Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire may be starting new career

Don't know your situation regarding dependents, but trading stress and boredom at work for wondering where you're gonna get the money for shoes for your kids is a poor bargain. Work is...well work, and ain't always a picnic. Everybody's got to put up with crap from one direction or another. Is it possible you could simply find a better gig in the business you're already in? Possibly you could get some additional education that would allow you to get a better job where you're at, or in a similar field like bookkeeping, acounting or tax prep. Starting your own business takes a lot of dough, and you have to have about a year's worth of living expense money (so I hear) to carry you over until things start clicking for you.

On the other hand, single guys can do with less and have the freedom to try other stuff. My 56 year-old cousin has never married, and makes a good living buying distressed houses and re-doing them to sell. He probably only works about 4-6 months a year, eats well, hunts a lot, and has a number of lady friends for casual encounters. One friend has made a living doing scrimshaw for decades, and his brother is a travelling musician. They make out okay, but again, have no families to support, and their retirement plans consist of working 'til they die.

I always worked for someone else, and it was mostly pretty enjoyable (for work), and allowed me to keep my family fed, have a little fun here and there, and eventually retire at 58 with enough income to live well and have even more fun. Being able to come home at the end of the day and not have to worry about work was a pretty good thing.

In 2002 at age 42 after being a retail meat cutter for 24 yrs, I quit and went back to school for a trade. Not an easy step given my wife had stayed home with the kids. By 2008 I was a Level 2 industrial radiographer with other NDT tickets and had tripled my wages per annum. I now have a job I enjoy that I can make a good living doing. It had been a great blessing for myself and family.

There's something out there for you. Keep looking. It's worth it.

Too old? I graduated from Nursing school at 54!

Check out your local community colleges. There are tons of 2 year degree programs, 18 month trade jobs and most of them pay reasonably well.

Or... not.

Too old my ass.

Guess I'm not too old then lol

my mother got a GED and went back to school at 50, got her RN and graduated top of her class.

I wasn't much younger than you when I "retired" from being a Paramedic.

Took a minimum wage job as a survey rodman while going back to school, and was a project manager inside of two years.

Was working in the oil fields in WY years ago. Was tired of the boom/bust cycle and being laid off, so went to school (electronics/computers) @ 31yo; with 3 young kids. Got pell grants, student loans and worked @ mini-mart 11p-7a. Worked driving truck during summer. Started over @ 31.

You ain't too old.

I switched at 36, 3 years ago. Went back to school, and now make more money than I could have doing what I was before.

36 is NOT too old...unless you decide it is.

I went to law school at 42 after a lifetime in aviation. Don't ever let age get in your way.

Get a government job.

I went back to school at 35 and started all over again. Then I got hurt on the job at 52 and had to start looking for a new gig at 57. Started a construction management company at 64.

36 is not to old.

Don't let too-easy excuses prevent you from re-creating yourself. 36 is about the right time for a mid-life crisis.

At 33 I left a career on the drawing board as an engineering designer and began a new career as a self employed boat builder.

Started over at 54...self employed small business co owner...As of today 15 full time employees and I'm going hunting this afternoon ...you're never to old!!!...As far as I'm concerned anyone with the proper work ethic and half a brain(1/2 of brain applies to me) can re tool if need be and carry on.

Good luck and DO NOT give up !!

what is your favorite hobby ,or what do you enjoy doing ,,got to LOVE your job.

I started over at 46 then 61 and now at 70 same kind of work because i love it. economics can kill you or make you stronger ,,,,your choise.

norm

Let me echo Norm. If finances require it, keep doing insurance until you can get hired to something else. In the meantime, think about something you really like doing and get training at that. If you do what you love, you'll never have to "work" a day in your life.

I had three very disparate careers. I can almost claim four - with a paying hobby to boot. All were things I wanted to do or was interested in. And I started two of them plus the paying hobby after age 36.

I meant my comment to mean that I can't just drop everything and walk away yet due to mortgage and other debts, and that I am not a free single man who is 19 and nothing to lose.

I have done retail and restaurant management when I was in my 20s and got turned on to insurance as a meaningful, actually helping people, type job where I could stay warm and dry and home on weekends.

it has expanded to become "what have you done for me lately" and "squeeze every drop out of people and resources" and that is a huge turnoff for me. I don't want to run 100% as fast as we can at all times and then be micromanaged on tiny details that don't matter, in hindsight.

what I want is more of an old fashioned, take care of people, do the right thing, quality vs quantity job.

Castrating elephants at the zoo??

Not too much business but the tips are great!!

Well go open your own agency then.

By a 1/4 acre lot near the interstate to headquarter a tow truck.

Get a Cat or one of those stump grinder tree shredders and bill out at $125/hr.

Buy ingredients in bulk and mix up deer food/attractant to deliver to deer hunt club-farms, get a tractor to do food plots while you're at it

I hear you can make $20/hr picking watermelons if you're good at it. Migrant workers aren't as easy to hire as they used to be.