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I think this general idea, popular though it is, is troubling. At 17 years old, what kid knows what their life passion will be? How can they have a life passion

I think this general idea, popular though it is, is troubling. At 17 years old, what kid knows what their life passion will be? How can they have a life passion without much life experience or knowledge? Why do we expect people to work a "whole lifetime" doing stuff they don't really want to do? I think encouraging young people to learn marketable, in demand skills, in order to get a good paying job is solid advice. I wish this advice were coupled with encouraging some frugality, which would free most people up to do what they really want to do, without much concern for finances, by the time they're 30.

emodendroket 9y ago
> I think this general idea, popular though it is, is troubling. At 17 years old, what kid knows what their life passion will be? Well, they don't, of course; that's why so many of them end up changing their majors. At least it's a better ideal than asking 17-year-old kids to anticipate what the job market will be like in four years. > Why do we expect people to work a "whole lifetime" doing stuff they don't really want to do? How many people would be doing the exact same job they're doing now if they had no need for the money? It's not zero percent, but it's certainly not 100 percent either.
- the_gastropod 9y ago
  > At least it's a better ideal than asking 17-year-old kids to anticipate what the job market will be like in four year At virtually any time in modern history, majoring in engineering is going to be more lucrative than majoring in History or English. Accounting, mathematics, law, etc. all have pretty high likelihood of continuing to be lucrative fields. Let's also not discount trade schools. Electricians, plumbers, HVAC workers, masons, etc. make solid livings, and get to start their careers ~4 years earlier. These are good options that we often neglect / look down upon. > How many people would be doing the exact same job they're doing now if they had no need for the money? It's not zero percent, but it's certainly not 100 percent either. Yea. I assume it's much closer to 0 than than 100 percent.
  - emodendroket 9y ago
    Interesting you mention law, since there's an epidemic of unemployed and underemployed graduates of law schools with huge debt burdens they cannot afford to pay. Which I think illustrates my point rather nicely.

emodendroket 9y ago

> I think this general idea, popular though it is, is troubling. At 17 years old, what kid knows what their life passion will be? Well, they don't, of course; that's why so many of them end up changing their majors. At least it's a better ideal than asking 17-year-old kids to anticipate what the job market will be like in four years. > Why do we expect people to work a "whole lifetime" doing stuff they don't really want to do? How many people would be doing the exact same job they're doing now if they had no need for the money? It's not zero percent, but it's certainly not 100 percent either.

the_gastropod 9y ago
> At least it's a better ideal than asking 17-year-old kids to anticipate what the job market will be like in four year At virtually any time in modern history, majoring in engineering is going to be more lucrative than majoring in History or English. Accounting, mathematics, law, etc. all have pretty high likelihood of continuing to be lucrative fields. Let's also not discount trade schools. Electricians, plumbers, HVAC workers, masons, etc. make solid livings, and get to start their careers ~4 years earlier. These are good options that we often neglect / look down upon. > How many people would be doing the exact same job they're doing now if they had no need for the money? It's not zero percent, but it's certainly not 100 percent either. Yea. I assume it's much closer to 0 than than 100 percent.
- emodendroket 9y ago
  Interesting you mention law, since there's an epidemic of unemployed and underemployed graduates of law schools with huge debt burdens they cannot afford to pay. Which I think illustrates my point rather nicely.