Which job sectors do people work in ?

I wasn't diagnosed until last year, but I studied Computer Science at University in the early 1980s, then spent the next 30 years working in programming & data analysis as I seemed to have a natural aptitude for it.

As I got older, the recommended career path was to move into management, but that never really appealed to me & companies I worked for thought I was too useful doing the data work, as I have a very good eye for fine detail & could handle problems in client data very quickly.

That strategy is fine as long as you stay working for the same company, but at least in my experience, the IT industry is horribly ageist & if you haven't made the move to management before you turn 40, it becomes increasingly harder to find another job if you get made redundant. Employers assume older programmers are 'past it' & usually prefer younger ones, even when they have far less experience.

I am now in my mid 50s & have been suffering from severe depression for several years. Until earlier this year, I had been working from home doing part-time programming & analysis work for a previous employer, but that has now finished & I am unemployed.

I am currently living off my savings until I feel well enough to go back to work, but have pretty much given up the thought of being able to get back into programming professionally. Not sure what I will end up doing next, probably working in a supermarket I guess.

Working in a supermarket sounds like it could be fun. I love looking at what people buy and did apply for a job in a supermarket once so I could indulge in my interest in what people buy but I didn’t get the job so hopefully you’ll have more luck than me. 

Working in a supermarket sounds like it could be fun. I love looking at what people buy and did apply for a job in a supermarket once so I could indulge in my interest in what people buy but I didn’t get the job so hopefully you’ll have more luck than me. 

Ooooo, that doesn’t sound like fun. That’s maybe why I didn’t get the job ~ it would have shattered my illusions of my idea of the perfect little job. Lol!

I got a job waitressing after that attempt at getting a job and I loved that job, although it wasn’t something I could do long term or probably ever again as I found it utterly exhausting, in so many ways. But I did enjoy it and I learned a lot in the few months I was there and I’d like to go back to the hotel again sometime, but this time as a guest! But that experience holds good memories and was my reintroduction back into society after a previous burnout/self isolation situation so I will always be grateful for that experience, it gave me a lot. Although it didn’t pay much money so I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it long term as I wouldn’t be able to work enough hours to even come close to it meeting my financial needs, but it was fun while it lasted. 

I worked in a supermarket for 6 months once.  It was the hardest work I've ever had to do.  The demands and the pressure were intense.  I only worked part-time - 18 hours a week - but it felt like 40 hours for all that.  I used to come home after shift, utterly spent, and collapse into sleep.  Some shifts, I was alone - doing the work of 2 or even 3 people.  That's how they keep their prices down.  Wring as much as they can out of the smallest number of staff possible.

Haha, don’t forget, I live in a different world and seriously, it would have been my dream job at that time. I wouldn’t have stayed too long, I never do and I move around a lot so I wouldn’t be looking at it long term. But yeah, I would have enjoyed it but I would have probably got the sack anyways as I would probably have been educating people about their shopping choices! Lol! 

Your story reminds me of the one my brother in law told. He’s a fireman and was called to a food factory that makes scotch eggs and some other things and to this day, he’s never eaten any of those products again! I eat raw fresh fruit and veg so I don’t have to worry about frozen food and scotch eggs although I’ll be happier when I grow my own food :) 

Working in a supermarket sounds like it could be fun. I

*cough* Er... educational, in a euphemistic sense.

I was unable to bring myself to eat any frozen food, especially ice-cream, after a part-time job at the local supermarket whilst I was still at school. It took a couple of years to get over it.