Deciding on a career
I'm currently finishing my last year of high school. I've put much thought into aviation and have put together a 4 year plan of what colleges i'll be going to. When i'm done, i'd like to graduate from either southern illinois university or the university of illinois. both have excellent flight programs.
Anyway, I thought I would get some input from guys who have taken the flight path. I still have no concept of how a pilot's life is. Are most pilots paid well? Is it an exciting job? How much free time do you have? How hectic is the competition for pilot jobs? Does the position carry a lot of respect? Basically, does this job become your life, or do you still have lots of time for family and hobbies?
I mostly want to do the job because of my fascination of flight, and also because I wouldn't be able to sit in an office filling out TPS reports all day. With that in mind, does anyone have any advice on what steps I should take if I want to fly large passanger jets one day?