Brian63
Veteran Member
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2001
- Messages
- 1,639
- Location
- Michigan
- Gender
- Male
- Basic Beliefs
- Freethinker/atheist/humanist
When we are kids growing up we often envision what occupation we want to hold, as it seems very interesting to us. We aspire to get educated in that field and then turn it into our career. That was also true for me in the first ~20 years of my life, but has become less so since then. Now I still have personal ambitions and goals and intentions for my life, but I do not feel like they need to be tied at all to what my job is or where my paycheck comes from. Instead those can be 2 entirely separate domains of life. I wonder how common or unique that attitude is. Most people hold rather mundane jobs, and I wonder if they feel partly unfulfilled in life because of those jobs and the fact that they did not get their dream job, or they are completely satisfied with their life and job as long as they are taking on other roles in life that interest them (having a family, being an activist for some cause, being a donor or volunteer, having good friends, etc.)
Actually, I have held an even more extreme position than the above, but lately have been rethinking it. I am an activist by nature and want to become more real-life socially active in certain political and social causes, once my life circumstances allow for it. If I was involved in activism and getting paid for it, I would feel worse than if doing it for free. Any contribution I can make to the cause feels more genuine and sincere and charitable if I am volunteering, rather than getting a paycheck in return for it and making a personal financial profit from it. Getting paid for it would cheapen the experience for me. That has been an attitude that I have held for many months at least, but lately I did get involved in a local political cause and was compensated for it. I expected to feel some guilt, but it turns out I was wrong and I felt completely fine for getting paid for that civic work. It was not much income, but it felt like it is something that is just expected of workers for a cause. Now I feel more comfortable receiving a paycheck for doing work that I previously would have wanted to only volunteer for.
Do you have any preferences either way? Does it emotionally matter at all to you whether you are paid or unpaid for social work that you do? How much do you tie your life’s meaning and value and purpose to what your job title is?
Also, there is an idea that I had some time ago for a particular nonprofit service, basically an interactive website and online support group for people with certain categories of medical illnesses (I have one of them myself). I do not want to give much detail about what it is, in case I ever decide to act on it myself. Will note, however, that I have mentioned it to some family members who agreed it was a good idea, they did some research and were stunned that there was a void on the internet for this service, that nobody else is doing it already. So the originality of this idea and filling this void for people who could greatly benefit from it appeals to me. Still, I do not have a hint of an entrepreneurial spirit in me, and that pretty much ends it there. I like having low-level jobs where I am not in charge of anyone or anything, but just do some tasks and then go on to pick up a small paycheck and do other things in life which actually are enjoyable. Even if I had broader ambitions, I am much more interested in becoming activist towards pro-secular and pro-atheist causes than I am in this medical nonprofit idea that I had. Still, I do not want to see that idea go to waste and this massive void remain. That makes me feel even some guilt for having this idea and not going forward with it, especially when so many others could benefit from it. So I am very uncertain what to do.
How much of an entrepreneurial attitude do you have, and have you always had that level or has it changed over time? Part of me wishes that I had some, part of me does not care and is not bothered. If I did have more of it, it could certainly help me out more with my personal financial problems as well. So there are also those selfish motivations that I have too.
Easy questions, yeah.
Actually, I have held an even more extreme position than the above, but lately have been rethinking it. I am an activist by nature and want to become more real-life socially active in certain political and social causes, once my life circumstances allow for it. If I was involved in activism and getting paid for it, I would feel worse than if doing it for free. Any contribution I can make to the cause feels more genuine and sincere and charitable if I am volunteering, rather than getting a paycheck in return for it and making a personal financial profit from it. Getting paid for it would cheapen the experience for me. That has been an attitude that I have held for many months at least, but lately I did get involved in a local political cause and was compensated for it. I expected to feel some guilt, but it turns out I was wrong and I felt completely fine for getting paid for that civic work. It was not much income, but it felt like it is something that is just expected of workers for a cause. Now I feel more comfortable receiving a paycheck for doing work that I previously would have wanted to only volunteer for.
Do you have any preferences either way? Does it emotionally matter at all to you whether you are paid or unpaid for social work that you do? How much do you tie your life’s meaning and value and purpose to what your job title is?
Also, there is an idea that I had some time ago for a particular nonprofit service, basically an interactive website and online support group for people with certain categories of medical illnesses (I have one of them myself). I do not want to give much detail about what it is, in case I ever decide to act on it myself. Will note, however, that I have mentioned it to some family members who agreed it was a good idea, they did some research and were stunned that there was a void on the internet for this service, that nobody else is doing it already. So the originality of this idea and filling this void for people who could greatly benefit from it appeals to me. Still, I do not have a hint of an entrepreneurial spirit in me, and that pretty much ends it there. I like having low-level jobs where I am not in charge of anyone or anything, but just do some tasks and then go on to pick up a small paycheck and do other things in life which actually are enjoyable. Even if I had broader ambitions, I am much more interested in becoming activist towards pro-secular and pro-atheist causes than I am in this medical nonprofit idea that I had. Still, I do not want to see that idea go to waste and this massive void remain. That makes me feel even some guilt for having this idea and not going forward with it, especially when so many others could benefit from it. So I am very uncertain what to do.
How much of an entrepreneurial attitude do you have, and have you always had that level or has it changed over time? Part of me wishes that I had some, part of me does not care and is not bothered. If I did have more of it, it could certainly help me out more with my personal financial problems as well. So there are also those selfish motivations that I have too.
Easy questions, yeah.