72 replies to this topic

[Artful Dodger]

I did an apprenticeship as a mechanic. Started in 95. By 97 I was doing MOTs. By 99 I decided that being a mechanic wasn't for me so retrained. But in no way do I regret doing it. Completing the apprenticeship shows future employers that you're willing to learn. You'll learn a trade that you can always fall back on if you do decide to take a different career path and you'll also have learned a very useful set of skills that will be with you for life.

I design aircrafty stuff now for a living but I'm bored of it. Considering going back into the motor trade after a 13+ year break.

With working in aviation as well as having the mechanical skill, Motorsport would be ideal! You would probably tear your eyes out after working with some gormless idiot mechanics at a service/ repair garage..

[Dolly 89]

Personally you need to think about the future and not moan about the present, most employers these days look for apprentice trained workers, I know I wouldn't takea college trained electrician on, I don't own a company but am an electrician, if you trained just by going to college you have no work experiance which employers want, do an apprenticeship for crap money, get experience and have a laugh whilst you do it, if people start taking the piss just do it back, that's usually what they want, to have a laugh at work that's why they do it to you. Just get as much experience as possible. Like I said earlier I am an electrician, I did my 4 year apprenticeship, got made redundant because hardly any work, I have come over to australia and am working for more experience doing different things to what I learnt in the company I was with, I will be coming home again in about 5 months and hopefully will find work, if I don't I will look for work abroad again, I don't really want ti leave the uk perminently but its what I need to do now to become the best electrician I can be

[mk3 Cooper S]

<sup>I am a little confused.
You ar eregistered as a "Trader" wit the TMF although you have not started work?
Apprenticships are the way forward in anything engineering/mechanical based.

If I had my time again I would be a vet as they seam to have a permit to print money!!!</sup>

[The Matt]

With working in aviation as well as having the mechanical skill, Motorsport would be ideal! You would probably tear your eyes out after working with some gormless idiot mechanics at a service/ repair garage..

They're not all 'gormless idiot mechanics' that work in service/repair garages. I used to work in service/repair and tyre fitting myselg and I'm by no means an idiot. Those sort of sweeping generalisations were one of the reasons I left the trade to be honest. I had a customer come in whilst I was working on his car and he asked why I didn't wear a watch so I could make sure I finished his job on time. Didn't I need to know how long jobs took? Or as I was a dumb mechanic was the problem just that I couldn't tell the time anyway? A week later I handed my notice in and got a job elsewhere.

[Artful Dodger]

With working in aviation as well as having the mechanical skill, Motorsport would be ideal! You would probably tear your eyes out after working with some gormless idiot mechanics at a service/ repair garage..

They're not all 'gormless idiot mechanics' that work in service/repair garages. I used to work in service/repair and tyre fitting myselg and I'm by no means an idiot. Those sort of sweeping generalisations were one of the reasons I left the trade to be honest. I had a customer come in whilst I was working on his car and he asked why I didn't wear a watch so I could make sure I finished his job on time. Didn't I need to know how long jobs took? Or as I was a dumb mechanic was the problem just that I couldn't tell the time anyway? A week later I handed my notice in and got a job elsewhere.

I know, my parents employ 4 of them!

[Black.Ghost]

I think you and Craig need a bit of a reality check Noah. I know Craig had his own reasons for leaving the apprenticeship, but whatever career you start in you will have to start at the bottom and work up. That involves doing **** jobs and that is just a fact of life and something you have to deal with. If you don't, you will never make it any career. That by no means you should be treated like **** the whole time, but it does mean crap jobs. The other people there have done their time, and will have done the crap jobs. Its those crap jobs that are the motivators to work hard, keep your head down and progress. The better you are at those (and that doesn't just mean doing them well, it means no whinging about it) the quicker you will progress to the better/more interesting stuff.

I am also of the opinion that I don't want my hobby to be my job because I think it could very easily take all of the fun out of it, and I have no interest in that. I would hate, for example to get fed up of minis because I was working on them all the time and ended up selling up and moving on.

At the end of the day, you are still only 16. Have a think about what you want to do, and then write to lots of companies, ask if you can do a week or two of work experience. It might be unpaid, but could help give you an idea of the path you want to follow. You should do work experience as part of 6th form anyway (we used to) and I assume things haven't changed that much. There are bound to be a few companies that will agree to it. If they like what they see, they might even offer you some kind of training program or something if you are lucky. You just have to get out there and get yourself known to the employers.Don't sit back and wait for opportunities, go and get the opportunity and take it.

But one I would say is complete your studies as a minimum, because you never know what will happen in the future. It could all change.

[AVV IT]

^{If I had my time again I would be a vet as they seam to have a permit to print money!!!}

If you wanted to be rich, then you really wouldn't want to be a vet. Whilst vet bills do seem to be extortionate these days, the average vets salary is actually only between £21k - £33k p.a, even specialist vets with additional training only earn around £36k a year. When you consider that you have to spend and fund 5-6 years studying veterinary medicine/surgery at university, then that really isn't very well paid, For instance you can earn similar amounts as a qualified and experienced Nurse, or Firefighter.

Basically vets do what they do because of a desire to want to work with animals. The only way to make any money as a vet is to own, or be a partner in your own veterinary practice. If your are intelligent enough to be a vet but wanted to earn decent money, then you would be far better off studying medicine instead. That way you could earn between £23k - £81k a year as an NHS doctor and then many hundreds of thousands on top of that working after hours in a private practice.

Edited by AVV IT, 25 February 2013 - 02:32 PM.

[mk3 Cooper S]

^{If I had my time again I would be a vet as they seam to have a permit to print money!!!}

If you wanted to be rich, then you really wouldn't want to be a vet. Whilst vet bills do seem to be extortionate these days, the average vets salary is actually only between £21k - £33k p.a, even specialist vets with additional training only earn around £36k a year.

Phhh, I wouldn't get out of bed for that,!!!LOL
Glad I stuck with my apprentiship and worked my way up through the company,

[Shifty]

I'd be a dentist, thats just a licence to print money.

[minimarco]

So from day one I've always wanted to be a mechanic...

...I'm planning on doing it for the rest of my life...

It is scary. I think society puts too much unneeded pressure on children on finding a job in their future. They ask you what you want to be when you grow up. Doctor, lawyer, architect... how the hell would a child know what they want to do until they actually did it. They set the system up to be too competitive. They should teach kids to just be happy when they grow up. Anyway... I'll stop ranting.

You don't have to listen to me, my opinions are not for everyone.... but I'd just like to tell you it is going to be okay. You should try doing it for sure, but if you don't like it, just leave. Don't feel like since you've wanted to be a specific role your whole life, that you are stuck with it. You don't have to plan your whole life out right now. As long as you are hard working and diligent with whatever you do. If you really love what you found, you'll know and you won't mind working hard for it.

Take chances, make mistakes. You have a long way to go so take it easy.

Timing is everything.

Edited by minimarco, 25 February 2013 - 06:29 PM.

[blacktulip]

if you want a career with longevity then funeral directorship is one. never be out of business and also i have heard its a right laugh with workmates.

[Black.Ghost]

Minimarco, spot on.

[Noah]

Some of the people in this thread are so up their own arses it's amazing.

Mk3 Cooper S. A few months ago I had absolutely no money, so I thought I'd sell some stickers that i'd designed on TMF. I needed a Traders thing to do that, but am yet to get it removed. Thanks for reminding.

Black. Ghost.

I think you're first statement is incredibly rude. I don't need a 'reality check'. Its clear to me that a fair few people in this thread are just repeating what others have said earlier on, just re-phrasing them. I think you first need to apologise to Craig. Think of me as you wish, but this thread was me asking about some re-assurance about my future. Not for you to have a dig at Craig.

Oh and for your information, I did that. Instead of having a week off for half term, I asked Simon if i could do some work at Mini-Spares. I worked my arse of and thank fully he offered me a part time Job.

What I'm doing now has nothing to do with it however, I'm beginning to loose enjoyment in my college course, mainly due to the fact that I'm now doing a level 2 course in something silly like 8 weeks and its stressing me out, to the extent where, I'm not enjoying it, That has made me think, once I've done all this studying. Will i enjoy it afterwards.

Shifty, I'm no-where near clever enough to be a dentist. I suppose thats my problem, I excelled in Music and ICT and thats about it.

Sorry for the rant, but I really do think that some-people need to tone it down, if you were in the same position as me, you'd get pissed off with people talking down to you.

[Noah]

Admin, please delete.

Waste of time, and if someone would like to remove the traders thing for Mk3 Cooper S.

[mk3 Cooper S]

Not really bothered personally I just was confussed why you had traders status with no apparent trading status ??

Unfortunatley in life there are a lot of things that you have to do that are not that enjoyable.
It is simply a case of sewing the seeds that you can reap later