> I interned for a big company last summer, and utterly hated the experience, so much that I quit 5 weeks into the 10 week program. I'm curious why this was so

> I interned for a big company last summer, and utterly hated the experience, so much that I quit 5 weeks into the 10 week program. I'm curious why this was so. Sometimes I try something and hate it because of the social experience that accompanied it. Like if you go to a big company, and nobody reaches out to you, and you spend the time alone, it can form a very strong mental association: big company = loneliness. But maybe it's just that company. Maybe you'll later try working at a new company, and make a couple of great friends, and decide that mechanical engineering is your life calling and this new company is the home/family you were born to have. Quality of life has very little to do with the exact type of work you do. On the other hand, it can have a lot to do with the lifestyle constraints entailed by that type of work, like the amount of travel or face-to-face interaction involved. The point is, look at factors surrounding the work the you love or hate. If you have a particularly good day, look back at what happened that day. Did you have a big stretch of quiet time? Did you get to be around certain people you like? What did you eat? Did you get recognition for something you did? These perhaps seemingly-irrelevant details have a lot more to do with your motivation and job satisfaction than your job title or salary.