GLAM employed or other cultural heritage workers?
Hi! Curious if there are any others here who work in the cultural heritage sector or GLAM jobs (galleries, libraries, archives, and museums)?
I feel like my career path is rare in this area of personal finance/FI-pursuing due to low wages + financial barriers to entering the fields. Few people enter these careers for the money/salary. (if you did, then I'd REALLY love to talk to you!) I stay because I care about the collections I work with–my life doesn't revolve around the work, but I value the work. Even with the low salary (ahem, considering the cost of my post-grad degree), implementing FI tactics has created so much stability and possibility for me while continuing in this field towards FI. Would love to connect with others who are interested in both cultural heritage work and personal finance/FI!
If you are here...[should I expect crickets or echoes?]
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I'm not sure if you would consider a career as a military historian or not, but they can make decent money.
I love history but am not in the field.
Thank you @SomeSunnyDay and @BenCardozo
! For the general support and not leaving me to the void.
Times are tough all over. With the loss of funding for many of the institutions and organizations that employ cultural heritage workers, a lot of these jobs are being cut. People who believed they would be in their careers for decades are suddenly let go with few options or opportunities. My job is unstable actually, but I feel stable because of the money choices I’ve made in the last ~8 years.
Financial literacy and FI are things I’m interested in and advocating for in my field and related ones. I’m working towards building resources cultural heritage workers. If anyone in that area or a tangential one comes across this message at a later date, please feel free to reach out! Anytime.
I guess I'm also curious: ChooseFI keeps saying they’re "(best) friends of the library"… I wonder if they will ever have a librarian on the podcast.
Hi! Yes, I’m here! Have only worked non-profit jobs. Happy to chat.
Hi! I'm an academic librarian at an R1 institution, so I'm lucky to be in a more stable situation than most - although even my institution is dealing with financial stuff due to the administration.
You're definitely correct that in our profession there is a ceiling on the "increasing your income" aspect of FIRE. Something you may (or may not) be interested in is this podcast I came across:
https://thelibrarianlinkover.comwhich interviews guests who use their library experience/training to transition into other careers. That's probably the main way folks like us can blow past our ceiling.
Hope we can keep the conversation going! I rarely see GLAM folks in this space.
Thanks for responding and sharing this podcast! Never heard of it, but looking forward to checking it out.
And yeah, navigating the funding uncertainties at work and also maintaining energy to manage the personal finance feels like a never ending challenge. I work at an (small-medium-ish i guess?) art school that saw a significant drop in enrollment and therefore income. It's had a huge impact on the work environment.
Different experience as I'm in Australia (and our pay is much better, although in the non-profit it's still much lower but you get a lot of tax benefits)
I volunteer in this space and have considered doing paid work if a casual/part time role came up after 2027 when I'm work optional.
Know some in the FIRE space here that's in museum work and she can't see herself leaving work but FI is a buffer in case that changes or funding arrangements mean no job.
Thanks for responding! Interesting to hear how going into GLAM is still a choice for lower pay in Australia, even if the pay and benefits are better than in the US.
I feel like if more people in GLAM could get to a space where work was optional, even if it was only optional temporarily, the general level of stress around these roles that are or are akin to public service roles would go down so much. I know that applies to all fields really, but I'm always sad to hear someone left their preferred field because of the money. It seems like less of a choice in those situations.
Don't want to leave you talking into the void.
I continue to work at a public library but as a casual on top of my nurse job not for the money but for the work community. Sadly nursing doesn't have the older folks to look up to as life mentors.
I know FI people in those jobs definitely exist though I feel like it's more in the vein of frugal living and independence than a financial spin. There is still plenty of awesome living going on with travel, art, music and other hobbies.
I actually think to a certain aspect you are in a beautiful spot because you aren't running away from a job you hate. You may not be on an accelerated path to full FIRE but you are gaining independence and being able to craft an amazing life for today and tomorrow.