Too often young people get themselves employed quite by accident, not knowing what lies in the way of opportunity for promotion, happiness and security. As a result, they are employed doing jobs that afford them little or no satisfaction. Our school leavers face so much competition that they seldom care what they do as long as they can earn a living. Some stay long at a job and learn to like it; others quit from one to another looking for something to suit them. The young graduates who leave the university look for jobs that offer a salary up to their expectation.
Very few go out into the world knowing exactly what they want and realizing their own abilities. The reason behind all this confusion is that there never has been a proper vocational guidance in our educational institution. Nearly all grope (摸索) in the dark and their chief concern when they look for a job is to ask what salary is like. They never bother to think whether they are suited for the job or, even more important, whether the job suits them. Having a job is more than merely providing yourself and your dependants with daily bread and some money for leisure and entertainment. It sets a pattern of life and, in many ways, determines social status in life, selection of friends, leisure and interest. In choosing a career you should’ first consider the type of work which will suit your interest. Nothing is more pathetic than taking on a job in which you have no interest, for it will not only discourage your desire to succeed in life but also ruin your talents and ultimately make you an emotional wreck (受到严重伤害的人) and a bitter person.
The word "pathetic" in paragraph 2 most probably means ______.