Why don't more people do jobs which pay more?

United States
February 26, 2012 5:15pm CST
I constantly see people's facebook posts and hear them taking about how they dont have enough money, or that they are worrying about money. When there are jobs out there that definitely pay a LOT! of money, why dont more people take these jobs? Why do people work the minimum wage jobs, or go through the military, only to not be able to get the job they want, for their degree? Is it fear of oneself? Of not being good enough? I know the money is there, but people dont want to do them? Is that what it is? For me I used to not want to go to school, which is what I do. But I looked at the jobs that would have probably been mine, and I said to myself "I have to work for the rest of my life. Do I want to work a job I dont want, or put the same energy and effort into something I love or would rather do, and make more?"
1 person likes this
13 responses
@thezone (9394)
• Ireland
26 Feb 12
Have you seen the state of things at the moment?
1 person likes this
@Mashnn (4501)
27 Feb 12
That is true, I have known people who are very educated and would probably find a very promising job but are not willing even to apply for any job and prefer doing those low paying jobs. I think it is because they are more comfortable with those jobs rather than been employed.
• United States
27 Feb 12
Wow yeah awesome, great. Thanks everyone for commenting. I know work is hard to find. I for sure know first hand. I think I mentioned that I have had three jobs in 7 years, all of which I had to know someone to get, and my brother, had 4 in 7 years and he had to know someone to get all 4 of those jobs. Otherwise your name ends up in a stack of sheets and ignored unless somehow your name can stick out. There has got to be a way that more jobs can be created. And why do we have a money standard? People say that if everyone had all the money in the world, some people wouldnt work. That is ridiculous. I know people, myself included, who love to work. I am a student and I work and if I wish I were payed but I'm not. It's kinda like being a slave who loves his school studies lol. However, you know that sayng all work and no play does make Jack a dull boy, some times :)
@Mashnn (4501)
27 Feb 12
I believe there are genuine people who hire on merits rather than you have to have someone to connect you. I enjoy working too if I find the right job that I enjoy.
• Philippines
26 Feb 12
Job opportunities these days are scarce, especially to those who wish to pursue their careers as artists, engineers, architects, the typical jobs that don't really offer openings that frequently. Along these lines, you'll have to be young and experienced at the same time in order for you to get the job. These industries are setting their bar higher and higher and all you can do is keep up with them. All of us have dream jobs but that's why we call them dream jobs -- because dreams are hard to reach.
• United States
26 Feb 12
Dreams are hard to reach? How many actors, singers, sports athletes do you know that have stories of hating their jobs, working with bad co workers, hate their boss, get screwed out of something? Hardly any! Now, what do you want to be an architect or what? Do you really want to go to school and learn nothing pertaining to that job for two years, then devote all your time to that job? I'd think not, unless you like being a robot. I think people these days are stuck thinking they have to do things that they somewhat enjoy, not things that bring them true satisfaction. What do yo think?
@crossbones27 (48434)
• Mojave, California
26 Feb 12
That is simple everyone wants jobs that pays more. The problem is where are the jobs that pay more? I am sure there are some out there that most people do not qualify for. If they do, usually these employers say things like you do not have the experience we are looking for. Its all about money these days and many employers are not looking to pay that much that is why they keep sending our jobs overseas. So if you find job openings that actually pay people fair wage, why not post them here on Mylot. Where I live it is hard to to find a job that pays much more than minimum wage to start out for the average person.
• United States
26 Feb 12
I think the greater service you render, the better you are payed. Look at fast food clerks. They get payed almost nothing, but actors get payed everything. Ever gone into a mcdonalds and loved the food and the experience so much that you wanted to come back every day? Not many people do. But people watch tv and movies every day and they love the acting, they love the shows, they love the music, and the action, the drama, etc and the ones who give the service receive whatever they want.
@coffeebreak (17798)
• United States
28 Feb 12
I can tell you that is not always true on your "greater the service you render, the better you are payed"....my husband is in constuction...35 years. Started as laborer and worked his way up to Superintendent. Been unemployed for years now...why? OVER QUALIFIED. No one wants to pay someone to work for them that knows more than they do. THey are afraid of their own job. If the owner sees the new guy having more ability to give the company...he might let the other guy go. So that "other guy" doesn't hire someone more qualified than him so he keeps his rank in the company. I know this from fact. I have seen idiots stay on the job, while they layed off my husband as they thought they'd gotten all the needed from him, they could now just tell the idiots what to do. PRoblem is.,they never got the point of why the jobs always went over budget and out of schedule after they layed my husband off. No one left knew what to do, so things didn't get done. But keep the incompetant, and let the competant go. I have found him jobs on online searches and when hed have an interview..the company wanted one mad to do the job of three..thereby getting the work of three done with the payment of one salary. Then the salary offered was so low, it wasn't worth the gas and time it'd take to get to the job every day. So, I beg to differ... the "good" jobs are few and far between and also...AGE has its ugly head in there. The manager isn't going to hire someone older than he is. A company isn't going t hire an olde person as oppsed to that younger one...why? The older one will want more money to pay for his talents. The younger one won't want as much as they are just starting out. Plus, they figure the older one will retire soon, the younger one will stay longer.
@sweetajlo (175)
• Philippines
26 Feb 12
if all people have job i guess there is no problem then since all of the people can afford to buy everything they needed for, but unfortunately not all could afford to go to school, not all could even finish elementary, not all are rich...means we are not equal at all...here in my place i could the situation you are talking with, many complain about money even those who have regular jobs are still complaining about money...though how high or low the salary is still not enough coz they are not contented of what they already have...some also finish and got a degree but sorry to tell they can't easily got a job coz they don't have any popular people that would help them got that job as well as some companies now are getting those with high expertise, and have advance skills, that was the most freshers worry about as they are started to climb on that ladder of experience...finding a job now is not that easy coz they don't mind how excellent you are in your field but they look at the other side of the coin then...life, its life and it is up to us or me to balance everything i have do though it is not enough but atleast i could provide the basic needs...
• United States
27 Feb 12
No it's not. You and most everyone else have given themselves the task of making things work, yet things rarely work. It's easy, if you want to make it easy. By the way why do say "a" job? No one wants "a" job and that is why these jobs are not here. People want dream jobs, and those are ones they must try for when the ones they do not want are not available. Kinda looks a little flip flopped huh? Decades ago, one might be wondering why the "a" jobs are are available and why the dream jobs are not. They are available. Look for it, and you will find :)
@beenice2 (2967)
• Sackville, New Brunswick
27 Feb 12
Think here that if you around 50 years of age like me and my husband, there is places that won't take you because you are considered old, very strange the society view things, and than if you have religious believe that you are working on a certain day of the week well some don't like to work around that, which is there problems,and another one is you can't keep going back to school all your life either,you come to a point of thinking I have certain talents and I have some aptitudes but, don't have them all, and than life gets into it things happens, well I don't mean to give up but being realistic, I encourage my husband to do what he can, and to not give up, it is not easy to find a job that pays if they don't call you back when you apply for the job too you know, we believe that God is taking care of us .
• United States
28 Feb 12
Yeah that is true. But hey, at least those people who are out of a job can do something else they like more :) May as well do what you joy in if you cant have work. Better than worrying I think.
@dodo19 (47082)
• Beaconsfield, Quebec
27 Feb 12
It certainly isn't easy to get work these days. I know a lot of people who have been looking for work for a long time and still haven't manage to get anything. For some, it may not be because they don't want to work, but because they are looking very hard and just can't find the work.
@myfb2009 (8296)
• Malaysia
27 Feb 12
Hi Jas, nowadays having a good job is not easy as it is very competitive. Since everyone of us needs money to survive, so able to grab any kind of job is alright. Everyone of us are left with no better choice. Since there are lots of bills to be paid as well as food to be buy for living, that's why you will see people willing to work for lower paid job. As long everyone of us able to juggle our time well, we can work a few jobs at a time, to earn as much money for survive. Since the standard of living is going higher day by day.
@maezee (41997)
• United States
27 Feb 12
I agree in a sense, but I don't think there are THAT many well paying jobs. A lot of us are stuck making minimum wage and that's the best we can do at the moment. However, I dislike when people complain about things (especially on Facebook, for all to see), when clearly they are not doing anything to change their situation. I have a friend who is ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS complaining about how bad her job is - how little she is paid, how she is overworked, and so on - and she's been there about 3 years from what I know - but whenever I forward job openings I see online where the pay is better, she flat out rejects them. I think some people just like to complain. . Anyway, happy MyLotting!
@beamer88 (4259)
• Philippines
27 Feb 12
I understand what you're trying to say. In a very ideal world, we should be doing this. We should go out and take jobs that pay a lot, not apply or work for some job that pays barely the minimum and that we're not happy with. But reality-wise, those high-paying jobs out there aren't really that many. Only a few are hired for those lucrative positions. The rest just have to take the next best thing - having a job that helps pay the bills.
@jaiho2009 (39142)
• Philippines
27 Feb 12
Reality is, the world is in crisis at this time. There might be job available, but, it doesn't matter that anyone can apply for any jobs that they do not have any idea what kind of job it is. How can someone apply for an Engineering job when he or she did not even finished college. So,no matter how people wanted to have a job, if they are eligible for those vacancy- what can they do.
• United States
27 Feb 12
I am not sure where you are living, but in the United States the economy is bad and there are not many jobs available now. Many people have to take minimum wage jobs because there is not much available and many feel that a low job is better than no job. I have a Masters degree in education and cannot find a teaching job. I am working towards a second Masters and hope that by the time I am done again I will be able to work. In many cases it is not that we don't want better paying jobs, but we have no choice and have to take what we can get.
@vexxus (712)
• Philippines
27 Feb 12
Personally I Do not work on a High Paying establishment, so my basic salary is low, but what keeps me on doing this job every day is because I am love doing it, and I don't find it boring to give it up, the salary may not suffice but all I can say is that it is not that stressful jobs and there less obligation and there are no deadline to meet, no quota and my coworkers have that sense of responsibility and they are indeed understanding to sum it all up, good friendship is actually a key ingredient in my case, that keeps me not to look for jobs that can pay me more.