Everyone has a dream job, the career choice you have in the deep recesses of your mind that you're either working towards or wishing you could do for the rest of your life. The fascinating thing about "dream jobs" is the labor you love may not be something someone else loves, as evidenced by the stories below.
Reddit user, u/hopecountypreacher, wanted to hear what career choice would make you happiest when they asked:
What is your dream job? (Serious)
Expressing Your Creativity In A Narrow Way
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You know when you go to a candle shop and there's one called "tropical sunshine" or something vague? Or when you open a box of crayons and there's one in there called "Awesome" or some other bizarre name?
Yeah, I want to be the guy that names those.
Someone, somewhere, is sitting in their office proud of that board meeting where their boss said "We need a name for this bright yellow". That one where they answered "Happiness" and got a raise.
I want to be that.
That'll Do, Pig
Shepherd.
Just imagine. You herd a bunch of sheep over some mountains in Iceland. Its just so calming. The gentle jingles of the bells, you and the views offered by nature. You have a small wooden cabin in the woods and have the perfect companion, a dog. Not a human in sight. Waah!
I Want To Be Paid A Lot For Very Little
I really just want a boring office job, where I am doing well paid office things the whole time without anybody bothering me. And I want to work there only 20 hours per week. That would be awsome!
Then you should definitely look at state and/or federal jobs.
I'm in Finance for my local county and it's a pretty great gig: I get good health benefits, am considered "essential" so I haven't been out of work due to COVID-19, have mandatory state retirement, never work overtime, get lots of paid holidays off (if the post office is closed then so are we), and since I've been there for a while I would basically have to shoot up my office to get fired.
The pay is a bit lower than the private sector, but the job security and annual COL wage increases tend to make up for it.
Spend The Rest Of Your Life Educating
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A geology professor! With a particular interest in minerals. I love the science behind how minerals are formed, especially the ones that take eons to cool and crystalize inside of a magma chamber. I want to stand in front of bored college students and yammer on about these things all day.
The best time of my life was when I was in college. I think I'll be truly happy spending the rest of it at a college.
Living Off The Grid, Helping Nature
Park ranger living in an off the grid shack.
This is probably an overly-romanticized dream job characteristic.
I worked at a very remote park for several years, but we at least had slow internet (many remote parks do). I love reading, hiking, hobbies, etc. but internet was like gold to everyone who worked there. One time the internet went out for 3 weeks and we all almost went crazy.
Also, try working in a few different parks with differing government park housing, and you definitely won't want a "shack." ;)
Yeah probably. I already live pretty minimally in a small house and still feel like I can downsize more. So living out of a tiny house is something I'm relatively confident about.
Serving Food To People On The Go
I want to run a food truck near the beach
Not OP, but I want the same job, but closer to mountains instead. I'd love to do sandwiches. Just a bus to appreciate the sh-t out of really good sandwiches. Make my own pickles, giardiniera and hot sauces (which I already do). Call it the Sub.buS - build it from an old school bus and make it look like a sandwich. That'd be rad
Good Honest Labor
I would love to make a living wage just mopping and buffing floors. I find it incredibly relaxing. Other than that, being a writer would be a cool job as well.
I clean houses occasionally and it's therapeutic. I hate cleaning my own house because I end of being pissed at my family for being slobs, but I really like the instant gratification when I clean someone else's. It's a lot of work so I couldn't do it every day.
Don't Let A Thing Like Location Be The Thing To Stop You
Ever since I was a kid I wanted to be a marine biologist. Only two problems are that I live in a land locked state and I am deathly afraid of deep water.
Why is this such a common dream job for kids?
Going to the aquarium is a pretty common family activity
That's A Radical Change
Detective or someone who focuses on Fraud detection. I love discovering how corporate criminal's mind works.
Edit: It seemed stressful, I wanna be a PANDA CARETAKER instead.
Is This Too Much To Ask?
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One where I have a close knit group of coworkers and bosses that become like family. (ETA: many commenters have pointed out that this is a double edged sword. You are correct, however I don't have a lot of friends outside of work, so having some at work would be a nice change. Just one or two. I definitely don't want a toxic, drama-filled work environment)
One that doesn't completely drain me both physically and mentally so that I can have hobbies after work besides napping or passing out by 8:30
One that pays me enough to live, and maybe even gives benefits (such as reimbursement for gas or bus fare for my commute).
One that lets me be creative and use my talents
One that is flexible with me, letting me leave early, work from home, or go to appointments as long as my work gets done
I don't know how to keep selling my labor without losing my soul
Want to "know" more? Never miss another big, odd, funny, or heartbreaking moment again. Sign up for the Knowable newsletter here.But we should also be prepared and ready to ask the right questions to have a leg up on the competition.
"What is THE best question to ask on a job interview?"
A company's history or information about a past employee were suggested subjects appropriate for questioning.
Prior Knowledge
"When you were interviewing here, what would you have liked to know before you joined?"
"This worked for me. I asked my interviewer a question about how she had personally dealt with a company policy she had just explained. She bragged about her stellar adherence to the policy. I nodded my approval. I got the job."
A Previous Employee
"One that has always gone over well for me:"
"What were some qualities that the previous employee in this role brought to the job that you would like to see carried forward?"
"Another good thing to do is research the company you are interviewing with and you can ask things about what they may be involved in or you could drop that while reading about the company, you wondered this."
Hypothetical questions were suggested as helpful examples of inquiry.
Indicators Of How Companies Treat Employees
"A question that landed me a job once was: 'If I asked your direct reports about your management style, what do you think they'd tell me?' Stumped a hiring manager and he emailed me personally to tell me about it, no one ever asked him that question but got the job.
"In my current interviews I'm asking 'what did your company do for its employees during [the virus] to improve their day to day, work life balance, etc.' and I ask 'Is there anything your company adopted during [the virus] that they plan to keep post [the virus]?"
"These questions give a lot of insight into whether a company treated their employees well."
Past Performance & Adjustments
"If we were currently sitting in my 1 year review, what would I have done in this year for you to say I excelled in my role?"
"If I could snap my finger right now and change anything about your job or the company, what would it be and why?"
The following questions about a prospective company may not be answered from initial digging on their website.
Measure Of Success & Career Trajectories
"How is success measured in this role?"
"What are some possible career trajectories within the company that could stem from this position?"
Being A Solution
"Ask them what is the biggest problem you can solve for them in your first six months with the company. Similar to 'don't think of a purple hippo,' this forces them to imagine you succeeding in the position."
Simply The Best
"Who is your best employee and why is he/she the best?"
"You will then face 2 situations mostly:"
"panicking CEO who can't answer you 'Bob who works 17 hours a day for a slice of bread' so the fear in their faces must be a big nono for you"
"entusiast CEO who actually follow their business and can tell you who is an added value for the company and why."
– ThePiz91
My experiences with job interviews are different than others seeking work in office environments.
Having had a years-long career as a dancer, my "interview" was the dance audition, where hopefuls dance in small groups of people at a time after learning a routine and then awaiting their fate after the panel evaluates their performances.
The question I may or may not have asked in such a scenario earlier in my career was: "Did I make the cut?"
I did not make the cut. And I learned never to ask that again.
I remember the worst date I ever had. My biggest regret is that I stayed for the entire thing. I should've left as soon as I realized this was not going well, which was basically at hello. But he was paying so I drank, a lot. I'll keep names and dates to myself to protect the innocent.
0/10
Big Brother Reaction GIF by Big Brother After DarkGiphy"Went to brewery, date said I had hairy arms and that meant I was horny, said "you look really awful in this light" and then tried to dig out of that hole by saying in his native language that was a term of endearment long term couples said to each other. 0/10 did not date again."
Lucky 13?
"My wife wanted to plan our 13th wedding anniversary. I was excited because usually, I plan it. She bought us some new disc golf discs and after a quick supper, we went to play. We hadn't played in forever. We were laughing and I had a great time. She served me with divorce papers and told me that the date was a test to see if she still had feelings for me. I also learned that she was having an affair that started well before our anniversary."
- rmorlock
Two Hours from Home
"Not necessarily a date but a person I was dating invited me to his parent's house for the afternoon. He wanted to introduce me to them and show me the house he grew up in. I thought it was super sweet and had no problems going. He was also in the middle of moving and needed to pick up a few things, so it really didn't seem that unusual."
"Yeah, we got there and it was awful. His entire family was there. They traveled from hours away too. This was not just meeting the parents, it was meeting the ENTIRE family. Even worse? At some point, this idiot told his parents that he had proposed. We had been dating TWO months. I spent the entire afternoon dumbfounded and just playing along."
"We were two hours from home and I had no cell service, no way to leave at all. We ended up spending the afternoon brainstorming wedding ideas and planning an Alaskan honeymoon that his parents planned to gift us. His brother even called to say congratulations! We drove back to his apartment in silence. When we got there, I got in my car and left, didn't even bother grabbing my stuff. Weirdest experience ever. I have no idea how he broke it to his parents that we weren't getting married."
You're Cut Off!
"Got set up on a blind date once between mutual friends. She shows up to the restaurant already a little tipsy, orders multiple appetizers and only takes like one or two bites from each one. Then she proceeds to order 3 or 4 more drinks and is visibly drunk at this point. She gets up and says she's going to the bathroom and staggers off. About 15-20 minutes go by so I try to call her several times but no answer."
"Finally I decide to pay the check and just leave. About 2 hours later I'm sitting at home and I get a call from an unknown number. It's the police department. She was picked up on a DUI on her way home after she ditched me and gave the cops my number to see if I could go bail her out!"
- mox44ah
Sorry?
Bbc Three Idk GIF by BBCGiphy"Well, I gave this answer on a different topic, but it ties in with this. We were out on a date, we had been seeing each other for a while, close to a year maybe. She gets a phone call. Suddenly she looks destroyed. Her fiancé had just died in a motorcycle accident."
What in the world? I mean how can we ever expect to pair off with the dating pool being inundated with liars and nut jobs? I'm going to delete my apps.
Girl, Bye.
Sassy Beyonce GIFGiphy"Had a girl openly flirt with the bartender in front of me. She says she wasn't. But handing him her own phone and asking for his contact info in front of her date seems like it to me."
Crazy!
"Came out from a movie, late at night, and date's Camaro was stolen. Apparently, he called his WIFE (that I did not know he had) and let her know where he was and what happened. She showed up and realized he was on a date! She started chasing ME around the parking lot telling me she was going to kill me. Saved by the cops who showed up just in time to take the auto theft report."
Hey Mom
"Met a girl at a country bar one night in my 20s. We were both pretty drunk but hit it off pretty good. Ended up getting her number and we agreed we'd go on a real date. Fast forward to the date, she gets in my vehicle and... she looks almost identical to my mom. I was mortified. I was polite and we went for lunch where I found out she also had a boyfriend she "wasn't sure if she was into". Never talked to her again."
- SgtGo
Liars...
"When I was in college many years ago, before the advancement of cell phones and social media, I was chatting with a girl I met on a BBS who lived on Long Island, NY. I was 18 at the time, but lied and said I was 22 because she said she was 25. We spent a few weeks emailing each other, as well as calling each other."
"We even exchanged pics. When we finally met up, things blew up. Turns out we both lied about our ages: She was really 33, and lied because she thought she looked younger. She admitted she sent a college photo to me. We still had dinner together, but it was awkward as hell. We never spoke again."
Doubles
Kill Me Now Season 1 GIF by FriendsGiphy"It was a double date. She was more interested talking to the other girl throughout the whole thing. Found out later from the other guy that his girl cheated on him with my date."
Ummm... I think I'm just going to stay single. That is a handful of crazy. Why can't people just be honest? I swear the search for love warps people's brains. Be careful out there people.
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