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I finally left my accounting job for a welding apprenticeship at 35.
Everyone told me to wait for a 'perfect' time to switch, but after my third missed family event for a quarterly close, I just applied to the union hall. I'm three months into the program and broke, but way happier. Has anyone else jumped into a skilled trade from an office job and have tips for the first year?
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the_elizabeth17d ago
Good for you for making the jump. That feeling of missing out on life for a job that just eats your time is the worst. I get the broke but happier part, it's a real trade-off. The tool thing is so true, you'll be calling things by their real names in no time. What's the most surprising part of the work so far?
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ward.emery17d ago
Missed family event for a quarterly close" hit me hard. I went from data entry to fixing furnaces. My big tip is to get used to feeling stupid for a bit. I tried to politely ask a senior tech "where the restroom was located" on my first day. It was a porta-potty on a construction site. You'll learn the real names for tools you've only seen in a hardware store aisle.
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