That's very true about being able to have an ordinary job and being happy doing it. My fiancee has that right now. She works for a company that installs phones and security systems for schools. She's a secretary, and she's fine with that. She's a damn good secretary, and she gets paid well for doing it (especially since her company is just a small local place, and not some big fancy business.) The only downside is that she's not going anywhere. She won't ever find another job as a secretary making what she makes now, doing similar work. She could go into the city and make good money, but she has no desire to make that daily commute, or to relocate to the city (and neither do I!)
I hope to be somewhere in between "chasing the dream" and just working a normal job. I don't much care what I do, as long as I can do it primarily during standard weekday business hours (occasional nights and weekends will work... just not regular.) I still want the opportunity to move up, but as long as I feel I have a goal to work toward, I'll be motivated.
A friend of mine started working as a temp for some fire security company. Just "a job", but she discovered that she loved the company, and found the work interesting. She worked her way up, and ended up making some pretty decent money. She decided to take the company up on their offer of tuition reimbursement, and earned both her Bachelor's and her Master's in Fire Safety, I believe. She worked herself into a very good position, and was able to move from NJ to Portland, OR... while keeping her job and being able to work remotely (or travel to various locations occasionally.) She even got a company car (a brand new Ford Fusion.)
I'm hoping I can find a situation like that. Find a company, discover that I really like the company, and I really like the work... then work my ass off and move up the ladder. Hopefully the MBA will allow me to do it in less time than she did (which was over the course of 8-10 years, I believe.)
I'm not expecting it, but 6 figures by the time I turn 45 would be peachy!
As for my tax records being enough to verify my employment... I wish. That wasn't even good enough for me to refinance my home (and I was looking to LOWER my payment by $200/mo!) Apparently my tax records weren't sufficient proof of income ( ) and the underwriter felt that I wouldn't be able to keep up with the new lower payment, so I had to stick with the current higher payment instead. Never missed a payment in the entire 12 years I've been here...
Maybe it would help more with a prospective employer... but it still doesn't really serve to support the claims made on my resume regarding my job functions. I could claim anything I want and nobody could verify it! It's all true... if anything, I'm underselling myself... but they don't know that (and a hiring manager worth his paycheck SHOULD be skeptical.)
Comment