Cowboy Caleb the liberal arts, grown-up stuff & random mischief

Highly Educated, Poorly Educated, Same Difference

Sitting in the lounge waiting to board my plane, I would like to recap a conversation I had this morning with the driver who drove me to the airport.

He had told me that he was sick of driving - the hours were long and unpredictable. To make matters worse, the Mas Selamat fiasco was increasing the time it took to cross the causeway dramatically.

So I asked him if he would be changing jobs soon. This was his reply.

I can change jobs. There are plenty of jobs out there for a 40 year old man like me even though I only studied up to secondary school. But all these jobs pay nearly the same. So regardless of if I am a driver, a chicken rice seller or a candlestick maker, I will still earn the same.

This made me realize. Actually he has a more freedom in his career choices compared to a person with tertiary education (ie. a degree). The fact that he has not much education allows him a much wider & flexible selection of career choices.

A person with a degree would have to pursue a specific line of work related to their studies. Career changes are difficult and would probably come with a paycut. The money may be better, but the options are severely limited.

So who is happier - the Management Consultant, the Driver or the Candlestick Maker?

The love maker would be the happiest.

Easy, the highly skilled Management Consultant is MUCH better off who works for a professional & progressive company that values his skills and offers long term career choices and the opportunity to work with interesting and fun people and client who manage projects as a Partnership and the chance to travel to different places in the world like Canada and France… go figure!!!!!!!!!

that’s not true. even if a management consultant needs a career switch, he can still be a taxi driver, chicken rice seller or a candlestick maker. On the other hand, the taxi driver CANNOT be a management consultant.

the only important question is, i suppose, do u want the carefreeness of a taxi driver, chicken rice seller, candlestick maker, OR the money of a management consultant.

I agree with Bob to a certain extend. It is not your degree that limits your career choice but your demand to live a certain level of lifestyle is the real deciding factor.

Taxi driver, chicken rice sellers and candlestick makers are not without stress either.

Taxi drivers are faced with high fuel costs and leeching taxi company rents. Chicken rice sellers are the mercy of environmental factors like weather and remember Bird Flu? Since the candle is a crude petroleum derivative product, the makers are also face with increasing material costs.

In layman’s term,
whatever rocks your boat babe!

lol i would argue that the responsibilities of a management consultant, especially to his firm and whoever works under him, should weigh far more heavier on him than the personal responsibility of each of the other occupations.
But i guess it’s an assumption.

Well, I suppose I am still saying that someone like Cowboy can be better off in a different environment than where is he working now and that it is a choice he has because of his education…. not that a career change will guarantee happiness but the fact that he has the choice to further his career and have more opportunities than the taxi driver is WAY better than not getting an education and never being able to advance in life. But.. .there is always inner happiness regardless of what you do in life.. that is what is really important.

Think just being content with your lot will make one happy. Job satisfaction can be achieved in any type of work.

I studied for years got an mba, and a phd and ended up a taxi driver. But would trade my right arm for a decent career. Take it from me taxi driving is small money, barely min wage, for long long hours. People treat you like trash or try to suck up to you for free fares. i dont think you want to go there!