Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters Need some Ideas here... about life

Didn't want to post this in the Hunter's Campfire section, place is nuts.

Just got to school, thinking I had a spot on a golf team. Tryouts come, I play like a 20 handicapper, and I got cut. After thinking I was going to have a super year and be great, I get fcking cut.

Needless to say, I'm a little bit lost at this point. I plan on staying in school, but to do what. Rifles and hunting interest me more than anything in the world, way more so than golf. Maybe it was a sign that I need to do something pertaining to those things?

Gunsmith? Gunwriter? Guide? Outfitter? Just need some guidance at this point...

Tanner

"It's about the journey, not the end."

You are young. You have a long journey in front of you. You have plenty of time to figure it out.

There are many different paths to take and many different things to try. Get an education and it will open up different paths.

I haven't told you anything. Just keep an open mind and you will work it out.

Dave

Learn everything you can about anything at all. That is what school is really about. Be surprised at the stuff you use in life, knowledge helps mold you, gives you the basis to build and grow into your ultimate vocation.

If you can't see that, well, party on.

If it's your dream never give up..Maybe your better off without them.Thats the only way to look at it

Tanner: Stick it out for one semester or a year. Then transfer to a fun school like UNC or CSU. You don't even have to pick your major yet, that pretty much comes in year two.

Remember, college just isn't about a job at the end, it is a life experience. I miss those days. You can always get out of school and still become a gunsmith.

PS. nobody should be expected to make a career choice at 18. Things will change so fast during the next ten years that it is impossible to predict.

Tanner, these words have carried me farther than I ever thought possible; "The thing to do is try. Failure is of no importance. Giving up however is another matter". Not my words, but the wisdom in those words has helped me reach many pinnacles in my life.

Tanner,

I have tried to operate on the philosophy that when one door closes another opens. Right now your looking for a direction.
I think staying in school is the best option now, evaluate it after the first year is completed. You may find other opportunities arise that will surprise you.

Tanner, I'll give you a little hint about hunting and guns. Really really hard to make a living doing "it." Guys like scenarshooter live my dream. The other way to make it happen is get a sweet paying job, with lots of time off then you can afford to hunt as much as you want.

I have friends that are taxidermists and gunsmiths and they seldom have time to do anything fun like shoot or actually go hunting.

Stick with college for a while. By the time I went it was just for learning stuff, and though my original goal (the world's greatest flyfishing writer) didn't turn out exactly that way, I learned stuff that became useful in many different ways, including chemistry, geology, various kinds of biology and even philosophy. Perhaps the most good it did was teaching me how to research and experiment.

One nice thing about being a gun writer is that anybody can try it in their spare time. With computers and digital cameras the writing and photography is a lot easier (and cheaper) these days, though the market is also more competitive, because most magazines don't use nearly as much freelance writing, depending almost exclusively on staff writers. But staff writers have to come from somewhere....

Becoming a gunsmith generally requires as much work as going to college, but there is a lack of good general gunsmiths these days, and apparently an unending demand for custom work.

Do some guiding if that interests you at all. I did some in the 80's mostly to see what it was all about, and learned a lot, even though I was never interested in doing it full-time. It would give you a lot of insight into what being a guide or outfitter is actually all about.

Tanner to add to MD's post, get a variety of experiences, use the time to figure out what you really want to do. But most importantly, learn how to learn. When your interestes change, as they will over time, if you know how to learn you can maximize the benefit of changing interests.

Also, don't be afraid of feeling lost right now. Heck, I'm 43 and am still trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up, but along the way, I've had a lot of great times, and figured out a lot of things I don't want to do. As well as many that I do want to do more of.

Tanner, you need to worry less about golf, and more about where you are going to get beer, and how you are going to charm the pants off that hot chick in class.

Tanner, give school a try. School taught me a few things I was good at and a whole lot about things I can't do so well. Learning about my weaknesses has been at least as valuable as learning about my strenghts. Good luck to you.

[quote=Tanner].... and I got cut...
[/quote

That's OK...a disapointment but it's still OK.

Part of relishing winning or success is knowing what it's like to "lose" or be unsuccessful. There are no great winners who did not suffer a setback along the way.

Time to Cowboy Up!

Get your education,and don't let a minor setback throw you off course. Once you have the education, no one can take it away from you.It's yours and you may not be able to see the relevance of it now,but you will as you grow and mature.It will expand your options,enhance your social network and expose you to other thoughts and ideas about where you want your life and career to go.

Don't listen to all the shidt you get fed there, learn to be selective and distinguish between the good and bad; both exist in higher education,which is why they call it "education"; and try to focus on something that makes you employable,or preps for grad school in a chosen field.

Maybe in the end school may not be for you,and if that's the case you will figure it out.....but I have seen lots of young people flounder around,foregoing the educational opportunity while they figured themselves out and what they wanted to do. Stay focused.

You may be too young now to know exactly what you want to do;so you might as well make yourself smarter while you're figuring it all out

gunsmith, guide, gunwriter are all admirable professions, but even they need an education.
Buckle down, get the knowledge you will need, and then make that life career choice.

+1 on the stay in school. What classes were you going to take if you made the golf team?

I agree with JB that classes in geology, biology, etc can provide a strong base for a life time of learning. Take a variety of classes and get a variety of summer jobs to expose yourself to the job market.

Talk to bunch of different folks about what kind of careers are out there. Do you want to make a livng in the hook and bullet world or do you want to leave it as a passion and a pass time?

What kind of jobs will allow you to have the income and free time to pursue the outdoor life? Do these jobs have appeal for you? How do you get into those jobs?

Take the time being cut has given you to figure schit out then you can make a plan for your life, and as I have told my kids "as long as you are going somewhere you will end up somewhere"



Just my 2 cents. GRF

BobinNH well said. GRF

My youngest son's best friend just went through that dilemma coming from a heavy history of hunting and the outdoors.He just chose to be a guide in Colorado somewhere.Life is to short to miss out on what we all love....

I chose logging to be in the outdoors 24/7..Could have made more money doing other stuff but it was well worth it for what I learned that I thought I knew.It ain't the same reading about it,doing it is what counts.

Jayco

Well Tanner, I know you're disappointed. However, you learn a lot about yourself when you get knocked down. Just remember you have to get back up every time you get knocked down because you'll get knocked on your ass a bunch. No shame in that. Winners figure out how to win because they know no other way but to keep getting back up. I have no doubt you have the makeup of a winner. Everyone has a purpose in life. I'd do some praying an searching and figure out yours. Like most have said, I'd stay in school.

I�ll tell you what, the one person I know that hunts more than any other 5 people combined is a commercial airline pilot. Not only does he make a ton of money, he gets a ton of time off. In addition, he flys everywhere for free.

Get a pilots license and a 4 year degree.

Great advice given by all.

I'll just add one thing.

STAY IN SCHOOL!

That degree will open a lot of doors that may otherwise stay closed, especially in this day and time.

Maybe try a little guiding, writing or gunsmithing in your spare time. (Tip: Always work on your pop's or brothers guns when learning to smith, never your own. )

Keep a sense of humor about yourself and life in general, even when disappointments arrive at your doorstep.

Like Scenar said, don't be discouraged by failure, we all get a taste of it, but don't let it have the final word on your goals.

Best of luck to you Tanner.

JM