We asked you to describe a memorable working experience, and were pleased by the number of life-changing experiences that you told us about. Here’s just a taste of what you love and hate about your jobs...

What I love
" I love the challenge of creating a software solution to meet a customer's requirement. Every day I get the chance to become a ''hero'' by making their lives easier. "

" The biggest breakthrough in my career has been finding a job where I can work from home. As a single parent this solved 90 percent of my problems in one stroke and has worked well for over three years. "

" I am the first woman in my department ever. My boss treats me like one of the guys. There are NO special considerations because I am a woman. This is the best environment I can think of. I am appreciated because of my skills, not because I am a woman. "

" My very first job where I had a female mentor that saw in me what I was not able to see. She gave me the chance to strive and she believed in me. She was my boss. She was also the MIS person and ready to retire. So she slowly handed things over to me. When she retired, I got her job. "

" The best times are when I fix code that has been broken for a while after the guys couldn’t even figure it out. "

" I lead a technical team of seven women (NO MEN!) to implement a system that saved our corporation $25 million a year. "

What I hate
" I am the sole woman on a team of 14 software engineers. My manager wanted to take the team out for a holiday lunch. He came to my desk and asked me if I planned to go, because they were going to ''Hooters.'' He hoped that didn't make me uncomfortable. "

" One time, the company's cabling expert came in to show my department how to make patch cables. He let every male member of the department try (I'm the only female). He looked at me and said, ''Well, you'd better leave this to the guys, cupcake." ''

" I was recently described as the little girl who runs the lab.''

" Since a lot of my work is now done online, many people assume that I am a man. I surprised them when I, a woman, show up because they are looking for some guy from the hardcore world of computer security geekdom. "