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Recent INTP college grads: are you having as hard a time as I am?

7K views 24 replies 16 participants last post by  anarchitektur 
#1 ·
According to typelogic.com:

"A major concern for INTPs is the haunting sense of impending failure. They spend considerable time second-guessing themselves."

Since graduating from college about a year ago and coming into the "real world," I have had a ridiculously horrendous and difficult time finding a job. Yes, the job market sucks, but I seem to suck at finding a job, too. Every once in a while I'll land an interview, get excited, and then within about 20 minutes of being notified, I'll proceed to freak out and get anxious about the possibility of me hating the job and potentially being miserable and then go to bed thinking meh..I don't really want the job anyway. Seems like all of the interviewers can smell half-heartedness from miles away and then-whaddaya know-I am passed over in favor of Mr./Ms. ENTJ. I have spent the last year and a half second-guessing all of my career moves (I have spent most of the last year in my room, on my computer, agonizing about making a decision)..

Econ consultant..econ professor? Professor....of something. No, screw that. PhD Philosophy! Well..then I'll just end up with mounds of debt..but that's ok, I can just bartend in the meantime. Bartend? LOL. no way. Ok, lawyer..I can probably kill the LSATs..language, logic and words FTW! On second thought, ew..I'd have to deal with people all day, every day. Statistician..yes, that'll work..I can just sit at my desk and analyze data all day, thereby minimizing awkward workplace interaction, avoid trying to "be a leader," etc. Then again...I'm not that good at math.

I'm just wondering if there are other like-minded folks out there who have dealt with/are dealing with a similar issue and, if there are, hoping you'll share your experience. Or, if you have actually made a decision about what you want to do, how did you go about doing it?
 
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#3 ·
Start a business.

Get some smart SJs to work for you. It'll free your mind from all the stress.

And it's a constant challenge, which makes it rewarding. There's so many different things that need done which keeps it from being monotonous.

Use earnings as a way to keep score. The more you put into it, the more you make. Quite the opposite of most jobs.
 
#4 ·
INB4: "I'm too much of a lazy asshat to do that kind of work."

I wholeheartedly agree, though.
 
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#5 ·
I had the same exact thing when I graduated college. My thought loop got stuck on "what I choose will determine the REST OF MY LIFE" and I couldn't get past the fact that I had to choose very, very wisely. I also felt I didn't know myself, or the world enough to know what I wanted my role in it to be. I had also had a shitty job that had taught me that you are what you do.... anything that you do on a daily basis effects the person you are. If you are a salesman and tell half truths to sell your product, you start doing that in your private life too. So I spend YEARS in dead end jobs not knowing what direction to go in. It wasn't until I was 27 - 28 or so that I finally got out of waitressing and into my current job (teaching).

I was finally able to pick a direction when I told myself that I didn't have to do that career path for the rest of my life. I gave myself a limit... I would try it for at least 5 years, and at that point I'd reevaluate. 5 years later I'm still teaching and have been able to combine it with my other passion, travel.

My best advice, give yourself some time to figure it out. Take stupid jobs now and make sure that when you do pick a direction that it's in line with your values and what you like to do on an everyday basis.

And then finally, give yourself a break. I mentally berated myself for years for being so indecisive but by taking that time I ended up doing something I really enjoy. My other friends that jumped into careers right out of college all seem to be in jobs that they dislike or ended up changing their career paths anyway.
 
#6 ·
I'm currently in the position of being a college drop out, and figuring out what the fuck I am going to do to take care of myself. I literally have eight weeks before I'm kicked out on the streets. I'm thinking of either heading over to the west coast to bum it for a while, or heading up north. I'll probably make my decision last minute since I don't plan far ahead. My advice is to stop second guessing, do what you think you want to do, and if it doesn't work out, start over. Time is your only wealth.
 
#8 ·
Econ consultant..econ professor? Professor....of something. No, screw that. PhD Philosophy! Well..then I'll just end up with mounds of debt..but that's ok, I can just bartend in the meantime. Bartend? LOL. no way. Ok, lawyer..I can probably kill the LSATs..language, logic and words FTW! On second thought, ew..I'd have to deal with people all day, every day. Statistician..yes, that'll work..I can just sit at my desk and analyze data all day, thereby minimizing awkward workplace interaction, avoid trying to "be a leader," etc. Then again...I'm not that good at math.
I'm still in high school, but this is almost EXACTLY how my mind is working while trying to figure out what I even want to go to college for. I can't even imagine what kind of hell it will be when I graduate.

I really have no advice for you, as I'm still trying to figure everything out myself. But you're not alone, at least.
 
#10 ·
I see your dilemma, maybe some considerations will help.
If you haven't gone to graduate school, I would recommend it. INTPs love graduate school, it's kind of our thing:) If you can't choose between economics or philosophy, I would say the job prospects for economics might be slightly better. Both are fascinating fields that you will likely enjoy. Better yet, get degrees in both. When in doubt become a professional student!

In my opinion, Economics meshes pretty well with law. Many public policy interests are focused around economically efficient outcomes. I think lawyers spend most of their time researching and writing. Yes, they have to deal with people regularly but that's not the bulk of the work.
 
#11 ·
I think it's way harder for us to decide on anything because we're hyper-aware of all the different things we could be doing, the potential consequences of whatever decision we make, and all the different ways it could not work out. Others who might be equally aware possess the magic ability to shrug it all off and make a decision anyway.

It seems to me that college was pretty useless in terms of giving me marketable skills that employers actually look for. Unless you choose something fairly technical like engineering or architecture, I don't think it matters much what you end up studying in college. I had the best time exploring and figuring things out during my undergraduate years..college really provides you with the space and resources to develop your INTP-ness..an academic setting is the only one where it's socially acceptable to spend hours researching stuff lol. So, definitely pick something you think you'll like learning about. You can always supplement your courses with internships if later on you find you're particularly interested in something.

this was in response to luxurieux..I'm not sure yet how this reply thing works
 
#13 ·
Since graduating from college about a year ago and coming into the "real world," I have had a ridiculously horrendous and difficult time finding a job. Yes, the job market sucks, but I seem to suck at finding a job, too. Every once in a while I'll land an interview, get excited, and then within about 20 minutes of being notified, I'll proceed to freak out and get anxious about the possibility of me hating the job and potentially being miserable and then go to bed thinking meh..I don't really want the job anyway. Seems like all of the interviewers can smell half-heartedness from miles away and then-whaddaya know-I am passed over in favor of Mr./Ms. ENTJ. I have spent the last year and a half second-guessing all of my career moves (I have spent most of the last year in my room, on my computer, agonizing about making a decision)..

Econ consultant..econ professor? Professor....of something. No, screw that. PhD Philosophy! Well..then I'll just end up with mounds of debt..but that's ok, I can just bartend in the meantime. Bartend? LOL. no way. Ok, lawyer..I can probably kill the LSATs..language, logic and words FTW! On second thought, ew..I'd have to deal with people all day, every day. Statistician..yes, that'll work..I can just sit at my desk and analyze data all day, thereby minimizing awkward workplace interaction, avoid trying to "be a leader," etc. Then again...I'm not that good at math.

I think it's way harder for us to decide on anything because we're hyper-aware of all the different things we could be doing, the potential consequences of whatever decision we make, and all the different ways it could not work out. Others who might be equally aware possess the magic ability to shrug it all off and make a decision anyway.
Translation: I'm lazy.
 
#12 ·
Just do what I plan on doing. Find a job that pays well, use your money for a hobby you want to do, save up a bit, and after you get enough, say 'screw it' and go do your thing for a while until money runs out. Then get the same/different job and restart. It allows you to have really long vacations. I'm most likely doing IT or Network Penetration as a career, getting a degree in Computer Science, and psychology as a hobby.

All a job really is is something to pay the bills. It is not like you are looking for your perfect match. Grab whatever pays the best and use the money for what you like. If I ever learn the basics (after college application and finishing of high school) of building robots, I can add that I will have completely animated my future house/apartment. Lasers, moving doors, a giant projector connected to multiple computers running virtual machines for coding, servers, gaming, TV, a good sound system, and most likely have various other robots/gadgets around it. Seriously, if I had that, I could live off of raman.
 
#15 ·
I just follow the logical flow, in a sense. My highschool focuses on science, which I don't particularly dislike or sucks at. This leads me to getting a degree in biotechnology. I like medical stuffs and performs well in molecular biology and labs. Thus I applied to be a research assistant in medical molecular biology institute, thanks to a friend of mine who suggested the place. Six month later I've become a student in said institute. In a year I'm expected to finish my labworks and start on my thesis. The weird thing is, I didn't plan all of these.

Too many what-ifs leads me to depression, I've learnt the hard way.
 
#19 ·
No, I know what I'm doing and I have a plan to get there. One day I decided to stop fooling around and to stop waiting for the future to come to me. I picked a graduate degree that will lead me directly to work in a field expected to grow. The population I chose to work with will provide plenty of income. I also have an exciting back up plan.
 
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