Stop take some time to think, figure out what's important to you!

So I found a new band the other day called Against Me. And one of there songs has constantly been in my head called Stop! And with that, the words of the chorus have also been in my head
http://www.myspace.com/againstme

Stop! Take some time to think, figure out what’s important to you.
Stop! Take some time to think, figure out what’s important to you.
Stop! Take some time to think, figure out what’s important to you.
You’ve got to make a serious decision.

All the decisions I've made so far have been easy..because they have been short term decisions. Work exchange in Denmark? Why not, it'd be cool to experience Europe for 6 months. Take a job in Olympia? Sure, it'll be great experience for when I go to grad school. Move to France for another year of school? Of course, give me a chance to learn French, experience French culture, specialize in Aeronautics.

But now, looking ahead to this summer and fall...I've got some really big decisions to make...and I'm completely lost. Where am I going to work?

Stay in Europe? Go to America? Go back to Canada? I just don't know. All have their advantages and disadvantages. On one hand the money in America is better. But on the other hand the 'perks' such as vacation are much better here in Europe. For instance here in France, at Airbus you gather holidays at a rate of between 2-3 days per month!! That's around 30 vacation days per year!! In America...maybe you get 4-5 days after working there one year. If you work at a company for 3-4 years, perhaps you get 2 weeks.

Average salary here in Europe for a new grad in Aeronautics is in the 30,000 - 35,000 Euro range. Whereas in America or Canada I should be able to get $48,000 - 55,000. (Keep in mind this is not the OIL business...for all my friends who are already making much more then that).

I don't even know the type of company I want to go to. Big company, small company, large transport aircraft, small private aircraft, business jets, airliners, manufacturing, design, management....ahhhhhh. I've worked for the small company in Soloy and I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed being able to work a little bit on everything, the close atmosphere, being in the engineering office, then walking down the stairs and actually working ON the plane. Going in the air for flight tests, then coming back to the office to analyze it. But i'm sure big companies have their advantages also. My internship will be for Airbus, which is a big as they get, so hopefully this work experience will give me some comparison to make up my mind.

But then also comes the location. There are some small airplane companies that I think would be fun to work for, but their locations...although I shouldn't prejudge, aren't exactly high profile locations. Such as Cirrus in Duluth Minnesota, or Cessna in Wichita Kansas, or Diamond Aircraft in London Ontario..and many more. It seems small manufacturers in order to manage costs often set up shop in smaller cities. Not that I think there is anything wrong with these cities, it's just that at this point in my life i.e. single 25yr old, I imagine myself in a big city. A city with sports teams, theater, night life, restaurants, clubs and organizations, travel options....etc....And as I found out when I was in Olympia you need both parts of your life to be 'good' to be really happy. Because in Olympia the job was great, I loved it, but the after work time was boring as I simply couldn't find anything to really get into in Olympia.

However, I also really like Europe. Everything is so close, and yet you take a 2hr plane ride and you can be in a completely new culture. New food, new people, new language, new architecture. It's incredible. If I have a 3 day weekend I can hop on a flight and in 3hrs be in London, Berlin, Madrid, Paris, Stockholm, Budapest, Rome. It's incredible to have so many places so close. And then back to work Monday morning!

And Toulouse is a really great city that is big enough to have everything, but small enough you can go anywhere in the city in 30minutes with metro/bus/car. And the location is great, 2hrs from the Atlantic Coast, 2 hrs from the Mediterranean coast, 3hrs to Barcelona, 5hrs by train to Paris, 1.5 hrs to the Pyranese Mountains, 5hrs from the Alps. And the weather is nice, not extremely hot in the summer (+26C avg) and not cold in the winter (-2C is as low as it got, although I still would love to have some snow in the winter).

But then going back to the other hand. There's a lot of things I miss about Canadian and American culture. And it would be really nice to be a 2hr plane ride from Edmonton rather then a 17hr plane ride (with 3 airplane changes and 6 times the price). I would love to live in Vancouver or Seattle or Montreal. All cities with a lot of Aerospace options, but closer to home and with all great things Canadian i.e. Hockey, Football and Pancakes.

And I could go on and on, putting pro's and con's either way. So you can see my dilemma. And I can't help but think of it....

I guess the only thing I can do, is just start applying to anywhere and everywhere in the summer. Big companies, small companies, big planes, small planes, big cities, small cities, North American cities, European cities. And then wait and see what comes back. Then put them all on a dartboard and throw a dart :P Just kidding about that last part, I'd rather make my own fate :D

But if anyone has any advice I'd be more then happy to hear it.

Cheers all

Logan

P.S. of course there could always been some other influences...such as if I meet a really great girl between now and when decision time comes :)