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Riding and following moto is what I love, but I’d rather keep that on the side for fun. Everyone I know who works in the industry has quit riding and almost resents the sport.
Finish your degree is my advice. But whatever you do, work hard. My advice is to treat your work like it's your own company: you want it to succeed and so take pride in what you do. Don't just be there for a paycheck.
Life is long, and short. This is one of the times it is long.
Just wanted to give you a shout-out. My kids are your age and struggling with similar thoughts.
The fact you are prepared to put it out there tells me you are prepared to tackle some of the more difficult stages of life and not run. Keep up the fight.
I can only give advice from my experience, but will quote my dad who is in his late 70's. "you can only make decisions with the information that you have at the time, sometimes we get it wrong". Listen to people who you respect, don't be afraid to ask questions of people who are in careers or positions that you would potentially like to be in. In my experience most people are happy to tell of their pathway and what worked and what didn't.
As most of the guys have said, finish your degree, you will never appreciate the doors that will open if you don't finish it. I have tried to tell my kids, 'learn how to learn. If you can master that skill, it won't really matter what your qualifications are, you can use your first degree as a stepping stone to your next career move. As an employer, I notice this about people who have worked for me.
I have 3 Bachelors degree's, I finished my last one part-time with a young family 15 years ago, I don't really use any of them anymore. One thing is for sure, I wouldn't be in the position I am now without any of the skills and experiences they afforded me at the time. One of the previous comments said that he doesn't know what he wants to do when he grows up at 48. I use that all the time even though I am a little older than that.
One of the most important things to do during all the craziness that we have going on in the world now is to look after yourself. Find something that puts a smile on your face and make it happen. It took me a long time to learn that.
I think you will be fine. Before you know it you will be looking back on this part of your life with fondness.
I don’t have my degree and the road I traveled to arrive here included getting a journeyman’s electrical license a bunch of certificates and having over 15 years experience in various electrical/mechanical positions.
My advise is not to limit yourself to one niche. Be flexible and do your best to learn a bit about everything. You may stumble onto something you truly enjoy by exploring a little. Also think about finding a job that pays decent and provides you a pension. One day you will want to retire and I don’t think you want to retire on a social security wage.
Finish your degree! It will get your foot in the door. Then your skills will keep you there.
Definitely better being a step along the Lilly pads so to speak.
Whew Long post sorry. So obviously you’re going to get your degree and then from there I really hope you find something you enjoy doing, if you like the work it’s not really “work” Just keep getting up and charging every day and getting the most out of every day you can, you’re gonna kill it dude. I’ve hired and fired lots of guys over the years and can tell you have a go for attitude. You’re gonna kill it no matter what you do because you’re not afraid to dive in and work. It’s just your life. Charge !!
I retired from Los Angeles County FD and worked with people that had degrees from fields ranging far and wide from some prestigious schools. The only thing I think I never saw was a medical degree. I however got hired with just over the minimum requirements. Those people with degrees usually made it into some niche on the department where their degrees were an asset. I wish I had the composition skills to give my subordinates their due on annual performance evaluations.
Stay with it. You can come up for air when you have that diploma and have another look around. Be prepared to work in the trenches gaining some practical experience in your degreed field.
I wish I had what it took to get a proper education.
@hubbard - I think you’re on a good path. An IT degree is extremely useful in this day and age. One piece of advice is to be prepared to shift and learn new things as you navigate your career. Once you’re in the work force and gain some experience you will probably be able to see what you like/dislike in your field. If you can, seek out a mentor - someone who’s career and path you admire. You’d be surprised to find how many people with experience and success are willing to help a young person like yourself if you just show the drive and initiative to want to learn and grow. Find any networking groups or professional organizations in your field.
It’s said all the time (especially on here about the moto industry) but pretty much any industry or line of work can rely heavily on relationships and who you know. You can go far in life simply by connections. Always keep that in mind. Some jobs will suck, others will be awesome. But you can learn from both situations
You mentioned you were concerned about overworking and not enough time for Moto/hobbies but many of the IT and System Management people I know work remotely (even before covid) so logging 50 hour weeks for “the man” may not have to be the norm. Also, nowadays there’s tremendous potential out there for being your own boss, learn to run and manage the IT for small businesses in your area. Stack 4-5 clients like that and you can probably make a good living. That’s basically what I have done (not in IT though)
Pit Row
I may be totally off-base with this, but what I'll bring up is how some of what you said sounds a lot like myself and my thoughts when I was going through my university years. Don't ignore your mental health.
Depression is not a one size fits all and affects people's thinking in strange and different ways. Having goals is a great thing and it truly can help with depression, but if achieving them is the end game, keep in mind it might not be the turning point you expect. Recognizing it can be a huge benefit though no matter how mild or severe it might be.
It isn't a weakness and does not make you a victim to reach out, especially if/when thoughts begin to spiral.
So if I'm wrong, I hope this doesn't get taken the wrong way. If I am on the right track, know that recognizing and accepting that it exists gives you power you might not have had before and really can make a difference.
Anyways it got me thinking. If I'm working this hard on just the degree itself, am I going to hate my life when I actually get to my career? Should I seriously consider doing something else?
You have complete control over your happiness in life. Put yourself first and never give up that power.
You won't know now if you will like what you are going to do, or not. You have to try. Then be flexible and react. You probably won't hit the nail on the head the first time. You'll have to shift - maybe small shifts, maybe big ones.
And if I'm working even harder than I am right now, will I even want to ride?
Hell yes you will!!! You'll want to ride more if your job energizes you. You will be energized by challenge and passion.
Paychecks are surprisingly un-energizing. Take care of your body too - sleep, exercise, diet - these will either give you more energy or less.
You can set your life up so it all funnels into energy for your passions. It's up to you.
Do you still want to go to the track after working 50-60 hrs or are you just too physically and mentally exhausted, wishing you had an easier career for less pay?
I've only wished for a more challenging career. I still want to ride at the end of the day.
The things that exhaust me are doing laundry, working on cars, grocery shopping, cleaning my house, etc.
We all go through down times, and times when we're frustrated. You don't have to kick ass every day. But try to kick ass more often then you don't.
It might be good for you to set some long term goals, then break those down into manageable steps so you can see reasonable progress and regularly accomplish something important to you.
I dropped out of high school my senior year and went to a motorcycle mechanics school in Kirkland to become a moto mechanic. Got a job building airplanes instead. Here I am 10 years later making more money than most of the kids that stayed in school and went to universities.
I’m not against schools but college debt is ridiculous, trade schools are where it’s at IMO.
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