Career / Life Advise Tread

Wow, the things I miss when I don't log into this site for a month.

Sorry to hear about your situation. I was stoked for you when you were finally able to move to CFL and could tell your water-time had increased ten-fold.

Do what you gotta do. Don't take this the wrong way, but be thankful that you do not have kids yet. As a couple, your planning should be a little easier. Plus, young kids also feel the stress that parents are going through, even though they don't understand it completely. And you wouldn't want that.

For me, work has just been a means to put food on the table and give my family a comfortable life. I also tried by best to find the right working situation to give me enough flexibility and time to do the things that I love. Time is the most important commodity. I have also been fortunate to have great bosses over the years which made my relatively mundane jobs bearable.

 

what kind of work do u do dsup?iv been in the construction trade my whole life,mainly metal work.rigging,fabrication,installation,etc.it sucks,like I breath in bad shit on the daily,some days im too exhausted to even go surf where I come home and pass right out.its the only thing I know and I feel its too late in my life to jump ship and find a different career,this is the only way I know how to make great money legally lol.

as far as moving inland for work,thats something I can not do

 

Brother, you and me and many others are in the same bus seat... I’m looking at a new job/career change soon and I’ve done it all - mostly just to keep th bills paid and feed my family... I’m just really bummed that at 47 my stability is in question again. Not my mental stability... that’s been gone for years. Also, in the trades, companies are STILL stuck on STUPID and treat people like tools and give them the donkey and carrot routine every time. Some trades don’t but it’s amazing to me to listen to people whine and cry about how “no one wants to work” and “these kids are lazy” when describing 30 yr olds and how they can’t hire them for peanuts. The trade I’m in now, “top rate” in 1994? $25hr. Ask these pirates what “top rate” is today? $25hr. Labor rate in 1994? - $80hr
Labor rate in 2018? - $135-140hr.
And amazing... no one can find skilled/experienced labor in it. And yet I go and put feelers out, with an BOATload of experience, certs, tons of knowhow and totally turn key managerial skills to boot?
$25 an hr is considered fair...
My male gigalo career was a flop though so I’m stuck being dirty and falling apart lol

 

This is a big issue i have with my current employer. Yeah im young, but i bust my ass. I enjoy my job. Id rather bust my ass that sit around twiddling my thumbs.

So i do mostly service, dead of summer, 90+ out.... im the only guy on service. And i HANDLE it. I keep the companies head above water. Atleast on the service side. There's another kid a few years younger than me that does nothing. I get paid more, but only slightly. There's guys older than me who again, do nothing. Come in late, leave early. Handle 1 or 2 calls a day taking there sweet ass time. While im having ass. Yeah they get paid double what i make.

They complain it's hard to find young, willing and able, skilled, and knowledgeable guys. Then they get one and upper pay him. I could be making double what I'm making here, elsewhere. I don't even ask or expect that. But a little bit to show your appreciation would be nice.

No biggie though. After the wedding I'll be on the hunt for a company that will pay me accordingly. There loss.

But anyway reason why i even brought this up. I was talking to one of the guys at one of the power plants i do work for. Apparently they hire guys who have no idea which way to turn a screwdriver. Said a guy like me would have to start low but would come up quick with my skills and knowledge. Im hesitant because it's somthing diffrent, but would be totally worth it. Plus it's not that diffrent from what I'm doing now.

So yeah if monies right, jump ship DP. Don't hold yourself back just because it's not what your comfortable with

 

Brother, you will do very well in a larger company with room for growth in any general tech field you find. Trust me on this. I know work ethic, I know skill sets, I know problem solving skills when I see them. And one thing I do find - the bigger more established companies often WONT pull that dog and pony show with good potential hires. They make you work for it but reward returns on their investment in you. It’s good business.

I’m having a rough day today and this is freakin my head as I read and type - funny how it works like that.

 

Congrats Man! That’s an awesome feeling when the bad stuff starts to look done and good stuff is coming...

 

That's awesome DP! Congratulations! Told you somthing better would come. Sounds like a pretty great set up for your surfing life style. Happy for you man. Hope it all works out

 

And not to derail, but yeah Mr. B. This is why i have some stress. I don't make bad money, but definitely well underpaid. The wedding has just made it much more apparent and front and center in my mind. I bust my ass everyday knowing I'm underpaid.

But you know what? There are times where im like eff this. I'll put out the same output as everyone else. Why am i working so hard if i don't get pay that reflects that. Well... that's just not me. Im not the type to complain or slack out of spite. I keep busting my ass, keep up the work ethic, and know it'll pay off when i do jump ship. Hell, even if it didn't pay off. Atleast i can take pride in my work. The second i leave work the anger and frustration goes away. I enjoy the good things in my life.

Just like what DP is going through. Bad situation. Looks awesome for him now though. Good things happen to good people. Wedding day less than two weeks away. Then I'll be finding bigger and better things. Hopefully my boss surfs to hahaha

 

DP, sounds like it might fit you well. And if you don't want to hire an accountant to handle the 1099 stuff, get one of the upper tier TurboTax versions (I think Home & Business), as it can handle that and any Schedule C stuff. At one point my wife was paid that way, so we'd let TT handle it. You can probably figure out what you need pay/save for paying your taxes. I'm not an accountant, but your new boss or others with the company know the drill since they're in the same boat.

Blessings on ya duder!

 

plus one one the CCCDog. Also, you may want to consider setting yourself up as an LLC (and file as a Sub Chapter S)...doesn't need to be right away but there are definitely some benefits to having your 1099 paid to the corp.

Also, if you can get appointed with random companies (Pru, Lincoln etc) and sell larger life policies to clients outside that gig. Your 1099 from each company would go to your corp. I have a great contact in Jax, Fl that can set you up with independent contracts under your corp. You would get paid on each case...when you have a random prospect that falls outside the scope of your gig, you can place it through one of these contracts and get paid.

I know folks in this business and you have many paths it can take you. I know guys making $250k doing insurance planning. Tons of flexibility. Good luck and let me know if you ever want to look beyond...but for now you should pass your test!!!

 

Plus 1 Jay!

 

They have any pre-requisite tests to "study" for? Anytime I have a good applicant, I always close the interview with - Be sure to study for your test, as most applying for a restaurant job in a big operation need to study time