Many of you reading this already have jobs in other fields than the trades. But you’re reading it because you are dissatisfied with the way you now make a living.
In some cases, you may feel underpaid and underappreciated. Others among you may simply be bored with the work you do. Or, maybe you’re idealistic and don’t feel what you’re doing is very important to society at-large.
Whichever of these descriptions apply to you, you are not alone in wondering what to do with your lives and how best to make a living. There was a time when almost all trade workers followed in their father’s footsteps. It was a historical remnant of the old European trade guilds, where skills were handed down from generation to generation. Back then, educated people were few and far between. Hardly anyone was fortunate enough to attend college. Here in America, as recently as the 1940s only around 5% of the working population consisted of college graduates.
Nowadays, more than a third of American adults has a college degree. So many, in fact, that most job markets are glutted with college graduates, even for work that doesn’t require a college degree. Today’s America includes history’s best educated workforce of bartenders and baristas! (Unfortunately, most college graduates of today cannot read and write as well as high school graduates decades ago, but that’s a subject for another time.)
Many of today’s college graduates are dissatisfied with their present careers. They feel like nothing more than glorified paper pushers. They cannot see a lot of value in the work they perform, and once they accumulate years of pay raises are easily replaced by a new crew of college graduates willing to work cheaper.
A surprising number of people answering these descriptions are exploring the trades, especially those who enjoy and are good at working with tools. You may be one of them.
Or, maybe you are a disgruntled truck driver tired of hauling loads around the country for minimal pay and maximum aggravation. Maybe you are someone who is overworked serving drinks and slinging burgers in a series of restaurant jobs. Or, maybe you are struggling to reach each month’s quota in a sales job where they raise the bar each month.
Whatever your current position, you have plenty of company in exploring the trades. In most cases, it will result in a better future.