[Windswept]

Software engineer came out *BEST*, ranked by salary, stress level, time flexibility, perks, chance for rapid growth.

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bestjobs/

List of top 50:

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/money...p50/index.html

A software engineer speaks:

http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/07/pf/b...tjob/index.htm

Must be nice to know your job stacks up BEST against all the others.


**************************************************


Edit: Moved the following comments from a post lower down in the thread, because I decided to expand the title and topic of this discussion.

Frankly, I think 'most' jobs probably suck in one way or another.

I do read, from time to time, about people who are deliriously happy in their jobs, who leap from their beds every morning with the eagerness of getting to work.

Who *are* these people? I'd like to stick pins in them. haha (joke)

Okay, I think I will revise the thread topic/title, for one I've been meaning to start for a while.

What aspects of your job do you like and not like, do you love and hate?

I think most jobs have some good and bad about them. What are the 'good' things about your job; what are the things that you dislike, that cause you annoyance or stress?

You don't have to say *what* your job is, if you don't want to. But it would be nice to have at least a vague idea about it, like if it's an office job or whatever.

Anyway, this can be The Job Thread for a while.

Thanks for any replies.

[Kickaha]

Are you kidding me??

If this is the pinnacle, everyone else is *REALLY* fucked.

[Elysium]

I'm happy with being number 2.

[Windswept]

Originally Posted by Kickaha Are you kidding me?? If this is the pinnacle, everyone else is *REALLY* fucked.

Oh dear.

So it's not a bed of roses then?

Well, Kick, *your* second option - college professor - is ranked 'second best in America'.

Must be nice to have your pick of the *two* best jobs going.

[psmith2.0]

I'm doomed...I'm NOWHERE in the top 50.

Wait, that's not funny...

I guess Lotto-Playing Adobe Monkey/Part-Time Picker, Freelance Grinner/Certified Rant Specialist & Apprentice Stater-of-the-Obvious is further down than I imagined...

[Kickaha]

Originally Posted by Windswept Oh dear. So it's not a bed of roses then? Well, Kick, *your* second option - college professor - is ranked 'second best in America'. Must be nice to have your pick of the *two* best jobs going.

Yeah, yeah, make me look like a pathetic little whiner...

[Dave]

Originally Posted by Kickaha Originally Posted by Windswept Must be nice to have your pick of the *two* best jobs going. Yeah, yeah, make me look like a pathetic little whiner...

Can I have whichever one you don't want?

[Windswept]

Originally Posted by Kickaha Yeah, yeah, make me look like a pathetic little whiner...

Not at all. Really!


Edit: I'm moving the rest of this post up to the top of the thread because I'm expanding the original topic. Sorry for any confusion.

Frankly, I think 'most' jobs probably suck in one way or another.

I do read, from time to time, about people who are deliriously happy in their jobs, who leap from their beds every morning with the eagerness of getting to work.

Who *are* these people? I'd like to stick pins in them. haha (joke)

Okay, I think I will revise the thread topic/title for one I've been meaning to start for a while.

What aspects of your job do you like and not like, do you love and hate?

I think most jobs have some good and bad about them. What are the 'good' things about your job; what are the things that you dislike, that cause you annoyance or stress?

You don't have to say *what* your job is, if you don't want to. But it would be nice to have at least a vague idea about it, like if it's an office job or whatever.

Anyway, this can be The Job Thread for a while.

Thanks for any replies.

[MCQ]

Originally Posted by Kickaha Are you kidding me?? If this is the pinnacle, everyone else is *REALLY* fucked.

That's what I'm thinking.

I'm happy with my job, not sure about the #1 thing.

[Kickaha]

Yeah, I really can't complain. I have leeway in my hours, my work agenda, and I can work from home or elsewhere if I so choose. The elements I dislike are going to be in any job, really: infighting, political maneuvering, and the rest.

I can't say that I eagerly get up to go to work, but y'know... if I didn't *have* to work, I'd probably be doing much the same thing out of curiosity for my own sake.

[billybobsky]

And I certainly don't believe #2 can be that low stress either...

[Windswept]

Originally Posted by billybobsky And I certainly don't believe #2 can be that low stress either...

Well, remember, they are *comparing* all these jobs.

So it's not that the software engineer and professor positions have *no* stress, but that the 'other' jobs apparently have LOTS more.

[Kickaha]

Yeeeeeah, it's not. I love teaching. I honestly don't know if I could handle the roller coaster for funding and tenure fights.

I dunno - I had a lot less stress in my work life when I was flipping burgers, y'know?

[Windswept]

Originally Posted by Kickaha Yeeeeeah, it's not. I love teaching. I honestly don't know if I could handle the roller coaster for funding and tenure fights. I dunno - I had a lot less stress in my work life when I was flipping burgers, y'know?

When you say 'tenure fights', do you mean the difficulty in *achieving* tenure, or what?

And if so, what is so difficult about it?

I'm just askin'.

[Kickaha]

Two profs, one tenure slot. Let the backstabbing, slander, and favor currying begin. Not to mention sabotage of funding, etc. I've seen it all... and I'm sure I *haven't* seen it all.

It's at *LEAST* as cutthroat as the business world, in my experience.

[Dave]

Originally Posted by Windswept Well, remember, they are *comparing* all these jobs. So it's not that the software engineer and professor positions have *no* stress, but that the 'other' jobs apparently have LOTS more.

I had a professor in college who took the "no stress" approach. He didn't care if I came to class, or if I did my homework, or even if I took phone calls *during* the midterms and finals and whathaveyous. Aside from the exams, I went to that class maybe four or five times, didn't study, didn't do *any* homework, and still pulled a B+. How's that for "no stress"?

[Kickaha]

See, he had tenure.

[FFL]

I've had both good and bad jobs, with things that sucked about all of them - some more than others. One observation - the larger the company, the worse the office politics.

I've owned a few businesses also, with multiple employees, and I don't think I need to say that there were several things that sucked about that as well.

Now I am self-employeed as a freelance consultant - no boss (just clients), no employees, very little stress for the most part.

[Barto]

I gotta say, the organisation you work for is probably more important than the job itself.

[Phoenix]

Well i don't work in America, but i have to say i enjoy my job immensely. I actually do get really excited about going to work most days. I do video production, and i produce, direct, shoot, and edit our stuff. It's a very stressful job, but one that i love so much. It's the fact that i get to be a part of the whole process from start to finish that i love most.

I guess I'm one of the ones you want to stick pins in Carol.

[Phoenix]

Originally Posted by Barto I gotta say, the organisation you work for is probably more important than the job itself.

I don't know if that's entirely true, but it has some truth to it. I work for a great organisation (Video production is just a by-product of there actual business). It pays pretty good, the hours are flexible, and the people are fantastic. However there's not many other jobs that this company does that i would do other than the one I'm doing now.

[Windswept]

Originally Posted by trav Well i don't work in America, but i have to say i enjoy my job immensely. I actually do get really excited about going to work most days. I do video production, and i produce, direct, shoot, and edit our stuff. It's a very stressful job, but one that i love so much. It's the fact that i get to be a part of the whole process from start to finish that i love most. I guess I'm one of the ones you want to stick pins in Carol.

I think it's truly wonderful that you love your job, trav. If only everyone could be so fortunate in this world.

I do wonder if you are so happy with your job because you are a really positive person and would be happy with almost *any* halfway decent job; or if the job itself is so personally satisfying to you that you love it. I am guessing it's a bit of both.

Did you ever have 'other' types of jobs that you weren't so crazy about?

[Foj]

I had always thought that this guy had the best job.

[GSpotter]

I'm rather happy with my job (being an sw engineer, and teaching a little bit at a college in my spare time ... ).
- I like: As I always work in projects, I have lots of change / variation. So the chance to get bored because I have to do the same stuff for years is minimal.
- I dislike: Office politics /bureaucracy (I work in a very large company...)

I think the most important element about liking/disliking a job: Everything very much depends on your attitude: I have the tendency to always see the good things and shrug off the bad ones, no matter what I do. This helps alot in living a happy life

[DMBand0026]

My job is essentially stress free, except for those moments when it's life and death stressful. However, that's different, I think. I'd imagine my job isn't on there because of the relatively high levels of stress in certain situations. However, outside of those situations, the job is almost entirely stress free.

Carol, I fall into the "leap from my bed every morning deliriously happy to go to work" crowd. I absolutely love my job. Not once since starting there have I said, "I *have* to go to work." It's always, "I *get* to go to work."


BTW, my job may not be on the top 50 best jobs, but at least it's the sexiest.

[alcimedes]

I actually love my job (right now).

I have my own office with a locking door. Windows that look out on a nice green courtyard with a few nice looking students studying in the spring/summer.

I make my own hours. They buy whatever computer hardware I can justify. No one understands what I do, they just know I get the job done and I'm not a dick about it.

I get bribes on a weekly basis, either in free lunches or six/twelve packs, and in the last two years I've gotten a 60% raise in my salary (average at work was 3%). So yeah, I'm pretty happy.

Oh yeah, no dress code either.

[AWR]

Alc. that's pretty good. I'm happy for you. You've gotta rank in the 99th percentile with those comments.

My slant on my job (no. 37) is hard to nail down. Some days I'm very content, other days I hate it.

I'm not a big fan of 'work' per se. I would be content working a 3-4 day week. I always feel that I don't have enough time to do a lot of the things that I'd like to.

My dream job would be to have millions and millions and figure out the best ways to give it away.

[turbulentfurball]

Originally Posted by Kickaha Two profs, one tenure slot. Let the backstabbing, slander, and favor currying begin. Not to mention sabotage of funding, etc. I've seen it all... and I'm sure I *haven't* seen it all.

More importantly, have you done it all?

[Bryson]

I think the primary flaw in this study is that it doesn't attempt to quantify how "interesting" or "fun" your job is.

I run the backstage services for a theatre. The pay isn't great, and the hours suck. But it's such an amazingly intersting job, I'd never do anything else. That's why I'm not keen on the amount of PC support I get called on to do. If i wanted to be a PC tech, I'd do it for real and get more money. But I don't!

[Dave]

Originally Posted by Kickaha See, he had tenure.

Nope, he got fired a semester or two after I had him. Can't imagine why...