as McMahon pointed out you have more options than you may think.
but besides that: my story is quite similar as yours. nearly 24, i worked for a swiss bank (i'm living in switzerland) for 4 years doing some coding. at one point i realized this ain't my life anymore. so i tried to make up my mind, what my further way should be. _after_ getting some perspective i quit the job, went for some travelling to the US (4 months, you guys have a nice countryside over there, even though i would not want to work there, since you have quite a little social security etc.). came back and since then i am studying again (universitiy for applied science). that's the story.

now. right now, i'm feeling kinda clueless about my future. i feel i'm fed up with the cubicle thing (even though we don't have cubicles over here). but then again i know i better try to find a way to deal with it. since i do not want to live on an alp and eat grass. i thought about making my own business, but _hey_ that's just another kind of cubicle. you'll be stressed. you'll have customers you don't like (and they're the boss). you'll work way to much and won't be in the trees.
long story short: find a way dealing with it. try to find out what's bothering you the most. is it your colleagues? is it your boss? is it hierarchy in general? is it the cubicle atmosphere? _what_ is it? as soon as you'll get more specific with it, it'll go away and/or you'll suddenly see a way to get away from it. You can't escape your culture but TIMTOWTDI.

as for me: i'm still studying, concentrating most on the things i like there. besides that i'm doing some aikido (TIMTOWTDI is the key there too). living in a big house. doing lots of cooking and gardening. having some freelance things to do to get some money to live with.

In reply to Re: Advice on escaping Corporate America / Starting own consultancy outfit? by zetetes
in thread OT: Advice on escaping Corporate America / Starting own consultancy outfit? by flyingmoose

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