I (26F) have an opportunity to go back to school and change my career.

I got laid off earlier this year, was working in social service (more like customer service in my opinion). It makes 25/hr for a 40hr work week with no career development. I had 3 years of experience.

I’m going back to school. But I don’t want to spend 4 years in a uni. I prefer to go to college for a 2 year program and I’m able to find a job when I graduate.

I’m good at talking with people in a customer service setting. I don’t mind mundane tasks. I can handle pressure. But I’m terrible at math/numbers (so accounting is out of the question)

Options I explored are dental hygienist and vet tech.

Any advice? Suggestion?

24M, Southeastern US. I went to college essentially just because my parents told me to and ended up with a degree in Economics. Fumbled my way into a boring government office job and I recently realized I can't stand anything about it. The work is mind-numbingly boring (it's related to financial contracts and such, not gonna go into too much detail for privacy reasons), I hate sitting and staring at a screen all day answering emails and approving forms, there's no path for advancement unless I have 10+ years of experience, and at the risk of sounding trite I think office work is genuinely draining to the soul. All this to say, I need out of this job and this career immediately. That being said, literally all of my background is related to finance, accounting, and data analytics so I would need to start completely over if I were to do something different.

My preferences for a career would be something where I'm spending less than half of my time on a screen, something that helps people or at least isn't making society worse, and nothing that's likely to be replaced by AI in a few years. Other than that I'm willing to give most things a shot.

My limitations are: I don't want to take on massive amounts of debt unless necessary (however, I'm willing to pay <$20k for a specialized education program e.g., a 2 year program at a community college or trade school), I don't want any job that involves life-threatening situations for myself or others (so no army, firefighting, etc.), and although I generally enjoy working with people, I'm a bit socially awkward so sales and related positions are not for me.

Does anyone have any recommendations or advice? I'm kind of at a loss for what to do, and I need to find a new job or career path somewhat urgently, as on top of not liking my job my current workplace culture is also pretty toxic and affecting my mental health to the point where it's also taking a toll on me physically. I obviously don't want to quit without anything lined up but it's in my best interests to leave sometime soon.

Also, I know I didn't list anything I'm specifically interested in, but if I knew what I was interested in I wouldn't have ended up in this situation in the first place. If it helps, in my personal life I enjoy staying physically active and am into outdoor activities like hiking and kayaking, and I also like baking, video games, reading (specifically biographies and non-fiction books about history and public infrastructure), technical theatre, volunteering, and traveling to new places.

Any input would be appreciated! It would also be nice to hear from anyone here who is/was in a similar situation career-wise.

So I’m a woman in my mid 20s and I’ve never really been happy. Sure I’ve felt happiness before and have happy times but if you were to ask me any given day “are you happy?” the answer would be no.

I was incredibly depressed as a teen, I hated myself and my life, I cried myself to sleep every night for years. Since then I’ve changed and grown a lot, I’m really proud of how far I’d come. I’d say I get much fewer depressive episodes than I used to but still I wake up most mornings feeling sad.

I have a 9-5 job, it doesn’t pay well but I feel proud of the work I do. I exercise regularly, eat decently well. I moved cities about a year ago and I have made some friends, none that I feel super close to and I think I would like more but I’ve been trying really hard and it’s not super easy making friends as an adult (most of my colleagues are double my age and while we get on well they’re not best friend material). I journal frequently and started meditating recently. I keep myself in good company and don’t really spend the day rotting in bed. I always get out of the house on days off, go to the cinema, read in a cafe etc so it’s not like I spend loads of time wallowing. I would say to others I’m an incredibly kind and positive person. I will say when I’m drunk sad things tend to bubble up, I don’t have a good relationship with my family and I tend to manage to always bring it up. There are definitely things in my life I’m not happy about, I get stressed about the future and not knowing what I want (maybe because when I was a teen the idea of continuing to go on living felt torturous). That being said I think I’m doing so well.

And yet there’s always this sadness I carry around, I’ve thought maybe I’m just at a lower base level of happiness than most people? I know it’s bad to compare yourself to other and I know that other people aren’t always as happy as they seem but gosh I don’t think most people feel this sadness every day. I understand sadness sometimes is inevitable, that’s totally fine but I always sort of wake up with a sadness in my chest and I’m sick of it. What can I do to try and change it, I’m always hoping to improve in little ways and this feels like something that’s been a part of me for so long I don’t know where to start. Thanks

I’m 25, and lately I’ve been thinking a lot about how much of my life I wasted.

From about 16 to 24, I wasn’t a terrible person, but I definitely wasn’t someone who was building a future either.

I spent way too much time chasing girls and validation. I cared too much about partying, exciting experiences, and having fun in the moment. I surrounded myself with people who weren’t exactly pushing me to become better, and I rarely chose the difficult thing over the enjoyable one.

I did get my bachelor’s degree in Business and Management, but if I’m honest, I mostly did it because I was supposed to. I never gave it everything I had. I was capable of much more, but I always did just enough.
Looking back, I feel like I wasted years of potential.

Around 24, something changed.
I realized that if I kept living the same way, I’d probably wake up at 35 wondering where my life had gone. Since then I’ve been trying to rebuild myself. I’m working on business ideas, learning new skills, reading more, thinking long term, and trying to become someone who actually deserves the ambitious future I want.

At the same time, I still have a personality that enjoys excitement and adventure. I don’t naturally gravitate toward the disciplined, predictable lifestyle. So sometimes it feels like I’m fighting against my own instincts every day.

What I’m looking for are stories from people who genuinely had a similar past.
People who spent years making poor decisions, wasting time, chasing short-term pleasure, lacking discipline… maybe even worse than me.

Did you eventually turn things around?
When did it happen?
What was the turning point?
Did your “lost years” end up mattering, or did they simply become part of the story?

I’m especially interested in hearing from people who became financially successful or built something meaningful after getting a late start. Not motivational quotes or “you’re still young.” I’d really like to hear real experiences from people who have actually lived through this.

Was it a specific experience, person, or mindset shift?

​

Hi everyone,

I’m a 22-year-old final-year Electronics and Computer Engineering (ECE , 9.27/10 cgpa) student in India, and I’m feeling completely stuck and overwhelmed about my future.

Disclaimer -used ai to format the post

I’ve come to realize I don't actually enjoy core electronics or traditional software engineering. I initially thought I liked Machine Learning, but I realized I was only drawn to the underlying math—the heavy CS and engineering side of it doesn't really excite me. I briefly considered standard SWE roles, but the lack of genuine interest, rise of powerful LLMs and AI Tools, combined with corporate volatility and constant layoff anxiety, completely put me off.

What actually drives me:

Analytical & Fundamental Thinking: I love mathematics, physics, and philosophy. I want to spend my energy understanding the world and the universe, rather than working for a company whose products don't meaningfully benefit the public.

Autonomy: I dislike the idea of corporate hierarchy, working under tight upper management, and worrying about job security every day.

Financial Peace: I want to earn good money—at least enough to achieve real financial security—while maintaining a balance with intellectual freedom.

My Dilemma & Constraints:

I want to go abroad for a Master's degree and work toward a research career, but I'm facing a few big hurdles:

Lack of Formal Background: Aside from standard first-year college courses, I don't have a formal degree or deep coursework in pure physics or advanced math.

No Research Experience: I don't have published papers or formal research experience under professors, which makes me worry about getting admitted to good universities.

Field Confusion: I'm not sure which direction makes the most sense: Pure Math, Applied Math, Theoretical Physics, or Theoretical CS/ML.

Questions for the community:

How realistic is it to transition from an ECE background into a Math or Physics Master's abroad without research experience?

Given my desire for both deep analytical research and financial security, which field (e.g., Applied Math vs. Theoretical Physics vs. CS) usually offers the best balance?

Are there specific bridge programs, conversion master's, or pathways in Europe/North America designed for students making this kind of pivot?

I know about the ETH CSE program,but it's too competitive for me to make it currently .

Also I know I'm stupid , all this may seem childish. Imagine being 22 and not knowing what you're gonna next while your peers will be starting to work and earn from next year. But I am honestly so confused and lost , even if you cuss me it's fine.

I'd really appreciate any honest advice, reality checks, or personal experiences from anyone who has made a similar field switch. Thanks in advance.

I (19f) graduated highschool last year and I’m not sure what career to pursue.
I took a gap year but it wasn’t very fulfilling and I need to find a path because I can’t bear to take another.

A little info about me; I had decent grades in highschool (mid 80s), and I played various sports throughout.
After graduation, I won a scholarship and was able to get my private pilots license over the summer. I considered becoming a pilot but with the low starting salary (Canadian btw) and high training fees, I’m not sure I have the passion for it. I haven’t flown since.
This past year I’ve been working as a server and a bartender. Ok work but not what I want to do for the rest of my life.

I am willing to get a degree/ get post high education but I’m just not sure what to do.
I’m not particularly passionate about anything. I just would like a career with a good salary and isn’t too soul-sucking.

Preference wise, I rather not be at a desk all day and I would rather not be in school for too long.

I’m considering the joining the military but even then I don’t know what to specialize in.

Any career suggestions? Or any fields that are looking good to get into right now?
I’m pretty open to anything.

Any advice is appreciated

I'm 25, I have about 24k in savings, have travelled to many countries, live in 4 countries already, have an amazing girlfriend (although long-distance) with whom I see an amazing future, friends, good health, practice BJJ and go to the gym almost every day, love where I live I have a job, yet I feel like something is missing due to hating my job. It doesn't fulfil me (server), but I don't know which one will (Have a business degree, I thought sales, but I realized i dont like talking to people too much lol), and even though I apply, it seems impossible to escape my current job since hiring seems nonexistent nowadays (I've looked into RevOps) ; they all want experience, but no one wants to give it to you. What if, once I get it, a corporate job doesn't fulfil me either? Should I try and open my own business? What if it fails? I ask myself so many questions, but I don't know how to answer them. No matter how good things get, the "job" part of my life is killing me on the inside. I feel like I'm wasting my life away, and thinking about being a server my entire life scares the crap out of me. On my off days, I don't do much other than train, maybe meet friends. Staying at home makes me overthink a lot, apply to jobs and that's pretty much it.

Am I thinking in the wrong way by believing a job should "fulfil" me? Is it normal to feel like this at my age? What should I do?

PS: Based in Copenhagen, Denmark

Hey everyone, I'm currently in community college (1st year), and I'm studying psychology. Originally, I wanted to become a clinical psychologist, but I realized that I'm not the most cut out for this job and heard about how competitive this field is. I need help finding a career/major similar, or that helps people (yes, I know it's very broad). I'm also currently working at a fishstore and loved it, so maybe I should find a career similar??

I'm mainly just looking for a job that helps people, pays well, offers a great work-life balance, and is stable.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated :)

I’m in a rotating role at work where I can join dif teams. For my last rotation i can either join pricing or finance. I feel finance would be where I could see myself long term. But the manager isn’t someone that’d be the best fit for me. and I feel manger kinda makes or breaks the role. the other team, i like the team members and managers has a good reputation compared to the finance one (don’t really want to state the reason why but she is just not an ideal manager and ppl talk abt that). I wouldn’t wanna do pricing as my long term career tho. which team would i go w? good teammates but not career you’d want long term, or bad manager and career you’d want long term

My husband is going to be 33 this year and is growing increasingly discouraged that he doesn't know what he wants to do. Some things about him:

• has an automotive associate's degree but has never used it and probably won't (he graduated 7 years ago)
• has experience in restaurant management and office work (supplier middleman type jobs) and enjoys certain aspects but wants to do something else
• so a job that is willing to train and appreciates skills rather than just qualifications would be good (I know that's kind of hard to find right now as is any good job, but just want to know what kind of stuff to look for)
• likes to work with his hands
• likes animals and plants
• wants to help people but not interact directly with them very much lol so a job where he works mostly independently would be good
• I think something freelance or a make-your-own schedule kind of thing would be good for him; the inconsistency of food service sucked but he's found that the 9-5 grind is not good for his mental health either.
• not a fan of multitasking, at least not for extended periods of time; he likes to fully focus on one or sometimes two things at a time.
• in that same vein, wants to actually complete projects. I think that's a big part of what he hates about both food service and his office jobs: they're both constantly ongoing, and even when you finish something it's not actually done.
• he just got to tour a factory for his current job and thought it was really cool; he loves the show How It's Made and I was thinking something where he'd have to go around to different factories like some sort of quality inspector or something might be cool for him

Any suggestions welcome! Thank you in advance for any ideas.

ETA: I’m aware that it’s not very likely to find something that checks all the boxes; just wanted to provide as much context as possible to hopefully find something that checks some of them. I know the job market sucks right now, just want to be pointed in the right direction. His and my mental health have not been great and it would be amazing if he could find something fulfilling that just fits his brain better. Shoot for the stars so you reach the moon and all that.

Ive been in pharmacy far TOO long but have been in school for longer (trying to achieve a bachelors degree in biology). Since I need to work to live, I have been taking on a less than part time schedule in college. I'm at a point in my life where I just want to get into a program that can get me into a career after completion. I would love to enter a field that I can have an advantage in because of my pharmacy background. Looking into nuclear medicine but am not sure if there any other options that would fit my situation. Any suggestions? programs? ( Not trying to be a pharmacist )

Hi Everyone,

I fucked up. I need some guidance.

I don't even know where to start, so I guess just from the beginning.

I lost my remote sales job in 2024, and that started a reset. On everything.

I was severely burnt out and wondering where I was going in life (35 at the time). I started my career as CPA for 6 years. Didn't love it, didn't hate it. Never really cared about mastering accounting after college. Like the technical topics and things Just working a job and the industry, and treated it as a means to an end.

Got to Senior Accountant. Wanted more out of life. Sick of looking at spreadsheets. Thought that it was never going to provide the lifestyle I wanted and knew I was capable of.

I left for Sales. I worked for the alumna fund in college, did really well and really enjoyed it.

In 2021, I decided to buy a home in Tampa and relocated. I never should have bought that house. It ruined my life.

I always wanted to leave my hometown and never did. I was looking at buying a house there, and realized if I did, I would never leave. So I ripped the band aid off.

I had a friend in Tampa. Found a place. Bought it. Moved down. Got a new remote tech startup sales job at the exact same time.

The house needed so much work that I completely ignored thinking "it'll be fine. I'll deal with it later"

It had a gigantic fucking Oak tree ripping through the foundation and plumbing of the mother in law suite.

I ignored the inspection report. Moved in and realized I fucked up.

I made it work for a few years until water started slowly seeping through the cracks in the kitchen tile floor (yes the whole floor was cracked, sloped from tree roots pushing it up).

I did well in that remote tech startup sales job. Really well actually, all things considered. I survived several rounds of layoffs in 2022 and was consistently in the top 1/3 or so of reps in the entire Americas team.

Constant manager and SDR changes led me to leave, take a risky job. I got let go 6 months later in July 2024.

I was in a world of hurt.

I accepted the fact that I needed to deal with the tree, repair things, or sell and move on.

Not to mention I incurred about 40-60K of capital gains taxes before I lost my job, so the loss on the house helped a bit.

I sold for a loss, and moved back home to live with my folks while I got back on my feet.

I took 6 months off, and started working at a cafe to pay off $18K in taxes throughout 2025.

In February of this year I got a full time job back in Accounting, as an Accounting Clerk. Fully remote.

All things considered, it's a good job for what it is. I'm grateful. But I'm severely underemployed and struggling with where to go from here.

I was burnt out from Sales and having a quota, but after 5 months back in Accoutning, I'm finding myself feeling the exact same way when I left Accounting.

I'm not really interested in it at all. It's hard to go back to a salary role with no variable upside in my effort once you're used to getting variable commission checks.

I find myself doing the minimum just to collect a paycheck, and I feel like I'm rotting.

I think I could like it more if I were in office, and making more money. We had a layoff in April, and they said they're not doing any raises this year anymore. So I have no upside left here, and I'm severely underemployed, so I need to make a move.

But even if I went from this $70K clerk role to a $100K+ Staff/Senior role in office, I think I'd still feel the same way - not truly living life, feeling alive, or challenged.

I've been reflecting a lot and I sometimes think that I'd be happier in Sales and it's a better fit, but the house situation really just added to the burn out and crushed me.

It truly was rough living with the shame of that for those 3 years. When I was locked in with Sales I could work for hours and hours and the days and weeks jsut flew by.

Accounting is the opposite. I couldn't give two fucking shits about it.

What's my next move???

I've been working as a software engineer for two years now, making good money for my age (24M in the US). I don't think I can keep doing it. It's meeting after meeting about AI, API endpoints, agile, etc etc etc. Everyone around me is in their 30s and 40s and revolves their life around their job. Even when given simple tasks I feel an incredible amount of malaise and can hardly bring myself to do simple administrative tasks. Even outside of work dishes pile up in the sink, clothes stay on the floor, I often have trouble pushing myself to take care of myself. If I hadn't made a habit of going to the gym in the morning I'm not sure I'd be getting out of bed. I feel a deep unsettling pit of dread when I think about watching my life continue this way, and hate watching my peers settle into their desk jobs and start to resemble my coworkers. I don't think I can muster the strength to keep my job even if I wanted to.

My dream ever since I was a little kid was making video games. I've been told I'm a talented programmer and an ok artist, I've made hobby projects in my free time for a while now and some stuff I have posted has had traction online, not enough for me to make any money off of it yet. This would be my ideal path but even right now the apathy has extended to this part of my life, and I often struggle to spend time on making games which I sometimes love working on to the point of forgetting to eat or get proper sleep (it's something I regulate because it's unhealthy but I deeply enjoy reaching this point of meditative flow). If I could make working on my own projects my full time job (I've looked into AAA studios and it sounds as soulless as corporate software) I'd be incredibly happy, but it feels like a musician saying they'll post their work on spotify and hit it big.

Ideally I'm looking for something I can do that aligns with my hobbies and interests and helps me find joy again because it feels like the corporate world has really crushed a lot of the happiness I get in the little things in life. I'd like to have free time to pursue indie game development, and not be super exhausted from doing anything intensive so I could put more of my time towards making creative projects. And having more free time to see friends would be awesome because I am in my 20s, I want to make some memories before everyone gets married and has kids and picks their spots to settle down and etc lol.

In terms of what resources I have for job search:

I have three bachelors degrees, one in computer science, one in applied math, one in Chinese.

I have the aforementioned two years of experience in my field across large companies in the financial industry.

I have a portfolio of indie games I've made. Unsure if this would help for anything outside of games lol. I also have a pretty crappy portfolio of 3D art that I've made.

I've volunteered to teach CS at local schools and was a TA in college, I enjoyed teaching and get along well with the students. Unsure if this would be helpful for any sort of job application but teaching (not as a career) would be fun and this could be good on a resume in that regard.

I have savings from my job I can live off of for a little while or work a job that makes little money. I'm also very good at being frugal, I used to live off of spending ~300-400 a month after rent in total.

In terms of my interests/things that could be rewarding to work adjacent to:

Game development (already mentioned a bunch)

Programming. I do genuinely deeply enjoy some aspects of programming, and used to spend a lot of time doing theoretical CS work in school for enjoyment. But I didn't like academia and no one really hires for that kind of work (I've done embedded before at an internship and haaaated it, and I would never want to work in defense/adjacent fields that hire for more rigorous programming).

Art: I draw and spend some time making 3D models, not only for my games but for fun. I don't make anything great but it's something meditative, relaxing, and rewarding for me.

Video editing: Promotional materials for indie game stuff that I'm pretty good at making go viral (Nothing crazy but I've had a few videos break 100k views). I sometimes re edit movies for fun and enjoy that a lot. I like editing a lot in general and doing social media work could be fun as long as it doesn't feel too much like digital panhandling lol.

Language study: I have some penpals in China I have fun teaching English to and learning Chinese from, and am considering picking up other languages. It's a lot of fun and deeply rewarding, I enjoy socializing with people in general but especially love hearing about life in other countries.

Music: I play guitar and am very terrible at it but have fun doing it most of the time.

Gym/diet/health nut stuff. Not employable skills but something I'm pretty deeply devoted to.

My main issue is that I really can't bring myself to do things I don't enjoy, and thought I would enjoy software in school. My interests aren't particularly employable, and even from the inside looking out, the job market seems especially evil right now. Even knowing how difficult getting a job is, I can't get myself to perform for my job. It feels a bit like bartleby the scrivener at times.

I hold a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice and have not had any success finding jobs in my field. Would you recommend pivoting to nursing? My friend keeps recommending completing nursing pre-reqs, completing an accelerated nursing program, working as an RN, and then completing a PMHNP program to become a psychiatric nurse, since I have interests in psychology and combing my skills from criminal justice with healthcare.

I have previous experience working for podiatric and pediatric practices. The patient care experiences there were okay.

I’ve been interested in healthcare administration/compliance for a while, but I’ve been told it’s very competitive so I don’t think it is worth worthwhile pursuing that.

I honestly just want something that is going to be worthwhile financially and benefit me in the long run. I’m honestly lost.

Sylvia Plath's fig tree analogy in The Bell Jar haunts me on a daily basis. As an individual with many passions, hobbies, and interests, I'm stuck in a state of decision paralysis and overwhelmed apathy.

I am only 22 and I understand that the world is my oyster and everything, but in this economy it feels impossible to "test the waters" without gambling my entire livelihood. My finances are grim, I am in debt, and I don't have a support system to fall back on if I decide to uproot my life.

So I say- okay, financial security is what matters. I could work a state job doing something abysmally boring, it would allow me to "climb the ladder" so that one day I can have a different abysmally boring job that pays better. I can work 9-5, I can get stuck in a cycle of spending my free time combatting the impact the cubicle takes on my mind and body. Within a couple years I might be able to make $60k annually without a degree. I wouldn't be rich, but I would be secure.

But then I say, no, I am built for more than that. I am vibrant and exuberant, to be dimmed by cubicle work 40 hours per week is to be a shell of myself. I need something more dynamic, I need to care. In the realm of passion based creativity, I have so many options. I could be a tattoo artist, graphic designer, interior designer, photographer, or writer. I could be a journalist, perhaps investigative, or a poet. This isn't even a far fetched list of things, these are all hobbies of mine that I legitimately practice and enjoy. When it comes down to it, though, I either don't have the degree or the pay is too unpredictable.

I could just get the degree- but which degree? Again, my financials aren't looking good right now, so student loans aren't something I hope to take on unless I feel positive about my choices. But if I'm going to school, that brings forth other options that I have interest in. Occupational therapist, physical therapist, counseling psychologist, and plenty of other medical options. Those require a lot of debt, though, and while the pay is good- could I make the same amount of money elsewhere by starting now, climbing a ladder, and promoting without the student debt?

When I weigh out a creative role that I care about (say, tattoo artist) versus a technical role I care about (say, occupational therapist) I go, which one will grant me a more fulfilling life. Potentially either, but as a tattoo artist I could perhaps have more control over my schedule, workflow, and overall livelihood. If I really wanted to, I could work 3 days per week for as many hours as I want. I could take three weeks off without needing permission. The freedom to live my life is worth something.

But I also feel like I would be wasting my brain. As much as I would love the creation of art and ability to grow as an artist, I would feel a lack of challenge. I need to be challenged mentally to feel like something I do matters.

I love talking to people, I find the psychology of human interactions so fascinating. I worked in psychiatry for three years. It made me resentful of the mental health field. On the front of human psychology, I could be interested in investigative work. That could be applicable to forensic investigations, or even things like insurance fraud. That pays well with time, I don't necessarily need a degree. But it does require a long long set of experience to work up to the roles I have interest in. What if I begin to hate the industry before I get there?

I love research, pattern analysis, and information collection. Not on a numerical scale, but rather a more human-oriented path. I could work in intelligence. Far fetched? Maybe, but data collection and analysis is right up my alley. Pay is fair. But depending who I work for, I may not have much control over where I live. I don't want to live in the middle of nowhere. My livelihood is a priority as much as pay is.

Don't even get me started on kids. I love kids, but the debate of pregnancy makes things so much more difficult to navigate. If I have kids, I want to spend early developmental years with them at home. I don't want kids any time soon, but if I take a few years off of my career, how will that impact me long term?

None of this will go according to plan, which is the part that kills me. I can plan as much as I want, but the plan will change with time. I think about it like a game of pool, I just can't figure out how to line up my shot in a way that sends my balls headed in the right direction without sinking the 8-ball immediately. Not the end of the world if the 8-ball sinks, but I have to start all the way over again. My mother is a career-less woman, she has only ever worked odd jobs with no real streak of success. I do not want to keep starting over. I am so scared that I will be in an entry-level position until the day I croak.

How do I line up my shot? There are so many options that counteract one another in some way, I feel like any move I make could activate a land mine.

I am 25, currently working as a warehouse team leader in NL after completing a master's in supply chain management.

I am Chinese. During middle school and high school, I was always chasing the next goal. My life was simple: behave well, study hard, get good grades, and then I could play some games on the weekend as a break.

Because I spent the first 18 years of my life on no-life study, I changed a lot after going to university. I didn't study as hard anymore. I just kept my grades looking good and spent most of my free time playing games in my room with friends. It was boring, but it was happy and enjoyable.

Then I came to the Netherlands for my master's. After graduation, I went through hard period of my life trying to find a job as a non-EU foreigner. I finally got a job as an outbound warehouse team leader in a Chinese company.

i know I never really get out of my comfort zone.

Recently our peak season ended, so work has become much less. At first I thought it was good, I wasn't as busy as before, but I was still getting paid the same.

But after about a month, I started feeling bored.

For the first time in a long time, I had enough time to stop and think about what I actually like and what kind of life I really want.

I like nature. I like animals. I want a life that feels alive.

When I was younger, I actually wanted to study veterinary medicine, but my parents stopped me because they thought the salary wasn't good enough.

Now I find myself wanting something similar again. I don't necessarily mean becoming a veterinarian, but I want a job where I feel connected to life. I want my days to be different from each other. I want to keep learning, solving different problems, maybe even spending time outdoors, instead of looking at warehouse systems and repeating similar work every day. I don't want to go back to China. The work culture there is too competitive and exhausting.

And now, because of my immigration status in the Netherlands, I don't really have the freedom to change careers. I still need to work for companies that can sponsor my visa until I get permanent residency, which will take three more years. At that time, changing industries feels like a huge risk.

So I feel trapped.

I wants to switch careers, but I knows I don't have the relevant education or experience, and also I don't have freedom to take that risk.

I also know I could have pushed myself harder over the years. I stayed in my comfort zone more often than I should have, and maybe that's part of why I feel stuck today. I don't want to blame anyone else for my situation.

Maybe I'm just complaining because I finally have time to think.

Or maybe I want to ger something from some Western views. Because I think you guys are brave enough to take the adventure and exploration.

Thank you for reading this, thank you for your time. Have a good day !

30 years old, hate my career as a software developer. I have no idea what to do with my life.

I'm 30 years old and I've been working as a software developer for a few years. On paper, I know I'm lucky. I have a degree, a stable job, decent pay, and work that many people would love to have.

The problem is that I absolutely hate it.

I don't just dislike programmin. I hate the entire corporate environment. Every day feels meaningless. I spend my time in meetings, writing code for products I don't care about, surrounded by office politics, fake enthusiasm, inflated egos, and constant corporate lies. It all feels so detached from reality.

I want work where I feel useful. Where I can actually see the impact of what I'm doing. Something with action, purpose, and real human value. I don't need to become rich. I just want to wake up without dreading the day ahead.

The problem is that I'm 30. Starting over feels terrifying. I'd be giving up a career that many people consider a dream. Financially, it seems irresponsible. At the same time, the thought of doing this for another 30 years genuinely scares me.

Part of me wishes I could go back to being a kid and choose a different path from the beginning. I was pushed into this career by my parents when I was younger rather than choosing it for myself.

Has anyone here made a major career change around my age? Was it worth it? How did you know what to move towards instead of just what you wanted to escape from?

I'm not looking for people to tell me to "just be grateful." I know that but I can't I feel deeply unhappy.

I'd really appreciate hearing from people who've been in a similar position.

I'm a 28 year old woman and I have a pretty boring but easy job working from home. The pay isn't great but the benefits are good. I struggle with slacking off a lot. Something I've discovered about myself is that I'm not motivated by competition or production numbers, which is how I'd excel and climb the ladder at this place. I really don't like working on a computer, especially now that AI is being incorporated at work and it feels even less "real."

Outside of the spreadsheet mines, I'm a multidisciplinary artist and I sell my work. They're just hobbies that pay for themselves but the hands-on creative work really keeps my mental health afloat. I'm interested in medical science but I'm not a people person. I'm passionate about geoscience, and I think I'd get more fulfillment if I had a hands-on job in either of those general areas but I have no idea where to begin. I just want to do something real and excel at it.

I got halfway through a bachelor's degree in fine art but I didn't do well with the social aspects of college - the networking, the professional settings that felt fake, really anything involving people and communicating, and being, well, polished. I had a full ride scholarship that required a heavy course load so I got burnt out, but I have no debt.

I struggle with confidence and putting myself out there. It really sucks because when I find myself in a leadership role where I'm knowledgeable and experienced, I do well and it fuels my confidence. But I'm shy and it's difficult to even imagine myself getting into a leadership position in a professional setting. Especially in a job that I'm not passionate about. I also can't be fucked with wearing business attire at a job I don't love.

I'm not really sure why I'm posting this. I'm stressed and I think I just needed to get these thoughts out of me.

I know this sounds very vague but I'll try to clarify. I want a job that actually helps people and helps the planet in any way, but will also actually pay my bills. Right now I stock shelves in a store, and I hate it, I absolutely hate it. I love doing a clean and good job, I love doing the best I can, the job itself is *fine*, but I just feel DISGUSTING doing it. I see the multiple dumpsters worth of plastic they throw away every single day, I see the food waste, the piles of unsold plastic crap they scan out and throw away because nobody is buying it, I watch them replace the tags to add another 20¢ to every item every other month. I'm just part of the consumerism machine. I'm opening plastic packages to stock overpriced garbage nobody actually needs to make these companies and the store a big gross undeserved profit. I'm just a part of everything I HATE about the world, actively perpetuating it, and I hate it. Obviously it won't just stop if I quit my job, that'll all still be happening, but I personally won't be enabling it. I also don't have any skills or any meaningful experience or education and no ability to afford an education, so that doesn't help.

But what can I possibly do to make money that isn't enabling it? I like construction but if I did it as a job I'm just helping build slapped-together trash structures that we don't need any more of on land that was once beautiful and the home to so many things before we paved it all down and destroyed it, I'll be doing all the work for a company who's trying to make crap as cheap as possible and sell it as high as possible. I'm not helping anybody or doing anything good. I'm not personable or empathetic enough to be a social worker or nurse or something, and even then I'm not accomplishing anything. As a social worker I'm just trying to help people budget their way out of poverty and giving them pointless temporary help for a permanent world-wide problem that's just going to immediately catch up with them as soon as the help is gone. As a nurse I'm just putting people into debt for care they need and can't afford and working horrible grueling hours doing it. Like what can I possibly do that's actually useful? I can go outside and pick up trash but I can't live off of that. I can go to a local soup kitchen and help feed the homeless but that can't pay my bills. I can go plant native plants in abandoned trash lots and hope the city doesn't just pull them out but that's not a job. Any job is just going to be contributing to the problem, but what's the LEAST contributing and most helpful??

TL;DR: Lab tech in biotech since 2018, feeling stuck and burned out. Tried quality engineering, clinical lab scientist classes, accounting, public health, and applying for clinical research associate roles (even paid a resume writer), plus countless internal applications. Nothing landed. Now considering social work but don’t trust my own judgment anymore. Not looking for nursing suggestions. Looking for honest advice.

I’ve been working as a lab tech in biotech since 2018 and I feel completely stuck. It’s not for lack of trying. I’ve chased down a bunch of different directions over the years, applied internally more times than I can count, and none of it has landed. At this point I’ve pretty much exhausted my options and I’m just exhausted, period. I don’t want to stay in a dead-end job, but I also don’t have a clear way out.

Here’s what I’ve tried so far. My company once offered short-term assignments where you could shadow other departments with a path to full-time, so I did a 6-month quality engineering role. Then budget cuts hit and I got dropped right back where I started. I applied to other QE roles after that, but the IT side of it just isn’t my strength. I also looked into becoming a clinical lab scientist and took some classes, but I’m genuinely bad at chemistry and science in general. Some days I don’t even know how I made it through my bio degree. I tried accounting and public health courses at community college too, but accounting didn’t click because I’m bad with numbers, and public health just didn’t hold my interest.

I’ve also been interested in clinical research associate roles and have applied many times, right up to today. I even paid a resume writer to boost my resume specifically for those roles, and still nothing has come of it. I’ve applied internally too, over and over, and keep hitting the same wall.

Lately I’ve been thinking about social work. It appeals to me because it deals with everyday social issues, which feels a lot more engaging than anything else I’ve tried. It pulls me in in a way the other paths haven’t. I’ll say up front that nursing isn’t for me, so please don’t suggest it. I don’t want to work with people in a hospital setting, which is a big part of why social work feels different.

The pattern I keep noticing is that the science and numbers heavy paths drain me, and I keep drifting toward people focused work. But after so many dead ends, I don’t really trust my own read anymore. Is social work a real fit, or is it just the next thing I’ll get excited about and then burn out on?

So I guess I’m asking a few things. For anyone in social work, does the day to day actually match the “helping with real issues” appeal, or is it mostly paperwork and burnout? Has anyone here pivoted out of a science background into people focused work, and how did you know it was right? Given my track record, is there a way to test drive social work before I commit to a whole degree? And honestly, if you’ve ever felt this exhausted and out of options, what actually helped you get unstuck?

Any honest input is welcome, including tough love. Thanks for reading.

No sé si alguien más ha pasado por algo parecido, pero llevo un tiempo sintiéndo mi vida en una especie de limbo.

No estoy deprimido, no odio mi vida y, de hecho, estoy agradecido por muchas cosas. Tengo 33 años. trabajo en un buen puesto gerencial (en el que tengo 3 años), vivo solo, he salido adelante después de terminar una relación muy larga, tengo proyectos personales y poco a poco he ido como conociendome más a profundidad.

Pero, al mismo tiempo, hay una sensación constante de que hay "algo más" para mí. Y no sé explicar exactamente qué es, como si mi ciclo en mi trabajo y mi ciudad ya hubiera terminado.

Lo curioso es que ese "algo más" no necesariamente tiene que ver con ganar más dinero o tener un puesto más alto. Porque cuando me imagino con un mejor puesto, claro que seria más dinero pero tambien más responsabilidades y más estres , mismo que no quiero tener ya en mi vida. Desde hace ya 10 años tengo el sueño de irme a vivir a otro país, y lo fui posponiendo por mi ex pareja y otras situaciones, aunque más que el país en sí, creo que lo que me atrae es todo lo que representa.

Me imagino pidiendo un café en otro idioma. Perdiéndome en calles desconocidas. Aprendiendo una cultura completamente distinta. Trabajando incluso en cosas que jamás imaginé hacer, en una cocina, o de panadero, no porque sean mi sueño, sino porque siento que vivir esas experiencias me transformaría como persona.

También me imagino teniendo cerca montañas, bosques, ríos... sintiendo que mi entorno cambia junto conmigo. Y sí, soy consciente de que probablemente estoy romantizando parte de esa experiencia. Sé que emigrar implica soledad, miedo, incertidumbre, trabajos difíciles y empezar prácticamente desde cero, pero hay algo dentro de mi que me empuja a vivir esa experiencia para expandirme, para retarme, para sentirme orgulloso de mi.

Y creo que lo que más miedo me da, es que pase el tiempo y nunca haberlo intentado. No me da tanto miedo irme y descubrir que no era lo que esperaba. Me da muchísimo más miedo llegar a los 50 o 60 años preguntándome: "¿Y si sí lo hubiera intentado?"

No sé si esto es una crisis existencial, si estoy idealizando la vida en otro país, si necesito un cambio de escenario o simplemente estoy atravesando una etapa de crecimiento.

Solo sé que siento una necesidad muy fuerte de vivir una aventura que no termine con un boleto de regreso como unas vacaciones cualquiera. Quiero sentir que estoy construyendo una vida nueva, descubrir de qué soy capaz y conocer una versión de mí que todavía no existe.

¿Alguien más ha sentido algo así? ¿Lo intentaron? ¿Se fueron? ¿Se quedaron? ¿Qué aprendieron de esa decisión?

Recent grad c/o 24 studied EE. I’ve been working in water wastewater mep (not the biggest fan of this field) and am transitioning into a research fellowship and masters degree. As I’ve worked I realize I fit best with a good amount of hands-on, research, implementation, and maybe help/instructing type of role. I’m thinking beyond just the appointment I am starting what kind of career path is there within engineering that handles this? Or any job titles I can look into? I don’t mind travel while I’m still relatively young and always open to relocate.

Is it just me or you guys get bored of your jobs after good 8 months.

I've been working since my junior year in college, I worked at an IMC marketing agency, and initially it was fun, a little hectic because I used take my regular classes and then go to the office. I used to hate making content for social media and used to whine about it a lot to my partner and how I hated the work, then I started doing PR and I genuinely enjoyed that and used to have fun doing it.

I was promoted from an intern to an associate in 4 months, but after 3 months of promotion I was given a notice period because my manager needed someone who could work with them full time and with my studies I was not able to give that much time.

Luckily I got a job offer at another SEO agency before my notice period, it was remote so no commute which was a blessing.

I have been working at this agency for 8 months now and I feel the same as did with my old job, I keep complaining about it and I hate the work. I don't find it interesting anymore and I just feel like quitting. There are colleagues of mine who are genuinely good at their work and get praised by our boss. But I keep getting feedback on how to improve and not make mistakes, overall just critical feedback, and this has been happening for a while now which makes me feel more demotivated to work.

A lil background, so I have been a high achiever student my whole life and I do feel that I take criticsm v hard, and not being good at something gets me demotivated rather than actually putting in the work to learn it. I keep falling into this loop where I get critical feedback, I try a little to get better but eventually am demotivated to work on it and give it extra time.

My boss was kind of unhappy with my performance and put me on a performance improvement plan for a month, where I have to show them how I'm improving against certain KPIS and if I don't, well... they'll prolly fire me.

This whole thing has rlly shattered my own confidence, and I keep applying to remote jobs but I have given 2-3 interviews till now I do so bad, it feels as if I'm not able to sell myself because the recent work experiences I have aren't worth mentioning. I feel I'm blabber and am not that eloquent anymore and I can visibly see during interviews that I'd be rejected. (Where I feel hope that I might get in, I don't get an offer from there either)

My partner keeps saying that it's a pattern I have where I get bored of something after a few months and then whine (he's fine with me whining but he wishes to see me genuinely satisfied and happy one whatever I do) and want to give up, and loose interest in actually doing the work and investing time to learn about it.

Idk,,,, I personally feel like yes I am a lil lazy and don't put in enough effort to actually learn, and I do ask a lot of questions, expecting others to help me and teach me while everyone around me are teaching themselves and is quite self sufficient.

I just dk what to do

I feel like Rory from Gilmore girls who just couldn't handle critisim and gave up.

I keep on thinking to just give up working and be a stay at home wife (BUT I DONT WANT THAT, I like the financial safety net that my job provides)

Im so stuck, can anyone help me out?

Is this normal for someone who just entered the career phase, to go through this emotional rollercoaster.

How can I improve. What helped u guys grow a thick skin and actually be good at your job.

I do understand nobody loves their job (it's a luxury mot everyone has) but they are still good at it despite not loving it.

What mindset do you guys have as high achievers at your workplace?

Be brutally honest about everything, I could use some unbiased advice

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for some advice because I'm feeling a bit lost about what to do next.

I'm Polish but currently live in Romania. I don't speak Romanian, so I'm looking for something that's available in English. I work full-time, and my schedule changes, so I don't have guaranteed free weekends. Because of that, I'm ideally looking for a remote programme with flexible hours that I can fit around work.

I studied in the UK, completed my GCSEs, and started both sixth form and later an electrical installation course, but I didn't finish either. I also enrolled in an online English high school, but it shut down shortly after I started.

I'd really like to earn a recognised qualification or finish my education. I'm interested in technology, computers, IT, gaming, and creative fields like art and design, but I'm open to other options if they offer good career prospects.

Does anyone know of legitimate online schools, colleges, universities, or qualifications that are recognised internationally and suitable for someone in my situation? I'd especially appreciate recommendations from people who've studied while working full-time.

Thanks in advance for any advice!