What is Your RL Occupation and Does it Help Your Second Life and How?

[Prokofy Neva]

I'll start:

Russian Translator

Rarely (especially nowadays with the war in Ukraine), I get a Russian-speaking customer I can speak with. (Very few Russians-from-Russia are left in SL because the cost got too great, and they simply had trouble even connecting, and they don't have access to credit cards any more.)

What's more useful is the study of Soviet/Russian history and culture that goes with learning the language as it directly applies in many cases, and making this observation isn't conspiracy theory but journalism.

I also worked at the Xerox factory in Webster; the 7/11 on the late shift; strawberry picking; various coffee shops and restaurants; the CVS (pharmacy); the US Post Office, etc. and these customer-facing menial jobs gave me rich preparation for the tenants of SL.

Edited July 31 by Prokofy Neva

[Cinnamon Mistwood]

Nothing about my real life jobs translate to SL. 

I have, however, learned some tech things in SL that have helped me in RL.

I don't suppose being an octopus keeper or working with dangerous animals has many crossovers.

Not even being a stage manager for a theater helps. I'm on my own with my learning.

I have zero real life tech skills that help me with SL.

Edited July 31 by Cinnamon Mistwood
Spelling

[Cube Republic]

Second life content creator!

I studied botany , geology then decided to be an artist and took design degree and got sick at university with one of the worlds most painful diseases, so now I do this full time. I'm not complaining , I truly love what I'm doing. 

So yeah all my studies in earth sciences and being an artist all came together in a useful way for second life. 

[Arielle Popstar]

Semi retired

It helps me have the time to look for something in SL to complain about in the forums!

[Scylla Rhiadra]

Teacher of English literature; formerly I worked at a historical site.

Um, no idea if it's been useful to me or not here. I did for several years own a bookstore in SL that sold "digital texts" of works by women (a combination of book objects that linked to online texts, or notecard-based texts), so I guess that counts?

I have been involved with running a feminist group almost from the time I've been here, and my academic training has been important for that.

Oh, and as a graduate student long ago I was given some basic training in XML (for encoding literary texts), so that's been a bit useful, I guess? But only personally.

I dunno. These are all important parts of who I am, and if I have made any contribution to the virtual lives of anyone in SL, that's in part owing to these, I suppose?

[Love Zhaoying]

RL programmer.

Scripting.

 

[Luna Bliss]

I've always loved nature and creating gardens. Some even paid me to create their garden after seeing my RL garden.  This translated easily into SL, having a gardening store and creating gardens for others here.

Edited July 31 by Luna Bliss

[Luna Bliss]

8 minutes ago, Cube Republic said:

I studied botany , geology then decided to be an artist and took design degree

I didn't know that about you!  Cool...

[Freckles Fairelander]

A long string of things all somehow related to customer service, but the one that was partially responsible for bringing me into SL was as a Library Technician. I was considering grad school so I could be a full librarian, and at least one MLS program had a presence here. I'm unsure if they still do. The other part was related to my part-time job at the time. A group of folks in my religious denomination started a church in SL, I worked a few hours a week in the denomination, and I was curious.

My current occupation and SL don't relate at all.

[Cube Republic]

 

1 minute ago, Luna Bliss said:

I didn't know that about you!  Cool...

Oh yeah, I was going to be a geologist, got accepted to one of the best universities in UK, then decided I wanted to be an artist so had to go back and do another set of A levels to get on an art degree, then decided a designer would be better, then when I was at university studying design I got trigeminal neuralgia which sucked. I found SL and that was that, 100% complete immersion and escapism. Then I got quite a well paid job back in the day doing big gigs in SL for a company called Remedy run by an avi called Dusan Writer.  That lasted a few years, the neuraligia didn't/hasn't gone away and almost 20 years later I'm here in Brazil, surrounded by plants I love. Funny plants I used to fantasise about seeing real life when I'd buy them from Hearts back in the day, with wonderous names I'd never heard of like 'Lobster Claws' lol .

[Extrude Ragu]

BDSM (Business Development, Sales and Marketing)

It helps me make hard and fast decisions...

[Cougar Sangria]

I have a Master's Degree in Nursing (I am a Retired Nurse Practitioner caring for my wheelchair-bound mother) and a Bachelor's Degree in Language Arts. I have also spent decades in the Textile Arts industry doing Custom Garments, Heirloom Sewing, Quilting, and Machine Embroidery, after graduating from FIT in NYC. SL is my escape. I don't want to create anything other than what I need in my region.

[Scylla Rhiadra]

2 minutes ago, Cougar Sangria said:

I have a Master's Degree in Nursing (I am a Retired Nurse Practitioner caring for my wheelchair-bound mother) and a Bachelor's Degree in Language Arts. I have also spent decades in the Textile Arts industry doing Custom Garments, Heirloom Sewing, Quilting, and Machine Embroidery, after graduating from FIT in NYC. SL is my escape. I don't want to create anything other than what I need in my region.

As undeniably important and valuable your training as a nurse is (because you help people!), I am soooo jealous of your training at FIT! What a very cool background to have!

[Cougar Sangria]

8 minutes ago, Scylla Rhiadra said:

As undeniably important and valuable your training as a nurse is (because you help people!), I am soooo jealous of your training at FIT! What a very cool background to have!

I enjoyed learning much-needed skills, but the "rag business" was not for me.  Too cut-throat.  After graduating, I returned to my fly-over state of Indiana.

Edited July 31 by Cougar Sangria

[Sid Nagy]

I was a teacher in RL. Now unemployed/retired.
I used the creativite part of my former profession in SL.

[Rolig Loon]

It's nice to see that someone else had a background in geology, although my particular brand of geology was more chemical than go-out-and-bang-on-a-rock. I haven't done any of that since the 90's though, and was an administrator until I retired 17 years ago and discovered SL.  The bottom line is that little of my RL work life is very relevant to SL, except that it all kept me busy with computers.  Hence scripting here.

[Theresa Tennyson]

I've done a lot of stuff.

It helps me do a lot of stuff.

[Tjay Wicken]

Third-Party Risk Management. While it does not translate to any direct skill benefiting my SL, I do like to think that the personality traits and practical skills it has brought me (and continues to) benefits myself and hopefully others in some capacity.

[Prokofy Neva]

2 hours ago, Cinnamon Mistwood said:

I don't suppose being an octopus keeper or working with dangerous animals has many crossovers.

 

Well, you'd be wrong there! But maybe you never got into the land business....

[Ayashe Ninetails]

Self-employed/freelancer. Currently working in AI training. No crossover with my SL.

My former education and employment in graphic design helped a bit with my virtual photography hobby and branding for my old stores. I also used my lifelong interest in comedy and writing to help write some absolutely stupid marketplace descriptions. 😂

[Dorientje Woller]

Translator (German, Dutch, French, English) and sign language interpreter (7 different sign languages). And yes, my brain tends to be miswired sometimes

Edited August 1 by Dorientje Woller

[PheebyKatz]

IRL I've done everything from blacksmithing to copperplate engravings to glassblowing to live performance.

Right now I do the job of "house mom" and personal care attendant for a friend who cannot walk. In exchange, I get a place to stay and food and internet, etc.

Everything I've ever done for a living has influenced my SL.

Learning to make things by hand gave me the patience and stubbornness to follow through on difficult and/or tedious tasks, like learning Blender. A background in art certainly helps, because having an eye for what people think looks good is important when your focus is on a very visual communications platform like SL. Performance art, learning how to speak in public, and learning how to sell things are all useful. Shoeing horses taught me that no matter how nice someone seems, you get on the wrong side of them, and they'll kick you in the tit.

Even my brief stint as a telemarketer (my first "official" job) taught me important things that still affect me, especially in SL. Such as: Nobody cares about you unless they like you first. Nobody wants their dinner to go cold just because you feel like you have to talk to them right now. It's okay if they hang up, don't take it personally. There's a gazillion other people out there, and someone will want to talk to you. And when all else fails, you can always make a buck some other way instead if that's what you need to do.

If not for my time in fast food, I would have nowhere near the patience, diplomatic skill, or resolve needed to help as many new people as I've helped in the past. Just knowing how to say, "I'll be with you in one second, I don't want to burn these fries", without having them walk away on me has made a difference.

As for Russian translation, I would love a job like that. Language is art to me, just like everything else. And crappy translations make me cringe and want to fix them.

Edited July 31 by PheebyKatz

[Ceka Cianci]

RL occupation.. I've been trying to find a name for it for years.. I just say family businesses and then my side job, which I guess I would call production insight manager. That's what they call me anyways.. hehehe

I would say if anything was to be brought into SL, it would probably be more from the different family businesses than anything.. But for the most part, I'm just a beach bum in SL and a beach bum when I can be in RL.. hehehe

[Kylie Jaxxon]

I'm retired, and SL keeps me sane ❤️

[Chic Aeon]

Most (but not all) every job and skill from RL has translated over to SL in one way or another.

* Gallery artist and solo exhibits

* Multimedia web designer

* Coding web work

* Retail store owner

* Teacher

* Movie making cooperative member

* Seamstress (much better in RL than virtual)

* Model home stylist

* Professional photographer (product photos and video covers)

* Home remodeler and reseller

* Nationally published writer (magazines)

* World traveler (some articles there)  

 

 

are the ones that come to mind.

 

I had never thought about this much before but all my RL skills helped in virtual land a lot.  I have obviously led a very eclectic work life with most jobs in the self-employment category.

And I bet I forgot a few LOL.