Money's Not Everything

[graveyard johnny]

3 minutes ago, Damien said:

I suppose it goes back to the question, Do you live to work or work to live? I know I'm firmly in the latter camp and if I had the money I could easily give up work tomorrow and enjoy life.

it must also come down to what you do for work - in construction I  can drive around years after and say "I built that" - not sure you can get that from a waste paper basket full of paper or a computer full of old spreadsheets etc 

[Damien]

1 minute ago, graveyard johnny said:

it must also come down to what you do for work - in construction I  can drive around years after and say "I built that" - not sure you can get that from a waste paper basket full of paper or a computer full of old spreadsheets etc 

Whatever floats your boat. As I said I dont live to work so something like that wouldn't bother me one bit. We all have different drivers in life and there's nothing wrong with that.

One thing I have learned in my working life is that everyone is replaceable, no matter how much we like to think we are not. We like to think we are important and are indispensable but anyone that leaves anywhere I've worked is quickly forgot about and life goes on. 

[Dunbar]

38 minutes ago, graveyard johnny said:

it must also come down to what you do for work - in construction I  can drive around years after and say "I built that" - not sure you can get that from a waste paper basket full of paper or a computer full of old spreadsheets etc 

You take that back sir!

[graveyard johnny]

26 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

You take that back sir!

am not really sure what a spreadsheet is truth be known 

[Dunbar]

1 minute ago, graveyard johnny said:

am not really sure what a spreadsheet is truth be known 

Fair enough.

And for what it's worth, I do agree with your point about seeing the pride in your work.  I am not saying it will keep me working longer than I want to but a sense of value and contribution is important. 

I have worked in the service sector all my life and so, unlike you, I can't see the things I have built and have pride in that.

But I have worked for 30 years in the private education sector, both as an IT trainer and then a manager and leader.  While it was profit generating, and I had no qualms about that, it is education and helped people develop careers... professionals, Higher education students and apprenticeships alike.  On the whole they had a real net benefit from their investment in learning. 

I know there are thousands of people that I personally helped to develop their careers and (no exaggeration) millions of people the businesses I have been involved with have helped.  And that for me is something to be proud of.

[bobbruce]

6 hours ago, graveyard johnny said:

it must also come down to what you do for work - in construction I  can drive around years after and say "I built that" - not sure you can get that from a waste paper basket full of paper or a computer full of old spreadsheets etc 

I’ve recently changed from a job in the construction industry to something completely different. Cross over skills but just a completely different world. I’d say it’s definitely added years to my work life ( provided the work keeps coming)(in a if selected sort of way). 

[tim2]

14 hours ago, graveyard johnny said:

it must also come down to what you do for work - in construction I  can drive around years after and say "I built that" - not sure you can get that from a waste paper basket full of paper or a computer full of old spreadsheets etc 

My software helped to safety-test, and improve the quality, of many of the cars you see on the road. Helping with the European Space Programme was also a pretty cool one. 

[ivans82]

The biggest problem with some people i know who retire early is simply that they have no hobbies or passions .One lad i know went back to work because he couldn`t keep out of the pub (his words) , others got bored doing mundane jobs around the garden/house . I find it easy because i like the outdoors and walking (helps living in the lake district obviously) , like my rugby , horse racing , speedway etc. usually out all day so don`t find time on my hands to get bored .

[tim2]

3 hours ago, ivans82 said:

The biggest problem with some people i know who retire early is simply that they have no hobbies or passions .One lad i know went back to work because he couldn`t keep out of the pub (his words) , others got bored doing mundane jobs around the garden/house . I find it easy because i like the outdoors and walking (helps living in the lake district obviously) , like my rugby , horse racing , speedway etc. usually out all day so don`t find time on my hands to get bored .

Very true. I run, like going on long walks and have ramped up my writing significantly. We also babysit our grandsons every Wednesday and my wife works away at weekends with paid expenses so we often head off to various parts from Friday morning to Sunday night.

[Dunbar]

3 hours ago, tim2 said:

Very true. I run, like going on long walks and have ramped up my writing significantly. We also babysit our grandsons every Wednesday and my wife works away at weekends with paid expenses so we often head off to various parts from Friday morning to Sunday night.

I would like to write more when I have the time.

I don't think I have the aptitude or talent for novels and I lack the imagination for short stories/fiction but I quite fancy having a crack at being an essayist. 

Think of a much less talented, less prolific David Sedaris and that is where I could land.

[tim2]

3 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

I would like to write more when I have the time.

I don't think I have the aptitude or talent for novels and I lack the imagination for short stories/fiction but I quite fancy having a crack at being an essayist. 

Think of a much less talented, less prolific David Sedaris and that is where I could land.

Sedaris is so skillful.

[Dunbar]

5 minutes ago, tim2 said:

Sedaris is so skillful.

He certainly is.

[graveyard johnny]

18 minutes ago, Dunbar said:

I would like to write more when I have the time.

I don't think I have the aptitude or talent for novels and I lack the imagination for short stories/fiction but I quite fancy having a crack at being an essayist. 

Think of a much less talented, less prolific David Sedaris and that is where I could land.

just stick all your TRL posts together and am sure there will be enough for a novel and the sequel!

[Wolford6]

Money's not everything but it helps. So does schadenfreude.

The Daily Mail is reporting that Russell Brand's ex-wife Katy Perry has just sold her music back-catalogue for £180million.

[ivans82]

11 minutes ago, Wolford6 said:

Money's not everything but it helps. So does schadenfreude.

The Daily Mail is reporting that Russell Brand's ex-wife Katy Perry has just sold her music back-catalogue for £180million.

Just goes to show , i wouldn`t have thought it was worth 180 pence  .

[Wolford6]

27 minutes ago, ivans82 said:

Just goes to show , i wouldn`t have thought it was worth 180 pence  .

He dumped his wife by text.

Classy.

 

[JonM]

On 18/09/2023 at 17:02, graveyard johnny said:

it must also come down to what you do for work - in construction I  can drive around years after and say "I built that" - not sure you can get that from a waste paper basket full of paper or a computer full of old spreadsheets etc 

I think this is a fair point. I could say that about 70% of people on the planet use on a daily basis something that I helped to build, although we might debate whether that's a good thing. Jobs where you are building something, or helping or providing a service to people are clearly much more satisfying than many office non-jobs.

I've always enjoyed my work, always found it interesting, always had good employers, good managers and colleagues. But you only get so long on this planet, and there's plenty of other things I want to do, and many of them can only be done while I'm still pretty fit. Find it really hard to understand how people stay at work because they can't think of anything better to do.

Like Dunbar, I end up giving advice on pensions, ISAs etc to younger colleagues and I always think that a few hours spent getting some understanding of such things might be the best paid few hours of your life.

[The Masked Poster]

Well I did give up the job and am currently a man of leisure. I ended up working a bit longer than anticipated but got compensated for it so have more than enough to see me right for a while. 

When it comes to getting another job, that doesn't involve a similar scenario from what I've just left, I'm looking at a pay cut of well over £20K. But I don't particularly care (well, I do a bit if I'm honest), I just want to work Monday-Friday, normal hours, go home and that's that. 

 

[hindle xiii]

 

 

[tonyXIII]

Hello Mr Coyne (Tony), it’s always being on my mind to thank you for taking an interest in my development whilst I was at Caedmon School. I had potential and wasted this whilst at school, didn’t really have good family role models and also fell in with the wrong crowd. However, it all turned out good in the end. I’m the Divisional Head of Safety for ******** Homes and very actively involved in raising funds for several charities. Thank you for your help and guidance in my youth. Graham ********

 

Coincidentally, I received the above via fbmessenger today. A beautiful "thank you" from a pupil of mine forty years ago. Such memories (this isn't the only one) give me my very own warm glow of satisfaction.

(Some redactions to preserve his privacy)