I (23M) can't seem to be happy with the career path I've chosen
I'm a software engineer. I work for an amazing company with the best and healthiest work culture I've ever seen. I get to work from home full-time, take unlimited vacation time (within reason lol), and my co-workers and I even play games once a week.
I probably couldn't ask for a better work environment, and yet, a year and a half after graduating with a Bachelor's degree in computer science, I can't help but feel like I've could've a chosen better career path.
The cycle has been the same for my past 3 jobs: The first month is exciting, I come out of the gates running, and then after enough time, I become disinterested. Looking at and fixing software all day becomes exhausting and tiring. My productivity plummets, and management starts to have concerns. I loved writing software as a hobby, but as a job... I'm not sure if it's a fit for me anymore. I don't know if I can stick with it until I retire.
I do love working with hardware: building computers, building furniture, taking apart electronics, et cetera. I love hands-on stuff. I also love video editing. I'm wondering if I can find a job that's more hands-on with just as high as a salary, or if I can get a Master's degree in something that's more hands-on and will get me my "dream" job.
And yet how do I know that a change in my career won't yield the same results? Will every new job become mundane and boring the same way no matter what the job is? Is this a problem with my career, or do I need therapy instead?
Posted Sep 26, 2022, 6:04 PM UTC
I think you might need to ask your close friends and family about this, but from what I can tell you like to different things and would like to do something new and exciting everyday, but can’t due to the conditions of your work. I’m wondering if there is a job that can adequately reflect your skills while still providing a challenge every day with something new happening periodically? But nonetheless I think you want a challenge at your work or something that isn’t so easy to do or that suddenly become mundane, maybe take on more task and responsibilities and see if management will give you a promotion to a position that is challenging but fun
helped - thank you. I've followed up at work and we'll be getting me a wider range of tasks to do across different departments in engineering. I'm excited for the path ahead :)
What also makes me feel better is it seems the entire team was feeling burnt out. We had a rough month last month trying to reach a bigger milestone. So it seems I wasn't alone, plus I've got more stuff ahead of me that I can work with.
Thanks again! ^_^
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