Are you a hunter or a gatherer?

I don’t agree with the “collecting things” concept - I would say that the distinction is rather in the relationship between the person and the objects. For a gatherer, owning the object is the goal, while getting the object is the more important aspect for a hunter. So a gatherer will own many things, among them trinkets that are easy to come by, and s/he will cherish the collection. But a hunter may own as much or as little as s/he has space for, since s/he doesn’t really care if (most of) the objects even remain, except as reminders of a great journey.

Aaaaanyway, I think I’m def. a hunter. Both my husband and I work, but he cooks while I stay late at work and go to conferences. Also because I was raised in a communist society, I love buying things, but I don’t really care for stuff once I have it. It’s just sort of there to remind me that I can buy it.

Obviously I’m fairly inexperienced in life, so at this point I’m more of a gatherer, as I’ve not really had to be out in the world as young adult. I just left school this year, so the last couple years have all about studying, not just the things I had to for school, bit also things I wanted to learn for myself, and continue to do so. I would say these are quite insular things.

However, I think I am showing hunter traits. I could have gone to college this month, but I’ve decided to put that on hold as the job I took in the summer is going well, and it appears there is a lot of opportunity there for me. I applied for several jobs before leaving school and got the one I wanted. It was the was the postion I put of my efforts into getting in terms of selling myself at interview. Sure it’s only been close to three months in the job, but I’ve taken on, and put myself forward for every available opportunity with relish, just joping as many skills as I can which will help me in the future. My contract is only fixed term until the end of October, but there’s a chance I will stay. If not then my next decision will be to pursure other full time work, or work part time alongside part-time education. I’ve always been fairly confident, but that confidence has really grown in the past couple of months. And it’s made me want to achieve good things for myself. I don’t know what I want to do with my life really, but it’s a start.

Thanks for this, interesting points. I can relate to your last one - a friend brought a friend from a former communist state to visit the UK some years back. A trip to a big supermarket proved overwhelming. Amongst other things, he bought 9 types of ham (all freshly sliced to order) - simply because he could. Suddenly he was a boy in a sweetshop, just a phase tho!

Understanding how to sell yourself is a good start. Most people struggle to work out their strengths and weaknesses enough to match them to the needs of an employer and a job role. Interviewing is a game, but the rules aren’t obvious until you’ve had a few. Be careful you aren’t selling yourself short by aiming too low. Your employer may be amazed at their luck in gaining your acceptance. Once you’ve done the job for a few months, you may find its future looks a bit repetitive. Try thinking about the job after next. What will you need to get it? What sort of job would you need next to make your cv fit the one after? Keep your eye on the job market while you work. Read the adverts in the newspapers; note how different types and levels of jobs appear in different newspapers. Look at the different levels of experience expected and where they seem to assume you’ll have gained the experience - there are often clues in the small print as to which types of education are most valued. You can always top up your education on the side, and your employer might see you as worth investing in by paying the fees and letting you have time off. If they’re prepared to pay, you’ll know you are valuable. At the very least, your first job may be a useful stepping stone to a bigger firm with more internal education and training opportunities. The big money still tends to go with a degree however, and the job market will be different in a few years time. Keep your options open as widely as you can for now, you can always focus later. An Open Univ degree is an option, and starts in easy steps, but you miss out on the intensive networking of student life in a regular univ. Keep your eyes, ears and mind open - check out how the older staff gained experience (or not); think about the paths they took and why. I wasn’t clear about my direction until 20, and I did a lot of research into it. I then changed my mind again at 23, which was when it finally seemed to click into place. I kept my eye on the internal and external opportunities market all through my career. Always pick things you’ll enjoy. 40h a week doing non-fun stuff is a bad place to be….

Thanks for the advice. I’m in my first real job, and right now it’s all about picking up a little bit of exprience, and just learning. At the moment I’m enjoying it, I suppose because it’s fresh and new, and varied enough to keep me focused. But yes, I plan on keeping an open mind, and hopefully one day I’ll figure out what I want to do.

Not entirely sure… Although I most definately have the hunter-gatherer gene, curtesy of my polynesian father! From your description I would say I am mostly the gatherer type, although I am not a shopaholic and I definately do not avoid eye-contact. Though Im not fearless enough to put myself in the hunter category!

i think im more of a hunter. i love to go out and take the world as it comes. im a git er done kind of person. very direct and straight forward with my thoughts and actions. thats a good question by the way. good question to reflect on.