Well Said!!, i am going through that crisis at the moment myself!.

I as doing an aptitude test for a traineeship with a mining company and after viewing my results they decided to offer me a full time job. Turned out to be a pretty plum position and well ive been there for 4 years and dont look like going anywhere!

well i think i might throw my 2 bobs in
ok so i finished year 12 in 2008 (yes im 20 a youngan aswell)
left perth and went to karratha searching for a job/apprentiship in the mines. in the mean time of my search i landed a job at harveynorman. its a great job, easy money, lots of good incentives. but u gotta be a bit of a tech head. after about 18 months i sorta gave up my search for the mining industry and the job at harveys. so moved back to perth to seek another career. after about 2 months outa the job and outa moneys i found my self back at harveynorman in warwick. another 8 months pass (brings us to about christmas time 2010) and im find my self not going anywhere financualy yet again i persue my search for the mining job. rickety tick i get my chance. i started my new job on the 1st of feb and never looking back. put it this way i started on chump change. (every one has to) i am now at the bottom of the pay roll at my current job and im earning more the double what i did at harveys. all ya gota do is stick to it. yes it may be fly in fly out 2/1 but i get a whole week to do what ever i want. shortly i will be on a 9/5 (9days on 5days off) roster which is much more suitable. for some people been away can be suitable. iv got nothing to tie me down. but its compleatly up to you. i enjoy my job. the best thing is to get out there and have a crack at everythin (i have had many lil jobs inbetween) and stick to it!.

Most people 'fall into' jobs, either working their way up, or getting a spot in a family business etc.

Personally, I had no idea what I wanted to do when I was doing my TEE at school. While I was studying I also worked part time at KFC. Once I finished TEE, I still had no idea, and I didn't want to enroll in some uni course I barely knew much about.

Got offered a spot as a manager at KFC, so I thought, why not, pay was more than double, and I was earning over 40k per year when I was 18. Ended up completing certificates 2,3,4 in Retail management, just to get something extra under my belt. By this time I liked the money too much to step back and study full time or change career...

Got a mortgage and built a house when I was 20. By then I was earning 50-60k a year, and getting to like my job. I was given the opportunity to study a post-graduate Commerce certificate/diploma/masters part-time at uni, paid for by the company, while working full time... I sat on this idea for a while, as I was un-decided whether I should stay with the company or move on.
Now I'm 22 and enrolling for the next semester at Curtin, hopefully gonna be able to pay my mortgage while getting a couple of qualifications, and then see what options/opportunities open up for me over the next few years. Obviously I don't want to be stuck at KFC for the rest of my life, but to get higher up in a company, I need experience, and qualifications to back that up. Hoping that if I put in the hard yards now, I'd have more opportunities open up in the next 5-10 years.

You gotta work your way up, and take whatever opportunities are presented to you. Just do what you feel is right, what you are comfortable with, and follow what you think you are capable of.

I'm often amazed at how many people start at low jobs and wind up management.

I'm sure the Woolworth's CEO used to night stack shelves when doing accountancy part time. I think to get the top echelon sometimes the years at the same place count.

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[COLOR=Black]Liberty GT Spec B tuned 240 HP & 372 Nm at the hubs.[/COLOR] "Instead of banning high performance cars - ban low performance drivers"

First you get the money
Then, you get the power.
Then you get the women.

Srsly though Karina, I think its a great idea that you're trying to look into the future. Sometimes I wish I had some foresight. But the good news is, it doesn't mater as much these days if you make a bad decision, just go and work somewhere else. My dad worked for PMG/Telecom/Telstra for 23 years and hated every day of it. But he was of the generation that saw a long term job as having 'made it'. Personally I can't see why you would keep going back if you hated your job. Its a big wide world out there with plenty of other opportunities!

pics of sister?

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MY93 Impreza GX 1.8L, 0hp, 0nm

I fucked around in Year 12 and my grades plummetted as a result. Did the mature/smart thing and repeated Year 12 at Canning College so that I could get into Uni. Got into Curtin at age 19, doing Cartography. After all of 2 months there and standing in the pissing rain while using a theodolite I thought "fuck doing this for the rest of my life" (wasn't keen on the maths and programming involved back then either).

Worked a couple of jobs over the next few years including 18 months with One.Tel before they crashed. Decided that I didn't want to work in customer service or a call centre for the rest of my days so I talked my way back into Curtin to do a Teaching degree (this was when they were crying out for teachers in the early 00's).

I wanted a stable career. Wasn't keen on trying to scrape together a living in photography or graphic design in such a small and competitive place as Perth, or have to continually look for contract work in the I.T. industry. Teaching gives me the opportunity to share my knowledge, but also produce photography and documents for the school I work at. Unfortunately as soon as they find you have a talent for anything, they suck you dry for no extra pay. It's still nice to be able to put your name to photos and publications though. Lots of kudos and pats on the back from those who appreciate the amount of time that goes into the extra tasks I take on.

Hanging out with teenagers all day provides for some great laughs but at the same time some gray hairs.

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[I]trolololol[/I]

Haha, Karina in the forces. She could be a sniper!

BRET
"Yes, she's in Delta Force. She's been deployed to Fallujah."

JEMAINE
"But she works in the croissant shop."

BRET
"Yeah, she's got two jobs. She's a pastry chef and a sniper"

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[COLOR="Blue"]"Your car positioning and awareness is f*ing bang on. And like, every single time.
In terms of getting that close to the bollards, Ive only been with one other person that can drive like that" –Franz[/COLOR]
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

What are you thinking about getting into, have you spoken to people in the job you're thinking about getting into (I mean really spoken to them)?

I started out in hospitality and eventually got an apprenticeship as a chef, worked that for about 8months 'but when you're working 70hrs a week for $144 you really need to be passionate about it.

Having a father whom owns his own business and premises was something that I really had to explore 'I'd be stupid not to', did my apprenticeship as a panel beater working for the now non-existent John Hughes Automotive Panel & Paint 'whilst working for my father after work/on weekend etc.

Prove to myself that it wasn't for me so I decided to do a unistart course and get into commerce.

Started off doing an Accounting and Finance double degree but economics bored me so I increased my focus on the accounting side and picked up management/international business electives to pick up the slack. Have been working for firms for quite a few years now and can say the career change was fantastic.

The work I do is quite diverse having to in many senses be a mediator, physiologist, business developer, marriage counselor, adviser, as well as undertake compliance work.

The only gripe I have is not getting into it earlier, as I had to learn twice as quick as those coming straight out of Uni into Accounting and you're getting paid close to the same.

Financially you're going to take a hit its inevitable but the quicker you take the plunge the quicker you can get yourself on your chosen path.

Good luck!

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[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]

pics of sister do not seem to be loading

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Funny looking German Subaru