor’s in liberal arts, department managers with art degrees, and designers with computer science degrees – we determine where we go, not by our degree, but by our own choices! The most important aspect of any degree is the ability to accomplish something difficult, and the critical thinking it takes to get there. Not everyone tries, not everyone succeeds. I’m still in school, and I hold a professional position with no degree and primarily personal experience. It’s not impossible!

This young lady felt that her degree limited her in her abilities, as some people often feel – it is NOT a limitation, but should open new doors for you, should you choose to open your eyes and sell yourself not as someone who majored in XYZ, but as someone who can accomplish your goals, find creative solutions, and keep on truckin’!

This makes sense, doesn’t it? I think people are starting to realize that MONEY is NOT WORTH IT. Family time, friends time, play time are more important than work. Low stress, good pay – versus high stress and pay? Every is inticed at first by the “big bucks.” They can buy a benz or beamer, they can buy a bigger house, they can spend more money on meaningless crap and never enjoy it!

Honestly, this is why I miss working an hourly job – you got paid based on your output vs. a set amount no matter what. Salary means your performance is imperative to keep up so as not to be cut/down sized/let go/laid off. Hourly means you bust your ass and your work has a lot more meaning to it. You put in forty hours and do great work – or you put in 80 hours and do exceptional work, either way your pay is going to double. You may not always be able to, but those overtime opportunities will come up, though not always. There are always many pros and cons. This could almost be leveraged on a case by case basis, which would take us years to go through – the point is to leverage your current job, responsibilities, and pay vs. a different job with less pay and responsibilities.
small town sleeper is totally different.

Of course, then comes in the education – it’s assumed you need to justify your degree. I know art majors that manage warehouses, and art majors that design websites. Doctorates that do lowly teaching positions, and liberal arts majors that start companies. It’s a mix of education, desire, and determination. Some people succeed with a GED. And of course, some people want to attribute it to luck, family, or faith. Often it’s who you know not what you know. Not always, but sometimes – and sometimes it works against you.

What do you attribute your success to?

I’ve spent the past two weeks moving, studying, and moving. And then moving some more. I’ve been quite exhausted physically and mentally, but with an upcoming break in another week hopefully I can get into the swing of things…

Dong points out that a private college charges 30k while public charges 12k (on average). It’s a huge gap that needs some explanation – Dong helps point out:

They end up succeeding not because they have received a better education but because they are by nature already ready to succeed. The degree is merely a reflection of success rather than the root of success.

The students make the school more often, not the other way around. So why pay a premium when so many dropouts are doing great? Of course, it’s more of a “luck of the draw” when others lie and land their job. It makes it hard to choose “prestigious” when it seems “luck” and “determination” play larger roles in the fates of careers.

Of course, what many people don’t realize is scholarships play a huge role – I know people who attended the private schools, and did so not because of big bucks in the bank, but because of big bucks in scholarships they applied for (and won, and most importantly, earned). The huge price tag drops dramatically, or disappears entirely.

Now, I’ve heard of people’s affiliations applying to their employment – old frat boys meeting up, people knowing someone from that school of… art, business, what have you. That will take you so far and make things easier for you. For example, I could go to a technical school for design – it ranks less than Pratt Institute of New York, but attaching the name may raise heads until they compare portfolios (let me point out – I like that portfolio, and I don’t have one online to show). At the same time, listening to a world-class violinist is all in the ear of the listener. It’s up the the listener/viewer to determine the value.

I’m looking at a “higher ranked” school down the road. Community college now, top ten school for finance. Will it determine how good I am? No – I determine that, but it may open a few doors, or wedge open the flood gates – which in any job can be the determining factor between success and failure.