Getting back in the biz

For me, it all is the items in your second graph..and others you wouldn't understand unless you did the gig.

As for career advancement, I've turned down promotions because I love my current beat and don't want to trade it for a "better" beat.

I knew the pay would be so-so and the hours demanding before I got into the business. Didn't care.

Pay isn't an issue nearly three decades later. Workload/hours becoming an issue but only because I'm not as resilient (physically) as I once was.

 

I think the industry counts on that.

 

It's why they abuse/take advantage of people at will.

I'm sure there are a few other jobs where that happens, but not too many.

 

Pest control is nothing like landscaping.

"Mortgages" is/would be a PROMOTION from bank teller, not some place to go across the street if the teller lost his/her job.

And "mortgages" is an industry that is shedding workers by the THOUSANDS. In an industry that's still basically printing money.

http://www.housingwire.com/articles/29094-jpmorgan-plans-8000-layoffs

Banking obviously does not love its employees back, either.

 

And I understand it outrages you. But if someone's happy doing what they're doing ...

I guess what I'm saying is if Rhody is excited to be making a run at a job in the profession, he doesn't need 14 Chicken Littles telling him the sky is falling. We friggin' know the sky is falling.

 

It's great to follow your heart. Just make sure you engage your head as well. You know the odds. You know the challenges. Proceed accordingly.

 

Didn't say they were equivalent. Simply said skills can be developed. Here in Florida, for what it's worth, landscaping is used as a pest control technique but focusing on that misses the larger point: you can develop your skills and adcance in many careers. But if you want to be a newspaper writer, there are precious few options for improving your lot in life if you intend to stay in the business.

And, no, the banking industry isn't particularly loving to its people. I also didn't say that ... I was simply using the profession you mentioned and discussing a possible move.

 

Chicken Little is famous for saying the sky is falling when it was not actually falling.

Being hysterically paranoid about something that isn't happening is Chicken Little. Pointing out fact is not.

 

Thanks for that solid piece of career advice.

 

As a general rule, no industry loves its employees back.

Every industry, however, loves a select few talented employees that bring great value to its industry. If you're one of the 8,000 employees targeted for termination this year by JPMorgan Chase, the industry obviously doesn't love you back. If you're one of the employees getting a six- or seven-figure bonus, perhaps it does. Today.

To single out journalism as somehow unique in the "won't love you back" dynamic is nuts.

 

But you're forgetting the first half of that saying -- the person who loves journalism.

People don't love banking or insurance or most other industries. They may enjoy the jobs, but you won't find a lot of people who would be begging to do them for free or next to free.

 

Not forgetting it. I simply view it as a positive that so many in this industry still do love it. I don't believe that the love for the industry in some way holds people back from seeking opportunities that, according to you, would be more beneficial. I think it helps them remain happier than many who simply dread going to work every day.

I love the industry but would quit tomorrow if I thought I could make more money AND be even somewhat satisfied in another job. The only jobs I envision that as a possibility, however, are jobs that would require a certain amount of schooling (with no income in the interim). Just not worth it for this 53-year-old. Others' mileage, however, may vary.