"Working With Celebs Was Fun, But Wore Off Quickly": 19 People Exposed The Realities Of "Glamorous" Jobs

I used to work in the fashion industry, and while my former job titles often elicited "Oohs" and "Aaahs," my reality was much different. Yes, I experienced a few Devil Wears Prada moments, but overall, my job was much more crunching numbers and staring at Excel spreadsheets than parading around in fancy clothes.

My own experience reminded me of all the "glamorous" jobs out there that are.... well, not as glamorous as they seem.

So, considering how "glamorous" jobs often have some harsh realities, I asked the BuzzFeed Community to share with me all the seemingly "cool" or "glam" jobs they had that did not entirely live up to the stereotypes. Here's everything they shared:

1."I'm an opera singer—a successful soloist. It's all glam, furs, gowns, and pearls, right? Nah."

2."I'm a TV reporter and anchor. In your early career, you're the one lugging cameras and live equipment—by yourself, at all hours of the day. You're constantly in the field, and your biggest win of the day sometimes is finding a public restroom that doesn't make you want to throw up."

3."I always got a lot of 'Oooohs' when I told people I was a hiking guide in Alaska, and then a horseback riding guide in Yellowstone. As a hiking guide, it was stunning every day, obviously, but a lot of really hard work too. It was a lot of hiking the same trails, sometimes multiple times a day, in almost all weather, giving the same spiel so often my mind wandered."

4.(Cont'd) "My horseback riding guide job was worse. I loved the horses, but my fellow wranglers were often openly racist, and we worked 14 hours a day, six days a week. I called in sick with food poisoning once, and I was lectured by my boss about, 'Do you know how many times I've thrown up over the side of a horse?!' Which seemed... gross? My nail beds were absolutely shredded, constantly bleeding, and full of ripped skin from tightening so many cinches all day."

5."Event management can be exciting, rewarding, a little glam, and come with fun VIP-level perks, but is fundamentally high stress, 50-80 hour work weeks (salaried, no less) juggling 20 time sensitive and complex plans at once, and 14 hours on your feet during the event dealing with chaos and crappy egos."

6."Lawyer here. The sexy courtroom stereotype is crap. Most days, the job is paperwork, getting yelled at by clients/partners, and more paperwork. And arguing about whether you should use the word 'will' or 'shall' in contracts. Even with litigators, it’s basically just documents and occasionally reading from a memo or brief in front of a judge. It’s high-key corporate boring."

7."I was a photographer/photojournalist, and people would always talk about how cool it must be to photograph all these famous and/or influential people. While I absolutely love photography, most of the time, the pay was shitty, the competition wild, and you usually have max 10 minutes with the person you have to portray for a cover story the next day.

8."I used to work in the film industry as a wardrobe assistant for some pretty big Netflix and Amazon Prime projects. I worked with quite a few celebrities on the job. From my experience, the bigger the star, the kinder/humbler they are. It was always the B-list supporting cast who gave us a hard time or talked down to us. The job itself sounded fabulous on paper, but it was really just a lot of standing around with safety pins and double-sided fabric tape."

9."I used to travel around to different fancy resorts and hotels to train the maintenance people on software. I got to stay in places I'd never think to go on for vacation, and it was fantastic. But the dirt: The more expensive a resort or hotel is, the more they will charge for things the cheaper hotels don't, like breakfast, WiFi, and water in rooms."

10."I used to own a leather accessories and costumery business where everything was made in-house by myself and a small team. Most of my friends and family would see me mainly at the live events we sold at (like Renaissance Faires), where I was in costume, with makeup on, hair done, and headdress on—they all assumed I was living the high life. More than once, my lifestyle was called 'glamorous' by just about everyone who only saw the result of all my work."

(Cont'd) "I was single for six years because I couldn't spare the energy to find and form new relationships. Everything was seasonal, so even if the summer events brought in a lot of sales, I would still have to live as cheaply as possible throughout the entire year just to make it through the dead winter months (and usually racked up credit card debt during those months to pay the bills). Every day was work, from the time I woke up to the time I went to bed, trying to multitask with at least two things every minute of the day."

11.I was a curator and worked in a few museums. Everyone is super educated, doing three jobs at once, in between constant professional development. But the board is usually folks in their 70s who lack even a basic knowledge of arts and culture. Behind the scenes, the collections feel less like a cave of wonders and more like a hoarding situation. When people start, they are usually like, 'I love history,' and then the deeply entrenched racism and colonialism in most sites become more and more obvious, and they start to wonder if they are doing more harm than good."

12."I worked in the sports apparel industry for years. The good thing is that you get free gear if you are a sample size. The bad thing is that so many people want to work for sports brands, so the pay is pretty low compared to other industries or brands. Also, the employees tend to be competitive, as most are athletes, which can be annoying, especially in meetings when everyone wants to be right.

"Several colleagues who had worked in the industry for most of their careers said that working for brands they initially loved killed their love for the sport. It’s hard to separate work and passion after time, and annoyances at work start to taint your passion. I attest to this, and while I have a closet of free workout gear, I cringe putting it on and thinking of certain colleagues and moments at work, even a couple of years after changing jobs."

—Anonymous

13.I used to work in the film/TV industry doing craft services. Folks usually don’t know what 'crafty' is unless they’ve been on set before, so that goes over many heads. Working with different celebs was initially fun, but that wore off very quickly. People can be entitled assholes. After a while, I viewed everyone as just another human being (as they are) instead of fan-girling over someone often seen as a “VIP” (actors, producers, directors, etc).

(Cont'd) I’d be so exhausted by the time the weekend came around, so I’d spend all day sleeping on Saturdays and use Sundays to catch up on housework (laundry, cleaning, etc). It took a toll on my personal relationships and just having 'a life' in general. The worst thing about it, though, was being in between shows.

"You could go from working every day for months to not having another full-time gig for the same amount of time, so it was best to have a second job or an additional revenue stream. When the industry is on strike, it REALLY sucks. I can go on and on about the ups and downs of working in that industry… But the truth is, I’m thinking about going back. Lol."

—Anonymous

14."I work as a social media manager and consultant. The fun content and cute videos you see on social media go through a lot of planning and painstaking revisions. They are never as fun and spontaneous as they seem (at least for major accounts and brands)."

15."I work in libraries. While many think all I do is shush patrons and read books all day, I do so much more. I could be buying books, movies, audiobooks, and music in one hour. The next hour, I could be doing story time for small children so parents have a break. By the end of the day, I could talk with a patron about a book recommendation, give resources to find social services, or be listening to their life stories."

16."I was a flight attendant at one of the top airlines in the world (not any of the three big Middle Eastern ones). My training, the longest in the industry, was challenging, but it helped mold and prepare us to deliver the consistently high service standards we are known for. It is glamorous — there’s nothing like walking with your team in the airport and turning heads. It felt like we were in a commercial at times."

(Cont'd) "It also takes an average of ten years to be promoted in rank. The promotion criteria changed at least twice during the three years I was there, and from what I’ve heard, it’s still happening. It’s almost like a way for management to keep the very hardworking crew on their toes."

"As someone who thrived on feedback and self-improvement, it was incredibly discouraging to know that I could be doing my best for years, and it could all be overlooked because someone higher up decided to change the promotion criteria. In the end, I decided to leave the job while I still had a choice and while I still enjoyed it."

—Anonymous

17."I worked as a performer in a popular cowboy-themed horse dinner show and it is not glamorous at all. It’s sweaty, dangerous, and exhausting. I've made more money at Starbucks. We don’t get paid sick days, vacation days, or PTO. I’ve seen people and animals get immensely injured in front of a thousand people, and then we have to move on with the show like nothing happened, no updates for the audience."

18."I used to work as an assistant in an art gallery. Most people think the job is to sit around and talk about art. In reality, it's hauling heavy bronze sculptures and huge canvasses around. You have to be proficient with power tools to hang up the frames and constantly have to replaster and repaint the walls. Setting up a booth at an art fair is utter mayhem because 200+ galleries are moving in their best pieces in a rush (the venue usually doesn't give more than two days to set up)."

And lastly:

19."I worked in Paris for a well-known art foundation and was in charge of an award presented yearly. I worked in the wealthiest square in Paris, got to know political figures, famous artists, journalists, and actors, and was invited to many openings and very private parties. I was told that I had the job that millions would dream of. The truth is, I was underpaid, overworked, and at my boss's beck and call.

Have you ever worked a seemingly "glamorous" job? If so, let us know in the comments what it was really like.

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.