[speakeasy]

I've been looking into a career change. I'm open to getting re-educated, or a certification or even some courses I could do at home. Just thought I'd throw this post out there and collect some ideas that I could further research.

Here is what I would want in a career:

1) Decent pay. doesn't have to be extraordinary, but ideally something that would pay $65-70k minimum. I have no debts so that would be plenty of play money for me to live off.

2) Doesn't require an advanced college degree. I'm trying to avoid having to go back to school for years. I have no problem pursing some training or certification if necessary, I just don't want to be on the hook for another 4 years of college education.

3) I don't want to be tied to a cubicle with someone telling you how long your lunch break can be. I want to be able to work remotely and independently as a consultant and/or freeagent contractor. This would allow me time to travel more than the allotted 2 weeks a year Americans get(if even that).

4) Something that's going to be intellectually stimulating. I get quickly bored with routine.

I'm pretty open to a wide variety of ideas. I'm in an information gathering stage right now.

[Seduction Sutra]

Professional killer.

[speakeasy]

(12-22-2012 01:38 PM)Seduction Sutra Wrote:  

Professional killer.

Hah, something legal, ideally!

[Joga Bonito]

Could you share a bit more about the skills you possess now? The current gig that I am in now lets people work remotely and a few of my coworkers are geographically nowhere near our central office. I work in insurance and the system we use is proprietary, so having rare skills is a big plus(PM me if you want details on that). Your best bet is finding contract work and taking on 6 or 8 month contracts, thereby allowing yourself to travel for a good amount of the year. You can find those gigs through contract houses like Kelly Services and other sites like Monster. Like I said it is highly dependent on what your skills are though. I remember reading somewhere that you did web design, that honestly is one of the ways to work remotely. Are you not open to that anymore?

[speakeasy]

(12-22-2012 02:05 PM)iWin Wrote:  

I remember reading somewhere that you did web design, that honestly is one of the ways to work remotely. Are you not open to that anymore?

True. I got pretty burned out on that and started losing my enjoyment for it. I started that career in 2001. I suppose if you do anything for long enough you'll hit a burnout point. I feel like that skill set is very specific to that field and not easily transferable to something else without having to start over from the ground up. Unlike sales where you can work in a variety of industries if you have the personality skills it takes to be a good salesman.

I'm just investigating options.

[east and west]

What is your job right now, what skills can u leverage on

[east and west]

What talents have you got,
Music, singing, writing, math, sciences, research, etc

[Kitsune]

(12-22-2012 07:46 PM)east and west Wrote:  

What talents have you got,
Music, singing, writing, math, sciences, research, etc

Most of those don't allow for much travel, and what travel you do get is regimented.


The thing with a travelling career is that you have to spend years building up the skills and experience needed to leverage yourself to potential employers/clients if you want freedom and good money. I'd say most roles higher up the food chain involve more freedom, but are you willing to work for ten years before making the jump? Or do you want it now? And what are you willing to trade for getting it now if that is the case?

[king]

Computer programming, specially web programming.

You can get a decent level of skill in about 6 months if you put the effort.

[TheCaptainPower]

gym teacher......You can stay in Europe all summer.

In NYC you can get license in 18 months real easy if you already have a bachelors to teach special ed or any other high need area...

[iknowexactly]

In general, maybe sales would do it. I knew a guy who was doing sales remotely in Ukraine when the clients were in Western Europe.

The foundation of this is most people HATE doing cold calling, but it's necessary in a lot of businesses, and you can be anywhere now and do it.

[DoctaWho]

I would recommend that you learn some sort of trade like welding or specialized electronics, although neither will allow you to work remotely they will both allow you to take 4-8 month contracts. My friend's brother does electrical work at nuclear facilities and makes more (hourly) than both of us by a long shot. He's not always working, but when he is he makes bank. I knew a welder several years ago who made 6 figures per year without having to work 12 months. He did contract work, so he set the months he wanted to work, but was always required to move away from his family which took a toll on him. He learned welding in jail but some community colleges will teach it. At the time I knew him he also told me that he could probably get me a job welding as an apprenticeship kind of thing under him if I was serious so if you can meet some welders that might save you the school time/cost.

Writing web content may also be a possibility. I gave it a shot a few months ago and failed miserably because so many people on the traditional sites were looking for cheap writers. However, with googles new focus on quality content there may be a shift away from $5/article writers.

I work in IT doing web development and my most recent contract expired. I was hoping to find a 3-6 month gig and then travel again. From speaking with several recruiters it is looking less and less possible as a lot of companies are looking for guys to go from temp to perm. I was just turned down from a job when one of the two managers rejected me due to a one year gap from travel and his belief that I would not convert to perm after 6 months. Depending on how interviews go in January I'm actually considering trying to network with some oil guys. Sad thing is most of the posts I look at seem to want experience.

If you go the IT route I would recommend something related to setup/installation that many companies outsource. Lots of companies have an IT department to manage their networks but someone else actually comes in to install/configure the equipment.

Are you looking for location independent work or just the type of work that will allow you to work part of the year and travel part of the year? Hopefully some of the guys who have trade work or do IM will chime in about what they would do if they had to start again now.

[Aliblahba]

(12-23-2012 04:59 PM)DoctaWho Wrote:  

I would recommend that you learn some sort of trade like welding or specialized electronics, although neither will allow you to work remotely they will both allow you to take 4-8 month contracts. My friend's brother does electrical work at nuclear facilities and makes more (hourly) than both of us by a long shot. He's not always working, but when he is he makes bank. I knew a welder several years ago who made 6 figures per year without having to work 12 months. He did contract work, so he set the months he wanted to work, but was always required to move away from his family which took a toll on him. He learned welding in jail but some community colleges will teach it. At the time I knew him he also told me that he could probably get me a job welding as an apprenticeship kind of thing under him if I was serious so if you can meet some welders that might save you the school time/cost.

I've been doing this for years. It's not location independent, but getting into contract work can give you 8 months off each year if you work it right.

My skills are in electronics, mechanical, field service, but those aren't going to parlay into 100% independant lifestyle.

[RichieP]

So what other jobs have those 4-8 month contracts?

[avantgarde]

English teaching 1/2-1yr contract, but low wage though

[Alpharius]

(12-26-2012 07:26 AM)avantgarde Wrote:  

English teaching 1/2-1yr contract, but low wage though

The wages aren't great, you only make about $14k US in a year, but you have a much lower cost of living, typically you only work 2-3 days a week for about 20 hours total, and the school you work for covers your apartment, utilities, and (if it's a good school) gives you medical coverage. Not to mention paying for your plane ticket.

It's basically working on easy mode.

[Andy_B]

Being a copywriter pays decently and lets you be location independent. Some of the really high end clients might want you to live in their area though.

[maestrobaires]

IT/web work
copywriting
translation
inside sales

[Dulceácido]

If you're not afraid to go to a war zone, you could do almost any kind of labor contracting and make enough to only work a few months/year, if you chose. If you have a background in physical security, that pays big. Positions aren't limited to security, though. There are people who manage internet cafes on base that make $100k/year if they work year round... It's not glamourous work and it can be dangerous, but it would give you enough cash to enjoy your time off.

[maestrobaires]

(12-31-2012 09:46 AM)Dulceácido Wrote:  

If you're not afraid to go to a war zone, you could do almost any kind of labor contracting and make enough to only work a few months/year, if you chose. If you have a background in physical security, that pays big. Positions aren't limited to security, though. There are people who manage internet cafes on base that make $100k/year if they work year round... It's not glamourous work and it can be dangerous, but it would give you enough cash to enjoy your time off.

i'd gladly take an IT contract in a war zone! i'm croatian and experienced the war first hand + traveled and worked at dangerous places too

if you got any connections or at least pointers, please hit me up

[Dulceácido]

Dude... Easy day. Check out this link:

http://www.fluor.com/careers/pages/default.aspx

[maestrobaires]

thanks but not a lot offered in the IT sector

[lilseezie]

That money's not gonna do you much good if you're dead. I'd recommend passing on any war zone opportunities, no matter how attractive the dollars may seem.

[wlee25]

I can attest to doing contract work in Afghanistan. Safety is not that much of a worry for me, being in a fortified compound in one of the safer regions. Boredom is more of an issue, but you can't complain when you're making six figures.

[maestrobaires]

i was on a short gig in iraq. it's really not that dangerous. i was feeling more dangerous in caracas than in baghdad

it's those guys on duty off the base who get killed as well as locals working for occupiers