They say that if you love what you do, you'll never "work" a day in your life. It's a common phrase, but we almost never meet anyone who is actually living the dream ... til now.
Reddit user -thelastbyte asked:
People who actually like their jobs, what do you do for a living?
It turns out, it's not the multi-millionaires who are out here touting their love for their jobs. These are simple people who have simple, quirky, average kinds of jobs. These people aren't out here raking in the dough. They're just doing what they love - which looks very different for all of them - and legitimately enjoying it.
It's honestly kind of inspirational.
Party Princess
I'm a party princess. I dress up and act as a princess at children's birthday parties. I always loved signing and somewhat acting so it's great to put these skills to use. I also love making children smile. It's great job for me because it's part time and not always at the same time every weekend so as a student its the perfect job. I also like the fact that for every party I have almost no idea what to expect: it keeps me on my toes and my improv skills sharp.
Props
I do onset props in television and film. The hours are nuts, but I get to work with some awesome people on some awesome projects.
Catering To Your Inner Child
I nanny. I play, I make up games, I read awesome books out loud. I come up with art projects. I sing loudly in the car. I comfort and cuddle kids.
I talk to growing minds about what's going on in the world. We talk about their day. What was good what was hard. I get to tease them. I watch their performances. I make dope snacks. I watch soccer games.
Overall, it's a really fun job, but the most important thing is finding the right family.
Icy Patience
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I'm a jeweler. I work for a small shop that specializes in custom design and manufacture, restoration, and in house repair. We work with mostly fine and unusual colored stones and gem minerals, but if you really want a diamond we can call our vendor and he'll memo it in.
As far as the custom work goes, I'm in the same class as, say, a coach whip salesman or a corset stay manufacturer-- it's a niche field with no mobility and only moderate pay, using methods that the industry has largely abandoned. I don't print, grow, render or program the jewelry pieces - I create hand drawn isometric designs to scale, then carve the waxes or do the fabrication all by hand.
I do enjoy it, I work with my hands and am able to be creative, solve problems and create beautiful things, but there are also plenty of moments such as sometimes during stone setting where I think "alright, I'm about to take this shiny rock that cost as much as a decent car, and push metal over it using a tiny jackhammer."
Don't mess this up.
A certain amount of icy patience is a good resource to have lol.
Miracle Worker
I work as a case manager for an eviction prevention program in my local government. Basically, I hand out free money ($2000 per family) to people who are incredibly stressed out and hoping for a miracle. I get to ensure that people stay in their homes, and I help them find access to affordable child care, better employment, and food. I often work with teachers, single moms, veterans, and the elderly. People are so incredibly grateful and sweet, and I love being the person who gets to call and say "Good news! You get to stay in your home and your next month of rent is covered!" They often cry, which then makes me cry, and the best part is I get to manage their case for another 3 months to set them up for success.
Bonus: the presentation I created for our program is being shown in Washington, DC next summer, and we might help encourage other states to hop on board!
Cemetery Summers
I work at a cemetery and live there rent free and love it.
Cut grass in summer , rake leaves in fall , and maintenance . Mostly landscape work. It's quiet and nobody ever bothers you. I make my own hours. I can take a 2 hour lunch if I want. As long as the place is clean the board of directors don't care. best part is I live in the shed free of charge. go to the gym everyday to work out and take a shower. No stress lifestyle. Sometimes I stay at my girlfriends place when I have one. Go out bowling with the guys a couple nights a week in leagues. Sports bars for the games. I'm living an Uncle Buck Life and love it. Have over 7 figures in investments . IRA's and stocks. Go to Hawaii or Key West Florida in the winter.
Celebrity Chef
I'm a server in a restaurant owned by a celebrity chef. Only work 32-34 hours a week. Consistently make about $1400/week before taxes. 401k is matched. Eat two meals prepared by professional chefs everyday I work. Bring home free bottles of wine to "study" so I'm capable of describing it to our guests. Only work nights so I sleep in til at least noon everyday.
Dirty And Dirt Poor
I am an on-call bioarchaeologist. I go to incredible places few in this world get to see. I look at human bones to analyze who they may be and why they are there. I have been on high mountaintops and deep into caves. No one cares if I look clean and neat because I have no one to impress. In fact, it is preferred I return from a site covered in mud and dirt. I work hard, sleep well, and sometimes get invited to colleges to speak to students interested in archaeology. I publish my research and present my adventures at academic conferences.
Like all archaeologists I am poor as can be but what I lack in financial gains is more than balanced by spreading knowledge.
Books Yes, People No
Librarian. I freaking LOVE my job. I love to read, and love the smell of books and paper. I love the wealth of information I read, and I love to help people find answers in my resources or just doing research myself (my library is focused on education-research).
I love my job, but sometimes it's the people I can't stand.
Sounds Lame
I wash dishes.
Sounds lame, but it isn't.
I get the same schedule every week and it's good hours, I make more than minimum wage, I get bonus checks on holidays and have other benefits like insurance and more PTO than my state mandates, and that's just the tip of the iceberg
We're allowed to wear earbuds at work and listen to music as long as we keep one earbud out for safety reasons
I have really great managers and all my coworkers are great people who are just a TREAT to work with (seriously, they're like family. It's awesome. I love being around them).
I get $14 free to spend on food every day that I'm at work, so 5 days a week. It's really, really good food. I've tried nearly everything we sell and I haven't yet tried something I didn't LOVE. It's really good food.
There's so much more but in the interest of time I'll leave it here.
- MC_Crit
Clean
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Yes a question I can answer!
I'm a janitor! I love being a janitor. Why? Because I have OCD!!! I love cleaning. I don't care about poop or mess anywhere. I will clean it. I want things to shine and look amazing.
I'm so happy too because I have a state job as a janitor. So I don't make regular pay. And that makes me even happier. I feel so relieved going home knowing my building is spotless clean.
Wanna know the best part? Since I clean trash a lot I find some amazing throw away. Someone threw away an old stereo and I took it home to make it into a nice decoration.
Another plus side is since I clean out the recycling bin. I can take home the cans and bottles to recycle for extra money. It's so awesome.
I clean at work and get paid well. Then I go home and clean some more.
Another plus is no one talks to me. Occasionally people say hi and I do too. But no one talks to me so I can listen to my favorite podcast all day!
