When to change careers ... off topic

[saleen367]

Career change or not??

Seemingly a lot of bright people on this forum.

I'm faced with a perplexing question that with my age of 41 I have to address.

I'm hours away from the opportunity to "retire" and draw a pension and medical from FedEx at age 55. I'm now 41 and am tired of the daily grind. I keep telling my wife I'm worth far more than $20/hr. and should consider other options. I work like a dog as it is and may as well do it for me instead of some billionaire board member.

Problem I have is I don't have a Bachelors Degree and most decent paying jobs require one.

So I'm faced with the idea of buying into a franchise or starting my own business. I would have to dump my 401k for the capital expense, but in the long run I think it would pay off.

At what point does a person throw in the towel on Corp. America and venture out on his/her own? My wife has more than doubled her income in 8 years while I'm stuck with an across the board 1% along with the rest of the company. I need out of this mess so I can earn enough to buy my 36 Outlaw some day.

I'm tired of being beaten down by Corp. management teams that keep me from earning what I'm truly worth.
I need some ideas of small business ventures that might be viable in a small 100,000 population city in MN.
Thought of the seasonal ice cream shops, etc. but think the revenue would be too small to support a family. Was also considering a Bagel/Coffee shop with a drive thru.

Any thoughts?

[firehill19]

<blockquote><strong><em>Quote:</em></strong><hr>I need out of this mess so I can earn enough to buy my 36 Outlaw some day. <hr></blockquote>
For starters, you've got your priorities in order.

[MR BAJA]

Become a boat salesman! :thatsfunny !!!!

MR BAJA!

[KUSTOM KOLORS]

Best way to make a small fortune is to start with a large one!

To be self employed you have to be a reasonable risk taker and $20 hr doesn't sound bad . think about it and listen and watch people around you see all there problems. once you have employees there problems end up being yours. Some days i would settle for $20 profit let alone $20 hr.

Look into mini storage in your area and see if the market is saturated best thing i ever got into . NO EMPLOYEES !

[missouri]

That would take some guts in this economy...but I know 20 young ppl. w/ bachelor degree's working at Lowe's and Best Buy...say goobbye to your freetime for the next 3-5 years...

I've been self employed for 30 yrs. and love it...went broke 3 times in the process and loved every minute of it...

[ChevyThunder1]

Wow...Decisions...Decisions...

First off, I am in no way qualified as a career counselor......

The ability to retire at 55 is a very good position to be in. I live in Michigan where allot of people work in the automotive industry for one of the big three...GM..Ford..Chrysler. Many of them work 30 - 35 years and retire in their early fifties with a good pension and health care benefits. Then allot of them pursue a second source of income in a field they enjoy whether it be full or part time, with the ability to do what they want, when they want. I have 2 employees working for me right now in that position making $ 20 -$ 25 an hour on top of their pension. ( not to bad) Also once you leave corporate America to pursue your own business, you will have to pick up your own health care benefits. Do some research on that cost...it is not cheap. Health care costs have been and will continue to sky rocket averaging 10 - 15 % increases annually. Also consider your current benefits...paid vacation,,401k match,,8 hour days mon - fri..(just guessing),,....
Now the prospect of owning your own business is very appealing, but I have heard the first couple of years is allot of work, long hours, and allot of pressure to succeed because now your whole retirement is invested in your new adventure.
We all desire the American Dream...And yes I would luv to have a 36 Outlaw gassed and ready to go...But with the economy where it is at right now, unemployment as high as it is, I would seriously consider the ability to retire in 14 years and then pursue that bagel shop, You have 14 years to plan and position yourself to do that.
Step back and consider...You are on the downhill slide to retirement...solid 2 income family...You Own a Baja...:dancinbanana ...."Life is Good..!!"
Also consider if your business venture did not work out, re-entering the job market with no degree is going to be tough. My entry level positions pay $ 10.00/hr and require a 2 yr deg minimum. I have 4 yr degree people applying for these jobs at the present time.
The grass is always Greener.............................................

[saleen367]

Great feedback ... some I like others ... well ...:winkgreen

I look at all this as an opportunity for me to earn what I'm worth. Will it happen? Maybe not ... now or ever.

Anyone that has worked for a large Corp. getting larger on your hard work, knows the pain I feel.
I work M-F, 7AM-6:30PM, no lunch even though the DOT requires one, so I have to write one in and lose 1 hr pay per day in doing so. If you complain, they take all your work away and leave you working 35 hr/wk. I have managers with no formal training, personalities that resembles Mussolini and I know I could do a better job than any and have a happy workforce.
My route I love! Honestly it could not be better ... except in the winter. Mississippi River delivery route. Tons of miles, 300/day and just enough time to piss in a bottle twice per day. The other mother nature doesn't call because my body has evolved not to until I get home.
Worse of all co-workers that do half of my workload, get a lunch and still get the same raise as me when they are given out. Performance on the job means nothing and its eating me up inside.

I really do work my ars off and as long as I do, I feel I should be doing it for me instead of some other schmuck. My wife's job can cover health care with her bennies. I would be giving up 5, yeah, 5 weeks vacation. Not as good as it looks(lots of restrictions) but still 5 weeks. Thinking I should group them together and take off a month next winter (summer not allowed) and pursue this closer.:spineyes

I've also considered taking up my BS online. I think I can finish in about 18 months. So if nothing else maybe I could find something better using a degree. I keep seeing sales jobs open with $75-150k and know I could do them well but won't be considered without the degree. So I need to take action one way or another.

All I need is the opportunity to succeed.

[Big E]

My advise to someone switching jobs, if you think the grass will be greener on the other side of the fence, 7 out of 10 times it will be browner. Just my opinion. 14 years to go, you can do that standing on your head. My Mom's neighbor had the same idea you have, he bought into a franchise like what you are talking about, sunk all of his retirement into it, 1 year later he was broke. Now it is 16 years later and he is 68 and still working and will be working until he is 80, if he is not dead by then. He has nothing. Almost everyones job has its bullsht, you just have to put your head down, work hard and muscle through it. Especially if you can retire at 55, that is a huge benefit. If you were 30 years old with no family to support, maybe, go for it. Think of what you have and be glad you have it. Many people are out of work and are trying to get a job like yours. Having your own buisiness is tough and a lot more work. Most people that have their own buisiness work 20 times harder than the people that work for them. Money just doesn't come to you, you have to work hard for it, especially for buisiness owners.

Storage buisiness is a very good investment as long as the market is not saturated. Investment property is too. The people (the tenants) buy the property for you. My advise to you would be to pursue something like that and still keep your day job. Keep building on your investment property and acquire others until you see that these properties can support you. Just my opinion which never means anything.

[bajacraig]

3 options IMO

1. Tell the wife to get a 2nd job :biggrin

2. Get a new spouse with LOTS of money :rolleyes

3. GO FOR IT, the idea of buying into a franchise sounds good to me. They have done all the hard work and got the name out, all you need to do is see what people want and just hope it lasts for more than a few years.

But what the hell do I know, my mom did option #2 and helped me out.0]

OR......... you could start a web pag, you may not get a 36' but do you like the new 30? :rollin

[Seize n Ticket]

Your mom found a new wife? :lol

[bottomless pit]

Finally some real humor!!! Your mom found a new wife? LMAO!!!
I want a Bennette Packaging Frenchise So I can live like Bajacraig does.PIT:zzzzz

[bajacraig]

I fixed it

Blake I need a new "Emoticon" that shows it givin someone the bird :p

[MXBAJA421]

LMAO:biggrin

[derekdeben]

saleen367

Depending on where you live you can find a school that offers credits for life long learning. You may need to write some essay's to get the credit but it is better than sitting in class. Once they tell you how many credits they will give you, you can take classes on the weekends or at night. These same schools offer excellerated sessions so you can take a class and be done in 8 weeks vs. 16 weeks.

derekdeben

[Seize n Ticket]

Craig,
Be nice...:biggrin

[bajacraig]

you be talkin bout my moma and i be showin you the bird :biggrin

[missouri]

here ya go craig....f 'em

http://home.ripway.com/2003-11/39363/032[1].gif http://home.ripway.com/2003-11/39363/016[1].gif http://home.ripway.com/2003-11/39363/008[1].gif

[Seize n Ticket]

Dan,
Craig don't need any help...:thatsfunny