02-04-2016, 07:15 PM
|
#16
|
|
Senior Member
|
|
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: West of SI
Posts: 1,144
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: West of SI
Posts: 1,144
|
Only every 5 minutes
__________________
2019 Subaru Outback Limited 3.6 - Silver (replaced 2016 Trail Premium w/KDSS)
2007 V8 Sport 4Runner - Magnetic Gray
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty" - Winston Churchill
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-04-2016, 07:47 PM
|
#17
|
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 511
|
|
Member
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 511
|
Every now and then I think about selling everything, moving to Africa, and starting up a Safari company. Ever since I've been a little kid one of the jobs I've always wanted to do is be a safari guide. Driving around in a Toyota looking at animals, beautiful sunrises and sunsets, spending time with people and swapping stories, and cooking outdoors sounds pretty good. I'm not delusional, I realize it would be hard work. But that is one of the many "fantasy careers" I think I'd enjoy. I recently read an article about somebody who did this, and it re-kindled the idea.
__________________
Stay quixotic my friends.
2015 TE, RCI Sliders, TRD skid plate, RCI TRD integration plate, Alu RCI transmission skid, KO2 265/70/17 E
Last edited by Knight-Errant; 02-05-2016 at 01:10 AM.
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-04-2016, 07:53 PM
|
#18
|
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 511
|
|
Member
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northern Virginia
Posts: 511
|
The only other thing I'll add, and this is not addressed to anybody in particular, is that if you're out there working hard, putting food on the table, supporting yourself, supporting your family...that's something to hang your hat on and be proud of.
I've also always felt that respect is something you earn. A fancy job title, big salary, or fancy degree isn't enough to garner respect. How you treat people around you is far more important. My godfather never went to college, is a pretty simple man, has always worked hard and honest, and frankly he's one of the best people I know. I've learned more important lessons form him, than I ever did in any college class.
Just my two cents.
__________________
Stay quixotic my friends.
2015 TE, RCI Sliders, TRD skid plate, RCI TRD integration plate, Alu RCI transmission skid, KO2 265/70/17 E
Last edited by Knight-Errant; 02-05-2016 at 01:11 AM.
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-05-2016, 04:24 PM
|
#19
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 94
|
|
Member
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 94
|
I've found that it's all about perspective. I'm 34, in a job I love that I worked my butt off to get into. I enjoy it 90% of the time and make enough to be comfortable. My career will never make me rich financially, but I'm really happy. I do consider other options available to me from time to time and wonder "what if?" I think a lot of people do. However, one of my peers asked me what I had nightmares about, and it was definitely my previous career, which held much higher income potential and was far less physically demanding. Just that conversation made me so grateful to have the opportunity to work where I do and enjoy it.
At the end of the day, consider what will make you happy, and what is most important to you, and remember everything is a trade off somehow.
Good luck!
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-05-2016, 05:11 PM
|
#20
|
|
Senior Member
|
|
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Indy, IN
Posts: 2,613
Real Name: Adam
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Indy, IN
Posts: 2,613
Real Name: Adam
|
I worked for 5 years in IT at a small, local college. I was financially comfortable, especially with a wife and little one. But the job was slowly ruining me. The people above me were terrible managers, and really didn't give a sh*t about us employees. The expectations were unreasonable on most things for our dept, especially since there were 6 of us for 3000 people. And then they threw me in a small office with 3 other people...I was miserable and it was starting to affect my family life.
I jumped at an opportunity to be a Project Manager for a commercial painting company, and it was the best decision I ever made. I took a small salary paycut (bonuses more than make that up), but the quality of life has improved, which is more valuable to me than money. I work with great people, the company puts a ton of time and money into personal and professional development, and I get to travel and meet all kinds of new people. The balance of wrok and family life are great, and the execs here push for this. The possibilities for growth are huge at this new place, and I honestly don't think I'll ever leave.
My advice, do what makes you happy. Its not always about how much money you make. You can have all kinds of money coming in, but if you're miserable then it doesn't matter. It sounds like you've made some good money, and being single with little/no debt gives you a great opportunity to try something new. Best thing is, if it doesn't work out, you can always go back to steamfitting. You can't fail at something if you never try. And also make sure you don't burn any bridges if you do leave.
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-11-2016, 11:29 PM
|
#21
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Washington
Posts: 179
|
|
Member
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Washington
Posts: 179
|
I am all for having a job you love, working with super people. However, when you become a dread-locked surfing instructor at 30, living the dream, try to imagine being a 65 year old surfing instructor, with not enough money to retire. There has to be some balance. No job is perfect, and managers and co workers can be a PIA. Money isn't the end all, but financial security to some degree is a must. Unless you want to have nothing but memories when you're older. Kinda the middle ground could be don't work excessive hours, and play hard after work and weekends. Make of the most of your vacations.
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-12-2016, 11:57 AM
|
#22
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 293
Real Name: Tyler
|
|
Member
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 293
Real Name: Tyler
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Wingsuit
I am all for having a job you love, working with super people. However, when you become a dread-locked surfing instructor at 30, living the dream, try to imagine being a 65 year old surfing instructor, with not enough money to retire.
|
Uh, if I were a 65 year old surfing instructor, I would already be living where people go to retire so I'd be pretty well set up, retirement would come naturally when the sea was ready to take me
Seriously I get what you're saying, and it is what keeps me from tossing it all and working as a bike mechanic. I am approaching 45 and basically had to start my finances all over with $0.00 in savings after the economic collapse 8 years ago, so my retirement is on my mind quite a bit. Nevertheless, there's something to be said for not killing yourself throughout your career in order to get to retirement age in the 1st place.
__________________
2008 4Runner SR5 V6 4WD
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-12-2016, 01:06 PM
|
#23
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Washington
Posts: 179
|
|
Member
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Washington
Posts: 179
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigshankhank
Uh, if I were a 65 year old surfing instructor, I would already be living where people go to retire so I'd be pretty well set up, retirement would come naturally when the sea was ready to take me
Seriously I get what you're saying, and it is what keeps me from tossing it all and working as a bike mechanic. I am approaching 45 and basically had to start my finances all over with $0.00 in savings after the economic collapse 8 years ago, so my retirement is on my mind quite a bit. Nevertheless, there's something to be said for not killing yourself throughout your career in order to get to retirement age in the 1st place.
|
Exactly. You have to pace yourself. One day, in my office, my boss and I were discussing a guy who was not known for his hard work, and he had just been made an executive. My boss said, "you know, I have worked very hard my whole career. Boy, was that ever a mistake!".
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-12-2016, 01:35 PM
|
#24
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 352
|
|
Member
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 352
|
Kudos guys, this is a great thread with a lot of insight. I have been immeasurably blessed with my wife being financially secure, and I have been a stay at home dad for coming on 3 years. It made sense to quit my work in the moving industry to stay home, as my income would have just gone to childcare as someone else raised my child.
That being said, she'll be starting school soon, and I will find more time on my hands, so I'm again looking at this equation of a career path. Do I go back into the old industry that has no future except manual labor? Back to school? I aspire to be productive and fruitful, and my modus operandi is to always give more than I receive. That's going to require more striving now, as I have received much.
Anyways, thank you guys. I look forward to more posts as I nurture my question of "What's next?".
__________________
I drive a TruckUV
'11 T.E. KDSS SS 3/2" lift, cooper at/3s, sleekster sliders, baja racks utility rack & ladder, new piece of bumper plastic
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-12-2016, 01:42 PM
|
#25
|
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Bethlehem, PA
Posts: 272
Real Name: Mike
|
|
Member
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: Bethlehem, PA
Posts: 272
Real Name: Mike
|
I worked at the same job, same business for 33 years.
Started when I was 17, they laid me off in 2014.
I loved the job, so I NEVER thought about changing careers.
After a year of unemployment, and several months of school to train me for a new career...
I finally ended up doing the SAME JOB for a different company.
Conveniently, it's the old company's direct competition...
and they are kicking the old company's a**!
Sucky part was, I was very devoted and quite attached to the old place.
Every important moment in my life happened when I worked there.
But, they changed ownership several times, and the current owners got way into debt, laid off about 80% of the staff, and treats those who are still around like crap.
All while the exec's keep getting raises, bonuses, and promotions.
In the end, it was getting so bad...I'm glad they laid me off!
-
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-17-2016, 10:55 PM
|
#26
|
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 109
Real Name: Parker
|
|
Member
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 109
Real Name: Parker
|
For what it's worth I do happen to love my job, I am an aviation mechanic in the VA Army National Guard. I have been through a lot of schools through the military to further my career in the military. In doing so it made me realize that I want to further my education, mainly because I have seen the glass ceiling at my current place of employment. I love what I do and my first line supervisor but after him it really starts to get bad. We have a constant power battle with the main maintenance hub located 30 minutes away. My boss sent me to the FAA A&P (Airframe and Powerplant) school which is very expensive and could open a lot of doors for me in the civilian world. I have seen a lot of turn around of employees because of the way the management treats people at the other facility. I fear that we will eventually loose in the power battle and have to fall back under the previously mentioned management. So with being 27 (soon 28) I realized it would be in my best interest to go back to school full time on top of working full time. It is a perk to go to school as well since I get GI Bill from my deployment, so I get payed to attend. While this may not make me switch careers once I am done with school; it will however leave me the new option to make more money, be easier on my body, and be in a field that will not be going anywhere. It would be a hard switch for me to work full time in the IT field (field of study) since I have done manual labor since I was 15. Then again I have certain things from my military career that would be a great key in the field in which I want to focus on (cyber security). Another thing that has been hard for me was that my line of work played a large part into many relationships ending because I work 50-60 hours a week between maintenance, flying, and flight instruction.
Yes there are always options but you have to weigh what you really want in the end IE: family, body fatigue, career progression, and the list goes on. I have shifted my thinking a lot lately, specifically that I am very happy in my career now but how much will it truly effect my life in the long run. I don't want to have a family I never see because of deployments, schools, or work. I want my family to have the opportunities that I p!$$ed away partying and slacking off when I was younger. To rap it up I have been thinking a lot lately about how in life death is the one thing that is certain so why not make a lasting impression on those that you love while you are here.
Hope all works out for everyone because in the grand view of things one can not achieve without the help of other and the opposite.
__________________
1991 SR5 3.slow, 5 speed, 315/75R16 Claws, 4" Rough Country Rear, Solid Axle Swap 3" TG HD front, 5.29's, Spartan Rear
Build: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/classi...phy-build.html
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-22-2016, 07:43 PM
|
#27
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: NC
Posts: 98
|
|
Member
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: NC
Posts: 98
|
I'm 30, have done landscaping, sales, real estate and never really was satisfied. Started training dogs recently and couldn't be happier. You are young, financially stable and seem pretty smart. Save up some money and start really researching different jobs you might want to try. Go talk to people who have done it and see what they think are the worst things about the job, if you think you can live with that then go give it a try! It's the right time to try different things before you get a wife and kids, that way you won't spend your time wondering what if and doing something stupid during your mid life crisis!
Last edited by LockeLamora; 02-22-2016 at 07:45 PM.
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-22-2016, 09:39 PM
|
#28
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: nashville
Posts: 280
|
|
Member
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: nashville
Posts: 280
|
was working for the same co from the time i was 19 until I was 32...I was burned out, the atmosphere seemed to have changed. I always loved going in until the last year. I was an assistant manager...started at the bottom.
Customers were getting harder to make happy, harder to find good help..and when you did, they ended up leaving because we were understaffed or the customers ran them off. ( I worked at a large tractor trailer repair shop in the parts dept. ) My wife convinced me we would be fine if I left, so I did. Been working for myself the last 4 years and its been great. I often think about going to school for a specialized field but I honestly don't think I can ever work for someone else again.
I've played more ball and rode my bike more in the last 4 years than I did when I was a teenager. I'm home a lot and get to take vacation whenever....if you have something you're passionate about or something you can do on your own you may try dabbling in it for a while and see if its something you can make money doing and be happy doing it. Good luck man! I've been in your shoes....haven't looked back!!
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-23-2016, 01:13 PM
|
#29
|
|
Member
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Orlando, FL
Age: 31
Posts: 423
Real Name: Dalton
|
|
Member
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Orlando, FL
Age: 31
Posts: 423
Real Name: Dalton
|
Some time I think about going back to school to be a mechanical engineer and design engines, but at the same time I don't know if I could quit IT. I enjoy it too much.
__________________
2001 4Runner SR5 2WD on 35" BFG KM2
Bilstein 5100/Toytec Springs LC 9 wrap/LC shocks.
Its a wannabe 4WD.
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
02-24-2016, 03:57 PM
|
#30
|
Senior Member
|
|
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: S Oregon
Age: 69
Posts: 1,406
|
|
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: S Oregon
Age: 69
Posts: 1,406
|
I worked in low voltage installs for 25+ years. Married and moved to another state that does not recognize 'low voltage', even a cable guy needs to take an electrician test. wish I had a greater resume.
_________________________
2007 SE V6 Titanium
|
|
Reply With Quote
|
Thread Tools |
|
Display Modes |
Rate This Thread |
Linear Mode
|
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is On
|
|
|
|