I don't know. I'd love to have a basic level of income and then be able to dither around with random jobs. I'd love to be a bartender for 6 months, work in a bookstore for 6 months, become a carpenter for a year or two. I'd probably feel differently if I actually had a trust fund since my upbringing would be different but it does feel stifling that in order to have a financially rewarding career one has to stay on a relatively narrow path.
And I say this as someone who has made a major career change during their life.
Huh. Interesting way of looking at it. I don't associate wanting to work at a bar with spending more quality times with friends. I think it would be interesting to be in a customer service role and working in a fast paced environment where I have to make drinks/pour beers.
I like the little bookstore near me. They play classical music during the day and the lady who runs it seems nice. I'd like to work there for a while and see what that is like.
Carpentry (or being a cook which would also be on my list) is about doing something with my hands professionally. Can I make my living by creating something with my hands? What would that feel like? I know I can make a living using my voice. I know I can make a living with my fingers on a keyboard.
What would it look like to make a living building something physical? For me it's more about things that seem like they would be interesting life experiences.
This discussion point reminds me of a Sir Ken Robinson talk (not sure which one, but he has many). After a friend's musical performance on stage, he comments to his friend that he'd love to do what he's doing, being on stage, playing guitar. His friend quickly remarks that no, he actually wouldn't. If he really wanted to be a musician, he would've done it by now. He would've put in the work and toil to get there. Instead, he just likes the idea of being able to perform at a high level in front of other people.
I think so many of our fantasies are like that. We think of the end result and want that, but don't think about all the work needed to get there and whether we're up for that.
Yeah I agree to a certain extent. But I wouldnt LOVE to be a bartender. I think it would be interesting to try it for 6 months. Actually I'm quite certain at the end of the 6th months I'd be perfectly happy to never work behind a bar again. I might even dread the job by the 3rd month.
But it would be interesting to try. I was a life guard in college. I am probably the worst lifeguard of all time but it was fun for a summer. Same with being a basketball referee. I don't really know the rules well enough to officiate a game. But it was a fun job for a year.
It's things like that which I was able to afford to do in college or early adulthood that seem like they are not possible now. Not without significant financial sacrifice and a large detour of a career in motion.
I think this is a nice way to console yourself, but ultimately not true.
The reason people want to open a bar when they work in IT or whatever, is because most people don't want to do the same shit over and over again for 40 years.
That's just human nature, we are not robots, but society has been structured to commodify us and make us predictable producers of 'moar money' for people who already have money :)
It's called wage slavery for a reason, and no, a slave doesn't simply want more friend time or whatever, humans want to be free.
I regret that I never worked as a waiter in a cafe, and now it looks as if I can't afford it anymore. Or if I could afford it, I would be taking away the job from people who have a more urgent need for it than me.
Yeah this does exist/happen to some extent. My partners father retired young (40's) and spent a bunch of years kicking around doing odd little jobs. The issue for many employers is that people in these situations don't really NEED the jobs so they are less likely to stick around late or put up with any bullshit which many jobs contain plenty of.
This is just antidotal evidence of seeing my partners dad say yeah fuck that job after 6 months.
NHK US is filled with shows of retirees still doing their old jobs as hobbies. Several episodes involve repairing and running trains/tracks/stations on weekends for tourists.
Well, that's the trick. I mean there are obviously a lot of details and varying conditions and possibilities.
But that doesn't mean they are all useless and should be in an old folks home.
To more directly answer your question.
Old people don't have to take care of even older people. I mean the whole point is to NOT cut them off from the rest of society.
It needs a social component and simplicity.
However, simpler tasks are often more easily automated and people generally avoid social interaction it seems.
I get the feeling that people would rather a hot coffee vending machine than talking to ol' Carol or Bob at the mom & pop cafe.
Some random ideas:
- Working the coffee shop on the ground floor of the corporate building.
- corporate internal mail
- storytime Reader at the local library
- non-profit business pushbike/skateboard/scooter store
- campus bus service
And I say this as someone who has made a major career change during their life.