1. TRADES WORK IS FULFILLING
That’s right. The reason most folks opt for the trades path? Because the classroom setting just doesn’t do it for them. And the hands-on, in the field, building stuff setting just does. Working with your hands building, fixing, laying, drilling, welding real stuff is so much more fulfilling for some than sitting in an office cubicle, working at a computer screen all day.
Why? Because your day’s hard work has manifested itself physically into the actual world! In other words, you’re building something REAL, STRONG, and LASTING.
That’s one hell of a good reason to be glad you’ve chosen the trades path—you can end each day proud that you’ve contributed something real to the infrastructure of our world.
2. YOU AVOIDED BIG, BAD DEBT
Sure, sure, we sound like a broken record at this point. But we can’t really oversell what it means to come out of ‘academia’ with relevant and valuable skills and little to no debt. We’ve all heard the figures—Americans owe nearly $1.3 trillion in student loans, shared among about 44 million borrowers. That breaks down to an average of about $37,172 per borrower.
Think of all the sweet things $37,172 could buy. Just think of them. Consider yourself $37,172 richer than the average college graduate. Hoo-ra for you.
3. YOU’LL MAKE GOOD MONEY
This one goes real nicely with the last one, don’t you think? Not only are you entering the workforce without crippling debt, but you’re entering it with skills that are valuable! And by valuable, we mean dollar signs valuable. Just check out Payscale’s data on wages and salaries across all trades industries. It pretty much speaks for itself.
4. YOU’RE IN CONTROL
Something that isn’t talked about much in conversations on skilled trades is the level autonomy you’ll find in your field. That’s basically a fancy way of saying you get to work when and where you want to work—you’re in control of your future.
With the wealth of job boards that scrape trades work from all over the country, the only thing holding you back from becoming a seasoned traveller is your own imagination 😉 If you want to start getting creative with the places you’re working, check out any number of job boards on the web, you’ll find plenty of good jobs all over the country.
5. THE JOBS ACTUALLY EXIST
It’s no surprising fact that jobs in the skilled trades are some of the hardest to fill.
Why? Among other things—as you’re likely familiar—our nation’s stigma on the skilled trades has discouraged just about every bright student from pursuing the trades path. The path that would, with the right encouragement, bring good money, great work, and fulfillment. But kudos to you for not buying the BS!
It’s a real sham the stigma has pushed so many kids away, but on the bright side, the shortage of workers equates to opportunity for you. Pretty sweet deal, right? There’s a slew of resources out there that’ll help you kick off your career, it’s just a matter of finding the right tool and team to help you launch your career, and getting started.
Want to contribute to the CraftForce blog? Submit your blog topic idea(s) at blog@craftforce.com
[hubspotform portal_id=”2270785″ form_id=”383840da-3fe9-4c81-ab06-47e87dec2bc8″ css=””]