nowhereboy Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 My 29th birthday is coming up and I've been doing a lot of thinking recently. I currently work for an insurance broker, it's basically just a call center job. The money constantly varies from month to month depending on what incentives I'm paid. The company has been great to me but I'm getting tired of ever changing targets, the variable wage and there are no real prospects for progression. I never gave much thought about trying to get a proper career up until recently. I've spent most of my twenties drinking, partying and traveling around with my band playing music and clinging onto the dream of making a living from it. It's been a great ride and it's one i'm not quite ready to get off but at the same time with my 29th birthday on saturday I'm starting to feel like I should maybe start thinking about my future. I earn somewhere in the region of 20 grand a year at the minute and at my current job the chances of that going up in the next few years is slim to none. I have good personal skills, I hit my targets and I have management experience from when I ran pubs, I also have a degree in media production and have skill in videography, web design and editing. There isn't a great deal out there on the jobs websites at the minute, Ideally I want to be on 30 grand a year by the time I'm 30. I've seen a few well paid sales jobs advertised but I really want to get away from sales if possible, customer service is starting to drive me a bit mad. Can anyone give me some advice, or ideas about possible jobs to look out for? I'd imagine theres plenty of people on here with well paid jobs etc. One of my friends works on the oil rigs and he makes an absolute fortune, I have ZERO experience in that sort of field but the potential earnings are very attractive, I'm doing a little research into that now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Do you want money, or do you want to be happy? They're not mutually inclusive for 95% of the population. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kraziekatz1 Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Do you want money, or do you want to be happy? They're not mutually inclusive for 95% of the population. Was going to put something similar.....what do you LIKE doing? Where do you see yourself in 5 yrs.....apart from wanting £30k Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commander Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I'm in IT - if you're a good salesman there is a LOT of money to be made. You don't need any IT skills either - just some general awareness and you'll be given training and supported by technical experts (like me). Your management skills will help you get promotion to team leader / middle-management roles after a few years. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddcboyle Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I had this process and had a topic about it a few months ago. I decided i was sick of the Infantry and being treated like a child and wanted a new career. I looked at all the good money jobs, working on rigs and started looking into that, generally 45k+ depending what your doing. But, its alot of time away and not sure if id enjoy the job. I just looked at the money. Then I looked at close protection abroad, working in iraq and afghanistan, again good pay, but away alot and I actually hated soldiering, So i only looked at the money. The job im intended on doing now is working for police scotland, always been an interest, but the money isnt amazing. Its descent money but its not rig or CP money, but ive given up looking at the salary now. I will spend 33% of my life sleeping. 33% of my life working and 33% of my life doing whatever i wish to do. No use spending 33% of my life working in a job i hate, to earn alot of money to spend on 33% of my life which i wont enjoy because i dread going back to work, to make sure i earn money to keep living a life i dont enjoy. If i were you, I would ignore the money. The more rich a person i speak to, the more they dislike their job. Not everyone, but the majority. This video is well worth a watch 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy78 Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Recruitment consultancy? Not sure if there are any jobs in this field, but it seems to be well paid with the opportunity to make more from bonuses etc. You'd also have a lot of transferable skills from the call centre. Anyway, you're only 29 and the world is your oyster... says the ancient and wise 36 year old! It's never too late to train for something and as others have said... money does not equal job satisfaction... which as you get older becomes all the more important! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nowhereboy Posted June 10, 2014 Author Share Posted June 10, 2014 Do you want money, or do you want to be happy? They're not mutually inclusive for 95% of the population. It's a good question.... I'm already happy, I've had a fantastic life so far. I've traveled, I've played music to big crowds of people, I've lived a lot of my dreams already in that sense. It's just dawning on me that while I've had a great time living the lifestyle I currently lead it's not something I can uphold forever. I hang around with a very creative bunch of people from artists to musicians to extreme sports athletes and while it's all well and good living our dreams out now I have no financial security to fall back on, none of us do. I've seen so many artists and musicians end up stuck in dead end jobs with no prospects in their mid thirties and I don't want to be one of them. Thanks for the link DDC, I've seen the video before it's great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekona Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Coke dealer it is then. Loads of money, easy to sell to the arty types, can retire in ten years (if you live that long). 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricey Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Do you want money, or do you want to be happy? They're not mutually inclusive for 95% of the population. Yip......I jibbed a 40k job in an office last year to clean cars and ferret about with bloody oil changes and brake discs (well with a short trip to Oz and NZ in the interim) Difference is I go to work with a mean stalk on every day now ......money's tight, moneys appreciated, 'things' have a new meaning again......the times they are good. Sent from my HTC One mini using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyboy Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 (edited) Well at your age in 1990 I sold up, packed in my fast track promotion heavy job, put everything I owned in a rucksack and bugg ered off around the world for 2 years. No regrets. Don't chase the wage, Chase the lifestyle. It all works out in the end. Edited June 10, 2014 by flyboy 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddcboyle Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I think its all down to personal choices. Obviously everyone says dont chase the money, At the same time there does need to be a reasonable amount if you have children etc. Thats the only difficult side, along with if you have a partner who doesnt bring in much income, or have high bills. I wouldnt follow flyboys route with the travelling side, just because I couldnt take that much risk. Worked out for him though, as hes willing to take a bit more of a risk. What things are you genuinely interested in? Not interested as in, you like football and snooker on a saturday, but what things are you interested in in respect to jobs. Ive always liked a comfortable risk-free lifestyle. i.e. pension sorted, wage garaunteed, and job garaunteed. Military had exact wage each month, health benefits, and i wasnt going to lose my job without a massive payout. It had its risks with casualty rate, but its different kind of risk. Going police, has wage garaunteed, job garaunteed and health benefits and pension. Along with both of these I like to have power, not like a CEO of a company or politician power, but, I had a weapon, I had authority. Both jobs have this, and this gives me a sense of satisfaction. These are the types of things ive found important to me. Probably blabbering on now and making no sense, but makes sense to me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomdotc Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 I'm working in IT, wanting to get a balance of good money and something that I like / don't mind doing. Have been working on a service desk supporting high profile clients and a few months into the job realised I had no room for promotion and was literally stuck in a dead end job. But still, I stuck it out, worked my ass off and made sure I went the extra mile. Certain people within the company have taken notice and have now transferred me to a different department, doing pretty much what I would like to do (Projects engineer), pay rises certainly coming my way and can work my way up as a Projects manager across the coming years. I guess it all depends on the company you work for and exactly what you would like to be doing and if it's realistic. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricey Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 (edited) My 29th birthday is coming up and I've been doing a lot of thinking recently. I currently work for an insurance broker, it's basically just a call center job. The money constantly varies from month to month depending on what incentives I'm paid. The company has been great to me but I'm getting tired of ever changing targets, the variable wage and there are no real prospects for progression. I never gave much thought about trying to get a proper career up until recently. I've spent most of my twenties drinking, partying and traveling around with my band playing music and clinging onto the dream of making a living from it. It's been a great ride and it's one i'm not quite ready to get off but at the same time with my 29th birthday on saturday I'm starting to feel like I should maybe start thinking about my future. I earn somewhere in the region of 20 grand a year at the minute and at my current job the chances of that going up in the next few years is slim to none. I have good personal skills, I hit my targets and I have management experience from when I ran pubs, I also have a degree in media production and have skill in videography, web design and editing. There isn't a great deal out there on the jobs websites at the minute, Ideally I want to be on 30 grand a year by the time I'm 30. I've seen a few well paid sales jobs advertised but I really want to get away from sales if possible, customer service is starting to drive me a bit mad. Can anyone give me some advice, or ideas about possible jobs to look out for? I'd imagine theres plenty of people on here with well paid jobs etc. One of my friends works on the oil rigs and he makes an absolute fortune, I have ZERO experience in that sort of field but the potential earnings are very attractive, I'm doing a little research into that now. I had a look into the rigs. ....I mean 30oddK for slinging the bins! Who wouldn't right? As my mate said to me 'ricey.....your gonna be spending 6 months a year in a box with blokes who would be in prison if they were anywhere else.....and lets face it.....your a bit of a fanny'. He had a point! Ridonkulously hard to get into unless you have an inside contact and around 3k of courses to do before you can even be considered Sent from my HTC One mini using Tapatalk Edited June 10, 2014 by Ricey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coldel Posted June 10, 2014 Share Posted June 10, 2014 Just to say well done for actually thinking about this mate - lots of people cruise on through just because they think they have to. I have mixed up my career - I got to 31 after being in the same company for 10 years then decided to work in Japan for a year, then France for two. Came back, changed jobs a couple of times, was a maths teacher for a while. Now in a different role, but not far enough away from what I used to do so got itchy feet once more. Don't regret any of the last 8 years moving around trying new stuff - still haven't found my perfect job but somehow my wage has just gone up to a great level. Not sure how, just taking a risk and changing the norm I guess...the rest follows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sipar69 Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 (edited) In your position I'd be looking for jobs that have a defined career path and that you can see yourself doing, rather than looking at jobs on the basis that they will instantly pay you a lot more e.g oil rig. For most people the key to being financially comfortable in the long run is to get a foot in the door, often on a low salary, and then work your way up. Even potentially high paid jobs usually involve starting on surprisingly low money, e.g lawyers. If you feel you're going nowhere in your current job, make the change sooner rather than later. Edited June 11, 2014 by sipar69 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
choptop Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 Money vs Happiness. The two do not always go in hand. Long term you must be happy in what you do, especially when you get an old g*t like me. Plan for your future now. Make the changes sooner than later. If you need more qualifications do them now. It may take a long time to get to where you want to be in life but you have age on your side. (I sound like a fortune teller! Lol!) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sipar69 Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 (edited) I think I've reached the stage where the happy life v more money question has arisen. I was on quite low money for about the first ten years of my career (been with my current employer for 20 years next year). Now after 20 years of slog I earn what I think most people would regard as very good money. But if I wanted to earn substantially more it would mean going for a promotion to a level at which people's jobs seem to take over their lives and you spend almost all of your time in meetings. I know I would hate that, so I will probably settle at my current level where the money will go up until I reach the top of the pay grade but no further. Not much point in earning a ton of money if you don't have any time to spend it and you don't enjoy what you're doing! Edited June 11, 2014 by sipar69 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinmac Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 An interesting read guys. I must say that I am very fortunate. Most of the time I love my job and the money is pretty good which allows me to be stupid now and again. To the OP, good on you for wanting to change things and best of luck with it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickyZ Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 Probably the easiet way to make more would be to transfer your sales skills to a more valuable product with better commission. IT was mentioned somewhere but it's not too late to train for something else your passionate about Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevoD Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 I can't post it as on phone but YouTube Alan watts - what do you desire 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevoD Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 (edited) Edited June 11, 2014 by StevoD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zhorno Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 I don't no what average is thees days for guys In England, I done a carpentry apprentaship started on £2 a hour I'm still with same company 9 years later at 25yrs old and on 32k a year and love my job 80% on the time Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StevoD Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 (edited) Ive gone over the last few years 6k 10k 12k 14k 16k 19k 20k 27k first 4 years in garage love it till the people who showed me the ropes left I then moved to international welding team for the rest same story loved till the people who had given me there time to teach me left but no facing likely redundancy so few sleepless nights ahead but chin up I survived before and I'll survive after my issue was I've become a custom to living my life to my overtime and bonus not basic big mistake I've now found out big life lesson Edited June 11, 2014 by StevoD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wizurd Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 (edited) Change my post since didn't answer your question lol. You can retrain in most things. It's just the cost to retrain while you're earning pittance possibly. IT isn't too hard to get into and a few years down the line you can be earning decent money. But it's not all that rewarding as I find it, but then everyone's different Edited June 11, 2014 by wizurd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crb Posted June 11, 2014 Share Posted June 11, 2014 Started my own business 5 years ago when I was 29... Left a well paid job too.... worked seven days a week and really struggled financially during the first 3 years..... But thankfully it's paid off... I absolutly love what I do and wouldn't have it any other way.... Money's not too bad now either😉 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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