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More money, less stress, and no bitchy/rude passengers to deal with.
1. Fuck working in the moto industry. Unless you can swing a good deal as a parts/merchandise rep, then that can be ok work.
2. You're 27. Find a local tech school and get your Class A CDL license. Everything has to be delivered by someone, right? And you can make damn good bank being a local driver. Here in Atlanta it's pretty easy to start somewhere a little north of $20 per hour as a dock to dock LTL guy. And I'm betting in the Phoenix area, CDL jobs are a plenty.
3. Whatever you do, put family first. Don't ever let $$$ rule over your family life. Trust me.
You could do new construction , such as residential and commercial , but look into doing remodel , additions , new shops ect....Me personally , I think there is better money in it. I am going on my 12th years as being licensed on my own , and man , I got licensed at the wrong time! I started in 2006 , when the economy went to hell and we could barely buy work , let alone find it.
Basically , the first 2 -3 years ( which will be easier for you in this economy ).....those first few years can be tough. Years 3 -5 you'll start to see a some real benefits of working on your own. These past 6 - 7 years , I have been able to pick and choose some of my work , and have been really fortunate to have some great general contractor's , that give me repetitive work. It is tough working on your own , but the positives far out weigh the negatives.
Good luck on anything you decide to do.
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Screw school.
You sound like a guy that will never be happy working for anyone after 3 years.
Don't matter what. Get a landscaping license, paint up an old van, go for it. Just don't give your work away. Make sure you know what the other guys that are out there are getting.
You will never get bored. It fails, it's on you. Remember that. It should kinda scare u. It should challenge u. As long as u don't get behind in your taxes, and that's a biggie, what's the worse thing that can happen? The LLC goes under, and your back to being s babysitter.
Now my trade is a lower paying one compared to the electricians and plumber's. I charge $60.00hr or on smaller 1 day jobs it's $200.00 for the first 2hrs , and $60.00hr after 2hrs. Plumber's and electricians are around $110.00 - $130.00hr up here.....they make a good living. So do finish carpenters and floor guys.
You’re definitely in the right niche as far as I can see. I worked with a couple investors years back who flipped homes and that’s where these specialty contractors made their good money on those quick remodels.
1. Boot camp every day all day people yelling and making me exercise. False. You will do a boot camp of some sort no matter what branch, but it's short especially for a 27 year old. You are mature enough to play the game and roll through with no issue. More like a summer camp ran by assholes. 18 year olds shit their pants and can't function. The older guys just cruise through.
2. If you are in the military you will deploy and see terrible things. False. This depends on your job field. I was smart enough to qualify for a good job. I am aircrew on KC-130s. In the Marine Corps by the way, shocker right. Marines that fly and don't carry guns and kick in doors? Yes we exist.
3. Jobs in the military won't translate to anything good in the private sector. Also False. Yes if you become a grunt you are probably limited on job fields. Take me for instance, I'm in the aviation community. After 15 years in the field I am pretty marketable, plus networking bro. Military is a big club, people come and go constantly and a lot get great civilian jobs. Just knowing the right people could land you a great job even after one enlistment.
I can go on and on. The point is, if you look into the military you can actually do everything everyone in this forum has suggested all from a single enlistment.
You have a family? Military will take care of them. Medical, dental, family services, military one source, retirement plans, college. Yes college for your family not just you. You can sign up and actually get paid extra money for college, so can your wife. You can transfer college benefits to your kids.
Retirement plans right, well now the military just started a new retirement system where you basically get a 401k even if you only do 4 years.
Brotherhood, community. Families looking out for one another. Honestly, there is no practical reason not to join. Just fear. Fear of the unknown and irrational fear that is based off of misconceptions.
Last thing I'll say, don't get me wrong, there are terrible jobs in the military, lol. If you are not strong with testing and you get low scores on your ASVAB, you probably won't get offered any good deals. Someone has to churn the shit bucket on deployment. Like I said though at 27 you are more mature, so you should be smart enough to do well on the ASVAB and lock on a Gucci job.
I know this is super long, so ppl probably will skip to here. Take a strong look at the military bud. There is a lot more to be offered than most believe, and it literally can guide you on a path to any of the other suggestions in this thread.
Semper Fi.
Before going into healthcare I had worked in a few different industries (finance, corporate fitness, construction - for a brief time). The one common thread that kept turning me off was the lack of control over my own schedule. I worked 9-5 or 8-6 or whatever, monday-friday with occasional weekends, like every other shmuck. And it was just crushing my soul. I like to have plenty of time off for more important things. Like spending time with my girl, my friends/fam, going riding, exercise, wrenching on my bike/car, etc. Most careers out there really don't do the work/life balance thing in a way that benefits the worker.
If you can find a niche where you have control over your schedule and the days/hours you work, I say go for it.
I never drove one but spent many years living on em.
If i wasn't 60 and already spent 30 years on the road i would try for this now.
https://www.vitalmx.com/forums/Non-Moto,21/Tour-Bus-Driver,1334717
That's a tough question to answer. It really boils down to what you might enjoy doing , over other trades. I think the best start for something like this is to maybe go to work for a General contractor ( and believe me , there are lots of them out there that need the help ). Get your hands dirty in multiple types / phases of the jobs. And I'm speaking remodel type work , not new construction....as most everything is done by subs anyways.
It can give you an idea on where to maybe steer yourself. And who know's.....maybe you'll find a trade or two you are really interested in...OR....you may want to become a handyman or small general contractor yourself. Don't ever bite off more then you can chew. Time can go by fast in these years , so soak up as much info as you possibly can. And sooner or later it'll hit you on what you may want to do.
For me , the drywall trade wasn't something I expected to stay in. But it just kind of worked out that way. I'm kind of stuck doing it in a way , unless I change career's and start making less then 1/2 the amount of what I make now. I think we get kind of trapped in a way the older we get. We have more to pay for and so forth , and can't really accept a lot less pay , and still be able to survive....unless you are willing to work two jobs.
I do have days where I literally hate every second of my work. But then I look back and remember what it was like working for someone else. It's all in my hands now , and I either make or break myself. It is a challenge , hard work and some times miserable......but I wouldn't have it any other way.
I hope some of this helps you. And if you have any more questions , I'll try and help as much as I can.
I went from being a part time driver 3 years ago to having my own store as of two weeks ago. I knew nothing about paint going in. My base salary is 55K and the bonuses are where you make the real money. If I keep having a good year I'll push over 100K not bad for having only a High School diploma.
Pit Row
Get a job in Insurance, Real Estate Agent, or a Mortgage Loan officer (not at a bank or credit union...but for a mortgage bank or brokerage...that's where the money is).
I'm a mortgage loan officer, but I wish I'd of gotten into insurance 15 years ago when I started in the mortgage industry...just because of the residuals.
But either of those fields have low barrier of entry (don't need a college degree, take some classes online and pass a test and you're licensed...easy peasy)...have flexible hours...almost unlimited earning potential (it takes a little bit longer on the insurance side, but as you build your book of business, you make money on the renewals and the new business you write)...is easy on the body...and have a high quality of life.
With a solid work ethic, a "people person" personality, there is no reason you couldn't be at 6 figures as a real estate agent or mortgage loan officer within two-three years (and then go up from there). It might take a little longer as an insurance agent, but once you get there your income is far more stable than the other two.
Trades are great, but as Jeffro said they can be physically demanding. You are also on a timeline that sometimes you can't control. Titan has some good advice, but I would not want to be a real estate agent, they work 24/7. Since you are familiar with trades, home inspections may be a good route to pursue. I have been doing inspections for 9 years. The benefits, go someplace different every day, set your own schedule, own your business or work for someone else, pay is good (average around $65 hr including drive time), more free time, and meet someone new every day. Drawbacks, liability (form a LLC for protection) and POS nasty houses. I'm not sure about licensing in AZ, as every state is different, but get as much education as possible and study IRC codes and building standards. Getting comfortable doing inspections takes between 3 and 9 months all while you are building your business and getting to know realtors. As your reputation grows, those shitty houses go away and/or you can pick and choose. Something to think about.
It ain’t easy making a lot of money. Not sure why society thinks every success story is a get rich quick scheme.
So yes, some dues have to be paid, but once they are paid I can’t complain at all about my qualify of life (or my income).
Part of me still wishes I woUld have done the insurance thing (I looked at both 15 years ago) just for the residuals. But it is what it is.
But if you consider insurance, I'd highly suggest being an independent agent rather than captive. Captive agents are increasingly being whored out to push sketchy return securities by their "house" carriers, so all of that well deserved good will you've built up will end up getting tarnished when they describe what they'd like to do with their retirement money and you try to push your generic, almost as good version. Basically you are taking an Audi S7 buyer, and you're putting him into a Chevy Sonic, because that's the closest thing your company has and you have to make your financial services quota for the month.
Independent has its own difficulties on set up, but after that the flexibility and autonomy are incredible.
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