Considering a career change

[brookledge]

Well alot of good post. I'll chip in with a few ideas.
If I were in your shoes I think you need to determine what involvement you want with your kids and there lives. Some professions are more allowable if you will to go to there games or go on summer vacations etc. Definately if you are doing landscaping or farming full time then summer is a very busy season so planning a week or two of vacation in the summer is tough.
As for firefighting, it is a good profession but with towns and cities going through layoffs it might be a few yrs before you could land a secure position.
Also having a job with good benifits these days is a plus. If you are self employed you might need to pay for your own health ins which can cost about 1400 for a family plan. Self employed does have some nice things about it too so don't get me wrong.
I don't know how old your kids are but what ever you do if you are not careful they will be out of the house before you know it. So if you are at a point in your life where you have a choice you are lucky. Like I said look at what you want to do with them and then see if the profession you are thinking will allow that.
I have a good friend of mine who has told me that a vacation was a day trip they always needed to milk cows in the morning and be home for eveing chores.
May be with your wife becoming a nurse she can get a good job with all the benifits and it will allow you to be self employed.
Good luck
Keith

[Stickey]

My wife is the bread winner right now, no doubt about that. It was tough getting her through school and we agree that it is my turn now. I'm just trying to make the most of it. I talked with a friend who is a police officer tonight and asked some questions about fire fighting careers. It seems like I will have to start out as a volunteer. My wife seems to like this path and thinks I would be good at it. I'm going Ice fishing with a friend from the local fire department this weekend, so I'm sure I'll learn more.
Thanks for all the comments.

[Acer]

Stickey's got the 10 year itch.

Farming is the kind of job you have to save up for.

I know a couple farmers they are "just going to keep farming till they run out of money".

[Stickey]

Stickey's got the 10 year itch.

Farming is the kind of job you have to save up for.

I know a couple farmers they are "just going to keep farming till they run out of money".

LOL, No I don't, I had it but my wife gave me some cream for it. The consensus seems to be that farming is difficult to make a living at. No matter what happens in this world, people will always need to eat.

[3rdgen.maple]

I own my own business as well stickey. Although the field I am in is all I have ever done since I was in 10th grade. Difference with mine and yours is that I compete with corporations like cannon,xerox, heildburg etc..... There are very few independent service guys in this field and it is not hard to outbid the corps. The few others out there have grown there businesses to the extent where they had to hire many techs and train them.. I have a hard time letting someone else represent me or my business. I employ 2 other people who do the warehouse and delivery stuff. With the economy what it is the other independants with big overhead are dropping like flies. My plan from day one was to grow it, sell out and move on. Now it just makes more since to me to do as Haynes says. Manage from the outside. I have to someday hire and train a reliable person to take it over while I still own it. For incentive there will have to be a percentage of profits added to their salary. The more they want the more they have to put into the business. That way I can key in on a life where I am home more and doing other things I am passionate about. I would consider moving a guy up that will fit that bill. Collect a paycheck, still have control but you are in the backseat doing something else you love. Only the strong are gonna survive in this economy and if your percentages went up you are doing something the other guys are not. Don't give up on it just make some changes to enhance your life style.

[3rdgen.maple]

LOL, No I don't, I had it but my wife gave me some cream for it. The consensus seems to be that farming is difficult to make a living at. No matter what happens in this world, people will always need to eat.

Yes this us true but unfortunetly food seems to be cheaper to import than to make in this country. Cost of farming in the us is not good. We are an import country and thankfully maple syrup is a northamerican product that no other can do.

[Woodland Acres]

I like Gator330 am in Corrections . 21 years of dealing with idiots and some inmates also.I had a small construction business ,seemed like i never made a real paycheck from it.Taxes , people not paying their bills ,insurance, and all the overhead from equipment, not to mention weekly payroll, got me wore right out. I was putting in 70 plus hours a week.Now I just make maple syrup and find there is enjoyment when people come back year after year to get their fix.To me this is priceless and if I had to I would have gotten into sugaring when I started corrections.I guess the bottom line is to consider your wife and kids first but enjoy what you choose for a career.

[maple flats]

Consider what I did. I ran my own business for 30 years and did fairly well but at age 51 I had tired of the rat race, long hours (sometimes 18 hrs for 4 and 5 days in a row. I was just tired of it. I sold the business(no I didn't get rich) and I started driving school bus. Not sure about your area but here the benifits are real good and it affords me the time to do the other things such as maple, blueberry farm (4.5 acres u-pick) and I bought a portable saw mill and do a little custom sawing. When I tire of one thing I switch to something different.
However, if I were younger I think I would do one of 3 things. Either become a surveyor, a forester or get into the renewable energy field. I think solar and wind (and hydro) are a big item going forward. The first 2 because I like doing that sort of thing and the 3rd because I believe it has a big future.
My suggestion to you is decide what you "want to be when you grow up" so to speak and persue it. Career changes can be rewarding. Working for others has plus and minuses'

[Stickey]

I guess I should update this thread. I have toured my local fire house and began filling out the paper work to volunteer as this is the starting point for a career in that field. I am keeping the business but making big changes. I'm in the process of interviewing people for "my job". I will only do what I can from home while taking care of the kids (marketing and managing from a distance). This will likely mean a cut in pay for me, but you only get one chance to raise your children and I can't put a monetary value on that. Who knows maybe I'll get lucky and hire the right people so the business will grow and flourish. Maybe it will go the other way.

I guess all I want to be when I grow up is a role model to my children.

[vtsnowedin]

Sticky,Kids are only (in theory!?) dependants for 18 years.
Darren

That's funny right there.. I don't care who you are thats funny.
Wait until they start explaining to you about grad school and post docs.
I've got em up to thirty years old that still bring their laundry home on weekends.