Mike Rowe is AWESOME

[glockman]

In spite of the fact that he is on my wife's "list", I really like the guy. He started a foundation to get people out of thinking a 4 year degree in anything is the only way to make a living in the US. He started the Mike Rowe Works foundation to offer scholarships to kids for technical schools and makes them sign the S.W.E.A.T. pledge. Read about it here.

http://profoundlydisconnected.com/the-next-big-thing/

It's funny to think that skilled trades might be the next road to wealth. It sounds funny until you think about all the people you know who will pay $85 an hour for a mechanic.

 

[Tonkaman]

Being in commercial construction I often get looked down upon by the people were building for. I just smirk and remember my checks are larger than 90% of the people that treat me that way

 

[blznnp]

Being in commercial construction I often get looked down upon by the people were building for. I just smirk and remember my checks are larger than 90% of the people that treat me that way

I couldn't stand that crap. I dealt with that a lot in WA when I would walk around or go out to lunch with my hard hat on or high vis shirt. Especially in the higher income areas.

Mike Rowe is a good guy, I watched a show one time about his foundation and him talking about all the experiences that he has had and how it has changed the way he has looked at their jobs and what they do for the country and how many people aren't wanting to do the blue collar work as much.

 

[STAG]

Ha I went to Olive Garden in my work clothes and hi-vis shirt with reflector strips. I got a lot of nasty looks. Oh well I'm proud of how I earn my check. I have no problem being blue collar, I know I couldn't stand being in an office-job. That's just not me.

I'll admit I am a high-school dropout, but I am also the boss of a few people who have seven-year degrees. If I could go back and do it all again, I probably still wouldn't choose the college route.

 

[skiboarder]

There is little that satisfies a person as much as a hard days work well done.

 

[ricsrx]

I will say I wish I had continued my education to a 4 year degree, I have done a lot of electrical engineering work back in my electrical contractor years and I didn't get the pay I should have, I was lacking the piece of paper.....

it would have lead me to the next level of my career choice, instead I changed careers.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Mike Rowe is a stud.

 

[Kevin B.]

There is little that satisfies a person as much as a hard days work well done.

I work a desk job. I hate it. I wish I could find honest work that paid as well as what I do, because it's sucking the life out of me.

 

[blznnp]

I miss working in the field and on job sites. Now that I am going to school for a possible desk job with mechanical engineering, I hope and am going to try my hardest to get a job that I can work closer with the machinist and the product as much as possible.

 

[glockman]

I think of my line of work a baby blue collar job. I don't work outside and I don't get dirty. I do have to do manual labor and use both my brain and my body. The part that I derive my satisfaction from is that I fix things. I don't get to personally build them but I do get to fix and improve them. Plus my schedule allows me to do all the more blue collar things in my off time. When I got sick of being a pee on and decided to get some training for a real job it was a flip of the coin over electronics or mechanics. I think I would be happy either way. I do one for a living now and one for a hobby.

I don't think a college education is a bad thing, just that its not the only thing. Many of the people on this board have Eng degrees and actually use their hands combined with their education to create things. I love that. I think more and more, college is seen as a right and a reason to delay becoming an adult for 4-6 more years.

 

[bryson]

I don't think a college education is a bad thing, just that its not the only thing. Many of the people on this board have Eng degrees and actually use their hands combined with their education to create things. I love that. I think more and more, college is seen as a right and a reason to delay becoming an adult for 4-6 more years.

I like this.

 

[blznnp]

I have a lot of kids in my classes that have no mechanical background an only care about getting a 4.0, drives me nuts listening to them. Book smart is one thing but the stuff you learn in the field an with your own hands is a education you will never get at school. I can see what you are saying about a lot of people using it as an excuse to grow up later, everyone is shocked when I tell them how many kids I have, that or they look at me as the older guy that didn't do anything with his life and is now going to school. I just want the piece of paper that says I can do something so I can do something that intrigues me more an challenges me more.

 

[DerekM]

What kind of jobs do you people have??

When I got laid off from working in construction, I was getting paid $13/hr. Now I sit at a desk and get paid quite a bit more plus benefits. I miss the days when I could look back and see what I accomplished in the last 8 hours. It drives me absolutely nuts going home every day feeling like I just wasted a day sitting on my butt! I wish skilled trades paid more, but it seems like these days you have to own a business, or get a degree and sit on a computer, to get paid enough to support a family.

 

[STAG]

What kind of jobs do you people have??

Asphalt paving foreman here ha

 

[glockman]

What kind of jobs do you people have??

I wish skilled trades paid more, but it seems like these days you have to own a business, or get a degree and sit on a computer, to get paid enough to support a family.

I'm an Electronics Technician. Electricians, Welders, Pipe fitters or any skilled trade, not just labor all make $50K+ at my company.

There is currently a huge shortage of certified Welders in the US. There are tons of jobs Starting at over $40k a year in that field. Skilled trades are in demand. Labor is always cheap. A lot of people confuse the two because they dress alike

Chance, I used to test Asphalt for a living. It was a pretty cool job.

 

[STAG]

Chance, I used to test Asphalt for a living. It was a pretty cool job.

I have been paving for 6 years, if your testing was in that window we may have met before.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

I'm glad to see movements like this, go Mike Rowe. The US is seriously falling behind in our manufacturing ability as we continue to outsource more and more stuff to factories overseas. Tech schools are vanishing part of America and that needs to change. That said I wouldn't discourage anyone to avoid college UNLESS they already have a path that is likely to yield results for them. Statistics don't lie, nor do personal experiences of many... you can't even apply for some jobs without that piece of paper and it can and does prevent or enable promotions, raises, etc. While it isn't always 'fair', it is 100% legal and with higher surpluses of college graduates in the job market, it isn't going to get any better. Again that isn't to say you can't make a very reasonable and bountiful living without a degree, rather it just isn't nearly as probable or debatedly easy. Some of the wealthiest people I know didn't go the college route but I think it is fair to say that most of the 'comfortable' people I know did pursue college. Remember college isn't always about X+Y=Z, it is about persistence, gaining a broader knowledge of the world around us and working through obstacles of various nature... some people don't need that but you might not get a chance to prove it without the paper on the wall.

This is pretty telling:

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Current Population Survey, Annual Social and Economic Supplement. Last Modified Date: March 23, 2012

I'm not indicative of that statistic as my boss doesn't care about degrees
(I shouldn't say that as all of my employees are college graduates or actively going to school which I fully support)

 

[Tonkaman]

What kind of jobs do you people have?? .

Fire sprinkler foreman, I love it because we are a 'specialized' skilled trade

 

[Spork]

What kind of jobs do you people have??

When I got laid off from working in construction, I was getting paid $13/hr. Now I sit at a desk and get paid quite a bit more plus benefits. I miss the days when I could look back and see what I accomplished in the last 8 hours. It drives me absolutely nuts going home every day feeling like I just wasted a day sitting on my butt! I wish skilled trades paid more, but it seems like these days you have to own a business, or get a degree and sit on a computer, to get paid enough to support a family.

I'm a trained server monkey. I push the buttons and pull the levers until a treat falls out. I don't do Windows though, I leave them for the janitorial staff.





I do AIX, Solaris, Linux, as well as various virtualization associated with them, LPARs, LDOM, Zones, VMware, even touch a few instances of Z-linux.

 

[glockman]

Kurt, I agree without a college degree many doors are closed to you. I still think you can earn at least equal to an AS degree wage in a skilled trade such as the ones I mentioned earlier. That said, you will work for your money, but is that a bad thing?

The other issue I see too often is people, especially young people, funding college expenses AND living expenses with student loans. I work with several people with double and near triple digit student loans. With interest, that eats a big chunk of your income for a long time. While the stats show you will likely get a far greater return on that investment than if you didn't go, in the real world there are a lot of college grads not working high paying jobs right now. Is that because they feel they are worth more than the market says they are or is it just a bad economy? I don't know but the norm of huge student loans needs to stop.