alright, a lot of career talk on people's blogs lately. after seeing jason's comment, reading dave's entry , and steve's entry , i realized that nobody really knows what i do either. not that anyone cares, but hopefully it will give you an idea why i love my job.

when i started at my company, i was in charge of anything related to numbers. if it had anything to do with reporting, analytics, metrics, budget, marketing research... it was my responsibility. the nerd in the back with the calculator, yes, that's me. and proud of it. i thought it was awesome that so early in my career, i had the responsibility to make very important decisions. recently, i've been given the opportunity to have more responsibility - managing our entire frequent flier program. so along with all my previous duties, i now have to manage anything that has to do with our 3 million member plus program, including relationships with all our partners (credit cards, car rental companies, etc.), the brochures that you pick up at the airport, the membership kits you receive when you get your card, handling all the problems with our website, e-mails, revenue line items, another budget, etc. etc. etc. so from a career standpoint, it's great because i am probably the youngest person with this role in my industry. i'm learning a TON, and can probably leverage my experience really well to whatever other profession i choose to move to.

but here's the real reason why i love my job (aside from the people i work with) - and i think the same goes for dave and steve. our results are visible and have a relatively quick turnaround... or in other words, we make a noticeable difference. whenever i make a decision, it is a very public decision that effects many people. the same goes for steve - he makes/fixes/resurrects buildings and bridges, which is also very public. it is also relatively quick, and you can literally see the progress being made. with dave, his results are not only visible, but dramatic as well.

there is of course, the x-factor that has not been discussed - personality. it is very possible that someone in a similar position as ours is not satisfied... so maybe it's just that the three of us has learned to be content in life. maybe it's the other way around - people with our type of personalities fit into our type of work best. so in summary, steve is dumb.