Curse of the comfortable job

[Sporky]

Doofus said:

Wouldn't you have needed a degree before you started for a PhD?

Usually a Masters.

So 4 years for an undergrad masters, then two for the PhD. Some unis let people in at 17, so 23 is just possible.

[BrabusMog]

Part of my job is being available for client queries, which I always am. Some weeks I may only work 15-20 hours, other weeks like last week it’s closer to 70. My experience of being in a big corporate is that you’re paid for the value you add, not how many hours you’re tied to a desk.

I spotted 3 opportunities last month from discussions with my main client that I took to the commercial guys and also my boss, we started up the conversations / scoping this week - it will bring in 200/300 multiple percentages of my salary in revenue with a very chunky margin tacked on, so when it all gets signed off and is running itself thanks to the operational framework I have set up for these types of deals, I’ll be able to drop back down to quiet weeks but I’m the one that has identified the opportunity and helped get it over the line. Any good business will be happy with that.

I like both the quiet weeks and the busy weeks, maybe because on the quiet weeks I could be on the golf course twice during the midweek and in the busy weeks I like being busy and getting things sorted, I’d find it soul destroying if I didn’t have a hobby in the quiet times, perhaps that’s something the OP could look at to fill the void so to speak.

[gangzoom]

Doofus said:

Wouldn't you have needed a degree before you started for a PhD?

Start Uni at 17 (haven’t all PHs skipped a year), 3 year course, than straight into a 3 years PhD - submission of thesis by end of 2 year, get viva done and award sorted before you hit 24. You can actually submit a PhD thesis any time after your 12 months probation review, so in theory becoming a PhD Doc is possible before 23.

But the title you really want is one that goes before your name not after and Doc is too common these days, as one Prof told me, you are not a ‘proper’ Prof if you don’t get a chair before the age of 40 . Sadly I’ve missed that boat, so making do with moving up the corporate ladder instead, aiming to eligible for MD interview shortlists before I hit 45.

Edited by gangzoom on Sunday 2nd April 23:23

[Doofus]

gangzoom said:

Doofus said:

Wouldn't you have needed a degree before you started for a PhD?

Start Uni at 17 (haven’t all PHs skipped a year), 3 year course, than straight into a 3 years PhD - submission of thesis by end of 2 year, get viva done and award sorted before you hit 24. You can actually submit a PhD thesis any time after your 12 months probation review, so in theory becoming a PhD Doc is possible before 23.

But the title you really want is one that goes before your name not after and Doc is too common these days, as one Prof told me, you are not a ‘proper’ Prof if you don’t get a chair before the age of 40 . Sadly I’ve missed that boat, so making do with moving up the corporate ladder instead, aiming to eligible for MD interview shortlists before I hit 45.

Edited by gangzoom on Sunday 2nd April 23:23

Good for you.

I spent two years in accountancy practice, and then set up my own business. I sold that at 23 and eventually retired when I was 45.

Went back to work after a year or two and retired again at 52.

I might do a PhD for fun just to punctuate the wine and roses.

[GilletteFan]

JackJarvis said:

You signed up to a car forum today to ask this question?

Very weak trolling attempt. Please try harder.

Well put!

[gangzoom]

Doofus said:

Went back to work after a year or two and retired again at 52.

I might do a PhD for fun just to punctuate the wine and roses.

Getting a PhD at 52.....not sure anyone would care? I got mine at 34, so both of us are 'failures' compared to what some on here have suggested.

Oh I wasn't one suggesting getting a PhD at 23 was a good thing, someone mentioned it was a regular thing??

Not getting a chair before 40 did grated me a little, but the reality was I accepted I was never clever enough to do that long ago. Some of us in life just aren't that clever, and I very much count my self as 'average' by pretty much every measure.

Hope your enjoying retirement, am just starting to put down on paper some work ideas that been flying around my head since last night. Life is about doing what ever makes it interesting for you isn't it?

Either way I suspect we are both much happier than the OP who must be really excited about starting another day of doing the same things for 2 hours and than having nothing to do for the rest the day .

Edited by gangzoom on Monday 3rd April 06:20

[Fusion777]

PhD at 22? I see the humblebrag of the powerfully built has now entered the sphere of academia.

Guess we should start throwing in IQs and chess ratings instead of salaries and house sizes?

[ZedLeg]

Fusion777 said:

PhD at 22? I see the humblebrag of the powerfully built has now entered the sphere of academia.

Guess we should start throwing in IQs and chess ratings instead of salaries and house sizes?

[okgo]

The initial point was that some banks and law firms are paying people best part of £100k out Uni. And that’s true.

[Sporky]

Fusion777 said:

Guess we should start throwing in IQs and chess ratings instead of salaries and house sizes?

Let's do how many fingers!

[stuthemong]

Fusion777 said:

PhD at 22? I see the humblebrag of the powerfully built has now entered the sphere of academia.

Guess we should start throwing in IQs and chess ratings instead of salaries and house sizes?

In fairnessI think I’d prefer the forum if we did this, the geek jokes thread attracts the right PH-sub culture

[wombleh]

I can well believe the OP, have been in very well paid and utterly pointless jobs myself. Big company, box ticking culture, management not being assessed on actual results but instead metrics invented to make them look good. Its a horrendous waste of money, especially when so many of the customers are struggling to put food on the table, but happens a lot.

There’s more to life than money, sack it off and go seek something at least marginally worthwhile, even if it is worse paid. Your soul will thank you, even if your wallet doesn’t.

[gangzoom]

ZedLeg said:

Fusion777 said:

PhD at 22? I see the humblebrag of the powerfully built has now entered the sphere of academia.

Guess we should start throwing in IQs and chess ratings instead of salaries and house sizes?

Skipping one year is just for peasants, two years seems to be what you need to if you really want to stand out, most of us aren't even close .

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demis_Hassabis

[MickC]

Sporky said:

Doofus said:

Wouldn't you have needed a degree before you started for a PhD?

Usually a Masters.

So 4 years for an undergrad masters, then two for the PhD. Some unis let people in at 17, so 23 is just possible.

In the UK don't people usually do either a PhD OR a masters, although sometimes a masters is needed if your degree isn't good enough or you are changing subject? Then another 3 to 4 years to complete the PhD.

I'm not sure why corporates would want PhD coders though? PhD is research based, the masters would be a better way of getting people up to the standard where they are useful coders, and they would get there by 22, when they are ripe for working their arses off till burnout at 25

[Monkeylegend]

GilletteFan said:

JackJarvis said:

You signed up to a car forum today to ask this question?

Very weak trolling attempt. Please try harder.

Well put!

This is no longer predominately a car forum though is it.

I would guess that non car discussions are well in the majority so it is perfectly understandable why somebody would sign up to ask a non car related question.

I also suspect OP is not a returning banee either, unlike many

[Countdown]

MickC said:

In the UK don't people usually do either a PhD OR a masters, although sometimes a masters is needed if your degree isn't good enough or you are changing subject? Then another 3 to 4 years to complete the PhD.

I'm not sure why corporates would want PhD coders though? PhD is research based, the masters would be a better way of getting people up to the standard where they are useful coders, and they would get there by 22, when they are ripe for working their arses off till burnout at 25

I wonder if it varies depending on subject. Two of my Uni mates did PhDs and both did a Masters first (IIRC it was 1 year for the Master's and then 2-3 years for the PhD)

I believe both are earning IRO £40k as Clinical lecturers.

[Sporky]

My best beloved had to do a Masters before she could start a PhD, and if I hadn't done an undergrad MEng I'd have had to do a separate Masters before a DEng.

It may well not be the case for every subject as you say, but it is for some at least.

[Dynion Araf Uchaf]

okgo said:

Dynion Araf Uchaf said:

I suspect that people in this situation are more than capable of talking up their workday and tasks to their line managers. I’d also expect that line managers are aware of the quantity of work but don’t follow it up or talk about it to those above. It’s a silent agreement. I know that you know that I don’t do much for my money etc

You can’t talk up the money you’ve brought in the door. You either have or you have not and it’s plain to see.

Every company eventually when you get senior enough has people that are paid on results and their ‘basic salary’ is likely a tiny factor in the overall reward if they’re successful.

the OP is not in sales.

Also if you are doing a couple of hours a day and 'brought the money to the door' then your targets are too soft. A CEO would be quadrupling the targets so that he can get a full days work out of the slacker.

[jgrewal]

Very enviable position to be in but unless you are actually in that position it can be very hard to judge how you can be feeling where you have no or limited job satisfaction. I mentioned lifestyle creep in a different thread because when you are earning that kind of money it does get spent very quickly if you are not careful.

Edited by jgrewal on Monday 3rd April 11:24

[okgo]

It was merely that many jobs are not how you do it but what you do. OP job and example as per a great many others. How you do it doesn’t always need to take 40 hours, you could automate much of some roles for example.