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DrKennethNoisewater
Guest
Disclaimer: this is not a troll post. This is a brain dump with hopes of thoughtful input, and what better place to recieve actionable advice than a forum full of strangers with questionable motives.
As I re-read what I've typed it seems like I'm knocking the choice to pursue flying, and I guess in a way I am. I'm not trying to be disrespectful, so please don't take it personally. I'm really not sure what I'm looking for by writing this. I think the fact I've been going back and forth on this for the last few years is probably a sign that neither is the right option for me.
I make $150k/yr, 30 years old, work from home, and pretty much set my scheudle. I fly when I want, where I want. I do what I want. I don't love what I do, but I'm good at it and it allows for a pretty comfortable living. If the world changed tomorrow and my skills weren't so much in demand, I'm not sure I'd have the drive to stay competitive enough to sustain my current standard of living - I just don't have the interest in it (in reality, I'd do what I had to do to keep things going).
This is a problem. Banking on being mediocre is not in my values, and is not a sound long-term plan. In comparison, marrying yourself to a company where your quality of life is based on your longevity makes absolutely no sense either. One could pray that their company stands the test of time, but the fact that you could go from 10 years senior to 0 due to a fickle economy isn't a comfortable way to build a life. In my current job I can go almost anywhere in the country and earn 6 figures day 1 at the company. I don't think I'd prefer corporate flying over my current livelihood, I enjoy the thought of the focused responsibilities and clear job definition of an airline pilot.
I flew over 300 hours in 2 months recently and hated it. I hear people say they could spend all day in the airplane and wish they never had to come down - not me. I enjoy the first few hours, but after that I get extremely bored, and dread the next couple days of flying. Granted, this was all single pilot with very little human interaction. As a result, I figured if I didn't absolutely love flying, and valued having control of my time and spending time with my family above all else, then why pursue a career where half my time is spent in the air and/or away from home. I'm not real interested in hitting the bar or restaurant with the crew at the end of every day either.
I have a theory that the better people have it, the more they complain. It seems like pilots complain a bunch. I wonder how much of people compaining is due to their lack of perspective - if that's the only job they've ever had it's easy to complain since they don't know better. I see some guys that go scuba diving, biking, museums, etc. during their trips on their time away from the airplane. That's awesome, and I'd love that. When I was flying I felt like I was going to waste, like I was not using my skills as best I could to provide for my family in the best way possible. I was overnighting in small towns with nothing to do. It was easy, low stress work, but if I died tomorrow I wouldn't be satisfied with how I spent my time and how I was(n't) there for my family.
I don't love anything enough to do it long term - I get bored and feel like I'm wasting my time, so I move on. So maybe I stay where I'm at, fly in my spare time, and enjoy my time with my family. I'll probably end up working in an office somewhere, never completely fullfilled. Maybe I fly airplanes and build seniority, earn a good amount of days off with a schedule that has me home at a decent time on the last day of my trips - do something that gives me a bit of enjoyment and something I don't have to think about after I step off the jetway. I really like the hustle and bustle of airports and operating the airplane outside of a straight and level environment. I once feared that after I reached the airline goal and had nothing else to work towards, that I would lose interest quickly - now I wonder if that's not a manifestation of a deeper personal issue since I have that same obsessive goal driven attitude toward just about everything. I've talked with other pilots who seem to have the same attitude.
As I re-read what I've typed it seems like I'm knocking the choice to pursue flying, and I guess in a way I am. I'm not trying to be disrespectful, so please don't take it personally. I'm really not sure what I'm looking for by writing this. I think the fact I've been going back and forth on this for the last few years is probably a sign that neither is the right option for me.
I make $150k/yr, 30 years old, work from home, and pretty much set my scheudle. I fly when I want, where I want. I do what I want. I don't love what I do, but I'm good at it and it allows for a pretty comfortable living. If the world changed tomorrow and my skills weren't so much in demand, I'm not sure I'd have the drive to stay competitive enough to sustain my current standard of living - I just don't have the interest in it (in reality, I'd do what I had to do to keep things going).
This is a problem. Banking on being mediocre is not in my values, and is not a sound long-term plan. In comparison, marrying yourself to a company where your quality of life is based on your longevity makes absolutely no sense either. One could pray that their company stands the test of time, but the fact that you could go from 10 years senior to 0 due to a fickle economy isn't a comfortable way to build a life. In my current job I can go almost anywhere in the country and earn 6 figures day 1 at the company. I don't think I'd prefer corporate flying over my current livelihood, I enjoy the thought of the focused responsibilities and clear job definition of an airline pilot.
I flew over 300 hours in 2 months recently and hated it. I hear people say they could spend all day in the airplane and wish they never had to come down - not me. I enjoy the first few hours, but after that I get extremely bored, and dread the next couple days of flying. Granted, this was all single pilot with very little human interaction. As a result, I figured if I didn't absolutely love flying, and valued having control of my time and spending time with my family above all else, then why pursue a career where half my time is spent in the air and/or away from home. I'm not real interested in hitting the bar or restaurant with the crew at the end of every day either.
I have a theory that the better people have it, the more they complain. It seems like pilots complain a bunch. I wonder how much of people compaining is due to their lack of perspective - if that's the only job they've ever had it's easy to complain since they don't know better. I see some guys that go scuba diving, biking, museums, etc. during their trips on their time away from the airplane. That's awesome, and I'd love that. When I was flying I felt like I was going to waste, like I was not using my skills as best I could to provide for my family in the best way possible. I was overnighting in small towns with nothing to do. It was easy, low stress work, but if I died tomorrow I wouldn't be satisfied with how I spent my time and how I was(n't) there for my family.
I don't love anything enough to do it long term - I get bored and feel like I'm wasting my time, so I move on. So maybe I stay where I'm at, fly in my spare time, and enjoy my time with my family. I'll probably end up working in an office somewhere, never completely fullfilled. Maybe I fly airplanes and build seniority, earn a good amount of days off with a schedule that has me home at a decent time on the last day of my trips - do something that gives me a bit of enjoyment and something I don't have to think about after I step off the jetway. I really like the hustle and bustle of airports and operating the airplane outside of a straight and level environment. I once feared that after I reached the airline goal and had nothing else to work towards, that I would lose interest quickly - now I wonder if that's not a manifestation of a deeper personal issue since I have that same obsessive goal driven attitude toward just about everything. I've talked with other pilots who seem to have the same attitude.
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