Age 19 career and what do you do ?
Discussion
Hello everyone, I have been working as a mechanic since 16 and would say I now have a rough idea about garage life but don’t think it’s particularly for me . Not in a negative way but I just don’t think it particularly suits me and what I see for my future . I would like an office based job I think but I haven’t got a clue about what precisely as it’s not really what anyone in my family does bar one person( which is why I’ve asked here). I can learn quickly and I would say get my head around new things quite well. I would appreciate input from people in such positions and the job title and description etc. Thank you for reading and any help is hugely valued.
Edited by H_baz on Saturday 17th April 11:48
Have you considered a mechanical role in a factory?
I am mixed skilled (mostly electronics though) and spend about 40% of my time sat behind a computer and the rest either at my work bench or working on equipment around the site.
Im a bit disenfranchised with my job atm but i think its just because of covid.
I am mixed skilled (mostly electronics though) and spend about 40% of my time sat behind a computer and the rest either at my work bench or working on equipment around the site.
Im a bit disenfranchised with my job atm but i think its just because of covid.
Personally, I'd be a mechanic.
Sitting in an office is pants, and I say that as someone who did it for 40 years.
Even worse if you don't know what you want to do, except sit in an office.
Why do you want an office job? If you answer that question you may get more idea of what you could do.
An office job isn't necessarily an easier life than a non-office job, it's just different, and generally has more pointless rules
Sitting in an office is pants, and I say that as someone who did it for 40 years.
Even worse if you don't know what you want to do, except sit in an office.
Why do you want an office job? If you answer that question you may get more idea of what you could do.
An office job isn't necessarily an easier life than a non-office job, it's just different, and generally has more pointless rules
Benbay001 said:
Have you considered a mechanical role in a factory?
I am mixed skilled (mostly electronics though) and spend about 40% of my time sat behind a computer and the rest either at my work bench or working on equipment around the site.
Im a bit disenfranchised with my job atm but i think its just because of covid.
I had not actually , that does sound more interesting than what I’m doing currently day to day as you would get a bit more variety at least . I definitely don’t think COVID helps at the moment though it makes everything a bit more depressing .I am mixed skilled (mostly electronics though) and spend about 40% of my time sat behind a computer and the rest either at my work bench or working on equipment around the site.
Im a bit disenfranchised with my job atm but i think its just because of covid.
sociopath said:
Personally, I'd be a mechanic.
Sitting in an office is pants, and I say that as someone who did it for 40 years.
Even worse if you don't know what you want to do, except sit in an office.
Why do you want an office job? If you answer that question you may get more idea of what you could do.
An office job isn't necessarily an easier life than a non-office job, it's just different, and generally has more pointless rules
I think I’d like the opportunity for career progression and once you become good at your ‘thing’ you are valued ( hopefully) accordingly. I’m not scared of hard work or wanting an easy job I just don’t overwhelmingly love working with my hands all day everyday sort of thing . Sitting in an office is pants, and I say that as someone who did it for 40 years.
Even worse if you don't know what you want to do, except sit in an office.
Why do you want an office job? If you answer that question you may get more idea of what you could do.
An office job isn't necessarily an easier life than a non-office job, it's just different, and generally has more pointless rules
Smurfsarepeopletoo said:
You might need to provide more information of why garage life doesnt suit you, and what you want for your future.
There are loads of office jobs out there, but it depends what you want to do as to what will be suitable for you.
I don’t think the earning potential is great for the effort and hassle you have to go through so the satisfaction isn’t particularly high . Not saying I expect to ever be on mega sums but I’d like a good wage where you aren’t crippled by 30-40 sort of thing. I’m not scared of any job really I’d give it a good go and get stuck in but I’m just not sure what people are doing in an office all day and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way haha .There are loads of office jobs out there, but it depends what you want to do as to what will be suitable for you.
H_baz said:
Smurfsarepeopletoo said:
You might need to provide more information of why garage life doesnt suit you, and what you want for your future.
There are loads of office jobs out there, but it depends what you want to do as to what will be suitable for you.
I don’t think the earning potential is great for the effort and hassle you have to go through so the satisfaction isn’t particularly high . Not saying I expect to ever be on mega sums but I’d like a good wage where you aren’t crippled by 30-40 sort of thing. I’m not scared of any job really I’d give it a good go and get stuck in but I’m just not sure what people are doing in an office all day and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way haha .There are loads of office jobs out there, but it depends what you want to do as to what will be suitable for you.
You need to think about what job you want to do or could do
sociopath said:
That's what you need to deal with, an office job just means you work in an office, but that could be IT, finance, support, operations, HR, admin etc loads of different things. Saying office worker isn't the same as saying mechanic.
You need to think about what job you want to do or could do
Good point it’s such a vast term that I haven’t really asked a question someone could feasibly answer . I would rather IT or finance opposed to the other fields you’ve listed but I’m not sure that’s possible to get into without a degree etc .You need to think about what job you want to do or could do
Both for your own benefit and for us to be able to give you more useful guidance, list what aspects of your current job you do and don't like.e.g.
Let us know what you think!
- Working with tools
- Working with vehicles
- Being on your feet
- Problem solving
- Recording on paper/computer what you have done
- Dealing face to face with customers
- Working with other employees
- Working/talking to management
- Taking orders from people
- Instructing other people what to do
- Getting out and about (getting away from your normal place of work)
- Staying away overnight
- Working away/abroad - short trips (max two weeks)
- Working away/abroad - Over two weeks
- Repetitive work
- Jobs where you are left to sort it out without much guidance
- Being creative with words e.g. writing a description of something as opposed to just filling in tick boxes.
- Mucking in - doing whatever needs to be done whether its sweeping the floor or a complex task
- Teamworking with one other person
- Teamworking with several people
- Lone working - having to plan the task, the equipment, record what was done and make all the decisions yourself. i.e. the buck stops with you.
Let us know what you think!
GliderRider said:
Both for your own benefit and for us to be able to give you more useful guidance, list what aspects of your current job you do and don't like.e.g.
Let us know what you think!
That’s brilliant thank you very much , it’s a small 3 man garage owned by my dad so I have got more experience with the full process than perhaps others. I enjoy being creative with words opposed to tick boxes for sure and have no problem with dealing with customers and trying to explain things in a less technical sense that’s easier to digest . Obviously problem solving is a large part which I also enjoy because it’s a great feeling when you do find a solution . I have no problems being given problems from people above me and I’m not scared of people being in charge/overseeing what I’m doing . I haven’t ever had to stay away for work but I wouldn’t have a problem with that as I still live at home so no dependents. I do enjoy teamwork actually it’s nice to have people to talk things through with . Repetitive work isn’t a huge problem if it’s remotely interesting to me but by its nature obviously gets boring . Hope that can help a bit I really appreciate all of this - Working with tools
- Working with vehicles
- Being on your feet
- Problem solving
- Recording on paper/computer what you have done
- Dealing face to face with customers
- Working with other employees
- Working/talking to management
- Taking orders from people
- Instructing other people what to do
- Getting out and about (getting away from your normal place of work)
- Staying away overnight
- Working away/abroad - short trips (max two weeks)
- Working away/abroad - Over two weeks
- Repetitive work
- Jobs where you are left to sort it out without much guidance
- Being creative with words e.g. writing a description of something as opposed to just filling in tick boxes.
- Mucking in - doing whatever needs to be done whether its sweeping the floor or a complex task
- Teamworking with one other person
- Teamworking with several people
- Lone working - having to plan the task, the equipment, record what was done and make all the decisions yourself. i.e. the buck stops with you.
Let us know what you think!
sociopath said:
If you want IT then the obvious way in without a degree is via an apprenticeship.
My last role I was taking on apprentices into our support team. Its a great way into IT, all mine moved on to well paid jobs with the experience they gained.
I did enjoy my apprenticeship, well the actual job aspect I found the college side a bit mundane but the college side a bit slow . I think an apprenticeship will be the way into anything I choose as it’s invaluable to get experience alongside knowledge IMO .My last role I was taking on apprentices into our support team. Its a great way into IT, all mine moved on to well paid jobs with the experience they gained.
H_baz said:
That’s brilliant thank you very much , it’s a small 3 man garage owned by my dad so I have got more experience with the full process than perhaps others. I enjoy being creative with words opposed to tick boxes for sure and have no problem with dealing with customers and trying to explain things in a less technical sense that’s easier to digest . Obviously problem solving is a large part which I also enjoy because it’s a great feeling when you do find a solution . I have no problems being given problems from people above me and I’m not scared of people being in charge/overseeing what I’m doing . I haven’t ever had to stay away for work but I wouldn’t have a problem with that as I still live at home so no dependents. I do enjoy teamwork actually it’s nice to have people to talk things through with . Repetitive work isn’t a huge problem if it’s remotely interesting to me but by its nature obviously gets boring . Hope that can help a bit I really appreciate all of this
Come work on superyachts. If you enjoy fixing stuff, problem solving and are happy talking to people, the work is varied, travel interesting and pay very good compared with most shoreside technical roles.My son was in a similar position where he wasnt sure what he wanted to do, just not what he was doing!
He left school with a couple of A levels (design & history, failed maths). Thought about the Police and went through the first few stages of selection whilst working in food retail where he rapidly became a supervisor managing nights and deliveries. He was earning good very money but hated nights and being on call as a key holder etc
At 19 and completely out of the blue he applied for a job as a trainee chartered accountant and got it. No previous experience but fitted in with the existing team.
Trainee was the key thing for him, not an apprenticeship. He gets paid pretty well still and loves it.
He left school with a couple of A levels (design & history, failed maths). Thought about the Police and went through the first few stages of selection whilst working in food retail where he rapidly became a supervisor managing nights and deliveries. He was earning good very money but hated nights and being on call as a key holder etc
At 19 and completely out of the blue he applied for a job as a trainee chartered accountant and got it. No previous experience but fitted in with the existing team.
Trainee was the key thing for him, not an apprenticeship. He gets paid pretty well still and loves it.
OP, you write very nicely for someone who's been working in garage from 16 years of age. That tells me that you must have either had a decent education even if not at degree level, or you're a naturally intelligent person who can grasp the rules of grammar, and therefore I think you'd do well at anything you wanted to apply yourself to. You could stick with the garage trade but start your own business once you build up some more experience, or you could move into a related field.
You mentioned that you might like to get into IT and that's definitely possible even without a degree. If you understand computers generally (you don't have to ask others for help when you need to install a printer driver or fix a startup issue) then it's pretty easy. My tip would be to download Oracle Virtualbox and use it to install Linux on your PC. Any Linux is fine, or get a head start with CentOS, which is identical to to the industry standard Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Teach yourself how to administer that, and then do some online courses (Skillshare or similar are fine - so is Youtube) in subjects like Docker, Ansible, Python, MySQL. If you can get to a good level of knowledge in those, then you can more or less do what I do.
After university (which was basically time wasted for the sake of getting a degree), I found a job ad posted in a post office window looking for someone to drive a delivery van and pack boxes. I went for an interview, and it turned out they were a start-up computer trading company. They were buying and selling UNIX hardware, and didn't have much of a clue what they were doing. As a teenager I had a Commodore Amiga 2000 computer with a SCSI hard disk inside the case. I was constantly tinkering with it, customising the hardware and software, and when it came down to it the experience from that meant I could show the boss how to test and configure SCSI devices on IBM RS/6000 machines - the concepts are identical, and AmigaDOS command line was very very similar to IBM AIX (UNIX) commands. So I became their first employee, and as well as driving the van and packing boxes, I was testing memory, hard disks, tape drives, processor cards and building configs for customers. As the company grew, I became the lead engineer, and I taught myself more and more UNIX stuff. Then we started getting involved in HP and Sun Microsystems hardware, and the company sent me on site to various datacentres to install and upgrade hardware. And after a few years of that, I left the technical side behind and became a broker, trading equipment all around the world. I spent the first 10 years of my career at that same company, becoming very experienced at what I was doing, and eventually left when there was no way to get promoted or learn something new.
After leaving that company, I freelanced as a hardware engineer for a few years, which allowed me to live in a few European countries, and after 6 years of that I got hired by a big American software company, where I worked for 9 years, building up more serious software skills.
In 2019 I was made redundant by cost-saving measures and Brexit and by that time I'd decided that I wanted to get out of IT and do something else entirely. I'm still working on that and for the time being Coronavirus has thrown a spanner in the works. I've been freelancing again in the UNIX field, working for some very well known names including a huge carmaker. I've just been offered contract work which would earn me well over £100k p.a. if I choose to accept it. But here's the thing. I'm tired of computers and I think I'd be much happier fixing cars for a living! Maybe I'll see if LimaDelta has any superyacht work for me, as spending half the year in Monaco sounds pretty good to me!
You mentioned that you might like to get into IT and that's definitely possible even without a degree. If you understand computers generally (you don't have to ask others for help when you need to install a printer driver or fix a startup issue) then it's pretty easy. My tip would be to download Oracle Virtualbox and use it to install Linux on your PC. Any Linux is fine, or get a head start with CentOS, which is identical to to the industry standard Red Hat Enterprise Linux. Teach yourself how to administer that, and then do some online courses (Skillshare or similar are fine - so is Youtube) in subjects like Docker, Ansible, Python, MySQL. If you can get to a good level of knowledge in those, then you can more or less do what I do.
After university (which was basically time wasted for the sake of getting a degree), I found a job ad posted in a post office window looking for someone to drive a delivery van and pack boxes. I went for an interview, and it turned out they were a start-up computer trading company. They were buying and selling UNIX hardware, and didn't have much of a clue what they were doing. As a teenager I had a Commodore Amiga 2000 computer with a SCSI hard disk inside the case. I was constantly tinkering with it, customising the hardware and software, and when it came down to it the experience from that meant I could show the boss how to test and configure SCSI devices on IBM RS/6000 machines - the concepts are identical, and AmigaDOS command line was very very similar to IBM AIX (UNIX) commands. So I became their first employee, and as well as driving the van and packing boxes, I was testing memory, hard disks, tape drives, processor cards and building configs for customers. As the company grew, I became the lead engineer, and I taught myself more and more UNIX stuff. Then we started getting involved in HP and Sun Microsystems hardware, and the company sent me on site to various datacentres to install and upgrade hardware. And after a few years of that, I left the technical side behind and became a broker, trading equipment all around the world. I spent the first 10 years of my career at that same company, becoming very experienced at what I was doing, and eventually left when there was no way to get promoted or learn something new.
After leaving that company, I freelanced as a hardware engineer for a few years, which allowed me to live in a few European countries, and after 6 years of that I got hired by a big American software company, where I worked for 9 years, building up more serious software skills.
In 2019 I was made redundant by cost-saving measures and Brexit and by that time I'd decided that I wanted to get out of IT and do something else entirely. I'm still working on that and for the time being Coronavirus has thrown a spanner in the works. I've been freelancing again in the UNIX field, working for some very well known names including a huge carmaker. I've just been offered contract work which would earn me well over £100k p.a. if I choose to accept it. But here's the thing. I'm tired of computers and I think I'd be much happier fixing cars for a living! Maybe I'll see if LimaDelta has any superyacht work for me, as spending half the year in Monaco sounds pretty good to me!
First of all you sound like a sensible young man . I repair domestic appliances and have done so for almost forty years and have been self employed for at least thirty eight years . The pros of this with the right attitude you can earn a very good living , im not suggesting this but have you considered something such as a plumber gas appliances. The way technology is advancing gas boilers and the associated timers valves etc are becoming more complicated plus there will be big push for heat pump heating systems .
This if you are self employed has many advantages
Very good income
New work place situations daily weekly
The ability to grow a business
Dictating your own hours and days you work.
As an engineer who has been on the road you meet some lovely people ,see some incredible property’s also some absolute dives plus if you need take a couple of hours off you just can.
As you appear quite smart and can work with your hands and problem solve this may be something to look in to as it takes you out of the environment your in .
This if you are self employed has many advantages
Very good income
New work place situations daily weekly
The ability to grow a business
Dictating your own hours and days you work.
As an engineer who has been on the road you meet some lovely people ,see some incredible property’s also some absolute dives plus if you need take a couple of hours off you just can.
As you appear quite smart and can work with your hands and problem solve this may be something to look in to as it takes you out of the environment your in .
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