Career 'till I die?

[IBM]

Just reading Chriswood's post on salaries, and wondering what everyone on here was thinking, long term.

What's your long term career plan? You going to stay where you are until they kick you out or retire you off? You going to keep looking till you find your dream job? How about working for yourself?

It's just that everyone wants so much from life. Everyone seems to want the 2+ jet set holidays a year, the semi in the suburbs, two cars, latest plasma tv etc. etc....All that costs money, and there are a lot of people out there, who on the money they're on, will never achieve that 'middle manager' lifestyle. So what's the plan? Are you just going to coast along, hoping to land on your feet, or is there method to the madness?

Will you and your partner both work? That makes it easier of course, but are you happier to just struggle on through, always having to budget for what you want, worrying about debt, whether you can afford to have kids if that's where you want to go?

I'm just curious....all this stuff about teaching financial responsiblity in school makes me realise how few people have real long term goals in life, especially financially speaking.

And I know that money isn't everything/can't buy you love/won't make you happy etc.etc....but it certainly helps. Thanks to very generous people I've been able to taste the 'good life' and it's very nice....but now my motivation is to be wealthy enough to be able to do some good. Both my wife and I want to start up charities in third world countries to take care of orphans, so now we work for ourselves, in the hope that we can make a difference.

What about you lot, what's the plan man?

[ikonia]

My plan is to visit your store a week on saturday to view "my" chair.

[jimbouk]

Well it should be plain sailing until you have kids! I should know, just stopped being a dependent on my parents and they're a lot better off...

I guess there's always the two thought, live to work or work to live. But as ever a happy medium is advised

Personally I'd like to find a company I like (maybe the one I start at in a month) and hope that work never gets too stressful. I plan to have my luxury items and expenses (computers and a classic car) but otherwise budget carefully. There's no point spending money just to class yourself as well off, just spend it on what you enjoy.

[Honoop]

Good question!!

My current plan is thus:
Currently work for an Oil & Gas company and so far Im really liking the industry. Office relocating to London so am hoping that if I get on with the commute I can have a proper career in town for a few years, until the commute becomes too much.
BUT, im currently a part-qualified accountant so get paid a decent enough wage (before I pay out on all the debt I have too!) So I plan to be fully qualified by about 2009, want to learn as much as possible about he industry and hope to be able to move up either within my current company or for one of the bigger ones. Once Im qualified I figure I should be looking to earn around the £50k mark and I want to become debt free (bar a mortgage) as quickly as possible. Thats about as far as my plan goes at the moment.
Although once Im qualified I want to buy a Merc too!

Sounds a bit vague and money-orientated but masses of debt kinda does that to a person. Mainly all Im concerned about is actually getting qualified and doing the best job I can, one I enjoy!

[Blitzen]

I'll carry on in Management unitl i have saved enough money to afford my Hareem. (Cheap birds prolly but i can trade them in as and when)
Once thats done i'll be happy

[0iD]

I've been with the same form for the past 15 years plodding along & just doing what i do. Now I want to do something with my career as the kids are growing up & becoming more costly.

[IBM]

My plan is to visit your store a week on saturday to view "my" chair.

You're going to hate me for this, but the Lawas chair is out of stock, only the one in the window left. The Kebun chair we still have though....We've got a new producer making us some more, they only work from reclaimed teak, and their production quality is top notch....even so, it's about 12 weeks before we get the first samples through. Still, you're more than welcome to pop in to see the one that's left.

[Tom Scott]

I plan to stack some cash and leave the country soon I reckon, no way I'm paying silly house prices, I don't want to have a mortgage for 35 years.

[IBM]

Well it should be plain sailing until you have kids! I should know, just stopped being a dependent on my parents and they're a lot better off...

I guess there's always the two thought, live to work or work to live. But as ever a happy medium is advised

Personally I'd like to find a company I like (maybe the one I start at in a month) and hope that work never gets too stressful. I plan to have my luxury items and expenses (computers and a classic car) but otherwise budget carefully. There's no point spending money just to class yourself as well off, just spend it on what you enjoy.

But when you get to the point where you have kids, you'll look back and the years preceding, and wonder why you weren't working your socks off while you had the luxury of time and a full nights sleep to take advantage of. I look at people who were already well up the career and housing ladder before they were 30 and wonder how they did it, but it's simple, they had a plan, they saved, and they worked harder than anyone else.

You make a good point about spending money just to class yourself as well off, but spending money is unfortunately a side effect of doing what you enjoy.

[ikonia]

Ibm, don't quite hate you yet, I'll be happy to look at the ones in stock, and 12 weeks may actually not be too bad by the time all my building work is finished.

Well it should be plain sailing until you have kids! I should know, just stopped being a dependent on my parents and they're a lot better off...

Personally I'd like to find a company I like (maybe the one I start at in a month)

Pretty much sums stuff up
and there speaks the voice of youth.
Another dell boy in the making.

[IBM]

Good question!!

My current plan is thus:
Currently work for an Oil & Gas company and so far Im really liking the industry. Office relocating to London so am hoping that if I get on with the commute I can have a proper career in town for a few years, until the commute becomes too much.
BUT, im currently a part-qualified accountant so get paid a decent enough wage (before I pay out on all the debt I have too!) So I plan to be fully qualified by about 2009, want to learn as much as possible about he industry and hope to be able to move up either within my current company or for one of the bigger ones. Once Im qualified I figure I should be looking to earn around the £50k mark and I want to become debt free (bar a mortgage) as quickly as possible. Thats about as far as my plan goes at the moment.
Although once Im qualified I want to buy a Merc too!

Sounds a bit vague and money-orientated but masses of debt kinda does that to a person. Mainly all Im concerned about is actually getting qualified and doing the best job I can, one I enjoy!

That's a lot more of a plan than most people can manage...a lot more....and you're right, there's a point in debt where you think 'crap, really have to think this through, or it's never going to get better'.

Please don't buy a merc! I think of merc drivers the way most people think of BMW drivers, arrogant, ignorant pricks, with an inbuilt inability to drive, and total lack of consideration for other drivers. It's scary how many merc drivers this applies to...to the point where I actually exclaim outload everytime one thanks me when I let them out at junctions (if anyone wants to flame me for this, please start a new thread, don't hijack this one).

[IBM]

I've been with the same form for the past 15 years plodding along & just doing what i do. Now I want to do something with my career as the kids are growing up & becoming more costly.

Do you see the time spent plodding along as time wasted, or did you enjoy the lack of stress?

[IBM]

I plan to stack some cash and leave the country soon I reckon, no way I'm paying silly house prices, I don't want to have a mortgage for 35 years.

I'd love to sell up right now and get out, as I'd make a killing on my house, but I've invested too much time and effort into my company to be able to do it.....With Rave going on and on about imminent crash (something I do believe is going to happen) it gets a little stressful at times.

[kidzer]

hmm, plan at the moment, totally off the top of my head:

Finish uni in 3 years time, with my Honors in Computer Networking, and find a mid/low level job in IT/Networking, hopefully work hard at it and be able to save some money, enough to be able to emmigrate to Canada/The USA (or even Austrialia/NZ/Somewhere in Europe!) by the time i'm 30, repeat the above in my new country and see what happens.

Perhaps being more realistic, finish uni, work for a few years as above, and move into a flat in town on my own when I can afford it, and work up the career ladder and see what happens, either way - i'm rather organised about most things, so hopefully one of theese two scenarios will play out quite well!

I'm lucky in that i'm staying at home, and have the luxury of not needing a student loan or any other debt, to see me through Uni.

Edit: and whats this "until I die" rubbish ....I'm young, ergo, I'm invincible and won't die

[b0redom]

I was a corporate whipping boy (albeit a pretty senior one) up until 2003. In 2003 the Mrs and I decided we needed a change and took 18 months off and travelled around the world.

When we came back I fell into a contract, started my own company, and haven't looked back since. Change jobs as often as you like, so you tend not to get as bored, and there's none of this 'you only get x days holiday per year' stuff.

Of course the downside is that you have to deal with agents all the time, don't get paid for sick/holiday and there's no job security.

[chriswood_7]

Glad you guys read my post

Anyway, my long term plan pretty much revolves around kids/house etc but also around my career. I suppose im in the fortunate position to be able to up sticks and move wherever in the world, if a job came and I fitted the requirements. I like the idea of marriage and settling down but at the moment me and the gf are only 24 and 25 so there are a good few years to worry about other things first. I think ill plod through life having to budget for everything I want, thats the position I am in and I dont expect it to be any different. I dont have rich parents there to bail me out or buy me cars/houses. I have to work for everything I get, and to be honest I think that is the best way to be.

My only downfall is that I love cars, and im always looking for a better car :|

Money cant buy you everything and doesnt make you happy, but it certainly helps you maintain a smile when it allows you to do the things that you want. The world revolves around money, and anyone who says it isn't important obviously means it isn't important to them as they have enough.