Fixing America
 

Put your prescription here.

As individuals, we need to reassess the what and the why of our work lives. Do we work just to get paid or because we are good at or love our work? Think of the wasted potential out there of people in jobs they hate. They drag down organizations suppressing the potential of others. If you can do and get other work leave the job you hate and go create something.

America needs a jalapeño enema.

Th trouble with that, Griff, is that actually, sometimes even if you hate your job, you may gain a lot from it. A shit job can sometimes provide a sense of cameraderie amongst the workforce. Some of the 'worst' jobs in terms of actual enjoyment of work have the highest levels of job satisfaction because of a bunch of other factors.

Always first and foremost, to get paid. Enjoying the work I do is secondary and a bonus if it happens. I have never...ever..had the luxury of looking only for work that I would enjoy. Although, I do have the luxury of not having to do work I dont enjoy.

I find that I can only fix me. I try to do this.

That is what I was getting at. If we straighten ourselves out the rest just falls into place. If each of us is more productive and creative at work "society" benefits. If we go to work just to squeeze a few bucks out of the system, we get the kind of nonsense the banking system is going through.

I'd need a example from Dana on what that job would be. When I was a kid putting in hay in the summer it was tough, but had a certain kind of satisfaction. Tough manual labor is satisfying to certain kinds of folks. If you are not that kind you should do something else if you can.

I'm not following you here. You will have to explain. I'm not sure how you are connecting my productivity with the utter failure of the financial markets. Or my happiness with the productivity. I'm lame....I can't figure out what you mean.

Then who will fetch my latte?

I'd love to do that job, does it pay at least $60K? I can definitely get your order right.

It's actually more fun than dealing with fucking city counselors (I have never had to deal with counselors that were such dicks). I'm actually enjoying it. :)

Oh and to do what I want to do, I need money. Who is going to give it to me Griff?

Actually, I can't think of anything worse for an economy than to have everyone trying to work in a job they love. Some people don't like to work full stop (period to you). They do so because they need money to live. Others resent the time away from children, whatever the job. Others simply don't have the aptitude for their dream job, perhaps because they're not naturally risk takers and their ideal job is mostly a freelance market. Or because the thing they would be really good at demands a time or financial commitment their personal circumstances simply don't allow.

There's a lot to be said for the perseverers in society. Those that get their heads down at get on with it. The street sweepers, dustbinmen, canteen workers, call centre operators, porters. Okay, some of these people will enjoy, possibly even love their jobs. But not the majority.

I say work to the best of your ability and as honestly as you can. That would be a nice change.

http://cellar.org/2008/achewdwhathappened.jpg
click for entire strip

The guys who created those financial instruments didn't do so to create something of value. They did it to pass liabilities on to someone else. It is fuzzy thinking on my part. What I'm more focused on is getting out of a recession which is more about attitude than economics. If people with other options are not wasting their own or other's energy we can pull out of this thing without Obama or McCain further stiffling innovation with increased controls, taxation, and bailouts.

That is cool one must work within his own restrictions. As Americans, though, we have a view of ourselves as innovators and creators. When we decide to just plug along human progress suffers as we suffer.

This is funny, considering the local job ads, and not being afforded the possibility of getting jobs I hate. This thread disappoints me. Especially right now when there is no opportunity.

It is about economics. No one is hiring because no one has a budget unless they have international backing. That's the local flavor and there are going to be more local businesses closing. Yea, the recession has hit main street. And nothing will be done in time for it to not effect everyone else.

So be bitches because I chose to serve latte's two days a week. It's one of the last jobs around because I'm not an RN, are you an RN? I don't think you are. At least I didn't just sit on my ass, and wait for it to all be over.

*smiles* Enjoy your latte, sir. :)

Thank you, I will.

*evil grin* I switched his latte with a nice hot cup of stfu.....

;)

It's not about finding something to do that you already love. It's about having the pride and dignity to do what you do well. Those selfish and greedy bankers would still be selfish and greedy even if they were following their childhood dream of being a firefighter.

What idea do I have for fixing America?

I'd start with annual certification courses for every legal resident. The courses would cover the all important concept of personal responsibility.

Curriculum:

1) Your success is your fault
2) Your failure is your fault
3) No one but you made you who you are
4) See rule 1

I believe, in large part, the root of problems in this country boil down to people refusing to take responsibility for their own lives.

Maybe not. Firemen are measured differently. They are good firemen if they put out fires and rescue people which by definition is unselfish.
Bankers are judged by how much money they make for the bank, and paid accordingly. That forces them to be "creative", about separating people from their money, in order to stand out from their peers. The banker who feels his lot in life is to help the community, and it's residents, will find his bank gobbled up and himself unemployed.:(

Awww, George Baily managed...cuz cuz everybody came to his rescue.

I think the idea of "do what you love and the money will follow" is naive at best. I prefer the thought that all honest work is honorable no matter how "lowly" the job might be. I did a stint as a janitor for a while - hardly anyone's dream job, but I gave it my best shot and felt satisfaction when I left my spanking clean building at 2:00am each morning.

That said, my ex-husband always loved the out-of-doors and fly fishing in particular. He wrote a book about his experiences in the Forest Service which was a total flop. He did eventually become a successful fly fishing author, getting published in national outdoors magazines. He now makes a good living writing, lecturing, and guiding fisherpersons. So, it can be done. Pragmatically, the fact that he was married to me and I made a steady income, including health insurance was extremely helpful to him in the early years. (and no, I wasn't a janitor, I was an educator ;) )

I heard a report recently on the radio that was about this very thing. One of the jobs with the lowest rates of depression and suicide is refuse collection. What the report picked out was that in some jobs, the fact that people are overworked, underpaid and under siege from uncaring bosses, actually serves to create a much closer bond and cameraderie amongst the workers. Some of the 'worst' jobs bring with them other benefits. The only people who know what it's like to do a busy Thursday morning bin run, are the bin men (garbage collectors) so they instantly share something uncommon.

I am of the mindset that you should look to do something you love to make that your living. It does not always mean you will be rich. Money will not give you happiness but having it makes your life much easier so combining the two is the key. I have done it. But the real key to that is make those decisions early in life because it is much harder to go back and get a do-over, but you can do it if you sacrifice. Nothing good in life is easy to get.

Back to America, I completely agree with this:

Until we get out of the mindset that we are owed something because of who we are, or who our ancestors are, or because the government should provided it for me, or because "it is God's will", we will stay socially broken.

And until we get a true balance in our political frame work within government we are going to continue to have divisiveness and conflict.

As I look back over my 52 years, I see nothing -- and I mean nothing -- bad that has happened to me that I didn't cause. So I really don't have much to complain about.

I'm not saying everyone is like me -- but some are. In my opinion, they need a refresher course in that curriculum quoted above.

American will be fixed when we all start thinking in terms of "we" and not in terms of "me".

If people don't understand how important the "we" is, we simply need to reeducated them. And their children. And their children's children. This will, of course, require us to seize considerable control over the population so that we can guide society into the proper thinking, and eradicate those pesky individuals who don't understand the importance of the we. Once we've reeducated the masses, we will then simply give that extraordinary power back to the people, who can now thinking rightly and rules themselves.

Long live the glorious people's revolution!

I see what you're sayin.

perhaps you are right, but people need a work to sustain
 

it's most ideal to find a job you love, but when you cannot, you still need to do someting to sustain yourself. I graduated from the college in June,2008. Until now, I haven't found the job I love. But I still have to do another job to get some RMB(China money). I want to be an interpreter. I am an English Major student in China. But now, I am doing an international tade job.

Are you a Ron Paul fan?
 

I appreciate Ron Paul's integrity and consistency. but i still need to read his books to learn his thought.

Don't tade me, bro.

Fixing America? Are we leaking?

I'm in the same boat. I will be graduating Aug. next year and want to get into structural firefighting, but might have to wait 2 years for that due to recruitment cycles. I had a taste of wildland fire this summer and know I would love a career in firefighting, but I will have to wait and take some other decent paying job in the mean time. Having a job you love to do benefits you because you will be eager to work, and benefits others around you because your attitude will reflect this job satisfaction. I know that's a generalization, but I believe it to be true.

Yes...spit out your gum...we need another patch.

Leaking? we're hemorrhaging!:cool:

I'd fix America for you but all my tools are metric and you neanderthals are still in Imperial. Tragic. :p

You have to rub our noses in it.

That is what conversion factors are for

When I read this title, I was thinking spay and neuter...