Do-over - what career would you pick?

[quigongene]

I like IT (especially the security aspect), but before I got into the field I wanted to be an aerospace engineer (think NASA/SpaceX...yes, a rocket scientist) or an audio engineer (think Bose).

[bethanyneedsajob]

You guys have some great interests! When I was a teenager, I thought that I wanted to be a lawyer, instead my mom got me set up in IT classes. I never went anywhere beyond a decent knowledge (at the time) of IT, a large student loan and a career in sales. Now, I would love to have a career as a horticulture therapist or a career in botany, geology, habitat restoration and natural sciences would also be so cool! But I may end up opting for something inside like genetics counseling. My major problem is that finding a job will be an issue, if we want to keep our kids in one place and try to provide roots for them - our little town is far away from other cities, so my prospects are limited to what I can do online or at one of the local businesses, hospitals or clinics. 
Sanantone had asked if the question I originally asked was for myself, but I think it’s more of a reflection on what is now and could have been, and could still be. It’s good to learn from other people’s life experience. I have teenagers that I’m trying to prepare for future careers and yet I still wonder what I will end up with when I finally get started in a new career. It’s been interesting to read how each of you has reflected and had/has so different of ambitions. And some of the job ideas are unusual!

[ChilliDawg]

I already work in my dream job. I still pinch myself daily at the fact that the government pays me quite fairly with decent benefits to administer a Criminal justice database that resides on state-of-the-art Hyper Converged Infrastructure. I am not really sure what else I would enjoy as much as I.T. I love virtualization, clustering and storage solutions to the point that I have a tech lab in my home, constantly experimenting with OpenSource solutions and new hardware. When I leave for work, I go there and do the same stuff, except they pay me. Win-win

A fantasy job would be that I attended Texas A&M or Michigan and went to their top Nuclear Engineering Schools. Secure a job with Westinghouse or Siemens and travel the world consulting at sites like Chernobyl or Fukushima. I have a huge interest in Nuclear science, and love post-Apocalyptic pop culture. Weird, I know.

[dfrecore]

A lot of occupations aren't going to be specifically listed; there are too many of them. One should look at what category of jobs they're interested in.

None of the jobs I've ever had, except at the very start (accounting analyst), were ever on a list: Stock Plan Administrator, 401(k) Plan Administrator, Compensation Analyst/Manager, Transcript Evaluator.  All of them kind of fell into my lap based on life circumstances at the time.  All were good paying jobs that I enjoyed, and if I was going to by some list to tell me what to do, I never would have heard about them.

I think your best bet is to always look around when you're at work, to see what's interesting.  That's how I got into new jobs - they needed help in an area, I had extra time, I helped, and pretty soon that was my new job (with a promotion).

[tifferbugz]

If I were 10 years younger, I'd go for my DO. But as I near 40, I'm feeling like it's a little too late to start that many years of school and acquire that much debt.

[dukun8ter]

If I could do it over again, I'd definitely go to trade school to be an Airline Pilot. Sweet gig, travel, and you're flying autopilot for most of the time. If only it didn't cost so much to get all the hours and certs under your belt.

[dfrecore]

If I could do it all over again, I'd go work for the State of CA, be WAY overpaid, and retire with a huge pension that would let me spend like a lunatic for the rest of my days. Alas, I didn't go that route, and will have to save my own money...

[dukun8ter]

If I could do it all over again, I'd go work for the State of CA, be WAY overpaid, and retire with a huge pension that would let me spend like a lunatic for the rest of my days.  Alas, I didn't go that route, and will have to save my own money...

Hahaha I was a cop in CA and it did pay well with great benefits! For someone that did not have a degree and just turned 21, I made A LOT of money. Yes some of it was OT, but I worked in one of those really nice cities with a very low crime rate (maybe less than 18 calls for service a day, sometimes in a week), and where the people loved their police department. I just wanted so much more so I jumped ship and joined the Army to be a pilot. Do I regret it? No! I get to fly and get paid to do it! But... I do miss it. 3/12 shifts were amazing. I'd go on road trips with my girl every other weekend. If I wanted to pay something off quicker, I'd work a day or two of OT extra. There was unlimited OT because it was hard to find anyone with a clean background to hire. And yes, CA has a great pension system for state government employees. I'm not saying that I'd stay there if I could do it over again, but it was definitely a great experience and allowed me to save comfortably before pursuing my dreams and taking a decent pay cut lol.

[sanantone]

On the other end is the State of Texas. What they pay employees of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice is disgraceful, and they wonder why they can't find enough people to work in their prisons or monitor parolees. They do get a decent retirement, but they'll take 11% out of every paycheck.

[MSK9]

Actively working on my "do-over" from law enforcement to medicine. I only have a handful of pre-req classes to finish and am submitting my applications to medical school for next year's class. So, thusly, my goal is to become a physician, and my dream is to become a surgeon.   I'd encourage anyone who wants it to pursue it. There's always a way to make it work.