If you were to switch career, what would you do?

Something that's a switch of gears from "deep, isolated knowledge work" to more action, people, managerial oriented work. Project management, realtor, small business owner, recruiter.

If I'm tasked with something, it may take me a day or it may take me a week depending on how well I can think my way to a solution. Maybe it never comes, maybe I'm spending days searching the same SO answers for a morsel of insight or inspiration from poorly written documentation to solve a problem. Drinking coffee, staying up late, maybe it bleeds into personal life, that urge to keep looking into it to finally put an end to the task and deep dizsatisfaction.

I'm often jealous of people in other jobs that aren't this way, that are more "just hustle and do it," where at the end if the day, you either did the work to progress your position/project/whatever, or you didn't. And if you just got up in the morning and physically and metaphorically "showed up" for the job, there was a far lesser chance you'd just stare a screen to no discernable result for 8 hours and feel a sense that no progress was made.

Years ago, the best software engineer I've ever known took a break from programming and became a long-haul truck driver.

He found it a fantastic experience. He claimed that there is more overlap between the skills needed between the two than you'd think (and that he met a surprising number of other truckers who used to be software engineers).

If I decided to change careers, I'd seriously investigate that.

I would love to be a fiction writer.

I am not good at fiction writing at all. But this is something I always romanticize about. Something about sitting in cafes or home and typing away seems like a perfect day to me. No need to debug, troubleshoot production issues, attend meetings, submit TPS reports, etc. Just you and your writing.

I tend to get jealous when I see people working with their hands, prefferably outside. Sometimes I even observe the guys cleaning the street and thinks, maybe its not that bad after all?

The times I have done such work (like construction) resulted in a much greater satisfaction and feeling in my body than after a day in front of the screen (even though I have been productive). Doing lots of running and gym but it does not generate the same feeling.

Have lately started to do something about it, maybe switch career totally.

- Psychologist / Counselor / Professor: Huge impact opportunity. Society is so career and status focused nobody pays attention to emotional needs.

There is opportunity help others understand and express the feelings of why they suffer, instead of acting out in indirect/critical, dysfunctional ways, which compounds the problems. That is just benefits that can be attained at ground floor.

Please check out Attachment Theory and Schema Therapy: http://www.psychology.sunysb.edu/attachment/online/inge_orig..., https://www.guilford.com/excerpts/young.pdf

- History professor: Because history rocks.

Aside: Montemayor, an independent history documentary maker, has a documentary on The Battle of Midway at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bd8_vO5zrjo. If you would like to support his work he has a Paypal on his channel page!

- Flipping houses: Upgrade carpentry from tech level 0 to tech level 3 and get property + credit line

I’m currently a sys admin/sys engineer.

I’d become a farmer.

I love growing plants. I love being outside. I love being away from electronics. It’s perfect for me. If only it paid more... (but I’m working on that, in 2-3 years I hope to be able to make the transition to full-time farmer)

Anything but programming. What I would not give to go back and do something else.

I can't find the proper words right now, because many folks here share so many traits with me, which leaves me speechless.

I too want to switch career and do something else, completely different than technology and as many of you mentioned, I want to deal with handcrafting, anything that falls under the "art" category, really.

In my opinion, my mind and body tells me that 80% physical activity and 20% mental / intellectual is the best combination.

That's my ideal concept I believe.

Carpentry, probably anything that required manual labor with some creativity needed.

I’ve though about being a tradie. Doing some home improvements has been fun and I can stay focused more easily than on screen work.

Also considering doing some freelance work which although still coding will involve some sales/contract negotiation type stuff and the chance to charge more (I’ll keep my job so it’s easy to say no to low ballers!)

You North American coders would say 150/h is meh for freelance work but if I could get that in my spare time it’d be pretty cool.

Painter, sculpture, architect (residential homes), musician...

I love being a software engineer but I would love it more if I didn't have to rely on it for paying living expenses.

Sport medicine and diet: I would like to help people get fit, healthier. Plus, I like learning these topics.

Also, it would be great to have flexibility in work, and ability to be more outside. I find it so unnatural and sad that we have to sit on our arses and look at monitors locked within 4 walls for our best healthiest years. I slightly suffer internally every time, when the weather is great outside.

I've thought about starting a financial planning charity to help middle class and up people get out of debt (low hanging fruit), but I think I'm more likely to try to become a fireman or something else physical. I just feel so much more satisfied by doing a bunch of physical work or charitable work than technical work, so once I don't need income, I'll switch it up.

I would have a SurfShop that is connected to a Restaurant & Bar in Hawaii - in close proximity to the beach. My life would be complete.

There would be various paths for me to travel. In my student days I did a lot of bartending (in smaller pubs), loved that work. I found that it's very cool to treat guests like small projects. As in, keep them happy. The project always finishes within the same day :-)

Some years ago I read a book about a banker who took a summer off to work an Alpine pasture (ie. a summer farm) without electricity and company. Just him and 50 cows. I've been dreaming about that ever since.

Academia or launching a startup (which is why I quit my job for a research position in academia - eventually... it took me a couple of years though - studying high growth startups)

I'd be a machinist. I love watching machinists on youtube turn a hunk of metal into a useful part. It looks like it has the right mix of problem solving, thinking and labor.

If money is not a concern, being an artist is exciting.

Being a good hacker really helps with creative processes.

I try not to limit myself to having a career.

Coach a soccer team. Takeover a coffee farm in Ethiopia and run some experiments. Create a small internet holding company.

Sailing and working in company that makes sail boats.

Have been learning a lot of sailing and boats from YouTube. Want to give it a try.

Be a full time stay at home parent. Possibly including being a foster parent.

Run a skydiving dropzone. If done well, it can break even money-wise, and you meet some pretty awesome people.

Lately, the idea of building and operating a solar farm sounds interesting.

Something done out in the fresh air, still not sure what exactly

Become a carpenter or apiculturist.

I feel like I'm too unplugged from nature.

Working in garage like "gas monkey"

Blacksmith / Expert Sword Maker.

trekking guide. I really want to be the trekking guide

Lay concrete

Voice actor

painter, artist, cartoonist

research

gigolo