Starting from Scratch

[tundrabadger]

I'm 10 years out of university this month. It's been an active 10 years....I moved south permanent without any real idea of what I was going to do with myself, and a vague sense that having a degree would give me the start I needed in life.....blissfully unaware that History with a minor in Women's Studies (hey, it's a legitimate social science, and I still think it complimented a history major really well) doesn't take you very far. There's been good things...half a year after grad I started talking to this really great girl, who in a remarkable display of poor judgement decided she wanted to be my wife, we bought the house, so forth. But professionally, it's been a struggle....sales clerk, telemarketer, fundraiser, shipping clerk and kiosk manager. Some of it has been fun...I loved being a manager, but with a store closure under my belt, I think that road might be closed to me now. So I find myself at 33, married, in a job that barely puts food on the table if my wife isn't working...and she's been doing contract work, so sometimes she isn't, most recently for a 5 month period. And I have to ask myself "What can I do to change this?"


So I'm going back to school. College this time, not university. There's a good library program at the college near me, and there's lots of work in that field here. And there is money that's available to me for this, so why not? I figure I can keep plugging away in low paying jobs that I'm not very good at or I can learn to do something useful and make good money. And I'm always telling people "Think about what you study, learn a useful trade or profession. you'll be happier". So why not take my own advice.


The term starts in September

[hunter63]

That's a commendable plan.

Funny thing is in our area....was a big industrial/manufacturing complex,...still is to a point.
But.... the big factory jobs that one could enter into at high school age...and not necessarily graduates...could walk in, work 3 shift and make more money than their father, grandfather, and all uncles... that worked 1st. shift, because of shift premium.

Good enough money to buy a house, a car or two, ,,,and if you hung in there....your place "Up Nort", boat, 4 wheeler and all the trappings.

I did kinda get caught up in this...collage was not for me, then...had enough of school....I was already out in the world and had things going on.
DW as well.
Worked well for 33 years......The the plant closed....DW and I were both working there......both 51 and unemployed...scary.

But we had prepared for this possibility....and had stashed cash and retirement, so wasn't as bad as it sounded, and were getting by

Both of us went back to school....she just took a couple of classes....but I completed a my associate degree I had started way back when and an apprenticeship in a trade that I chose.....HVAC-R

Worked 15 more years and retired again....LOL.

We spend our whole lives working for our dream....covering our butt as best as we can.....but at some point we just had to do what you are doing.......Pick a new direction.....and Go For It.
Congrats and good luck.

[Loneviking]

I agree with Hunters advice and would add to that don't be afraid to move. There have been a couple of times in when I should have thrown in the towel and moved instead of continuing to plug along. There are towns where the economy is booming and good workers can find good paying jobs.

[WolfVanZandt]

Cool!

In this society, it seems common that people have expectation of certain milestones - at a certain age a person is supposed to have done x, y, and z. I figure this is my ninth life and I remake myself at the end of each. I'm not a statue or a machine. I get to change if I want to.

Sounds like you know what you want and you're going after it. Frankly, I think library science is one of the most exciting fields today - there's a lot of stuff happening there.

[kyratshooter]

What can I say?

I went back for a second degree while in my 40s.

Go for it!

Just back up your dream with some work that gives you flexibility and don't educate yourself past what the market will pay.

When I went after my Masters I chose a field that allowed me to move in 6 different directions, and it was good that I did. My major concentration (Museum Administration) collapsed economically about 6 months before I graduated. I remained in teaching and wound up making more money and having more security in the long run.

[tundrabadger]

What can I say?

I went back for a second degree while in my 40s.

Go for it!

Just back up your dream with some work that gives you flexibility and don't educate yourself past what the market will pay.

When I went after my Masters I chose a field that allowed me to move in 6 different directions, and it was good that I did. My major concentration (Museum Administration) collapsed economically about 6 months before I graduated. I remained in teaching and wound up making more money and having more security in the long run.

That's why I'm doing a college diploma instead of a gradschool to start with....you can earn more with a masters, but there's a lot more work for people with the diploma....you earning potential is lower, but still a hell of a lot better than retail, and you get your foot in the door. I figure if I can get myself well situated, I can always do the masters later on, and probably have a better shot at admission as somebody with experience in the field.

[crashdive123]

Knowing what you want and pursuing it is a good thing. Not sure if this would fit in with your desires, but a lot of people overlook trade schools. There are a lot of plumbers, welders and HVAC techs making a good living. Also as has been said, having the ability to move may be helpful.

For grins, I looked this up. http://www.canadianbusiness.com/list...obs-in-canada/

[Rick]

Here's a resource for you. It's the U.S. Occupational Outlook Handbook but it will apply to Canada as well. It tells you which jobs are expected to outperform and which are not. Tells you the median pay, growth projection, requirements for the job, etc. Find a job that will be in demand long term. It's great to have a degree but if you have one in a field that is not in demand, as you may have found out, it's not very helpful. On the other hand, if you have some idea of where the projected growth will occur and situate yourself to be there then you stand a much better chance of succeeding.

Once you land that sought after job, determine where their core business is and stay with that. New company endeavors are wonderful but the folks that go with it stand a very good chance of finding themselves in an effort that didn't work out or one that gets sold to someone in the same field. Since synergies occur in that situation you can find yourself on the street in that scenario as well.

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/

[tundrabadger]

Here's a resource for you. It's the U.S. Occupational Outlook Handbook but it will apply to Canada as well. It tells you which jobs are expected to outperform and which are not. Tells you the median pay, growth projection, requirements for the job, etc. Find a job that will be in demand long term. It's great to have a degree but if you have one in a field that is not in demand, as you may have found out, it's not very helpful. On the other hand, if you have some idea of where the projected growth will occur and situate yourself to be there then you stand a much better chance of succeeding.

Once you land that sought after job, determine where their core business is and stay with that. New company endeavors are wonderful but the folks that go with it stand a very good chance of finding themselves in an effort that didn't work out or one that gets sold to someone in the same field. Since synergies occur in that situation you can find yourself on the street in that scenario as well.

http://www.bls.gov/ooh/

I actually hit a few workshops at the employment centre when I was trying to figure out what to do, as well as meeting with people from the program itself and talking to some people who are active in the field...the great thing about the library program is it actually isn't just libraries, it's library and information technology....it covers a lot of information management... so as well as libraries themselves (And pretty much every government department has it's own, as well as your think tanks, advocacy groups and such), there's alumni wokring as database administrators in places like hospitals and laboratories. I also spoke with an alumnus, who gave me an idea of what I need to do to walk in to a good job after grad.

Additionally, though I don't really want to move, I've checked it out, and there's decent prospects in other places I think would be good to live...like, for example, if I could convince my wife to go north.

[Rick]

Wait. North? You know you're in Ontario, right? North is sure to put you in Hudson Bay. She might be hesitant to do that.

[tundrabadger]

I'm in Eastern ontario, but when I say north I mean northern Canada in general....and if I were to travel directly north from here I'd be in Quebec, and eventually hit Baffin Island, somewhere in the vicinity of Iqaluit, which is small city that just won't stop expanding, and has a LOT of government work. But NWT and Yukon would also work...I've heard great things about Yellowknife

[Rick]

I don't know. Hudson Bay might be better than Quebec. Quebec is like Western France.

[tundrabadger]

Ah, Monsiuer Rick, pour quoi vou n'aime pas les francais? Tous les francais aimer monsiuer Rick.


Also, Iqaluit is in Nunavut

[randyt]

Good luck in your endeavors. I have often thought I should have went to collage instead I went into business at the age of 22 yo. That was 29 yeas ago, now that my body is wearing out I sure wish I had.

[hunter63]

Randy I did it backwards...had the "position" when I was youg and a "job" when I got older....LOL
Supposed to be "Job....THEN Position.....

[randyt]

I don't know how I did it lol, life takes you where life takes you. There's been lots of times I wished I would have stayed in my cabin in the woods. so simple, no stress, no sleepless nights wondering how the bills are going to get paid and how payroll would be made.

[hunter63]

Actually the good part about the "Job" was a lot of stuff didn't need worrying about.... as long as you did what you do well.....
With a "position", many times your success or failure isn't up to you or what you did/do....just was the way things go....More stress.

[randyt]

they say the older a fella gets the more patience he has. I call bs on that one. I was patient when younger and the older I get the less tolerance I have for bs lol.

[hunter63]

Yeah....No Ship.....I agree....
I will say though, that the position ment you had to be the bad guy sometimes and people didn't want to see you coming.....
The "job" was to fix stuff, ...so everyone loved it when you showed up...they would have heat/cool/ or their beer would be cold.

Having your own business is a WHOLE 'nother ball game.

[Solar Geek]

Good for you for going back to school. I had some really good paying jobs after college but decided at 30 to go to law school. It was daunting as we had to sell our house to pay for the education. And then I had to work all during law school but it was the best thing I did as I got my foot in the door of the big firms Who were happy to see that I had worked for professors – – which was where I wanted to work. We couldn't afford a top-tier school, but by relocating to Chicago, I was able to work the system with getting great grades my first year, which guaranteed offers from wonderful places to work my second year. Most law students didn't know that the first year was the most important year for your grades of all three years.

Loved my second career and never regretted it. However, I hated being in law school just like I hated being in college. It was a means to an end. I met a ton of interesting people both in law school and later in my jobs with different law firms. I Keep in touch with many of the coworkers now that I am not practicing.

I think the career you are choosing will open many doors to you as be will be learning the basics of how information flows and how you can locate almost any piece of information in the world.

Good luck to you.