This is the second post in a series of Money Fails.

Money Fail: Broke on Thursday
Money Fail: Dead End Job
Money Fail: The Payment Mentality
Money Fail: Ignoring Unpaid Bills
Money Fail: Spending to Impress
Money Fail: Never Track Finances
Money Fail: Lenders of Last Resort

Wandering Aimlessly through Life

Image by Helga Tawil Souri

The most common way to wind up permanently employed in dead-end jobs is to wander through life without a plan.  It starts in high school when people suddenly graduate and don’t know what to do with their lives.  So, they take a menial job and work just hard enough to keep it.  Or, they go to college and take some classes that sound like fun, but they soon get bored and drop out.  Each new job is in a different field, so they always start at the bottom.  Or, they jump ship for a small raise, with the same title and no career advancement.

The problem is that time passes and opportunities start to disappear.  Any work experience is fine on a resume when someone is in their twenties.  But, if they are still wearing a name badge in their thirties or forties, the train has left the station and the ship has sailed.  It will be very difficult to break into high a paying career at this stage in their life.

Meaningful employment that pays well often follows a career path.  In the trades, people start off as apprentices and work their way up to journeyman.  It’s similar in the corporate world, although people usually start out as summer interns or in junior positions out of college.  The point is people work up to high paying positions, after years of gaining contacts and experience.  Despite what many college students think today, they won’t be starting out making six-figures.  They will have to exhibit some combination of passion, skill, hard work and personality to move up the corporate ladder and make big money.

Acquiring Skills & Education

There is an endless debate about the value of college and whether or not it’s a good investment.  The quality of many college programs has dropped dramatically at the same time the costs have skyrocketed.  And, there are a much higher percentage of people with college degrees chasing a shrinking percentage of high-paying jobs.  There are a lot of people with expensive college degrees and six-figure student loans who are working at Starbucks.  If teens are trying to find themselves, it’s way cheaper to backpack around Europe than to squander four years in college.

In my opinion, the value of a college degree depends entirely on a person’s career goals.  If someone is getting a degree just to check a box on a resume, it may not be worth it.  This is especially true for degrees that haven’t prepared a student for a specific role in the workplace.  Fortune 500 companies aren’t hiring many aspiring anthropologists.  But, they do need a lot of engineers, chemists, information technologists and accountants.  For those who have decided on a specific professional career, there is no substitute for a relevant college degree and work experience.

Trades

Although much of the growth in the economy has been for service jobs, the blue collar trades provide a great opportunity for many.  There are a lot of people who simply aren’t interested in attending years of college and working in a corporate environment.  Some people enjoy working outside or with their hands and there are plenty of good jobs available for them.  Despite all of the advances in technology, jobs for plumbers, mechanics, electricians and construction workers can’t be outsourced overseas.  People are becoming less capable of maintaining things on their own, which creates a growing opportunity.

Military

Others join the military and learn valuable job skills.  They can come out after four years with experience that is difficult to learn in the private sector.  And, the government pays for their college education.  I have two nephews who took this route.  One was a medic and he is studying to become a fireman.  The other is maintaining jet aircraft.  I also know a number of people who are my age and retiring from the military in their 40s with a pension.  That opportunity doesn’t exist in the corporate world.

Self-Employment

The best shot at a lucrative future belongs to the entrepreneur.  According to the book The Millionaire Next Door, someone is four times more likely to become a millionaire if they are self-employed.  This option isn’t suitable for everyone.  It takes long-hours, some luck and a lot of persistence to succeed.  But, for the people who have done it, they would never be happy working in a corporate environment.  They prefer to control their own destiny.

Contribution & Reward

No matter what path a person takes in their life and career, they are often rewarded by the total contribution they make.  People like Ray Kroc and Sam Walton created empires from the mundane.  People like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates brought computer technology to the masses.  People like Tesla and Edison invented a world without darkness.  These people didn’t sit around in a cubicle waiting for the weekend.  They didn’t have to ask their boss for time off or a raise.  They didn’t show up late, sneak out early or complain about their co-workers.  Neither will the next generation of great entrepreneurs.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that life is an opportunity.  The rewards are quickly growing for those who produce and shrinking for those who don’t.  The days of company loyalty and job security are gone.  Everyone is becoming a free-agent.

“Hard work spotlights the character of people: some turn up their sleeves, some turn up their noses, and some don’t turn up at all.”

Sam Ewing - Professional Baseball Player

Recommended Reading

There was a great rebuttal to this post over at Cognoramus.com.

Cognoramus – UnFail: There’s No Such Thing as a Dead-End Job

Other Related Posts:

CNN Money - From Unemployment to Startup
Debt Free Adventure - Find Work You Love
First Generation White Collar - Entrepreneurship is a Dream for some People

This post was featured on the Carnival of Personal Finance over at Boomer and Echo.  If you aren’t familiar with the Carnival of Personal Finance, you need to check it out.  There are tons of amazing posts.

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Do What You Love

Image by Alex E. Proimos

There is a constant debate on the blogs about whether people should do what they love or pursue a career with high earning potential.  I’m very fortunate to do what I love and also get paid well.  Being an IT Manager isn’t for everyone.  It can be very stressful and you constantly have to keep up with new technology.  Servers go down and you get frantic calls in the middle of the night.  But, I chose to work in the computer industry and I’m happy with the choice I made.   

Good & Bad Jobs 

One of the reasons I love my job so much is because I’ve had some really bad jobs in the past.  In fact, my very first job was digging up cesspools.  I’ve also worked as a landscaper, mowing people’s lawns.  So, I really appreciate working in a nice office, having benefits and having weekends off.  Some of the people I have worked with have never had to labor or work for low wages and they don’t appreciate just how good they have it.   

Good & Bad Employers

Another thing I have experienced is the difference between good and bad employers.  I won’t go into any lengthy definition; most people have worked for both and know the difference.  I quit a couple of jobs that mistreated me as an employee and it’s very empowering.  Hanging around and hoping it will get better or taking one for the team is just the opposite.  I talk about leaving my last employer in one of my previous posts, The Courage to Quit.  I’m at the point in my career where I recognize soul-sucking employers and I quickly move on.  I also appreciate a good employer and treat them with respect.

Complaining at Work

There was a great post and comment thread over at Invest it Wisely about Pet Peeves.  As I started writing this post I realized one of my biggest pet peeves is people who complain about their jobs.  Right now, I know people would kill for a good job.  Meanwhile, others have great jobs and spend their entire day complaining about them.  Complaining is unproductive, unprofessional and dis-empowering.  Promotions and opportunities are lost for employees who complain about their company.  Positive and successful people avoid others who are negative.  Complaining can become an expensive habit. 

Making your Own Paycheck

Some people are born entrepreneurs and they would never be happy working for someone else.  I have two brothers like this.  One day, I would love to be self-employed and not answer to the Man.  But, it’s not easy to give up a high paying job with great benefits.   So, I will continue to appreciate my current job, even as I dream of one day being the master of my own destiny. 

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. 

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that a job is more than just a paycheck, it’s an opportunity.  And, the most important part of any opportunity is what people make of it.  The most humble of professions can be the start of a bright future.   

“The best way to appreciate your job is to imagine yourself without one.”   

Oscar Wilde – Irish Poet   

Recommended Reading

Wealth Informatics - Happy Thanksgiving from Suba
Squirrelers - Happy Thanksgiving
Live Richly - Thanksgiving Round Up

This post was featured on the Carnival of Personal Finance over at Realm of Prosperity.  If you aren’t familiar with the Carnival of Personal Finance, you need to check it out. It’s the greatest carnival on the net.

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… “i have made serious mistakes in my career choices and while there are a myriad of PF blogs and articles on how to fix the spending/saving/investing side of things there’s virtually no info on good career decisions and fixing a broken career. just wondering if you might do a blog post on anything you’d do differently with your career or advice for ppl stuck in low paying jobs. other than “ask for a raise”

- Zud

Background Information

Photo by Beth Rankin

Unfortunately, Zud didn’t provide any details about why he or she is stuck in a low paying job.  And, I don’t want to make any generalizations about Zud’s background that may or may not be true.  So, I will highlight a general principle for each step in the career process and then provide an example from my own life, which illustrates how I learned these principles.

Special Shout Outs:  Many of the ideas for this article came from two conversations I had recently on the subject of careers.  The first was from my blogging buddy Len at LenPenzo.com.  Len told me about how much money the steel workers used to make and how they gloated about doing as little work as possible.  In case you don’t know, Kaiser Steel closed down and the California Speedway now sits in its place.  The second conversation was with a friend of mine from work.  He told me he wished someone had told him what his chosen field would pay before he invested years getting established.  Now, he is married with a new baby and he can’t afford to change careers.

Disclaimer: I’m not a career expert and I have done almost as many things wrong as right in my career.  But, I have climbed the corporate ladder and more than quadrupled my income in the last 20 years.  So, I offer 30 years worth of practical advice that has been proven to work (at least for me).  Although, I definitely wouldn’t recommend some of the things I have done in my career, I have become fairly successful.

Step 1 – Have a Career Goal

Experts call it career planning, but it’s basically just figuring out what you want to do with your life. If you can’t say in a single sentence where you are headed in your career, this may be a big part of the problem.  You can’t climb the corporate ladder to a career you don’t have.  It’s a huge mistake to let jobs choose you or to take jobs that are conveniently available.  And, if you hop around in unrelated fields, you will always start at the bottom of each new job and never gain any experience.  Then, you will have to compete with unskilled laborers for your job.  And, I guarantee it won’t pay very well.

I was very lucky that I fell in love with computers and programming way back in the ’80s.  And, I quit my union job to embark upon a career in the computer field.  People who loved me thought I had lost my mind to quit a good union job to enter the new and unproven computer industry.  And, I took a five-year pay cut to pursue my dream career.  But, it definitely paid off in the long run.  The computer industry has exploded in opportunity, while union jobs are disappearing faster than pancakes in a diner.

Check Out: Vocational Information Center’s Career and College Planning Resources

Step 2 – Reality Check

After you have selected a career, there are three important questions:

1. What does it pay?
2. What is the future demand for this position?
3. What do you need to become qualified?

If you get a liberal arts or a history degree, the related jobs probably won’t pay so well.  Before you study to become a journalist, you should know that newspapers and magazines are dying, along with those jobs.  If you want to enter a professional career, such as a Teacher, a CPA or a Lawyer, you must be qualified.  The reality check is probably the most critical step in the career planning process.  If you skip this step, you may wind up with a bunch of student loans and no way to make a living.

I know someone who is pursuing a Master degree to advance in a career as a social worker.  I don’t know her income to student loan ratio, but I am going to guess the ROI is pretty low.  She definitely loves to help people.  But, living with her parents in her 30s is a heavy price to pay for the love of a career.  I know someone else who is 25 and just got his Masters from Pepperdine.  He works in the banking field and probably makes close to what I make after putting 25 years into my career.  Money isn’t everything in choosing a career.  But, it sucks to work so hard for so little money.

Check Out: Bureau of Labor Statistics article Jobs of Tomorrow

Step 3 – Follow the Money

If you live in Michigan, Ohio or upstate New York, I wouldn’t count on lots of high paying labor jobs in your future. If you live in a state with a diversified economy, such as Massachusetts or California, there are some growth industries you should consider.  According to CNN Money, the highest paying college degrees all seem to end with Engineering or Science.  Right now, math skills pay well and they will in the future.  According to CNBC.com the highest paying careers are in the Medical and Dental fields.  Other high paying careers are in Engineering, Computer Science, Aviation, Chemistry, Biotech, Energy, Accounting and Senior Management.

I have been very fortunate to work in a high growth industry.  But, even the computer industry has its ups and downs.  I was working as a Product Specialist when the ’92 recession hit.  And, thousands of computer people hit the streets at the same time.  My company laid-off our DEC people and shut down the VAX.  So, they needed somebody to run the new PC network.  Since I was about to lose my job, I quickly volunteered and became the IT person.  At first, I wasn’t so happy about this.  Let’s face it, IT can be a grind.  But, I soon realized that an IT person isn’t confined within the computer industry.  And, since that time, I have worked in the Manufacturing, Network, Construction, Insurance and Medical industries.  I am free to follow the money.

Check out: CNBC.com article 15 Highest-Paying Jobs

Step 4 – Get an Education

Every job seeker should know a four-year degree is the new high school diploma. People who have them will get the best jobs and work for the best companies.  People who don’t have a degree will get the jobs that are left.  A college degree represents a huge commitment in time and money.  But, the alternative is a career full of dead-ends.  If you don’t have the grades, money or financial backing to attend a university, start out at a junior college and work your way through.  Everyone in my family has taken this path and we all have college degrees.  So, I know it can be done.

I currently work in the medical device industry and I’ll bet there aren’t three people in my company without a college degree.  I work with people who have degrees from UCLA, Michigan, Alabama, Florida and Notre Dame.  I confess that I only have a two-year computer science degree.  But, I should definitely have a bachelors degree for my current position.  I have lost a lot of money and job opportunities because I dropped in and out of college.  In fact, this is the single biggest career mistake I have made.  Thirteen years ago, I clawed my way into middle-management without a college degree.  But, this is nearly impossible today and I wouldn’t recommend it.

Check Out: CNN Money article Most Lucrative College Degrees

Step 5 – Find a Good Employer

One important thing to look for in an employer is upward mobility.  There is a reason they call it a dead-end job and that’s not where you want to spend your career.  There is no honor in going down with the ship, unless you are the Captain and you have a golden parachute.  I have read many stories about getting hired at “trophy companies” and how it has helped people’s careers.  It is also crucial to avoid greedy companies who have no loyalty to their employees.  Working at a pressure-cooker company can be good for your career.  But, it comes at a high price to your personal life.  Let someone else take one for the team.  Look for companies that reward talent and hard work.

I have posted many times about the good and bad employers I have worked for.  So, I don’t need to cover that here.  What I wanted to talk about instead is getting promoted.  No one wants to hire a Systems Analyst to fill an opening for an IT Manager.  Everyone wants to hire an experienced IT Manager to ensure they can get the job done.  So, to make that jump into Management, I had to get promoted into the position.  In fact, I had to leave the company and then I got hired back as an IT Manager, two years later.  So, in order to get ahead in your career, you have to work for a company with opportunity; you have to prove yourself; and then you have to let the company know you are serious about advancement.  If that doesn’t get you promoted, you may have to jump ship.

Check Out:  Fortune article 100 Best Companies to Work for in 2009

Step 6 – The X-Factor

Everyone puts intangibles on their resume, such as “strong interpersonal skills” and “pays attention to detail”.  Unfortunately, many forget about their intangibles as soon as they are hired.  Soon, they become the “company’s most annoying employee” or the “person in search of nothing to do”.  These are the first people to be let go in a down-turn.  If you want to get ahead in business, you need to go the extra mile, treat people with respect, deliver quality work and volunteer for projects.  You should find a mentor and make some allies within your company.  Do lunch with coworkers, past, present and future.

Most of what I have accomplished in my career came from sheer guts and hard work.  Every door was opened to me because of my positive attitude and my ability to make problems disappear.  The stumbles in my career came from slacking off or by allowing myself to become disenchanted.  Early in my career, I had a boss who told me something critical.  He said, “You have a lot of talent, but a bad attitude.  You will get a lot farther in your career if people like you.”  This was the best advice I received in my career.

Check Out:  Article from PayScale.com Recession-Proof Your Career

Alternative 1 – Vocational Jobs

Maybe this whole career track thing isn’t for you. Maybe you aren’t a book worm and you have no intention of completing years of college.  The good news is that there are many opportunities in vocational fields that pay pretty well.  These fields include: Plumbers, Mechanics, Electricians, Handymen, Landscapers, Construction, Catering and a host of others.  Although manufacturing jobs are disappearing, the service industries are creating new jobs.  And, as working folks seem to have less and less spare time, they are more than happy to pay others to take care of their needs.

I always dreamed of being a professional, so I shunned vocational fields.  But, I have many friends, neighbors and aquaintences that have chosen this path and they are very happy with it.  They don’t work a lot of overtime and they get paid extra when they do.  And, they don’t have a lot of stress in their lives or pressure from deadlines.  Most people who are employed in vocations make less than me.  But, they didn’t spend years in night school or late nights working for the man.  They are home for dinner and tuck in their kids into bed.

Check Out:  About.com article Highest Paying Occupations for which a Degree Isn’t Required

Alternative 2 – Self-Employment

According to the book The Millionaire Next Door, you are four times more likely to become a millionaire if you are self-employed.  That’s because with greater risk often comes greater reward.  And, there is no greater reward than to be in control of your future.  There are grim statistics of business that fail within the first five years.  But, it is also becoming increasingly rare to remain in a job for more than five years.  Just remember that if you build a successful business, you would need to get fired by a lot of customers before you are out of business.  Employees aren’t so lucky.

I have always been a closet entrepreneur, which is one reason I maintain this blog.  I have always had a dream of “making it on my own”, even though I have a great career and a steady paycheck.  My two oldest brothers are self-employed and will never work for others.  My Mom sold her small business and retired five years ago.  I live in a neighborhood filled with plumbers, electricians and other small business owners, who make a lot more than me.  And, they wouldn’t trade places with me for the world.

Check Out: Inc.com article Best Industries for Starting a Small Business

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that everyone has to choose their own path in life.  And, that path will depend greatly upon the amount of time and energy you expect to put into your career.  If your choice is to drift along through life, taking whatever comes your way, then don’t expect to get paid very well for your effort.  And, if your choice is to pursue a career or a business with high income potential, then don’t expect your path to be easy.

“I should have been trying to build a career, rather than leaving it in the hands of somebody else.”

Ray Walston - American Actor

Recommended Reading

This post was featured on the Carnival of Personal Finance. If you aren’t familiar with the Carnival of Personal Finance, it’s the premiere carnival of its kind. If you want to read informative articles from knowledgeable bloggers, this is the place.

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The Situation

I won’t go into a big rant about the way I was treated at my former job.  Like any job, there was the good and the bad.  There were the interesting projects and the constant pressure of being behind schedule.  There were the exciting product launches and the stress of bugs and testing.  There were the wonderful friends and co-workers and the sting of two years without a raise.

The most important consideration was that I wasn’t happy at this job, in a career that I have loved for decades.  I dreaded getting up in the morning and coming into work.  That’s when I knew it was time to move on.  Unfortunately, I had some interviews, but no job offers.  So, I took a huge gamble, typed up my resignation and packed up my desk.

The Change

There are two important reasons I could make this change:

1.   I had the courage to quit.
2.   I had money set aside.

I have always had a certain amount of personal courage.  And, I have always made the tough decisions that have carried me forward.  But, I had never quite been able to risk quitting my job.  Surviving two layoffs and reading Steve Pavlina gave me the confidence I needed to make this change.

Never underestimate the power of finances over your decisions.  If I was living paycheck-to-paycheck, I would have never been able to quit.  I would have had to stick it out, to protect my family.  Having low expenses and money set aside, allowed me the freedom to change my future.  It really is that simple and that powerful.

The Result

After a couple of nervous weeks, the gods smiled on me.  I landed the kind of job I had always dreamed of.  I now work at a professionally run company, in a beautiful building, that is located right here in my town.  After 25 years of commuting, I finally work close to home.  I also got a big raise, stock options and much better benefits.  Most important, is that I wake up every morning thrilled to go to work.

I don’t know how much of this was luck, how much was destiny and how much was intention manifestation.  And, it really doesn’t matter.  I am feeling very thankful and very fortunate.  I am thinking about everyone who pulled for me.  I am thinking about the decades of hard work and the years of night school that allowed me to land this job.  And, it all seems worth it, right now.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is, when you have control of your finances, you have control of your life.  Finances aren’t just about money and investments; they are about freedom, courage and destiny.  They are about calling your own shots and choosing your own path.  They are about improving yourself and helping others.  Sound finances make many of the greatest things in life possible.

“He that waits upon fortune is never sure of a dinner.”

Benjamin Franklin - Founding Father of America

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