What different types of work/jobs did you do up to now?

[Kyriakos]

I'm published in magazines, have done web copy, basic blog posts, press releases, etc. I'm not/haven't been a novelist.

Ok, but i personally wouldn't identify it as a job - unless you can make at least some half-decent money, from time to time. I also have been published in magazines (roughly 30 times) and newspapers (20 articles) (and i don't bother to count the web stuff). That said, i was never paid for any of it (that is another story), but even if i was i wouldn't view it as a job unless it had some decent (or more) money or was providing a steady income even in small increments.

 

[Synobun]

Yes, I was paid regularly for this work.

 

[Kyriakos]

Good for you, i guess. If i was in Canada i would have been too

 

[Bamspeedy]

Innkeeper and maid for my parent's small motel (9 rooms, and not sure if that should be just considered chores, like lawnmowing and dishes.)
Paper route (weekly and daily)
Bailing hay and driving tractor (one day each)
Clerk at gas station +restaurant
Pizza delivery (three different places)
Factory (boots, interior car parts, printing*, beer, and at least one other*)
Fire restoration/recovery* (one day salvaging furniture from a house fire)
School janitor*
Changing mattresses at a hotel* (one day)
Warehouse at two different food distributers
(* for one of them)
*=through a temp agency. Been at current employer for 18 years.

 

[Synobun]

Good for you, i guess. If i was in Canada i would have been too

I imagine the Greek writing market isn't as expansive as the English writing market, although based on my experience ESL writers can poach a lot of work by undercutting native writers. I reckon you could manage to earn money for writing work on sites like Textbroker or on freelancing sites if you charged something like $0.02/word (abysmally low, but this was the rate I started at).

 

[rah]

A buddy of mine writes exclusively for trade magazines and make a good chunk of change doing it. But then most of his stuff is about consumer electronics

 

[Synobun]

A buddy of mine writes exclusively for trade magazines and make a good chunk of change doing it. But then most of his stuff is about consumer electronics

Yeah, writing for professional magazines can be good money. With a small publication I was earning $80 a piece and that was considered on the lower end.

 

[rah]

I have a lot of respect for people that do that. It's a lot of grind, you're always out there selling yourself, and while the reward is not insignificant, you're not going to retire wealthy doing it.

 

[Chose]

caddie (14)
grocery bagger (15)
local lawn-care business owner/operator (16-20)
electrical engineering intern (21)
systems engineer for utility management software company (22-24)
firmware engineer for cellular devices (24-current)
Dad (26) unpaid... but seriously a lot of work

 

[AmazonQueen]

In roughly chronological order:

• kitchen porter
• scientific officer
• aircraft cleaner (interiors)
• civil servant
• technical support
• bathroom sales (God, I hated that)
• customer service
• teaching assistant
• playworker

 

[The_J]

I realize again what a lazy f I've been.
My carrer:
- PhD student
- Postdoctoral researcher (ongoing)

Never did any side jobs, not during school, not during studies. I was lucky enough that my family was somehow able to pay for my studies. And otherwise... it turns out that being addicted to PC games makes your social life really cheap, so I never really was in demand of much money.

EDIT: Had to do military replacement service, and I ended up working in a youth hostel. Mainly kitchen duties, but basically guy for everything. Helping cooking/preparing food, moving hte lawn, painting, shoveling snow, shopping, cleaning...whaever happened to be necessary.
Never again.

I'm unfit for work.

So am I but that certainly doesn't preclude us from giving it a go.

lol yes, true.
There's probably nothing which prevents you physically or mentally to flip burgers, clean floors or work as a garbageman.
Obviously not very desirable jobs, and you should not want them, but you could do them, if you had to.

 

[Lohrenswald]

I got criticised at the welfare office for having no job experience

 

[Timsup2nothin]

Based on that definition, can you still list bank robber, If you got caught

(don't know how i missed that one on the first read)

I made my living at it for a fair amount of time, and then got three hots and a cot for the next four years thrown in. Overall, a very successful gig.

 

[Drewcifer]

In chronological order more or less:

Machine operator
Security guard
Pizza delivery driver
Cannabis cultivation/sales
Food delivery driver
Dishwasher
Line Cook
Sous Chef
Executive Chef
Warehouse picker
Freelance photographer
College foodservice director.

 

[Lemon Merchant]

Cashier at a grocery store (during nursing school)
ER nurse
Psychiatric nurse in neurological ward
Psychiatric nurse in general unit
Got Master's degree
Charge nurse in psych unit for difficult cases
Head nurse in high security unit
Got PhD
Psychologist

 

[JollyRoger]

Busboy
Grocery Store Package Clerk (Veteran of Cola Wars of '85)
Wal-Mart Loading Dock agitator
Custodian
Landcaping
Print Shop flunkee
Mailroom Clerk
Tax Preparer
Accounting Clerk
Trust Officer
Software Quality Assurance
Lawyer
Manager of Deathtongue



Crazy Big-Haired Pirate

 

[Ferocitus]

Well, tbh when i asked about jobs, i meant those done for at least some considerable length of time (OR had a stable salary).

Roughly...
14 - 15 : School and on the run from welfare agencies.
15 - 16 : Cement finisher, dole bludger, opiate addict.
16 - 17 : Dole bludger, surfing/fishing holiday, amphetamine addict.
18 : 1st year architecture, then dole bludger.
19 : Dole bludger, maths student, amphetamine addict.
20 - 25 : Public service clerk, alcoholic.
26 - 30 : Dole bludger.
30 - 33 : Home with a baby (w00t!), dole bludger, private maths research.
34 - 40 : Organizing co-operative housing, private maths research.
40 - 49 : Applied maths research, half-assed MSc.
50 - 51 : PhD, sporadic contract work, dole bludger.
52 - 55 : Sporadic contract work, maths research, dole bludger.
> 55 : Maths research + state pension + state-funded dexedrine.

 

[Lemon Merchant]

Busboy
Grocery Store Package Clerk (Veteran of Cola Wars of '85)
Wal-Mart Loading Dock agitator
Custodian
Landcaping
Print Shop flunkee
Mailroom Clerk
Tax Preparer
Accounting Clerk
Trust Officer
Software Quality Assurance
Lawyer
Manager of Deathtongue

I always wondered what happened to you, Steve.

 

[Synobun]

Roughly...
14 - 15 : School and on the run from welfare agencies.
15 - 16 : Cement finisher, dole bludger, opiate addict.
16 - 17 : Dole bludger, surfing/fishing holiday, amphetamine addict.
18 : 1st year architecture, then dole bludger.
19 : Dole bludger, maths student, amphetamine addict.
20 - 25 : Public service clerk, alcoholic.
26 - 30 : Dole bludger.
30 - 33 : Home with a baby (w00t!), dole bludger, private maths research.
34 - 40 : Organizing co-operative housing, private maths research.
40 - 49 : Applied maths research, half-assed MSc.
50 - 51 : PhD, sporadic contract work, dole bludger.
52 - 55 : Sporadic contract work, maths research, dole bludger.
> 55 : Maths research + state pension + state-funded dexedrine.

TIL what a "dole bludger" is.

How'd you manage that for 30+ years, along with accomplishing co-operative housing and higher education? And then get a pension at the end? What is Australia's social security system like?

 

[Bamspeedy]

Can add plasma donor to my list, that was $40 a week for an hour of my time 20 years ago.

I wasn't sure how old I was when I was left alone to be the innkeeper, but then I recalled a conversation I had with my mom last year. I was 11 (for a couple/few hours at a time time while they went socializing, shopping, or whatever). Half serious because she was admitting I was probably too young and half joking with how 'abuse' is defined today she said they were terrible parents if you only look at that choice my parents made.