Hi! Weird request, mildly related, but does any of you fine people have any suggestions for interesting and Lefty-friendly jobs?
After a decade of undoing the universe’s work by completely annihilating my soul in IT, I want out. I’m not looking for alternative jobs in IT, I want out-out. Like, I don’t wanna be usin’ a computer for more than making Spreadsheets, and phones for more than chatting and ignoring emails. Edit here: would also use for graphical design and related, but I’d have to start from scratch. Basic Paint.net usage is my high-score.
In terms of pay, that will be a secondary concern, my priority is establishing a list of potentials in order to have a nice foothold from which to start figuring it out.
If it’s of any help, my “Major’s” QA, mostly Manual and some Automation (Cypress with JS). I’ve also officially done some Project Management, Process Auditing and Optimisation, Data Science, and Community Management (-ish on the last one, training programs/materials and project organiser for a community of freelance testers). Got a Bachelor’s in Theatre Acting, two years as a bass player in two bands, some IT/maths/phys background from high-school (Eastern European curriculum, so they really let us have it…) and I enjoy analysing and solving problems. Heavily into literature, music and visual arts, I can learn absolutely anything and I do not shy away from physical labour - kinda’ miss it, actually.
I’m super-serious about this, I can’t stand the domain anymore and I feel I’ll lose my mind if I have to keep doing this.
Thank you very much even if you’ve only read through this!
Keep the day job for now and start volunteering what time you can spare to a cause that resonates with you.
That might be the night time soup kitchen, or planting trees with your local working bee, or companionship sessions with the local nursing home. You may find an idea for a vocation reveals itself, and be in a position to hear about any opportunities.
Lefty friendly and community work are pretty well aligned so I think that’s a start.
I feel you re IT and related industries. I just want to close my laptop and never open it again, but it’s not an option right now.
Thank you! I’ve had the immense fortune of landing into some horizontal movement potential, so I can fully quit my job for a while and just do life.
Volunteer work sounds good, thank you! And, yeah, if nothing else, think I could do with the change in social context as well.
Hope the skies open up above you and you’ll one day manage to turn that laptop into a fine powder!
Agreed. I quit my IT job and started volunteering on a a farm animal rescue and it has become a whole thing for me. There are always things to be fixed, built, or town down in addition to days of just mucking stalls which is very meditative. Definitely lefty friendly.
Alternatively, go back to school. I am also pursuing a new degree in Electronics Engineering Technology which can lead to a good trade job or an OT role.
Being an IT auditor is largely just working with spreadsheets, leverage your prior knowledge, and you are never on the hook for a feature release. If you are good at writing reports, spreadsheets, and meetings, you might give that a look.
Didn’t limit yourself to just IT auditing - Look into certification bodies like SIS, NQA, TUV etc.
Both interesting suggestions, didn’t get to do auditing for long because… abstract management drove things into the ground, come to think of it, will definitely keep it on the list! Thank you!
Although, to be perfectly honest, I think I’ll prioritise jobs where the most complex thing being done with a spreadsheet is keeping track of shelf stock=))
That guy is like, I’m getting paid $18 an hour to hold a plastic bag while they do all of the hard work. I’m just going to sit here and act like I don’t know what’s going on and let them enjoy their laugh while I collect my paycheck.
Honestly, this is pretty much the opposite of what civil construction looks like in our neck of the woods. The roles are inversed, the veterans sit around, not even pretending to look busy, while the Junior works.
Would very much like to get paid to catch sparks. How cool does that sound for a job description!
If you’re in a bigger city, maybe see if you can get work with IATSE doing stagehand stuff?
To be very honest, I kinda’ tried to stay far away from the theatre scene. It’s really not what theatre’s supposed to be in our country, it’s mostly just a cult of personality, and, boy, are those personalities insufferable after a point… It was a painful break-up, though…
Have considered doing some stuff with ‘underground’ troupes or projects, but it’s either an exceedingly small market over here, or I’ve completely lost track of the domain.
Funfact: they are cutting a train rail (I recognise the machine )
