Anyone went through the typical corporate 9-5 job for a while and realised it wasn’t for you? Was there a trigger? How did you come to realise that, why was it not for you? what steps did you take to break out of it and what are you doing now? Any regrets? P.S I’m not referring to those who have family businesses to fall back on etc, more of the middle income Singaporeans who decided to pursue a different career path when the realisation hits.
I worked in front of the computer my whole 20s, often also have to OT till 9/10pm. It doesn’t help where I also work for the pacific market and have to be available on my desk by 6am. WFH was unheard of back then. Money was good but I didn’t have a life. Due to the lack of exercise, my health also haven’t been the best considering I was an athlete in my teens. At 29yo, I moved to USA and work at a horse farm, tailored to troubled/special needs children and adults. Basically a place for people to heal! I worked my way up to be the farm manager and run the place for this elderly couple owner. At first it was a nightmare, I had to wake up at 5am, have to work in all kind of weather, even when snowing heavily because horses can’t exactly take care of themselves. Often, get spit at my children/donkeys, get hit, scratch, all kind of abuse because client are still learning to regulate their emotions. But it is rewarding when they finally get a hang of it. Also will receive ‘tips’ from clients as bonus because they saw how hard I worked. I’ve since returned back to Singapore, and now I work in a special needs school. I don’t think I can ever sit on a desk to work anymore. I worked in front of the computer my whole 20s, often also have to OT till 9/10pm. It doesn’t help where I also work for the pacific market and have to be available on my desk by 6am. WFH was unheard of back then. Money was good but I didn’t have a life. Due to the lack of exercise, my health also haven’t been the best considering I was an athlete in my teens. At 29yo, I moved to USA and work at a horse farm, tailored to troubled/special needs children and adults. Basically a place for people to heal! I worked my way up to be the farm manager and run the place for this elderly couple owner. At first it was a nightmare, I had to wake up at 5am, have to work in all kind of weather, even when snowing heavily because horses can’t exactly take care of themselves. Often, get spit at my children/donkeys, get hit, scratch, all kind of abuse because client are still learning to regulate their emotions. But it is rewarding when they finally get a hang of it. Also will receive ‘tips’ from clients as bonus because they saw how hard I worked. I’ve since returned back to Singapore, and now I work in a special needs school. I don’t think I can ever sit on a desk to work anymore.
thanks for sharing, what a journey
When i found myself hoping to get into a traffic accident just so I could skip work. Quit my job and became a pilot instead, still a cog in the machinery but I don't dread going to work anymore.
what made you dislike your previous job so much?
Endless mundane paperwork and had to OT a lot, didn't feel fulfilled by the work and couldn't see myself doing 30 years of that
Thankfully, I did not have to start my full-time career as a 9-5. Realised really quickly that 9-5 was not for me during internship. Was in an FI doing mundane tasks, unrewarding, under appreciated. I am currently a private tutor. Working 3-10pm Tues-Fri, 9am-10pm Sat-Sun. Pay is much better than a fresh grad role, even in an FI, although growth is likely stagnant until you transition to a busines-like entity. Appreciated and rewarding. Parents see your worth, students celebrate when they do well. You see your efforts bear fruit. Recently, I got a bunch of gifts for teacher's day, so that was nice. The best part to me is the flexibility, I can take 3 months of continuous vacation every year. It's a sabbatical every year. A rare occurrence where your life goals match perfectly with your career. I get to do what I love, which is to visit all UN countries and find fulfillment in work while being decently paid.
I’m also interested in a similar path as you! how did you pack your schedule into a full time tutor?
start by applying for assignments through agencies, theres many. the idea is to build a connection of clients so you can be self-reliant. you have to apply to many assignments and discuss availability with the parents. It's like applying for interviews. Plan your daily 'route' well, gonna have to travel from one house to another, the closer to each other the better it is. parents love night lessons, but you can only fit 1 night lesson per day, so fit the highest valued one/least availability one there.
do you specialise in a subject and right now is it 1-1 for you since you mention that you do travel to houses!
do you specialise in a subject and right now is it 1-1 for you since you mention that you do travel to houses!
I do specialise in a subject, it is 1-1 for now at client house.
I do specialise in a subject, it is 1-1 for now at client house.
I worked as a creative manager at a local agency, when I realised I wanted to chase my dreams of making movies properly, I made sure I had sufficient savings (12 months), and made the jump, right into COVID (I didn't know it was going to happen...) The savings ended up being barely enough, because the intention was always to continue freelancing as a commercial director while writing the script for my movie. Thankfully, the freelance jobs market started picking up a bit for me, and I tided through till after I finished shooting my movie. I joined a local charity as middle management shortly after for a breath of fresh air, but eventually left the job again because I needed to focus on editing the movie (we weren't done at the point when I jumped back into a full-time role). Not sure about regrets so far, but I have had many fears about financial security and sometimes even loathed myself for wanting to chase a ridiculous dream, but what I realised is that I wanted to be doing a job where I was absolutely sure I was contributing to the world meaningfully, in a way that maybe only I could (and not in the cheesy "this is my destiny", or "this is my passion!!!" way). The only path towards figuring out whether my hopes and dreams were valid was to actually test them out and give it a shot (even with the amount of risk). The simplistic perspective here is that I simply didn't want to have any regrets in life. My movie recently had its world premiere in New York, and it's now about to screen in cinemas back here in Singapore!
wah I’m so happy for you, really the epitome of do it even if you’re scared 👏
hahah I'm terrified, and 100% ready to turn towards something else should this not work out. It sometimes feels like, the more scared I am, the more I should do it. If anything, simply because you'll make doubly sure that you're ready for the plunge, and you're ready to make it count. Compared to someone who isn't scared at all, and this attempt at doing something different with their lives actually doesn't mean that much to them at all
any intention to expand? 🥹
any intention to expand? 🥹
of course, i did some research and analysis with income per hour, expenditures, working hours, etc. Two of the most optimal methods are to have group lessons with you as the sole educator in a rented location and online group lessons again with you as the sole educator. You charge about 60-70% per hour of a 1-1 tuition, but you teach 2-4 tutee at a time. It's about twice as much per hour as a 1-1. goal is to teach remotely, so i can live abroad year-round and be a digital nomad instead of being bounded in sg.
of course, i did some research and analysis with income per hour, expenditures, working hours, etc. Two of the most optimal methods are to have group lessons with you as the sole educator in a rented location and online group lessons again with you as the sole educator. You charge about 60-70% per hour of a 1-1 tuition, but you teach 2-4 tutee at a time. It's about twice as much per hour as a 1-1. goal is to teach remotely, so i can live abroad year-round and be a digital nomad instead of being bounded in sg.
wow niceee, how long have u been doing this btw!
wow niceee, how long have u been doing this btw!
just started april this year, totally new to it
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