Laura Corin Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Calvin enjoys order (pity him living with an untidy mother!) He voluntarily keeps all his books shelved and alphabetised. He likes the idea of librarianship as a career, but I don't know what else to suggest to him. I did a bit of searching, and librarianship these days seems to be tied into courses in information management. He doesn't much like maths and isn't especially talented at it. His favourite pursuits are reading fiction and making up stories in his head. He's only eleven, but is starting to wonder about directions. He used to want to be an inventor, but is starting to realise that he likes the idea of inventing, but doesn't have any interest in actually doing it (some form of engineering, for example). Thank you Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plaid Dad Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Copy editor? That was my immediate thought as well. Editing was my bread and butter for many years. Professional organizing is another option. It's an overwhelmingly female-dominated field, and I don't know what the market is like outside the U.S., but it might be worth looking into. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted February 28, 2008 Author Share Posted February 28, 2008 Copy editor? Calligrapher (not exactly a career, I guess)? Graphic designer? Desktop publisher? Writer or reporter? Personal assistant or secretary? Paralegal or lawyer? Archivist? Museum curator? Bookbinder? Court reporter? Typesetter? If he liked math, I'd suggest accounting or bookeeping (though those don't require that much in the way of mathematics). Does he like science at all? Some lab tech work is not so math intensive, but is great for detail/order focused folks. Pharmacy school probably wouldn't be too appealing, would it? Does he like gardening or landscape design at all? Does he like to cook or bake? Pastry chefs? Baker? Perhaps drafting? Encourage him that as he progress in his studies and outside activities, his gifts and inclinations might become more clear. Eliana He's dyspraxic with poor spatial perception, so that cuts out some, unfortunately. He does enjoy science and you had some other great thoughts. Thanks Lauar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs. Readsalot Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Accountants thrive on order. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted February 28, 2008 Author Share Posted February 28, 2008 Accountants thrive on order. But do they dislike maths? Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs. Readsalot Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 I love math, but I hate accounting. Accounting seemed more language orientated to me. It was all about the rules...put this number in this box. I wanted to make mathmatical sense of it and it didn't make sense. I took the two required accounting courses for my major and hated every minute of them. My degree is in finance which is not at all accounting orientated. I once took a test for an accounting firm(don't even ask how I did) the test was like a written essay test. Hardly any math involved. I did think of another occupation for you ds....librarian I don't know if you get more organized then that :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 I haven't read the rest of the replies, but I think dentistry would be right up his alley! Especially orthodontics. We have a fabulous dentist/ortho and he just loves his job, gets to stay on top of cutting edge technology, gets to clean things up and make them all nice and straight, and says the bodily fluids are just a "material" that he handles. Plus, the pay is quite lucrative! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalanamak Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Calvin enjoys order (pity him living with an untidy mother!) He voluntarily keeps all his books shelved and alphabetised. He likes the idea of librarianship as a career, but I don't know what else to suggest to him. I did a bit of searching, and librarianship these days seems to be tied into courses in information management. He doesn't much like maths and isn't especially talented at it. His favourite pursuits are reading fiction and making up stories in his head. Nursing. Seriously. There is chaos, but you get to spend your time taming it, you HAVE to keep your p's and q's in order...it's a matter of life and death. The maths are basic (and are lessening as computers and pharm-techs do more)...the biggest would be converting mg/kg to cc/hr and it is just plugging into a formula. Males are needed in nursing and it is a flexible job that travels well. And I'm a fan of pushing your weaknesses a little. Get used to some scuffle in life if you are Mr. Orderly, and get some structure in if you are Ms. Seat of Her Pants. Fiction and stories was my favourite thing at that age, too. I wanted to be A Writer, but everyone kept saying (not my family, bless them) "You'd be such a good doctor". I still have no idea why they said this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 I believe in whatever career he choses those skills will serve him well. My dh is a contractor, not normally thought of as the neatest profession. Yet he takes meticously care of his tools, he never leaves a jobsite messy and he can load a pickup with an abundance of tools. He is the neatest construction worker I've ever run into. He thrives on order. As a child he would not allow his sisters or brothers to play with his toy cars because the wouldn't put them back correctly. He also wouldn't let him mom clean his room either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrairieAir Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 A laboratory archaeologist might be a good career for him. He might enjoy working in the field as well, but the lab is where all the cleaning, sorting, cataloging, and storing is done. I have enjoyed working in both the field and the lab. My sons and their friends did not seem to enjoy the lab as much as the field, but it requires a certain amount of fastidiousness and attention to detail that many of them did not have the patience for hours on end. I find the lab work relaxing and enjoyable. The laboratory archaeologist is vital to the process because with out the steps performed in the lab, there is no interpretation of the material found. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted February 28, 2008 Author Share Posted February 28, 2008 I believe in whatever career he choses those skills will serve him well. I can see him as the first (and perhaps only) orderly professor of English or history. For what it's worth, my best friend from school was similar, did Latin and librarianship at university, and has had a very successful, high-flying career in the British civil service (does that translate? She works in the health ministry formulating policy). Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwinMominTX Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 and he is not an engineer. You don't necessarily need to be an engineer - you can always contract that portion out. My husband is very successful and has a very ordered, logical mind. This obviously helps with the inventing side of things. He comes up with a concept and proceeds step by step to carry it out. When he comes to a part he doesn't know, he hires someone to help. However, his success comes mainly from carrying out the ideas to completion and then getting the patents issued (this requries a very well organized ordered person). People come up with good ideas for inventions everyday - the trick is to have the type of mind to actually be able to take the idea through the entire process. This is where your son would likely be very successful. Good luck to him! TK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DollyM Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Accounting is not about high level mathematics. Accounting as a career is VERY suited to "orderliness" kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnneJ Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 My DH is an accountant and he never really liked math. Accounting doesn't have that much to do with math, more about keeping things in the right place, etc. There is a book out there somewhere that talks about what kind of animal your personality type is. There are four types--beaver, owl, dolphin and fox. Sounds like your ds would be the beaver type--organized, like lists (put things on the list just so they can cross them off), etc. I also have a friend who would qualify as a beaver and he has his own business doing household repairs/heating/air/etc. All this to say there are lots of options out there for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted February 28, 2008 Author Share Posted February 28, 2008 DH had to take two accountancy courses (for his Master of Finance, and then his basic banking training) and only started to understand it second time through. I only took it once - for my MBA - and it never made much sense to me. Calvin is a different soul, however, and it might suit him. Thank you Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunny Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Accountants like organization :) Everything has it's column, it's category, it makes sense. I was not a big math person. You need to add, subtract, maybe multiply and divide. I had to take calculus in college just because of the requirements of a BS, but I can't say that accounting uses much math. I can say it requires attention to detail, and then learning to look at the big picture too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
~Puddins~ Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 This thread has me laughing...I think our sons must be related in some way. My oldest is very organized about things and our entire family calls him "The Accountant". I wish my husband were as organized as my son :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 My husband liked order as a child. He went to military boarding school for high school and jr college because that's what he wanted. He's now an Army logistics officer and it's a very good fit for his personality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lorna Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 My father has always been like Calvin in his orderliness. I am told by my aunts that he read encyclopaedias from a through to z. He was born in Africa and lived in many places as a child and so he became self-taught, reading everything he could get his hands on and disliked school although he did well. He became a chemical engineer, after he spent some years in his shed playing with chemicals, although he could have easily become an architect or even a farmer. These were and are all interests of his. As an adult he has become fluent in French, German and Russian. At home he fixes the bicycles of everyone in the neighbourhood and is never happier than when he is busy doing something technical. Peculiarities of his include having borrowed a cycle helmet off dh and writing 'front' and 'back' in Biro pen. Later on in his career he became an IT specialist after his chemical engineering became IT reliant in the 1970's. We used to visit his work where he had written very simple games on the computer for fun. One of them involved being in a haunted house and answering yes or no questions. We thought it was incredible - the computer was really thinking. This is a very long way of saying that I think Calvin could become anything he wished. He will probably find his obsession in his later years and not let go until he has mastered it. He may then move onto something new and master that too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunkirst Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 My father is the most organized person I know (next to my sister - the gene was Not passed to me). He loved history and English in school, and opted to become an attorney. He does no court cases, as he's too shy. Mostly he handles cases that require a very detailed knowledge of the law and all its intricacies as well as probate and estates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battlemaiden Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Because my 11 ds is exactly the same! His favorite thing in the world is to organize the bookshelves. He operates so much better in tidy environments. Poor child! He has lots of little siblings that interfere with this desire. ;) Jo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Policeman? Lawyer/Law clerk? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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