Mid life crisis career help

Silian

I have a lot of sympathy and have to admit that I feel very much the same about the corporate structure as you do. The other problem is also doing The Same Thing for most of your life. People need variety.

I decided to follow a slightly different route and I'm going for extreme early retirement instead. Doesn't necessarily mean I will retire, but I will probably spend my time volunteering once money is no longer a factor. Start reading Mr Money Moustache if you are interested.

My sister did the route of changing her career at 38. From Chemical Engineer to Data Analyst (still very technical but extremely different and she had to start at the bottom of the ladder). She is currently very happy so it can be done.

Good luck! If you do decide to go for it let us know how it goes.

Jasonr

bugslet wrote: »

I run a haulage company and was about to suggest the same thing as an option.

It's certainly not for everyone, but if you can get on for the right firm, it can still be a great job.

OP, if that is something you want to consider, then I'm ore than happy to answer any questions and as for your age, there are a surprising number of people who do take up truck driving in their middle years.

Bugslet,


Thank you. That is something that I had not considered.


Although I have heard a few horror stories such as 80 hour weeks and drivers being pressured to work beyond their tacho allowance etc etc. I always thought drivers had very regulated hours so not quite sure how true all this is

As regards questions I probably have quite a few training providers and companies and ways in are probably a few to start with


Thanks

bugslet

Jasonr wrote: »

Bugslet,


Thank you. That is something that I had not considered.


Although I have heard a few horror stories such as 80 hour weeks and drivers being pressured to work beyond their tacho allowance etc etc. I always thought drivers had very regulated hours so not quite sure how true all this is

As regards questions I probably have quite a few training providers and companies and ways in are probably a few to start with


Thanks

Haulage is a weird and wonderful industry. There are so many variations, there are 4 on, 4 off jobs which are pretty much 48 hours, there are some jobs that are around 40 hours, there are day jobs, night jobs, tramping jobs. You might work on powder tankers, liquid tankers,General, high value, timber, Joan, hazardous, exhibition.....you name it. In truth it is a long hours Industry, I've been in it all my life so I tend not to notice it. Our international fleet is much diminished, but there are companies that run abroad if you have a taste for adventure.

As a newbie you will struggle to land a great job, though it's not impossible, we take on new passes and we are considered good to work for.

You could go over to Trucknet and look at the newbies board, that would give you a lot of answers. The boards sponsor Peter Smythe is very possibly the best trainer in the UK and IIRC offers free accommodation. But the guys on there will give you heads up on who to avoid. There are some threads/posts on people that have made the switch later on in life.

The whole being pushed to run illegally is rather over egged by the media. I wouldn't say that it doesn't happen, but 90% of firms are hyper legal, 9% are pretty much always legal and the remaining 1% are to be avoided.

Having said that, if it's something you don't feel a pull to do , don't. Some guys gripe about it constantly, for others (a lot depends on your employer), it's a fantastic life. Two of mine ended up with a five day lay over in Sicily in October, they kept sending me pictures of the beach bar:(:rotfl: fair to say, they enjoy their job.

JayRitchie

Hey, just a few thoughts:
- how much do you earn now and where do you live?
- As some others have noted I'd look into HGV to see if that suits. I've known a lot of drivers and its great for the right person. Plus if you do some weekend shifts you can have an income while looking at other things.