Event planning – I was an event professional for over a decade and everyone always says “oh what a fun job!” picturing that its just a never ending pinterest board when really its mostly excel spreadsheets and people being pissed about how cold a room is.
as someone who works in finance – ill say finance.
idiots don’t last 5 minutes.
a mistake can cost you your career and the hours can be killer
a poor work ethic will immediately stall your prospects
when you go for a business trip overseas, you usually end up miles from any famous landmarks in a run down office talking to people you don’t like, then you take them for dinner and have to work to keep the conversation going.
Nursing. It’s definitely gone from patient based care to get in and get out based care. It’s not the nurses fault but administration and private equity companies trying to turn hospitals into some kind of drive through.
Although many people are aware of the realities of the job, i wanna say stripping and sex work in general. Every time a young person expresses a non-jokey interested in going down that path my heart sinks a bit
I may catch heat for this, but pro athlete comes to mind. Your entire life revolves around how well you maintain your body and how you perform, and how hard it is on your body.
Librarians. Tv tends to show sexy librarians, or portray librarians as just sitting all day and reading. I’ve had people try to get their teenagers jobs as librarians- because they don’t realize it’s actually a Master’s degree. We don’t get to read on the job, but we do get to deal with the public, which includes drunk/high people, homeless, mentally ill, entitled people who “pay our salary” (and you can totally have your 85 cents back for that if you’ll go the fuck away). We get people who steal our materials and then will throw a tantrum because they can’t check anything by else out. We have belligerent people or drug deals that require us to call the cops. Many libraries have started training their staff to use narcan. Many libraries also expect their librarians to double as social workers. That’s not even mentioning the programming that we do, as well.
All for $18 bucks an hour or so, because even though it’s a masters degree, it’s a “feminine” field, and don’t we all have rich husbands supporting us? We’re expected to work ourself to death because of vocational awe.
Yacht broker. To the outsider it looks like we spend time on yachts a lot. We don’t. Moreover clients are disloyal, cheap and inconsistent. Plus a cut throat competition for that 1% of the UHNW population. You can work years for nothing. Left yachting industry. Not missing it.
A lot of people watch reality cooking shows and think that’s what the industry is like.
In reality, it’s often insane hours on your feet for 10-16 hours a day, very few if any breaks. Many times you’re closing at 11 PM just to be back at 7 AM. You’re in an incredibly hot environment where risks of burns and cuts are an everyday occurrence, and the pay is usually absolute shite – even as an experienced cook you’ll be lucky to start out at $15-18/hr. It’s not much better the further up the ladder either. Work your way up to head chef so you can work 80 hour weeks on Salary for less money than you’d make working overtime.
Also, you get to deal indirectly with the general public every day and you learn first-hand just how fucking stupid and intolerable most people are.
US diplomacy. Only some of the officers are the kind you’d see on TV, business formal and talking to important politicians at their posts. The reality is that most USAmericans with diplomatic status are just doing boring gear-turning bureaucracy at the embassy all day then go home like regular 9-5. Whether they like the country they’re in or not is usually entirely dependent on how open/adaptable they are as people.
Advertising. Don’t get me wrong. It’s been a lot of fun. I’ve shot commercials in places such as LA, New York, and New Zealand. I’ve met a lot of interesting, artsy people and done lots of interesting things.
But at the same time, it can be a serious grind, with long hours, capricious clients, and constant subjectivity. After 35 years in the business, I consider it a minor miracle that I’ve gotten this far without a substance abuse problem, a divorce, an affair, or a weekly chit chat with a therapist.
People think accountants are decision makers in a business. But in reality most of us don’t get to spend any money, make any decisions or chose what we want to achieve.
We basically just pass on info to people actually running the show in a way that makes them see what they want to see or explain that info with the least negative impact to their goal, even if it’s against our own opinions or desires.
I.e were between a rock (managment and executives) and a hard place (people spending the money) and need to make both happy with no benefit for it.
My town picks up the same homeless people over and over and haven’t had a real fire in over a year.
Still the greatest job in the world- but it’s not what it’s like on TV. And when you do go to fires it’s heartbreaking because someone just lost everything.
Photographer. There’s a lot of setting up gear, pulling down gear, making sure you REMEMBERED all of it, and hauling it all around. I do mostly events like fashion shows, private parties and location shoots – which means I’m carrying maybe 10lbs of gear around on a harness/hip bag etc for hours. Keeping a few pounds of gear in front of your face doesn’t sound like much until you have to do it for 5hrs straight. And that gear gets hot too – so you WILL be sweaty. I love it but it’s physically taxing and nowhere near glamourous.
The film industry can be absolutely soul sucking, especially for below-the-line crew.
Sure, it’s kind of cool seeing celebrities in person and stuff in movies that haven’t come out yet, but the hours are insane.
If you’re lucky, you’ll work 10 hour days, though normally it’s more like 12-14. Some days you’re up at the ass crack of dawn, some nights you’re working until the sun comes up.
When you’re on a show full time you have no time to do anything out of work. When you’re day playing, they shuffle the schedule around so much you can’t plan anything. When you’re not working, you start to panic about money.
You’re constantly searching for your next job. And dealing with the egos of directors and producers can be a nightmare.
You’re often working out in the elements. If where you live has seasons, you’re be freezing your ass off in winter and burning alive in the summer.
I got out when COVID hit, and I’ve never looked back.
Veterinary technician. You think it’s petting puppies and kittens all day, when in reality it’s heart wrenching, messy, backbreaking work and when you do get a puppy or kitten it’s literally life saving because the rest of that shit is depressing and often thankless.
Environmental Biologist. Going out on a boat is fun, until you’re spending 14 hours out in 6-foot waves getting seasick and trying to sample, soaking wet and covered in fish guts. Or out on the prairie on a 100-degree day getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. Or on a mountain during a thunderstorm trying to sample some obscure plant or animal. Or stuck waist deep in a wetland, covered in sweat and mud. Or…
Professor/academic. Even in an Oxbridge college, nominally quite glamorous, it’s an endless maze of disconnected online portals and passwords and grant applications and bureaucracy.
You spend an outrageous amount of time doing admin and then do even more if you’re successful. The ratio between what you are earning vs what you could be earning in the private sector as you climb the ladder is nuts.
Comments
Attorneys if you’re going off Suits, it ain’t that interesting
Event planning – I was an event professional for over a decade and everyone always says “oh what a fun job!” picturing that its just a never ending pinterest board when really its mostly excel spreadsheets and people being pissed about how cold a room is.
Any profession described as glamorous.
Unless you’re professionally glamorous, which has an expiration date and high performance costs.
Being a doctor. It’s A LOT of charting and talking to patients.
as someone who works in finance – ill say finance.
Acting
Veterinarian
Soldier
Airline pilot.
Porn
Nursing. It’s definitely gone from patient based care to get in and get out based care. It’s not the nurses fault but administration and private equity companies trying to turn hospitals into some kind of drive through.
Although many people are aware of the realities of the job, i wanna say stripping and sex work in general. Every time a young person expresses a non-jokey interested in going down that path my heart sinks a bit
Professor. I was one for 42 years. They are just people, like most folks are.
Nursing. 20 years in. It’s not for everyone.
Paramedic. The body fluids! OH GOD THE BODY FLUIDS!
ER Physician
Chef.
Working on a film set
Media of any type. (TV/Radio/Newspaper) Low paying, terrible hours, and a media workplace that ISN’T toxic in one way or another is a unicorn.
Edit: spelling
Being a realtor. You work all the time.
Working
Scientific research. It’s nothing like the movies.
I may catch heat for this, but pro athlete comes to mind. Your entire life revolves around how well you maintain your body and how you perform, and how hard it is on your body.
Granted, the insane money mitigates the negatives
Librarians. Tv tends to show sexy librarians, or portray librarians as just sitting all day and reading. I’ve had people try to get their teenagers jobs as librarians- because they don’t realize it’s actually a Master’s degree. We don’t get to read on the job, but we do get to deal with the public, which includes drunk/high people, homeless, mentally ill, entitled people who “pay our salary” (and you can totally have your 85 cents back for that if you’ll go the fuck away). We get people who steal our materials and then will throw a tantrum because they can’t check anything by else out. We have belligerent people or drug deals that require us to call the cops. Many libraries have started training their staff to use narcan. Many libraries also expect their librarians to double as social workers. That’s not even mentioning the programming that we do, as well.
All for $18 bucks an hour or so, because even though it’s a masters degree, it’s a “feminine” field, and don’t we all have rich husbands supporting us? We’re expected to work ourself to death because of vocational awe.
Tbh I can’t think of any jobs I consider glamorous
I can’t say for certain, but probably Porta Potty pumper/cleaner outer.
Architect. It’s like 75 percent coordinating trades and 20 percent trying to meet code egress requirements and stuff.
modeling
Showbusiness. Celebrities. Anything that involves putting yourself in the limelight.
Video game designer: you play ONE game. Over and over and over and over for up to several years
Yacht broker. To the outsider it looks like we spend time on yachts a lot. We don’t. Moreover clients are disloyal, cheap and inconsistent. Plus a cut throat competition for that 1% of the UHNW population. You can work years for nothing. Left yachting industry. Not missing it.
Being a therapist.
Sure, it has its rewarding moments but burn out is REAL in this field 😞
Intelligence analyst. Much less James Bond and more accountant.
Special Agent (of any type). For every hour of actual interesting work, there is like 10 fold more of paperwork/ report writing.
Cooking.
A lot of people watch reality cooking shows and think that’s what the industry is like.
In reality, it’s often insane hours on your feet for 10-16 hours a day, very few if any breaks. Many times you’re closing at 11 PM just to be back at 7 AM. You’re in an incredibly hot environment where risks of burns and cuts are an everyday occurrence, and the pay is usually absolute shite – even as an experienced cook you’ll be lucky to start out at $15-18/hr. It’s not much better the further up the ladder either. Work your way up to head chef so you can work 80 hour weeks on Salary for less money than you’d make working overtime.
Also, you get to deal indirectly with the general public every day and you learn first-hand just how fucking stupid and intolerable most people are.
US diplomacy. Only some of the officers are the kind you’d see on TV, business formal and talking to important politicians at their posts. The reality is that most USAmericans with diplomatic status are just doing boring gear-turning bureaucracy at the embassy all day then go home like regular 9-5. Whether they like the country they’re in or not is usually entirely dependent on how open/adaptable they are as people.
I don’t think people consider this “glamorous” necessarily but people definitely think it’s like more cute and dainty than it is: Baker.
Advertising. Don’t get me wrong. It’s been a lot of fun. I’ve shot commercials in places such as LA, New York, and New Zealand. I’ve met a lot of interesting, artsy people and done lots of interesting things.
But at the same time, it can be a serious grind, with long hours, capricious clients, and constant subjectivity. After 35 years in the business, I consider it a minor miracle that I’ve gotten this far without a substance abuse problem, a divorce, an affair, or a weekly chit chat with a therapist.
People think accountants are decision makers in a business. But in reality most of us don’t get to spend any money, make any decisions or chose what we want to achieve.
We basically just pass on info to people actually running the show in a way that makes them see what they want to see or explain that info with the least negative impact to their goal, even if it’s against our own opinions or desires.
I.e were between a rock (managment and executives) and a hard place (people spending the money) and need to make both happy with no benefit for it.
Firefighting.
Most career departments do 90% medical runs.
My town picks up the same homeless people over and over and haven’t had a real fire in over a year.
Still the greatest job in the world- but it’s not what it’s like on TV. And when you do go to fires it’s heartbreaking because someone just lost everything.
Photographer. There’s a lot of setting up gear, pulling down gear, making sure you REMEMBERED all of it, and hauling it all around. I do mostly events like fashion shows, private parties and location shoots – which means I’m carrying maybe 10lbs of gear around on a harness/hip bag etc for hours. Keeping a few pounds of gear in front of your face doesn’t sound like much until you have to do it for 5hrs straight. And that gear gets hot too – so you WILL be sweaty. I love it but it’s physically taxing and nowhere near glamourous.
All of them.
The film industry can be absolutely soul sucking, especially for below-the-line crew.
Sure, it’s kind of cool seeing celebrities in person and stuff in movies that haven’t come out yet, but the hours are insane.
If you’re lucky, you’ll work 10 hour days, though normally it’s more like 12-14. Some days you’re up at the ass crack of dawn, some nights you’re working until the sun comes up.
When you’re on a show full time you have no time to do anything out of work. When you’re day playing, they shuffle the schedule around so much you can’t plan anything. When you’re not working, you start to panic about money.
You’re constantly searching for your next job. And dealing with the egos of directors and producers can be a nightmare.
You’re often working out in the elements. If where you live has seasons, you’re be freezing your ass off in winter and burning alive in the summer.
I got out when COVID hit, and I’ve never looked back.
Being a musician on the road, unless you’re super famous.
It’s fun for sure. But it’s not for everyone.
flight attendant
Architect. Despite what George Costanza thinks, it is a mundane job for the vast majority of them and the pay is not great.
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Working as a personal assistant for 2 famous fashion designers.
So go into engineering, got it.
Veterinary technician. You think it’s petting puppies and kittens all day, when in reality it’s heart wrenching, messy, backbreaking work and when you do get a puppy or kitten it’s literally life saving because the rest of that shit is depressing and often thankless.
Ever seen a ballerina’s feet?
Environmental Biologist. Going out on a boat is fun, until you’re spending 14 hours out in 6-foot waves getting seasick and trying to sample, soaking wet and covered in fish guts. Or out on the prairie on a 100-degree day getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. Or on a mountain during a thunderstorm trying to sample some obscure plant or animal. Or stuck waist deep in a wetland, covered in sweat and mud. Or…
Professor/academic. Even in an Oxbridge college, nominally quite glamorous, it’s an endless maze of disconnected online portals and passwords and grant applications and bureaucracy.
You spend an outrageous amount of time doing admin and then do even more if you’re successful. The ratio between what you are earning vs what you could be earning in the private sector as you climb the ladder is nuts.
Musician. It gets old and exhausting so fast. It is so competitive. Pay is little. You don’t usually get to choose the music you play.
Also professor. The student entitlement has gotten outrageous.