Jacks_Purpose

I've been talking to recruiters for years now. Occasionally I am asked the question "Ideally, what are you looking for in your next job?". Without too much thought I respond with something like "A job that challenges me". That alone is nothing worth noting. But a couple of recruiters casually offered me a moment of insight. One of them interjected while I was thinking of my answer. They said "It is acceptable to say you just want money". And in the other instance they guy said he hoped I had gotten the job because I asked for something more than just a paycheck.

So I wonder to my self, how many applicants do these companies get that really have no passion for their work? From what I have noticed, it seems to be the vast majority. Most of the jobs I get called about only ask for someone who can vomit code. If you know anything about me, you know how much I would hate those kind of positions. But everyone has their place, some people want to work those kind of jobs.

Recently I have been reading Good to Great (by Jim Collins) recently and been letting some of those ideas float around in my brain. And it goes in great length to explain that great companies have people who really care about what they are doing. And I clearly fall into that category. Even with the last job I did. I was getting paid crap but my heart and soul was in the project. The end result was just a glorified prototype but I am damn proud of it.

I would be a very valuable employee when put in the right place. So why doesn't anyone see that? Why do I keep hearing about these crappy jobs?