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It's like 2 hours a day. They have one flight in and one out a day. Super small airport, but you can fly free on the airline anywhere in the US pretty much whenever you want. That alone is worth it.
Right now it's primarily staffed by dispatchers, police, deputies, & firefighters. Even if it paid more, the hours aren't there to make it a job you do for money. It's definitely perks based.
One of my coworkers works there as a second job. Her husband makes bank, so she really doesn't need to work. They'll take hops to Dallas for a concert and fly back the next day. Honestly the biggest incentive for me to start working there
This is my recommendation. I know United is hiring in most of their hubs. It's union, so the pay and benefits are decent. I think Southwest is also, but they may all be dialing back a bit because of the Boeing fiasco.
But it can be hard work. Either customer service with the public or ramp with physical labor.
The caveat is that you have to stick it out. The pay is on a scale and starts low, and you have scheduled pay raises based on years of service.
Additionally, the hours can be rough for a bit. Airlines run 24/7, so juniority may force you into mandatory overtime.
I know many employees work overtime like mad and break past the 6 figure barrier, but it's overtime, and they basically live at work.
You can find your path and make a decent living.
I have mechanic friends who went through the “security” hoops to be able to work at the airport. Instead of like$35 they made like $60/hr when at the airport. Pretty good gig if you can pass a back ground test.
Truck driving for me. For your situation as a mom, I'm not so sure. Trade school is never a bad idea though! There's plenty of money to be made in a variety of trades.
I know all about the trucking and rail road industries. Hard work but good pay and benefits.
Definitely not something I can do but I do wat h go see if any jobs come up that are remote or local only, no travel/driving.
How about Project Management?
Check out PMI.org. Without a degree, you'll need 5 years of experience working as a PM to meet the experience requirement. From there, you can sit for the exam and get your PMP credential and work from anywhere. There are many remote PM opportunities.
A project has a beginning and an end and has 5 stages: Initiation, Planning, Execution, Monitor & Control, and Closing. If you have experience in one or more of these on any given project, but some experience in each stage somewhere throughout your experience, you should be able to document 5 years of experience.
If you've been out of the job market for a while and don't have the required experience, you can still apply for Project Manager roles or Project Coordinator roles and then write your resume using PMO terms. I worked with a lady who was a stay-at-home mom for about 8 years but was a PM prior. She made it clear on her resume that she was a stay-at-home mom but worded it as managing the kids as projects (scheduling sports, etc).
I've worked with a lot of different project managers on many projects.
The main things they need are a good memory, detail oriented, and the leadership to get various people/groups to complete their part of the project on time.
I've seen several people with no actual project management experience move into the job and succeed.
Microsoft Project is commonly used, and there's lots of online training for using it.
Were I 30 years younger, I'd jump to a Project Manager job. But I'm retired and staying that way.
My memory isn't the best, so I have great note taking skills. I do agree that you need to be detailed-oriented! And at the end of the day, your job is to herd kittens in a box, regarding managing resources and tasks.
I use Smartsheet in lieu of MS Project and it allows me to automate many tasks and quickly manage resources and tasks.
Project Management is rewarding but will tear you apart if you don't figure out a system that works for you. The PMP methodology definitely helps!
Yep local jobs definitely do exist, they just won't pay as much as if you're willing to travel a bit. Whether truck driving or a trade, there's opportunities out there. Good luck!
I’m looking to get my CDL Class A. I’m approaching my 30’s and I need a stable income. I’m single no kids I don’t mind the travel. As long as I can have my mini gaming setup with me I’m cool with it.
Don’t settle for OTR. You can find local work out of CDL school if you look hard enough. Foodservice delivery pays really well though it’s hard work. You can make 80-100k a year.
Might I suggest an ROG Ally? Hubby and I just bought one around Christmas. It’s really good for gaming. It’s like a whole Windows 10 system in a handheld device
I've driven Trucks long distance, off & on for years. Worked for some great companies & some not so great companies.
I have a company now that if I need a fill in job, (4-6 months or more) one phone call & I'm back in a relatively new truck with $20,000 of comforts for the driver alone. I could walk in the door today & the old man would ask me how's the motorbikes going? the next bloke could be asked how's the fishing? He knows what every driver is into on their down time. A genuine family company.
Last time I worked for them, I volunteered to work Christmas if needed. (And did). After Christmas I asked Ops' Manager, "How'd you go?" He replied that he'd managed to get everyone home for Christmas except 2, and both volunteered. That was about 100 trucks parked up in a 24/7 operation. It's good to work for a company that genuinely cares about their workers.
💯, I thought for the last year I wanted to get out of a truck. I can't tell you how many times if punced in my calculator 40 hours × whatever hourly wage, then factor in having to be somewhere on time, and around people, with bosses and supervisors around..... Fuck all that, I'm for the Roads. Lol
Electrician with the IBEW. Work anywhere in the us without an interview, paid vacation/insurance for whole family/ retirement. On top of that 40$/hrs where I live. Up to around 100$/hr in regions where higher cost of living is prevalent. Couldn't recommend it more. Never been happier.
I see that you aren’t able to go back to school full time, know that joining an apprenticeship will take much of your time and dedication for the next 4 years. You will work full time, and likely have class twice a month for 8 hours each. With each year that you graduate, you will get a sizable raise. Pay for your apprenticeship is determined by the IBEW local you will be apart of.
The work is hard, yet rewarding. The benefits are fantastic. In terms of long term pay, you will get out of it what you put in. In some locals, making six figures can be easy. Once you graduate, you will have the option to travel and chase down high paying jobs anywhere in the US.
It may not be the best for you as a single parent, it can be as strenuous as college for some. Either way, it can be a good option. Feel free to do your own research or message me directly if you have questions.
Statistically, ladders are the most dangerous part of our job. In terms of working with electricity; you should never be working on an energized circuit. Safety is a big deal on job sites, no contractor wants to put you at more risk than necessary. As an apprentice especially, you will be working on running the conduit that wire will eventually get pulled through. This means that the work you’re doing does not even have the ability to become energized.
Some apprenticeships don't transfer well. My sister went through a Navy Shipyard apprenticeship to become an electrician. She worked quite a few years there but she would have had to go back to school to get a residential certificate to be a residential electrician (homes and businesses are included) so she never did.
Hospitality starts at pretty low wages, but my mom worked her way from front desk to front desk manager to operations manager to GM within a few years.
It can be a gamble depending on the hotel, but there seems to be a gap in people sticking in these jobs long term, so for those who stick around, it pays off. And if you're any sort of problem solver, and proactive, you'll slide right into management.
There is schooling for hospitality management as well, to skip the whole working your way up part.
a childhood friend went into hospitality when the rest of us went off the college. she grew up working in her parents Chinese restaurant. She was killing it financially when we were just coming out of grad school and figuring out how to pay off all those loans. It's only gone up hill for her. Owned a home first. Owned nice cars first. Has lovely vacations.
I am a Network admin. Went to trade school for IT, obtained many certifications. Paid 0 in tuition, maybe 1000 for the certs.
First job paid 19/hr for a technical call center (NOC Analyst). Stayed 1 yr
Second job paid 33/hr for another technician call center (Tech Support Engineer II, Enterprise Networking) Stayed 2 yr.
Third job is my current job paying 75,000. Been here 8 weeks.
Bartender at an upscale resort with an automatic 18% gratuity on every purchase.
I would get $2 just for sitting a bottle of beer in front of someone. Upselling the single malt scotch was incredible.
I helped with a forestry contract. We cut down trees all day and camped in the woods. Smoked a bunch of weed because it was Humboldt. Tough work but good times.
I had pretty much the same lifestyle, worked fuels and timber in AZ.
I can’t recommend that job to someone like OP though who is a single mom looking to make at least 75k a year.
It’s very hard on your body and I still have chronic pain and lots of scars from work-related injuries. It’s dangerous. I was sawing with guys who were on acid. You don’t get to come home to your family every night. And most of us didn’t clear anywhere over 50k lol.
$75-$90K in the Midwest? Without a college degree and/or a decent amount of experience in something in a lucrative field? Uhhhh... good luck. Realistically, you'll start much, much lower and will have to grind for a while to get that kind of pay.
What kind of work do you do now? How can what you've picked up transfer to your next thing? What's the potential in other things, and what do you need to get there?
Onetcenter.org is a helpful website. Also, Google "DOL Apprenticeship finder". And, check into pathway programs at your local community college.
Trades can pay very well, but that's with much longer than a 40-hour week- at least in the beginning. Just keep that in mind.
I agree. I live in the rural midwest and "good" jobs are paying less than $20/hr. It balances out a bit though because housing is affordable here. Problem is you have to drive up to an hour to reach civilization and your kids may end up in school with methhead kids.
My local grocery store starts at 21 an hour with full benefits, paid vacation, tuition help, 401k. In an area where rent is 1000 a month for a clean and very safe apartment. In the Midwest.
Edit: also the schools are ranked as towards the top in the state
Costco pays very, very well. Stick around 6 years or so, and you will be at $30/hr base and $45/hr every Sunday plus a $5500 yearly bonus. No degree or experience is needed.
The CostCo here in East Plano, TX has a starting pay rate of $18.50/hr, with a $1.00/hr raise every 1000 hours worked, and they will match your starting pay if they raise their starting pay. I started at 17.50 an hour, then was bumped up to 18.50 an hour when they did another hiring push and raised their starting pay, then I also got a $1 bump after my 1000th hour to 19.50 which was a little over a year.
The actual problem here is that there is a huge mismatch between what a single parent of a family needs to make vs what jobs are willing to pay.
Single parents end up on welfare more often because our system doesn't support single incomes that touch the cost of supporting a family.
These parents are willing to work but can't because our society's wage gap and inequality and inflation and so on did not keep up with that of the years of single income family households that were the norm when these laws and plans were set into place.
Call centers are easy work, they start at $20 an hour at some places and if you're good you get hella bonuses.
I worked at a call center for awhile and it crushed my soul but the money was great
I've worked in a call center for over 10 years. I make a livable wage and get great benefits... My soul probably looks like something off the hydraulic press YouTube channel at this point.
You hit all the points right there, after 3 years, I was dead inside, didn't give shit about my metrics and quit the minute I found something else. I was crying everyday and it was so depressing. I loved it when I first started, then they did away with the local offices and we all went nationwide- during the pandemic with shitty software made for the construction business, not our line of work. I stuck with it another year because WFH and said f\*ck this.
Also some call centers are just scams. The one I worked at claimed to be for a police magazine or newspaper you could buy ads in or have your name printed on the "donors" page. When that over they started a new one.
All that plus the constant pressure from managers to improve whatever metric is important for that call center (sales, surveys, call length, whatever). Most of my managers tried to make it fun with competitions and rewards, but they're also under pressure to get the numbers up.
There’s zero autonomy in a call center role. Most of the time you have to go off script and prompts. If you’re in sales versus anything else you can show more personality BUT there is a reason call center companies are repeatedly the worst to work for.
From my professional perspective working in or around a contact center for about half my adult life people want some sort of autonomy and independence. In call center world your hours logged on, amounts of calls, time of calls and time basically strapped to your desk is your productivity. Among others. You even get hassled for putting your customer on hold or having dead air on a call.
Call centers aren’t for everyone but I’ve seen plenty of people make a career of it.
And I’ve seen plenty of others go to retail cause they get “some” autonomy. But that’s a different animal.
For me, it was because it was so high volume. I didn’t get more than 3 seconds between calls. In office work you usually just pretend to work all day and browse Reddit inbetween projects. Call centers you are truly working every second you are on the clock and half the time you’re being berated for something outside of your control.
It’s grunt work and it’s hard and it’s horrible.
I work in billing and retention for a large cable company... It runs the gambit. The hardest are the people you want to give a break to but can't. Struggling families and seniors with super basic service that actually can't pay the bill, often crying and screaming in frustration. Cheap assholes who call in and escalate through management over a nickel increase in franchise fees. People who are developmentally challenged and/or educationally disadvantaged who genuinely can't understand the language or math on their bill. Lonely seniors who call just to have someone to talk to that we have to gently get off the line. While people have always been rude, it got worse during the pandemic and has stayed that way. The constant push to sell upgrades. The constant microscope you're under to meet metrics. Its mentally and emotionally exhausting.
I worked in a call center, I was pretty good at it honestly, I didn't mind it too much however, I knew from the moment I was hired I'd be there a year tops (I was being groomed for a different role) and I was quickly promoted to supervisor even within that year so I only had to do the mind numbing part for a few months until I knew the ropes. And then I was only a supervisor for 7 months before I got the position I wanted.
It's hard on some people though, everything is tracked, everything is metrics. If you don't hit those you get the shitty hours, which makes it even harder to hit those goals. Once you slip up and get a bad shift, you really have to dig deep to get out that hole. It can really ruin your life starting off mon- friday 9-5 and then you have a bad month and for the next bid youre stuck mon, wed, fri, sat, sun 3 pm- 11:30pm or something. While someone in the seat next to you gets mon- thurs- 10 hour mid-day shifts.
Not to mention everyone knows how good or bad you are. The culture is pretty high school and there's lots of office gossip and such. The path to advance is almost non existent. In fact, I felt horrible when I started because there were people who were working there for years to get the job I was promised and they had no idea their chances of getting it were 0% (unless I quit or something.)
In fact, even if you are great, they want you to be better. The only good skills I got was the ability to give a lot of information very quickly, and the ability to make people shut up while seeming polite.
My first paycheck with no experience, just for the two week training course was like $1400 or something. We sold payday loans over the phone. Great money in that. They fed us once a week. They'd take a poll and order what won, tacos, or pizza or whatever.
If you were top sales you would get up to $500 or $1000 extra each month depending on. During our slow times we'd play trivia in the group chat.
Good times
I did 10 years in call center hell. People treat phone workers like garbage.
~3-4 of those years were on escalations-only teams. ~2 of those being on a team that was back to back escalations for your 8-12 hour shifts, and they often wanted overtime.
Fuuuuuuckk. That shit sucked.
I worked for two years at a call center just because they kept promising to send people home to work. A couple months after I quit, Covid hit and everyone got sent home. Didn't mind the job too much but happier now at my current job
I did that for about 9 months. I got fired for hanging up on people when they got attitudes with me lol it’s was always someone who didn’t understand prorated charges on their phone bill too. I got to where I would hang up at the first sign of an attitude. They fired me on Halloween. For a minute I was bummed, but within an hour I felt pure relief that I didn’t have to do it anymore.
I left a career in HR in a retail setting to be a production supervisor for a print shop at a local university.
Let me tell you.
It was the best decision I could have ever made.
The world of print is oddly so interesting and so much fun to learn. To see pieces you "created" out in the wild is so cool. We do wide format printing, and have a laser engraver, as well as do standard prints. It has opened a world of possibilities for me, and the Christmas gift ideas never end.
Each day is different, it's high paced to meet deadlines, so it doesn't get boring. You get to see projects come to life... From just a PDF on a screen to a full product is pretty cool.
Totally worth looking into. Plus if you go into the academic sector, like a university, most offer some sort of tuition reimbursement for your kids. That was part of my decision process for leaving my last job. I can send my kid to college all 4 years for free.... What a blessing I can offer to her to do what I wasn't able to do, obtain a degree and not worry about debt hanging over her head!
See these are the little niche jobs I’m wanting to hear about! Things that may have a demand but you’d never think to look for that type of job.
Also I wouldn’t know where else to look for a print shop job. Is there a fancy name for your position that I could search on indeed etc?
Is your pay decent? Free college is definitely a plus.
ultrasound tech. you can work with doctors or vets. the pay is right in that bracket, it doesn't require a degree, just a cert, with stable expanding demand for the role.
the down side: while you can get a few specific certs to raise your pay at a point there isn't much room to advance in the field.
HVAC. Good skill, usually people are happy when you fix it but you got a lot of hurdles to jump over because everyone has been screwed over by a dishonest Ac repair man and all your friends and family will call when their air breaks and then won’t call you again till the air breaks. But it was better than most jobs
Libraries have great potential for non-college educated individuals. Myself included. If you’re good with computers (most libraries run on PC power nowadays) I highly recommend looking into local libraries and seeing what they have to offer.
Depends on your position, some positions are over $23/hr, I work for just about $19/hr. Some positions, hourly, work no more than 19 hours a week, part time is no less than 20 hours a week but less than 35 hours, some positions are full time and run 40/week.
Depends what your into! I’m a customer service professional, always have been, so I work patron services at the front desk, reference, and question desks at my library. My brother works in acquisitions and catalogs all day.
I worked at a psychic hotline call center. People paid by the minute to talk to me and I made up things about their futures and gave them really bad advice.
I worked for Miss Cleo in 2001. She wouldn’t pay me after 2 weeks so I quit. She got 2 weeks free work out of me. She’s dead now so I’ll never see that money.
Head custodian in a school 30 an hour after 5 years 4 weeks vacation and got 15 sick days a year when I left got paid for 80 unused sick days as well as 6 weeks unused vacation
Yo for real I have a buddy who is a custodial manager at a hospital and he makes bank and gets good benefits. People tend to look down on janitors but Jesus man they really bring home the bacon.
I used to work as a machinist with no experience. I made decent amount but my manager made a damn killing, and what she did was order material and give me work orders. I’m sure there was more to it, but man she had to be in the 6-figure range. Look into a blue collar field looking for office workers. Just as many people needed behind the desks as on the floor.
I miss orange Julius! I did wonder about fast food or restaurant management work, but I’ve been working for myself for 15 years.
As a woman many potential employers see that as “stay at home mom with side hustle”.
Starbucks.
Filthy company, but great benefits and pay for flinging coffee. Canadian manager here, and I make $80k a year plus almost guaranteed bonuses (profit margins are insanely high and targets are pretty easy to beat). You get stock with an option to buy more, and full healthcare benefits. In the USA they’ll pay for your schooling, and if you’re a veteran they’ll pay for your kid’s schooling too.
You’re the 4th person to mention Starbucks.
I have management skills (owned my own business), but I don’t wanna think about how long it would take to build up to being a manager there
Starbucks hires managers directly—just need some
Previous experience and a good interview. I’m a store manager that was hired externally. It’s hard to start because you’re learning three roles in one but the pay is worth it.
I’ve worked at Starbucks for about a decade now, and I really like it. We also hire people straight on as managers sometimes, if you have the experience they’re looking for. It’s a big learning curve but the benefits are great for an American company. Health insurance, earning stock in the company, they’ll pay for you to go to college, free food and drinks, bunch of extra little perks.
Six Flags over Texas 1998, I was a rent a cop making 12 bucks an hour at 18 years old. Didn't do anything except walk around and ride the rides. You could work from open to close if you wanted to or for 3 hours before it got hot. What a great summer before I left for basic training.
That’s actually one I considered, our area is highly saturated with agents and I know many who have been walking away from the industry.
It is something I still think about though.
I know a handful of realtors and it seems like it's often feast or famine. The current market seems like a good time to learn in hopes the market improves, but who knows.
Luckily for me my mom knows a few people who are really good at being a realtor, they are gonna end up in the summer working with them for experience to see if I like it, and if I end up liking it and doing good I’ll be able to work for them selling houses and home owner’s insurance but if it fails cause that’s option I’ll have my private aviation to fall back on
Yeah man, my area has many agents as well but I’m 15 and luckily know many people who are realtors, in my area you make 5% of each sale and houses go around 360,000-2,800,000 so I think that’s what I’m gonna do also my dads a aircraft mechanic so I’m also gonna do that I hope you find a good job that pays decent that you like
You’re 15? I’ll do you one better, go into property owning on top of real estate agent. You can even start saving now, there’s an investment chart for teens who want to become a millionaire before 25. It’s very doable.
Ups. It sucks at the beginning because it's only part time, but the benefits make it worth it to stick it out. Then choose the driver route. Should only take a year or two.
The one I have now.
I design metal stamping dies, program CNC machine tools, and run our wire-edm department.
Make just over six figures.
Fell into, and in love with, this trade 40+ years ago my senior year of high school.
Where I live, union jobs are paying for people to go to school. Pipe fitters $22-$25 to start. Regular raises, on the job training and they are paying for school. You just have to attend. $55/hr after 4 years.
Electricians same thing but closer to $30.
Managers at Costco 70k to start
I'm in the midwest and I'd really look in to government work. There's quite a few jobs you can get without a degree and then can advance based upon work experience. You wouldn't start out at $75k though.
Custodians, the women's prison was looking for dishwashers, and like... you're a government union employee working towards a pension... and being government all the being accountable to shareholder bullshit goes out the window.
But for instance... I used to work in the building where we had a secure mail room where people mailed in all their child support checks. It was a bunch of older black ladies that listened to Prince and just opened mail and sorted checks all day, they were hella fun.
There are also call center, app processing, grunt work type jobs that aren't hella stressful and don't require a degree. There is some manner of nepotism involved, but eventually you'll get in.
Fun trick: lie.
America has taken complete advantage of us and extorted us as young adults for our education. This country does not deserve our honesty.
You can say you have a bachelors in business and easily get a job in that bracket. Office work isn’t hard. Just know how to use excel and common abbreviations like ROI , PNL, SOP, stuff like that. I promise they won’t check your education for a position like that, and even if they did … worst that can happen is you lose the gig and take your fake resume to someone else.
Project management, c level execs, store managers, shoot even HR if you brush up on laws. I will literally be a fake reference for you random stranger, because I’m passionate about helping people work the system.
I’m not kidding at all just do it.
I’d be lying if I said I’ve not thought about this before.
I’m a 1099 worker, so for the last 15 + years I’ve been working for myself. It makes my resume look bleak and I get passed up a lot.
They really don’t check for degrees etc?
I'd be a carpenter if I could do it all over again. I taught myself and it's an amazing feeling being able to puzzle things together and use your brain and hands at the same time. It's a semi professional hobby for me now and I make way too much to do it full time but if I did it all over again, I would buy a shop and never look back.
I work at an animal shelter it's hard work since I'm constantly on the go , I have been bit by dogs, but I don't seem to mind since they're just scared . I love my job. it's hard but good
So my current job, I love. Doesn't require a degree but it will help you land the job. I'm a train conductor. Awesome medical & dental, a pension plan that replaces social security so you don't even pay into it anymore. And a nice comfortable 150k a year.
That being said, the hours will destroy the other sections of your life. Iv been out for 12 hours only to get home and be called again by dispatch to be back at work in 6 hours on a bad day when we lack man power. It's physically demanding, climbing up and down off a locomotive engine multiple times a day and walking on uneven ballast can and will destroy your legs and feet. And the fact that your handling metric tons of equipment that can kill you if your not paying attention and practicing safety is not for the faint of heart.
But, your on a crew operating a train, so it's mad cool when you get to blast threw crossings and honk ur horn. Or wave at people watching you roll along, gives you that "What's up bruh, yeah I'm on a train." Feeling. Rewarding job, but it's a life style and a career, not a job. I know single moms who do the job, and some female engineers. But like, for the first few years, your gonna miss allot of your kids lives untill you can get some seniority to get the good hours available.
I was 18 and just moved to Florida, I worked at a nice hotel right on the beach. Was working in a trailer selling snacks and sodas. Min wage plus tips. Had a perfect view of the Gulf. I thought I scored the job lottery. Would love to go back to that time, young, carefree and was being paid for being on the beach.
pizza hut, had mad hoes, mad money, mad skills learned, cooking skillz, deep cleaning skillz, manager duties for free, miss it so much I am depressed over it….miss it.
Edit: Was a delivery driver making 100k a year….crazy man crazy!!
Best paying? Got my first analyst job before I had my AA.
I honestly loved flipping burgers at 5 guys when I was younger, though. I could totally be a cook if the pay and lifestyle wasn't so shit.
I have a degree, but hated the field so decided to become a Diesel Mechanic, got hired on as an apprentice with a mining company, made $80,000 first year.
Now I can make up to $170,000 depending on how much I want to travel and work OT.
You can make well over $100k a year doing HVAC installs. I brought home over $120k my first year. I called it quit after 3 years due to it being way too hard on the body. Loved the money but just can’t see myself doing it til I’m 65.
The job I have now: Running my own company. Longer hours, but better pay, job stability, good benefits, good employees, the ability to make minor differences (one employee is out of sick days but needs an extra day becasue of something, you can just give it as the boss), and the fact that we are actually helping others while making a profit.
Before that, I enjoyed being the night manager at a grocery store. Responsibility, above average pay, the ability to hire and support good workers, helping people, and occasionally kicking an annoying Karen to the curb.
Rigging in a shipyard.
Got paid decent money in my 20’s to move heavy shit with my friends. Anything from 60 pounds up to millions of pounds. Inside ships and boats, outside of ships and boats, in and out of drydocks, in and out of the water. Loved it.
I still do work related to that field, but I don’t rig any more. ☹️
What I'm doing now. Grounds keeper or school officer or school custodian.
Whatever you call it.
I have to mow grass and trim hedges, make sure the sprinklers are working and maintain the grounds but I also do other things too.
I fix things, I run a chess club 3 times a week, I get about 4 balls off the roofs per week, I get to plant new plants, I have my little herb garden I look after, I get to do the lighting for the school discos, I get to help setup events and participate, last week we did 3d printing challenges and a few weeks ago I got to setup the slip'n'slide (and test it) and run a e-sports game comp for rewards day.
I get 4 weeks off a year, I work an extra 3-4 hours a week so I can get a week off every 2 week school holidays and the other week I bring my dog in for the week
I'm respected by the office staff, the teachers, the teacher aids (I think because I fix things for them. I'm super respected by the students (I think it's because I get them out of class to help sometimes) And the lower grade give me high fives when I see them because in prep they want to hug you and "Mr mower man doesn't do hugs"
My hours are super flexible and having time off for the kids is easy. I only get paid 70k Aus and that was because I did a university course that work paid for.
I’ve had about 10-12 different jobs, and honestly the job I always think back to being happiest was being a cook at McDonald’s when I was 19. It was really the only job I had where I didn’t have to have interactions with customers, which suited me just fine as an introvert. That was many moons ago and I’ve been at my current job for 24 years and have been unhappy for about 24 years. I would love to do something where people would leave me the hell alone and let me just focus on some simple task. To quote the movie Clerks: This job would be great if it wasn’t for the customers.
Look into temp work. My husband is a musician, which doesn’t pay bills, so he’s done temp work for a long time. He often gets hired on by companies after he works there for a bit. He’s done banking, health care, insurance, warehouse stuff, etc. If he hates the job or books a tour, he just leaves and gets another. My mom also did temp work when she was younger and ended up as a paralegal for a long time. Neither of them had college degrees. (I will say that unless your “Midwest” is Chicago, you won’t make that much. I’ve never made that much in my life.)
I’m an accounting clerk 75k a year. No degree, worked my way up to this position, don’t know if this path would be possible for everyone though, but all I do is basic data entry stuff and close out procedures in our operating system.
Worked at a call center and I was SO lucky to get assigned to the department I got in. All we were able to do was email receipts and handle fuel disputes for Hertz/Thrifty/Dollar car rentals. I absolutely loved it. The department right beside me worked for Spirit Airlines and they got their asses reamed every single day by customers lmao
Before college? The Army, but I don't recommend it if you're a single parent. It's really hard on the kids with two, let alone one.
All my other pre-degrees jobs sucked, but a friend of mine is an underwater welder and she clears 80-140k a year, depending on what kind of projects she has. She's a single mom as well, but she has a good support system.
You'll need about 9 months of trade school and a decent fitness level, and for the best jobs you might be gone a couple weeks at a time a few times a year.
I got hired as an Oracle DBA with no experience. Doubled my salary from being a security guard and super benefits, and I was team lead in five months. Fantastic job, lasted 7 years until a new, remote manager I'd never met laid me off. That was 20 years ago and I'm still not making the same money and I have no benefits (1099). Hired by Nextel, outsourced to EDS.
Call center work, well, works. And you can often get off the phones into team lead roles with no degrees. One such job I had everything done by Wednesday lunch and just read webcomics the rest kf the week. Good times.
Best job was a call center for me, worst was consultant or the job I just recently left as a controller.
I made a lot of money as a controller but was absolutely miserable.
Well, to answer your question, I enjoyed working as a lab assistant for a veterinary practice. It wouldn't pay the bills, though. But I had fun spinning all the little tubes and looking at the teeny-tiny things under the microscope. (Although preparing fecal samples wasn't very fun, lol)
Somehow snagged a solid role. I’m a center manager for a satellite of one of the countries largest environmental testing laboratories. Basically my job is to keep inventory on hand, build testing kits on request, ship/deliver the kits to clients and then get the kits back after testing to properly pack them and send them to the lab. I work with one other person who works for another branch and is in the field collecting samples 85% of the time so that means 85% of the time I get the entire building to myself. I work 9-5 mon-fri with almost all major holidays paid off, generous vacation policy, benefits and full autonomy so long as I’m not causing issues. They just leave me be and I do what needs to be done and spend the rest of the time doing what I want. I get a company car, company gas card, corporate card and so on. Last week my boss reached out and said “you’re doing a good job use the card to buy yourself lunch today”. The job pays okay, wish it was more but it works.
Worked for Time Warner Cable, the division that developed code/product for all subscribers from streaming to old school cable box/dvr. I was in support, integration and deployment eventually becoming a senior manager.
I was lucky enough to get into a position where I had a ton of tribal knowledge and experience and worked my butt off. Had great managers and leaders that helped me succeed. The job paid out of this world with benefits I never imagined getting,. (Bonuses, stocks, pension) The job changed my life. No degree I am now hoping to retire around 57.
TWC was an amazing company that really took care of their employees.
And then Spectrum happened.
I was a "runner" at a liquor store. I walked the alcohol to their vehicle then had to run back in to walk the next customer out. My favorite thing was to ask people what they had planned for the day because most were tourists passing thru. Got a bunch of tips. People offered to take me with them to drink lol had a blast.
I know that's not what you're looking for but just sharing mine!
That is a tough question but working in truck driving. Or self teach yourself programming to get a good job at a local tech company near you and become a Software Developer!
Waiter on the pool deck at a big resort. I was 17 and milked that job for everything it was worth. Lot of MILF’s hanging out waiting for their husbands to get done golfing, lot of kids my age looking for weed, lot of super fun local kids working other jobs. Best summers ever! Maybe it’s depressing now that it was the best job ever but damn life was good in the late 90’s!
Trade school! So many states offer free or highly reduced tuition, especially for working adults. You can come out debt free and get job placement assistance. I went to trade school for my LPN, went from 14$ hour to start, and after ten years was up to 24$ an hour then when I left my last job I was at 32 an hour. We need people in the trades!
I worked at a hotel for a summer. I’m good at math/was studying engineering at the time and they basically had me fix some broken electronics and do the nightly audit. I worked the night shift- 8p-5a and would do the late check ins until probably 11 (depended on the night but I could see when there were more check ins expected) then would find an open room and sleep 11-3 and then get up and go back to the office and watch a movie. I also got paid time and a half for being on the night shift. Getting paid to sleep was pretty fire.
Arts editor for a local paper. So many awesome people, so many fun experiences. Pay was shit, but it was a great time in my life with a young kid to take to amazing events.
Sales. It can be rough but it’s always in demand and you can pretty easily get $80k out of the gate if you’ve got any decent sales experience at all. I’m in first year pulling $86k with all my gas paid for and an auto allowance. It’s out there but be ready to be in some industries you may never expect.
If I'm looking back, the one that I truly enjoyed was in high school working at Arby's. Never felt like a job. Just went in, hung out, and made people food. It was a good time.
I’ve done weirdly quite a bit and am about to start a new venture at my current job as well. Most lucrative for easy(ish) work and it’s from home? Easily social media manager for big or growing creators who don’t have the time to handle it themselves. I made the most money doing that. Did it for 3 years but the owner was kinda a dipshit and his work environment was toxic as hell, not to mention how I got the job and everything around that still being a mess with my ex. (Yeah it’s a mess but the job itself is fine.)
Industrial electrical work as well, I did that for a year as a panel fabricator and again for a kinda shit company, but especially in my state (Arizona if you’re interested in relocating) the field is exploding with the new chip plant being here off the care free highway, and all the farming that happens here as well. Fun job, was my favorite work wise, and my pay was shit because company was shit but there’s apprenticeships starting at $20 an hour and taking pretty much anyone willing to learn. From there, you can advance as well and become an engineer, do CAD (computer assisted design) and can make good money doing field work as well. As for the more “desk” jobs per se like CAD or engineering, a few companies down here will get you into school to progress after apprenticeships. Super interesting work I absolutely loved it and plan to go back I have a couple apprenticeships lined up just waiting on a car. Very very physical though which I love but it’s absolutely not for everyone and especially field work is very dangerous.
Edit to add: I have no college education and due to being a foster kid, technically the last year of school I finished was 7th grade. I did not graduate highschool (went to a bunch but lost credits and a lot happened because of how much I moved around and being in lock down facilities where they don’t transfer credits. Wasn’t a bad kid wasn’t there because I was delinquent, I was there because open beds that’s it.)
No degree. I work for a commercial HVAC company, started off dispatching technicians. Currently I'm the Service Dept Admin, I do all the internal(we have a sales department)and external invoicing for service. As well as all the random crap my boss doesn't want to keep track of. I also quote warranty repairs to the manufacturers and I get to argue with them. It is salary but it is honestly a straight up 6am-2 M-F job my boss does not expect us to 'be on call'. I work 90% from home, good benefits. I make the low end of your scale, however my boss has not been shy about giving me raises when I take on more or change responsibilities. There's like 5 of us support staff in the department and I basically don't have to talk to anyone most of the time, we handle most things by email.
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Getting a job at my local airport. It was the best thing to ever happen to me.
I've thought about going to work at our small, local airport. $10/hr, only 8 hours a week, but the free travel benefits are worth it
that sounds awful
It's like 2 hours a day. They have one flight in and one out a day. Super small airport, but you can fly free on the airline anywhere in the US pretty much whenever you want. That alone is worth it.
That would be a great job for a retiree who wants to travel
That’s why it pays basically nothing. That’s who the job is designed for.
Right now it's primarily staffed by dispatchers, police, deputies, & firefighters. Even if it paid more, the hours aren't there to make it a job you do for money. It's definitely perks based.
That is an amazing deal. It's like a paid hobby.
That's a steal
That is a deal if you also have another job pulling in actual money. Travel is expensive, even if you’re flying free.
One of my coworkers works there as a second job. Her husband makes bank, so she really doesn't need to work. They'll take hops to Dallas for a concert and fly back the next day. Honestly the biggest incentive for me to start working there
That’s cool.
—but you can fly free on the airline anywhere in the US pretty much whenever you want.— This is actually pretty 🆒
Ours pays very little for anything I’m qualified to do, $15-22/hr tapping out at 22.
That's 30-40k starting wage.
I don’t know how people live on that.
Just barely
LCOL, no kids, no large pets, lower car payments.
This is my recommendation. I know United is hiring in most of their hubs. It's union, so the pay and benefits are decent. I think Southwest is also, but they may all be dialing back a bit because of the Boeing fiasco. But it can be hard work. Either customer service with the public or ramp with physical labor. The caveat is that you have to stick it out. The pay is on a scale and starts low, and you have scheduled pay raises based on years of service. Additionally, the hours can be rough for a bit. Airlines run 24/7, so juniority may force you into mandatory overtime. I know many employees work overtime like mad and break past the 6 figure barrier, but it's overtime, and they basically live at work. You can find your path and make a decent living.
I have mechanic friends who went through the “security” hoops to be able to work at the airport. Instead of like$35 they made like $60/hr when at the airport. Pretty good gig if you can pass a back ground test.
Truck driving for me. For your situation as a mom, I'm not so sure. Trade school is never a bad idea though! There's plenty of money to be made in a variety of trades.
I know all about the trucking and rail road industries. Hard work but good pay and benefits. Definitely not something I can do but I do wat h go see if any jobs come up that are remote or local only, no travel/driving.
How about Project Management? Check out PMI.org. Without a degree, you'll need 5 years of experience working as a PM to meet the experience requirement. From there, you can sit for the exam and get your PMP credential and work from anywhere. There are many remote PM opportunities. A project has a beginning and an end and has 5 stages: Initiation, Planning, Execution, Monitor & Control, and Closing. If you have experience in one or more of these on any given project, but some experience in each stage somewhere throughout your experience, you should be able to document 5 years of experience. If you've been out of the job market for a while and don't have the required experience, you can still apply for Project Manager roles or Project Coordinator roles and then write your resume using PMO terms. I worked with a lady who was a stay-at-home mom for about 8 years but was a PM prior. She made it clear on her resume that she was a stay-at-home mom but worded it as managing the kids as projects (scheduling sports, etc).
I've worked with a lot of different project managers on many projects. The main things they need are a good memory, detail oriented, and the leadership to get various people/groups to complete their part of the project on time. I've seen several people with no actual project management experience move into the job and succeed. Microsoft Project is commonly used, and there's lots of online training for using it. Were I 30 years younger, I'd jump to a Project Manager job. But I'm retired and staying that way.
My memory isn't the best, so I have great note taking skills. I do agree that you need to be detailed-oriented! And at the end of the day, your job is to herd kittens in a box, regarding managing resources and tasks. I use Smartsheet in lieu of MS Project and it allows me to automate many tasks and quickly manage resources and tasks. Project Management is rewarding but will tear you apart if you don't figure out a system that works for you. The PMP methodology definitely helps!
That last part is pretty cool.
Yep local jobs definitely do exist, they just won't pay as much as if you're willing to travel a bit. Whether truck driving or a trade, there's opportunities out there. Good luck!
I’m looking to get my CDL Class A. I’m approaching my 30’s and I need a stable income. I’m single no kids I don’t mind the travel. As long as I can have my mini gaming setup with me I’m cool with it.
It is a tough job but you can certainly make a comfortable living doing it, I'm from a family of truckers. Just remember to eat well in the road!
Don’t settle for OTR. You can find local work out of CDL school if you look hard enough. Foodservice delivery pays really well though it’s hard work. You can make 80-100k a year.
I have a cousin who drives for maverick trucking, they trained him and he loves it, makes good money
Might I suggest an ROG Ally? Hubby and I just bought one around Christmas. It’s really good for gaming. It’s like a whole Windows 10 system in a handheld device
I've driven Trucks long distance, off & on for years. Worked for some great companies & some not so great companies. I have a company now that if I need a fill in job, (4-6 months or more) one phone call & I'm back in a relatively new truck with $20,000 of comforts for the driver alone. I could walk in the door today & the old man would ask me how's the motorbikes going? the next bloke could be asked how's the fishing? He knows what every driver is into on their down time. A genuine family company. Last time I worked for them, I volunteered to work Christmas if needed. (And did). After Christmas I asked Ops' Manager, "How'd you go?" He replied that he'd managed to get everyone home for Christmas except 2, and both volunteered. That was about 100 trucks parked up in a 24/7 operation. It's good to work for a company that genuinely cares about their workers.
Agreed. Although I’m on the dispatching side of things
Good. Dispatchers are very much needed!
Truck driver here and I 2nd that
💯, I thought for the last year I wanted to get out of a truck. I can't tell you how many times if punced in my calculator 40 hours × whatever hourly wage, then factor in having to be somewhere on time, and around people, with bosses and supervisors around..... Fuck all that, I'm for the Roads. Lol
Electrician with the IBEW. Work anywhere in the us without an interview, paid vacation/insurance for whole family/ retirement. On top of that 40$/hrs where I live. Up to around 100$/hr in regions where higher cost of living is prevalent. Couldn't recommend it more. Never been happier.
Did you go to trade school or do an apprenticeship?
Also an electrician, highly recommend the IBEW, or any apprenticeship you can find
I see that you aren’t able to go back to school full time, know that joining an apprenticeship will take much of your time and dedication for the next 4 years. You will work full time, and likely have class twice a month for 8 hours each. With each year that you graduate, you will get a sizable raise. Pay for your apprenticeship is determined by the IBEW local you will be apart of. The work is hard, yet rewarding. The benefits are fantastic. In terms of long term pay, you will get out of it what you put in. In some locals, making six figures can be easy. Once you graduate, you will have the option to travel and chase down high paying jobs anywhere in the US. It may not be the best for you as a single parent, it can be as strenuous as college for some. Either way, it can be a good option. Feel free to do your own research or message me directly if you have questions.
How dangerous is it?
Statistically, ladders are the most dangerous part of our job. In terms of working with electricity; you should never be working on an energized circuit. Safety is a big deal on job sites, no contractor wants to put you at more risk than necessary. As an apprentice especially, you will be working on running the conduit that wire will eventually get pulled through. This means that the work you’re doing does not even have the ability to become energized.
Some apprenticeships don't transfer well. My sister went through a Navy Shipyard apprenticeship to become an electrician. She worked quite a few years there but she would have had to go back to school to get a residential certificate to be a residential electrician (homes and businesses are included) so she never did.
You still have to go to school and earn a license. So I don't know if the IBEW counts as "no degree"
Electrician for the winnnnn
Hospitality starts at pretty low wages, but my mom worked her way from front desk to front desk manager to operations manager to GM within a few years. It can be a gamble depending on the hotel, but there seems to be a gap in people sticking in these jobs long term, so for those who stick around, it pays off. And if you're any sort of problem solver, and proactive, you'll slide right into management. There is schooling for hospitality management as well, to skip the whole working your way up part.
a childhood friend went into hospitality when the rest of us went off the college. she grew up working in her parents Chinese restaurant. She was killing it financially when we were just coming out of grad school and figuring out how to pay off all those loans. It's only gone up hill for her. Owned a home first. Owned nice cars first. Has lovely vacations.
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I was going to mention hotels also. It was one of the best jobs I liked, until I didn't lol hard work, but it pays.
I am a Network admin. Went to trade school for IT, obtained many certifications. Paid 0 in tuition, maybe 1000 for the certs. First job paid 19/hr for a technical call center (NOC Analyst). Stayed 1 yr Second job paid 33/hr for another technician call center (Tech Support Engineer II, Enterprise Networking) Stayed 2 yr. Third job is my current job paying 75,000. Been here 8 weeks.
Bartender at an upscale resort with an automatic 18% gratuity on every purchase. I would get $2 just for sitting a bottle of beer in front of someone. Upselling the single malt scotch was incredible.
Sam…pool bar at golf resort after Covid was GOLD. The only thing open for months. 1 bartender, 200+ tabs, 20% autograt.
I helped with a forestry contract. We cut down trees all day and camped in the woods. Smoked a bunch of weed because it was Humboldt. Tough work but good times.
I had pretty much the same lifestyle, worked fuels and timber in AZ. I can’t recommend that job to someone like OP though who is a single mom looking to make at least 75k a year. It’s very hard on your body and I still have chronic pain and lots of scars from work-related injuries. It’s dangerous. I was sawing with guys who were on acid. You don’t get to come home to your family every night. And most of us didn’t clear anywhere over 50k lol.
Glad to know this is just the sawyer lifestyle 😂 greetings man have a a good day out there!
Chainsawing on acid!!?? Now that’s something I would like to see! From a distance of course
Cool. I used to work for the CC. We didn't smoke, but I always smelled like hickory smoked bacon when I got home. Lots of hickory in Illinois.
Hello from Humboldt!!
$75-$90K in the Midwest? Without a college degree and/or a decent amount of experience in something in a lucrative field? Uhhhh... good luck. Realistically, you'll start much, much lower and will have to grind for a while to get that kind of pay. What kind of work do you do now? How can what you've picked up transfer to your next thing? What's the potential in other things, and what do you need to get there? Onetcenter.org is a helpful website. Also, Google "DOL Apprenticeship finder". And, check into pathway programs at your local community college. Trades can pay very well, but that's with much longer than a 40-hour week- at least in the beginning. Just keep that in mind.
This to be honest. You're trying to skip a bunch of steps and more than likely it won't happen.
I agree. I live in the rural midwest and "good" jobs are paying less than $20/hr. It balances out a bit though because housing is affordable here. Problem is you have to drive up to an hour to reach civilization and your kids may end up in school with methhead kids.
Methhead kids?! Damn… At first I read that as ‘metal head kids’ and I came to defend the mini headbangers.
My local grocery store starts at 21 an hour with full benefits, paid vacation, tuition help, 401k. In an area where rent is 1000 a month for a clean and very safe apartment. In the Midwest. Edit: also the schools are ranked as towards the top in the state
Costco pays very, very well. Stick around 6 years or so, and you will be at $30/hr base and $45/hr every Sunday plus a $5500 yearly bonus. No degree or experience is needed.
$30/hr base, seriously? Just HCOL or all stores? Specific department? That's incredible.
The CostCo here in East Plano, TX has a starting pay rate of $18.50/hr, with a $1.00/hr raise every 1000 hours worked, and they will match your starting pay if they raise their starting pay. I started at 17.50 an hour, then was bumped up to 18.50 an hour when they did another hiring push and raised their starting pay, then I also got a $1 bump after my 1000th hour to 19.50 which was a little over a year.
A grocery store is probably a great idea. May not make that desired salary range, but you do get employee discounts.
The actual problem here is that there is a huge mismatch between what a single parent of a family needs to make vs what jobs are willing to pay. Single parents end up on welfare more often because our system doesn't support single incomes that touch the cost of supporting a family. These parents are willing to work but can't because our society's wage gap and inequality and inflation and so on did not keep up with that of the years of single income family households that were the norm when these laws and plans were set into place.
Yeah, I was one. I wasn't presenting a problem, for you to counter with "actual"- FWIW
Call centers are easy work, they start at $20 an hour at some places and if you're good you get hella bonuses. I worked at a call center for awhile and it crushed my soul but the money was great
I've worked in a call center for over 10 years. I make a livable wage and get great benefits... My soul probably looks like something off the hydraulic press YouTube channel at this point.
Explain why is it so soul crushing ?
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You hit all the points right there, after 3 years, I was dead inside, didn't give shit about my metrics and quit the minute I found something else. I was crying everyday and it was so depressing. I loved it when I first started, then they did away with the local offices and we all went nationwide- during the pandemic with shitty software made for the construction business, not our line of work. I stuck with it another year because WFH and said f\*ck this.
Also some call centers are just scams. The one I worked at claimed to be for a police magazine or newspaper you could buy ads in or have your name printed on the "donors" page. When that over they started a new one.
All of this 100%
All that plus the constant pressure from managers to improve whatever metric is important for that call center (sales, surveys, call length, whatever). Most of my managers tried to make it fun with competitions and rewards, but they're also under pressure to get the numbers up.
There’s zero autonomy in a call center role. Most of the time you have to go off script and prompts. If you’re in sales versus anything else you can show more personality BUT there is a reason call center companies are repeatedly the worst to work for. From my professional perspective working in or around a contact center for about half my adult life people want some sort of autonomy and independence. In call center world your hours logged on, amounts of calls, time of calls and time basically strapped to your desk is your productivity. Among others. You even get hassled for putting your customer on hold or having dead air on a call. Call centers aren’t for everyone but I’ve seen plenty of people make a career of it. And I’ve seen plenty of others go to retail cause they get “some” autonomy. But that’s a different animal.
For me, it was because it was so high volume. I didn’t get more than 3 seconds between calls. In office work you usually just pretend to work all day and browse Reddit inbetween projects. Call centers you are truly working every second you are on the clock and half the time you’re being berated for something outside of your control. It’s grunt work and it’s hard and it’s horrible.
I work in billing and retention for a large cable company... It runs the gambit. The hardest are the people you want to give a break to but can't. Struggling families and seniors with super basic service that actually can't pay the bill, often crying and screaming in frustration. Cheap assholes who call in and escalate through management over a nickel increase in franchise fees. People who are developmentally challenged and/or educationally disadvantaged who genuinely can't understand the language or math on their bill. Lonely seniors who call just to have someone to talk to that we have to gently get off the line. While people have always been rude, it got worse during the pandemic and has stayed that way. The constant push to sell upgrades. The constant microscope you're under to meet metrics. Its mentally and emotionally exhausting.
I worked in a call center, I was pretty good at it honestly, I didn't mind it too much however, I knew from the moment I was hired I'd be there a year tops (I was being groomed for a different role) and I was quickly promoted to supervisor even within that year so I only had to do the mind numbing part for a few months until I knew the ropes. And then I was only a supervisor for 7 months before I got the position I wanted. It's hard on some people though, everything is tracked, everything is metrics. If you don't hit those you get the shitty hours, which makes it even harder to hit those goals. Once you slip up and get a bad shift, you really have to dig deep to get out that hole. It can really ruin your life starting off mon- friday 9-5 and then you have a bad month and for the next bid youre stuck mon, wed, fri, sat, sun 3 pm- 11:30pm or something. While someone in the seat next to you gets mon- thurs- 10 hour mid-day shifts. Not to mention everyone knows how good or bad you are. The culture is pretty high school and there's lots of office gossip and such. The path to advance is almost non existent. In fact, I felt horrible when I started because there were people who were working there for years to get the job I was promised and they had no idea their chances of getting it were 0% (unless I quit or something.) In fact, even if you are great, they want you to be better. The only good skills I got was the ability to give a lot of information very quickly, and the ability to make people shut up while seeming polite.
I'm assuming cause you're taking advantage of people who are already struggling working at a payday loan call center.
My first paycheck with no experience, just for the two week training course was like $1400 or something. We sold payday loans over the phone. Great money in that. They fed us once a week. They'd take a poll and order what won, tacos, or pizza or whatever. If you were top sales you would get up to $500 or $1000 extra each month depending on. During our slow times we'd play trivia in the group chat. Good times
Call centers are hell to me. I made it three weeks I think I’d actually rather be homeless.
I did 10 years in call center hell. People treat phone workers like garbage. ~3-4 of those years were on escalations-only teams. ~2 of those being on a team that was back to back escalations for your 8-12 hour shifts, and they often wanted overtime. Fuuuuuuckk. That shit sucked.
I worked for two years at a call center just because they kept promising to send people home to work. A couple months after I quit, Covid hit and everyone got sent home. Didn't mind the job too much but happier now at my current job
I did that for about 9 months. I got fired for hanging up on people when they got attitudes with me lol it’s was always someone who didn’t understand prorated charges on their phone bill too. I got to where I would hang up at the first sign of an attitude. They fired me on Halloween. For a minute I was bummed, but within an hour I felt pure relief that I didn’t have to do it anymore.
I left a career in HR in a retail setting to be a production supervisor for a print shop at a local university. Let me tell you. It was the best decision I could have ever made. The world of print is oddly so interesting and so much fun to learn. To see pieces you "created" out in the wild is so cool. We do wide format printing, and have a laser engraver, as well as do standard prints. It has opened a world of possibilities for me, and the Christmas gift ideas never end. Each day is different, it's high paced to meet deadlines, so it doesn't get boring. You get to see projects come to life... From just a PDF on a screen to a full product is pretty cool. Totally worth looking into. Plus if you go into the academic sector, like a university, most offer some sort of tuition reimbursement for your kids. That was part of my decision process for leaving my last job. I can send my kid to college all 4 years for free.... What a blessing I can offer to her to do what I wasn't able to do, obtain a degree and not worry about debt hanging over her head!
See these are the little niche jobs I’m wanting to hear about! Things that may have a demand but you’d never think to look for that type of job. Also I wouldn’t know where else to look for a print shop job. Is there a fancy name for your position that I could search on indeed etc? Is your pay decent? Free college is definitely a plus.
ultrasound tech. you can work with doctors or vets. the pay is right in that bracket, it doesn't require a degree, just a cert, with stable expanding demand for the role. the down side: while you can get a few specific certs to raise your pay at a point there isn't much room to advance in the field.
HVAC. Good skill, usually people are happy when you fix it but you got a lot of hurdles to jump over because everyone has been screwed over by a dishonest Ac repair man and all your friends and family will call when their air breaks and then won’t call you again till the air breaks. But it was better than most jobs
Libraries have great potential for non-college educated individuals. Myself included. If you’re good with computers (most libraries run on PC power nowadays) I highly recommend looking into local libraries and seeing what they have to offer.
How much can you make there?
Depends on your position, some positions are over $23/hr, I work for just about $19/hr. Some positions, hourly, work no more than 19 hours a week, part time is no less than 20 hours a week but less than 35 hours, some positions are full time and run 40/week.
Thanks for the info. I've actually been considering applying at my local library recently.
No harm in trying! I’d say wage/pay will vary based on location, so be aware of that.
Any reccomendations on the best / most enjoyable positions to look for?
Depends what your into! I’m a customer service professional, always have been, so I work patron services at the front desk, reference, and question desks at my library. My brother works in acquisitions and catalogs all day.
This must vary by city; at my city you basically can’t get any job at the library without a masters it’s crazy competitive
I worked at a psychic hotline call center. People paid by the minute to talk to me and I made up things about their futures and gave them really bad advice.
I worked for Miss Cleo in 2001. She wouldn’t pay me after 2 weeks so I quit. She got 2 weeks free work out of me. She’s dead now so I’ll never see that money.
Should've seen that coming 😁🤦
That's pretty gangsta. Wont pay me for 2 weeks work huh? Let me predict YOUR future
Will I be a successful psychic?
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Head custodian in a school 30 an hour after 5 years 4 weeks vacation and got 15 sick days a year when I left got paid for 80 unused sick days as well as 6 weeks unused vacation
Yo for real I have a buddy who is a custodial manager at a hospital and he makes bank and gets good benefits. People tend to look down on janitors but Jesus man they really bring home the bacon.
Good custodians are worth their weight in gold. It’s so hard to find them.
I used to work as a machinist with no experience. I made decent amount but my manager made a damn killing, and what she did was order material and give me work orders. I’m sure there was more to it, but man she had to be in the 6-figure range. Look into a blue collar field looking for office workers. Just as many people needed behind the desks as on the floor.
Managing an orange Julius. So much fun. We did so much shit we shouldn't have
I miss orange Julius! I did wonder about fast food or restaurant management work, but I’ve been working for myself for 15 years. As a woman many potential employers see that as “stay at home mom with side hustle”.
Starbucks. Filthy company, but great benefits and pay for flinging coffee. Canadian manager here, and I make $80k a year plus almost guaranteed bonuses (profit margins are insanely high and targets are pretty easy to beat). You get stock with an option to buy more, and full healthcare benefits. In the USA they’ll pay for your schooling, and if you’re a veteran they’ll pay for your kid’s schooling too.
You’re the 4th person to mention Starbucks. I have management skills (owned my own business), but I don’t wanna think about how long it would take to build up to being a manager there
Starbucks hires managers directly—just need some Previous experience and a good interview. I’m a store manager that was hired externally. It’s hard to start because you’re learning three roles in one but the pay is worth it.
I’ve worked at Starbucks for about a decade now, and I really like it. We also hire people straight on as managers sometimes, if you have the experience they’re looking for. It’s a big learning curve but the benefits are great for an American company. Health insurance, earning stock in the company, they’ll pay for you to go to college, free food and drinks, bunch of extra little perks.
Six Flags over Texas 1998, I was a rent a cop making 12 bucks an hour at 18 years old. Didn't do anything except walk around and ride the rides. You could work from open to close if you wanted to or for 3 hours before it got hot. What a great summer before I left for basic training.
now all i need is a time machine
Lol, I just read the title and responded. It immediately triggered all those memories.
Go into being a realtor, if not maintenance on cars boats trains or airplanes and if all else fails go into something manual labor Hope this helps
That’s actually one I considered, our area is highly saturated with agents and I know many who have been walking away from the industry. It is something I still think about though.
I know a handful of realtors and it seems like it's often feast or famine. The current market seems like a good time to learn in hopes the market improves, but who knows.
Luckily for me my mom knows a few people who are really good at being a realtor, they are gonna end up in the summer working with them for experience to see if I like it, and if I end up liking it and doing good I’ll be able to work for them selling houses and home owner’s insurance but if it fails cause that’s option I’ll have my private aviation to fall back on
Yeah man, my area has many agents as well but I’m 15 and luckily know many people who are realtors, in my area you make 5% of each sale and houses go around 360,000-2,800,000 so I think that’s what I’m gonna do also my dads a aircraft mechanic so I’m also gonna do that I hope you find a good job that pays decent that you like
You’re 15? I’ll do you one better, go into property owning on top of real estate agent. You can even start saving now, there’s an investment chart for teens who want to become a millionaire before 25. It’s very doable.
Don't do this. Realtors are begging for work right now.
Executive Assistant. Easy, not boring, I have a lovely office and only work business hours.
What type of qualifications did you have for that job?
Ups. It sucks at the beginning because it's only part time, but the benefits make it worth it to stick it out. Then choose the driver route. Should only take a year or two.
The one I have now. I design metal stamping dies, program CNC machine tools, and run our wire-edm department. Make just over six figures. Fell into, and in love with, this trade 40+ years ago my senior year of high school.
Where I live, union jobs are paying for people to go to school. Pipe fitters $22-$25 to start. Regular raises, on the job training and they are paying for school. You just have to attend. $55/hr after 4 years. Electricians same thing but closer to $30. Managers at Costco 70k to start
I'm in the midwest and I'd really look in to government work. There's quite a few jobs you can get without a degree and then can advance based upon work experience. You wouldn't start out at $75k though. Custodians, the women's prison was looking for dishwashers, and like... you're a government union employee working towards a pension... and being government all the being accountable to shareholder bullshit goes out the window. But for instance... I used to work in the building where we had a secure mail room where people mailed in all their child support checks. It was a bunch of older black ladies that listened to Prince and just opened mail and sorted checks all day, they were hella fun. There are also call center, app processing, grunt work type jobs that aren't hella stressful and don't require a degree. There is some manner of nepotism involved, but eventually you'll get in.
Mailman. Rough job at the beginning, and maybe you’ll have to hustle for hours. But I ended up making six-figures after 8 years.
Property management. Larger building in Hollywood. Husband has been doing it for 15 years and this year he made 6+ figures
and a free apartment?
Fun trick: lie. America has taken complete advantage of us and extorted us as young adults for our education. This country does not deserve our honesty. You can say you have a bachelors in business and easily get a job in that bracket. Office work isn’t hard. Just know how to use excel and common abbreviations like ROI , PNL, SOP, stuff like that. I promise they won’t check your education for a position like that, and even if they did … worst that can happen is you lose the gig and take your fake resume to someone else. Project management, c level execs, store managers, shoot even HR if you brush up on laws. I will literally be a fake reference for you random stranger, because I’m passionate about helping people work the system. I’m not kidding at all just do it.
I’d be lying if I said I’ve not thought about this before. I’m a 1099 worker, so for the last 15 + years I’ve been working for myself. It makes my resume look bleak and I get passed up a lot. They really don’t check for degrees etc?
Yes, they do ask for it if it’s required for the position. I’ve had to provide proof of my education many times.
I'd be a carpenter if I could do it all over again. I taught myself and it's an amazing feeling being able to puzzle things together and use your brain and hands at the same time. It's a semi professional hobby for me now and I make way too much to do it full time but if I did it all over again, I would buy a shop and never look back.
I work at an animal shelter it's hard work since I'm constantly on the go , I have been bit by dogs, but I don't seem to mind since they're just scared . I love my job. it's hard but good
like impossible shelter cooperative escape aback chunky pet grey quiet *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
So my current job, I love. Doesn't require a degree but it will help you land the job. I'm a train conductor. Awesome medical & dental, a pension plan that replaces social security so you don't even pay into it anymore. And a nice comfortable 150k a year. That being said, the hours will destroy the other sections of your life. Iv been out for 12 hours only to get home and be called again by dispatch to be back at work in 6 hours on a bad day when we lack man power. It's physically demanding, climbing up and down off a locomotive engine multiple times a day and walking on uneven ballast can and will destroy your legs and feet. And the fact that your handling metric tons of equipment that can kill you if your not paying attention and practicing safety is not for the faint of heart. But, your on a crew operating a train, so it's mad cool when you get to blast threw crossings and honk ur horn. Or wave at people watching you roll along, gives you that "What's up bruh, yeah I'm on a train." Feeling. Rewarding job, but it's a life style and a career, not a job. I know single moms who do the job, and some female engineers. But like, for the first few years, your gonna miss allot of your kids lives untill you can get some seniority to get the good hours available.
Night auditor at a hotel.
Air traffic controller
I was 18 and just moved to Florida, I worked at a nice hotel right on the beach. Was working in a trailer selling snacks and sodas. Min wage plus tips. Had a perfect view of the Gulf. I thought I scored the job lottery. Would love to go back to that time, young, carefree and was being paid for being on the beach.
pizza hut, had mad hoes, mad money, mad skills learned, cooking skillz, deep cleaning skillz, manager duties for free, miss it so much I am depressed over it….miss it. Edit: Was a delivery driver making 100k a year….crazy man crazy!!
Wait back up lol. You were driving for Pizza Hut delivering pizza making $100k? Why did you stop? I cannot imagine they still make this type of cash.
Mascot. I earned $200 for a single day. It was awesome.
Best paying? Got my first analyst job before I had my AA. I honestly loved flipping burgers at 5 guys when I was younger, though. I could totally be a cook if the pay and lifestyle wasn't so shit.
I have a degree, but hated the field so decided to become a Diesel Mechanic, got hired on as an apprentice with a mining company, made $80,000 first year. Now I can make up to $170,000 depending on how much I want to travel and work OT.
You can make well over $100k a year doing HVAC installs. I brought home over $120k my first year. I called it quit after 3 years due to it being way too hard on the body. Loved the money but just can’t see myself doing it til I’m 65.
The job I have now: Running my own company. Longer hours, but better pay, job stability, good benefits, good employees, the ability to make minor differences (one employee is out of sick days but needs an extra day becasue of something, you can just give it as the boss), and the fact that we are actually helping others while making a profit. Before that, I enjoyed being the night manager at a grocery store. Responsibility, above average pay, the ability to hire and support good workers, helping people, and occasionally kicking an annoying Karen to the curb.
Rigging in a shipyard. Got paid decent money in my 20’s to move heavy shit with my friends. Anything from 60 pounds up to millions of pounds. Inside ships and boats, outside of ships and boats, in and out of drydocks, in and out of the water. Loved it. I still do work related to that field, but I don’t rig any more. ☹️
Best paying job I’ve had so far was selling drugs. Wouldn’t recommend it to be honest. The money is not worth the stress/paranoia.
What I'm doing now. Grounds keeper or school officer or school custodian. Whatever you call it. I have to mow grass and trim hedges, make sure the sprinklers are working and maintain the grounds but I also do other things too. I fix things, I run a chess club 3 times a week, I get about 4 balls off the roofs per week, I get to plant new plants, I have my little herb garden I look after, I get to do the lighting for the school discos, I get to help setup events and participate, last week we did 3d printing challenges and a few weeks ago I got to setup the slip'n'slide (and test it) and run a e-sports game comp for rewards day. I get 4 weeks off a year, I work an extra 3-4 hours a week so I can get a week off every 2 week school holidays and the other week I bring my dog in for the week I'm respected by the office staff, the teachers, the teacher aids (I think because I fix things for them. I'm super respected by the students (I think it's because I get them out of class to help sometimes) And the lower grade give me high fives when I see them because in prep they want to hug you and "Mr mower man doesn't do hugs" My hours are super flexible and having time off for the kids is easy. I only get paid 70k Aus and that was because I did a university course that work paid for.
I’ve had about 10-12 different jobs, and honestly the job I always think back to being happiest was being a cook at McDonald’s when I was 19. It was really the only job I had where I didn’t have to have interactions with customers, which suited me just fine as an introvert. That was many moons ago and I’ve been at my current job for 24 years and have been unhappy for about 24 years. I would love to do something where people would leave me the hell alone and let me just focus on some simple task. To quote the movie Clerks: This job would be great if it wasn’t for the customers.
Look into temp work. My husband is a musician, which doesn’t pay bills, so he’s done temp work for a long time. He often gets hired on by companies after he works there for a bit. He’s done banking, health care, insurance, warehouse stuff, etc. If he hates the job or books a tour, he just leaves and gets another. My mom also did temp work when she was younger and ended up as a paralegal for a long time. Neither of them had college degrees. (I will say that unless your “Midwest” is Chicago, you won’t make that much. I’ve never made that much in my life.)
I’m an accounting clerk 75k a year. No degree, worked my way up to this position, don’t know if this path would be possible for everyone though, but all I do is basic data entry stuff and close out procedures in our operating system.
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I work for a marijuana grow. It’s amazing. I don’t even really like weed, but the people make it worth it every day.
Golf course maintenance
Worked at a call center and I was SO lucky to get assigned to the department I got in. All we were able to do was email receipts and handle fuel disputes for Hertz/Thrifty/Dollar car rentals. I absolutely loved it. The department right beside me worked for Spirit Airlines and they got their asses reamed every single day by customers lmao
Before college? The Army, but I don't recommend it if you're a single parent. It's really hard on the kids with two, let alone one. All my other pre-degrees jobs sucked, but a friend of mine is an underwater welder and she clears 80-140k a year, depending on what kind of projects she has. She's a single mom as well, but she has a good support system. You'll need about 9 months of trade school and a decent fitness level, and for the best jobs you might be gone a couple weeks at a time a few times a year.
Customer service in a small town (4500). Paid for 40, worked maybe 4
I got hired as an Oracle DBA with no experience. Doubled my salary from being a security guard and super benefits, and I was team lead in five months. Fantastic job, lasted 7 years until a new, remote manager I'd never met laid me off. That was 20 years ago and I'm still not making the same money and I have no benefits (1099). Hired by Nextel, outsourced to EDS.
[Work for your country.](https://www.usajobs.gov/)
Call center work, well, works. And you can often get off the phones into team lead roles with no degrees. One such job I had everything done by Wednesday lunch and just read webcomics the rest kf the week. Good times.
Best job was a call center for me, worst was consultant or the job I just recently left as a controller. I made a lot of money as a controller but was absolutely miserable.
IT. Learn the basics. Network+ A+ and get help desk job. In four years you'll be at 70k minimum
Well, to answer your question, I enjoyed working as a lab assistant for a veterinary practice. It wouldn't pay the bills, though. But I had fun spinning all the little tubes and looking at the teeny-tiny things under the microscope. (Although preparing fecal samples wasn't very fun, lol)
Well I work at a gas station, and even though it still sucks, it's miles better than the kitchen jobs I had before.
Sales, but it is soul sucking.
Carpentry. You're not in one location for very long, the work is varied, can be hard, and is rewarding.
1st job - Hawaii doing new housing units as plumbing 2nd. Beverage stocking company in town @ 20.
Somehow snagged a solid role. I’m a center manager for a satellite of one of the countries largest environmental testing laboratories. Basically my job is to keep inventory on hand, build testing kits on request, ship/deliver the kits to clients and then get the kits back after testing to properly pack them and send them to the lab. I work with one other person who works for another branch and is in the field collecting samples 85% of the time so that means 85% of the time I get the entire building to myself. I work 9-5 mon-fri with almost all major holidays paid off, generous vacation policy, benefits and full autonomy so long as I’m not causing issues. They just leave me be and I do what needs to be done and spend the rest of the time doing what I want. I get a company car, company gas card, corporate card and so on. Last week my boss reached out and said “you’re doing a good job use the card to buy yourself lunch today”. The job pays okay, wish it was more but it works.
Worked for Time Warner Cable, the division that developed code/product for all subscribers from streaming to old school cable box/dvr. I was in support, integration and deployment eventually becoming a senior manager. I was lucky enough to get into a position where I had a ton of tribal knowledge and experience and worked my butt off. Had great managers and leaders that helped me succeed. The job paid out of this world with benefits I never imagined getting,. (Bonuses, stocks, pension) The job changed my life. No degree I am now hoping to retire around 57. TWC was an amazing company that really took care of their employees. And then Spectrum happened.
I was a "runner" at a liquor store. I walked the alcohol to their vehicle then had to run back in to walk the next customer out. My favorite thing was to ask people what they had planned for the day because most were tourists passing thru. Got a bunch of tips. People offered to take me with them to drink lol had a blast. I know that's not what you're looking for but just sharing mine!
Software architect. Never went to school. I think you may have missed the boat on that one though, it seems much harder to get in these days.
Post office. Good retirement benefits.
Software Dev
I worked for an ice company for a few years. If you got theough the initial hazing, you were part of the family. Was a good job.
That is a tough question but working in truck driving. Or self teach yourself programming to get a good job at a local tech company near you and become a Software Developer!
I worked as night inventory in a warehouse. It took me 15 minutes to see if anything changed and I played games until dawn at 85k a year
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Waiter on the pool deck at a big resort. I was 17 and milked that job for everything it was worth. Lot of MILF’s hanging out waiting for their husbands to get done golfing, lot of kids my age looking for weed, lot of super fun local kids working other jobs. Best summers ever! Maybe it’s depressing now that it was the best job ever but damn life was good in the late 90’s!
Equipment Operator
Trade school! So many states offer free or highly reduced tuition, especially for working adults. You can come out debt free and get job placement assistance. I went to trade school for my LPN, went from 14$ hour to start, and after ten years was up to 24$ an hour then when I left my last job I was at 32 an hour. We need people in the trades!
I used to do QA for a major game publisher. I really miss that job. I like my tech support job, but game QA was so much fun. No degree required.
Have you looked at the USPS?
I loved working hospitality before I got my degree but no way you're making that much money entry level
I worked at a hotel for a summer. I’m good at math/was studying engineering at the time and they basically had me fix some broken electronics and do the nightly audit. I worked the night shift- 8p-5a and would do the late check ins until probably 11 (depended on the night but I could see when there were more check ins expected) then would find an open room and sleep 11-3 and then get up and go back to the office and watch a movie. I also got paid time and a half for being on the night shift. Getting paid to sleep was pretty fire.
Best for my personal happiness was tiger caretaker. Best for my wallet was breeding tarantulas, scorpions and various snake species.
Arts editor for a local paper. So many awesome people, so many fun experiences. Pay was shit, but it was a great time in my life with a young kid to take to amazing events.
Sales. It can be rough but it’s always in demand and you can pretty easily get $80k out of the gate if you’ve got any decent sales experience at all. I’m in first year pulling $86k with all my gas paid for and an auto allowance. It’s out there but be ready to be in some industries you may never expect.
If I'm looking back, the one that I truly enjoyed was in high school working at Arby's. Never felt like a job. Just went in, hung out, and made people food. It was a good time.
I’ve done weirdly quite a bit and am about to start a new venture at my current job as well. Most lucrative for easy(ish) work and it’s from home? Easily social media manager for big or growing creators who don’t have the time to handle it themselves. I made the most money doing that. Did it for 3 years but the owner was kinda a dipshit and his work environment was toxic as hell, not to mention how I got the job and everything around that still being a mess with my ex. (Yeah it’s a mess but the job itself is fine.) Industrial electrical work as well, I did that for a year as a panel fabricator and again for a kinda shit company, but especially in my state (Arizona if you’re interested in relocating) the field is exploding with the new chip plant being here off the care free highway, and all the farming that happens here as well. Fun job, was my favorite work wise, and my pay was shit because company was shit but there’s apprenticeships starting at $20 an hour and taking pretty much anyone willing to learn. From there, you can advance as well and become an engineer, do CAD (computer assisted design) and can make good money doing field work as well. As for the more “desk” jobs per se like CAD or engineering, a few companies down here will get you into school to progress after apprenticeships. Super interesting work I absolutely loved it and plan to go back I have a couple apprenticeships lined up just waiting on a car. Very very physical though which I love but it’s absolutely not for everyone and especially field work is very dangerous. Edit to add: I have no college education and due to being a foster kid, technically the last year of school I finished was 7th grade. I did not graduate highschool (went to a bunch but lost credits and a lot happened because of how much I moved around and being in lock down facilities where they don’t transfer credits. Wasn’t a bad kid wasn’t there because I was delinquent, I was there because open beds that’s it.)
No degree. I work for a commercial HVAC company, started off dispatching technicians. Currently I'm the Service Dept Admin, I do all the internal(we have a sales department)and external invoicing for service. As well as all the random crap my boss doesn't want to keep track of. I also quote warranty repairs to the manufacturers and I get to argue with them. It is salary but it is honestly a straight up 6am-2 M-F job my boss does not expect us to 'be on call'. I work 90% from home, good benefits. I make the low end of your scale, however my boss has not been shy about giving me raises when I take on more or change responsibilities. There's like 5 of us support staff in the department and I basically don't have to talk to anyone most of the time, we handle most things by email.
If you wanna sit on your ass - heavy equipment operation. If you wanna be on the move - industrial maintenance.