View Full Version : Life Advice ?
LEWI007
27-10-11, 10:56 PM
Well since breaking my ankle and having nothing but time sitting on the sofa to sit and think about things and how i took life for granted and spent alot of days just doing nothing, I have been thinking about what to do for a job, ive spent the past 6 years doing car bodywork and spray painting, but didnt go to college so have no certificate, i have a certificate in plumbing but no experience.
I was thinking, do i really want to find a job in bodywork and spend the rest of my life doing it ? it will be better if i choose a different and better career while im still young (just gone 20)..
I live near a fire station and my friends garage is facing the back of it and when i look outside i see them washing their motorbikes and brand new bmw's, then i walk back into the garage to get covered in paint and dust.
i have been seriously thinking about fire brigade but i have no knowledge or anything about this kind of job.
I want a good proper professional career, not like working in a supermarket or something..
I looked out the window tonight to see a fire truck putting out a VW Polo on fire across the street, i want to get out of here and own a brand new house somewhere on a nice estate with a bmw or mercedes on the drive one day, instead of this crap.
i think if i make the right choice now anything is possible.
So surely a few older experienced members on here have some advice on what will be a good idea to do (If you could go back in time and be in my position)
I can look back on the past 10 years and know that if id of done things differently i could be in a good position now, but i cant look into the next 20-30 years and think about how i should of done things.
steviegsi
27-10-11, 11:02 PM
Same boat here mate! As soon as I work out exactly what I want to do it may help some! lol
same boat here aswell 23 year old just getting over bad illness. i had just got to where i wanted befour i fell ill and now wonder if i can carry on sercurity work took me years to save and get on the corse.
like you say lewi anything is possible but what i would pay just for my old life back is unbaleavable(sp) so i say get a job you enjoy doesnt matter about the wage just make sure will be happy doing it for the rest of your life.
Those firemen have to put up with a load of things to have those fancy cars etc,
Being hit with rocks and bricks, the risk of death, seeing people get burned to death and even having to live with not being able to save a life and know that someone died because you couldn't save them, every single job out there has a bad side,
I'd suggest getting a job as a plumbers mate etc to get a little experience, if you don't like it then try something else
Do what you enjoy and see where it takes you,
brainsnova
28-10-11, 12:03 AM
Central heating engineer is where it's at try and get a apprenticeship with brittish gas
turbojolt
28-10-11, 12:19 AM
Ummm no don't get a apprenticeship with britishgas your be better off getting a plumber mates job or helping out a pipefitter as they work on a much wider range of things then a plumber and its more then likely going to keep you in work longer
16v Nova Kev
28-10-11, 12:22 AM
abdula? lol
brainsnova
28-10-11, 12:28 AM
Ummm no don't get a apprenticeship with britishgas your be better off getting a plumber mates job or helping out a pipefitter as they work on a much wider range of things then a plumber and its more then likely going to keep you in work longer
He can get your job lol
turbojolt
28-10-11, 12:36 AM
Mate my job ain't hard to get I'm nothing but a meter installer, but seriously if you want to waist years of you life go to uni and study media even that would be better spent then a bg apprenticeship
brainsnova
28-10-11, 12:37 AM
Are you fitting smart meters
turbojolt
28-10-11, 12:39 AM
Yer mate I'm a smart energy expert
brainsnova
28-10-11, 12:44 AM
Yer mate I'm a smart energy expert
My mate is a boiler servicer / repairer with brittish gas and tried to get me to apply for smart meters but I couldn't be bothered
turbojolt
28-10-11, 12:52 AM
Mate there full of promises that they never fulfill, its **** money for the risk but to compensate for that they offer bonuses every couple of months my last one wich can apparently be up to 15% of your yearly wage was £9.96 the cheek ****er that's something along the lines of 0.086 percent
w_wall_2001
28-10-11, 03:46 AM
mate you are still young there are loads of opportunities, college, night classes etc. Im fortunate to have a decent career at the age of 26 but i had to work hard for it. If you want something badly you will work towards it
will
lewi, i'll tell you why firemen all have flash cars......
a proper full time fireman does a 48hr shift, as in they live in the fire station for 48 hrs, and that is it then 4 days off, then another 48hrs on....so they have 4 days off to then do whatever they want, which is usually some cash in hand stuff... they went on strike a while back cos the govt tried to change their working hours... firemen are loaded.
part time firemen have a normal job, and then get paid a retainer for maintaining the gear & a call out bonus,
we used to employ a digger driver, who was a part time fireman, and we found out that they go round flashing their firemans id card at every place to get discounts, which they got, and he never had to pay for a takeaway.....we took this to mean that if they didn't get discount, they might not get there quite so quick.....so businesses gave them discounts....
just wait till the govt cuts hit them.... there won't be so many flash cars about then.....
lewi, you are young enough to do whatever it is you want.. once you have a family & a mortgage, its not so easy believe me....
i like spannering things, but i wouldn't want to do it all day, every day. bodywork is a recession proof industry, people will always crash cars, insurance will always pay out. its a circle of life thing.. look into getting some nvq stuff, speak to the local college about it, it might cost you a few quid, but those bits of paper are useful for progressing.
Firement went on strike because they were tired of the government pushing new measures in without consulting the workforce first. The working pattern one was the straw that broke the camels back.
Most civil service departments get offered discounts at various places too btw. I used to use my CID card which I was issued for going to afghanistan to get discounts in Costa, BK, all sorts.
Fire service is a decent job, but you need to keep up your fitness and bear in mind that you're putting your life on the line. Most of the time you'll be bored sh!tless doing nothing but sitting around or picking cats out of trees or attending car dinks, but there's always that one fire that could see you in a blazing warehouse full of compressed gas or in a block of flats thats about to fall down.
[edit] as for wages, they're Ok. Trainees will see around £20k, then £28k when qualified. Crew managers ~£30k, shift managers up to £35k. Overtime payments appply, but I'm not sure if they get a shift allowance on that. Oh, and you have to be clean shaven all the time due to the respirators lol
For more info, look here http://extraordinary.direct.gov.uk/careers/
[edit again] Out of fireman and plumber, I'd choose the latter as when trained its a license to print money lol
One of the key things to achieve is doing something you either enjoy or you can be successful at (both is a bonus lol). If you enjoy the job, success often follows if you work hard. Success is what will bring the rewards.
I've interviewed a lot of early 20's for IT jobs and most seem to think they can earn 50k without lifting a finger. In my experience materialistic gains are all that matters to them. Yes we all need to earn and having aspirations is a good thing but a career is about more than just the money. I guess what I'm saying is don't sign up to do a job just because you think the rewards are big or easy. You'll last 5 minutes when reality kicks in.
If I had the past 5 years again, I'd NOT buy a house!!!!!!!! Just rent, you'll have far more disposable income to have the flash lifestyle lol
Big pay is a nice to have, but you also have to understand what is realistic and what the Media tells you, you can earn lol
What might work fairly well at the moment it to see if you can get into one of the OEM car makers at a trainee level and work up on that. Pay is getting better after they chucked everyone out, opportunities are getting far more interesting with hybrid/range extender/pure EV's etc
LEWI007
28-10-11, 09:52 AM
lewi, i'll tell you why firemen all have flash cars......
a proper full time fireman does a 48hr shift, as in they live in the fire station for 48 hrs, and that is it then 4 days off, then another 48hrs on....so they have 4 days off to then do whatever they want, which is usually some cash in hand stuff... they went on strike a while back cos the govt tried to change their working hours... firemen are loaded.
part time firemen have a normal job, and then get paid a retainer for maintaining the gear & a call out bonus,
we used to employ a digger driver, who was a part time fireman, and we found out that they go round flashing their firemans id card at every place to get discounts, which they got, and he never had to pay for a takeaway.....we took this to mean that if they didn't get discount, they might not get there quite so quick.....so businesses gave them discounts....
just wait till the govt cuts hit them.... there won't be so many flash cars about then.....
lewi, you are young enough to do whatever it is you want.. once you have a family & a mortgage, its not so easy believe me....
i like spannering things, but i wouldn't want to do it all day, every day. bodywork is a recession proof industry, people will always crash cars, insurance will always pay out. its a circle of life thing.. look into getting some nvq stuff, speak to the local college about it, it might cost you a few quid, but those bits of paper are useful for progressing.
I was thinking about choosing to be a fire fighter as a proper career and my cousin suggested that in the 4 days off i could be doing car work in my own garage, this sounds like a good idea.
Im not choosing to be a firefighter because of the money, im choosing it because i think it seems like a really respectable professional career rather than just 9 till 5 in the garage every day like i have been doing.
Are there any PNG Members who are/were fire fighters or know any fire fighters who can give me a point of view?
If I had the past 5 years again, I'd NOT buy a house!!!!!!!! Just rent, you'll have far more disposable income to have the flash lifestyle lol
Round here, my friends with mortgages are paying considerably less than those who are renting :(
tell you one thing - its refreshing to hear of somebody wanting to do better for themselves rather than vegetate on handouts - so whatever you end up doing, fair play to you.
i know a chap who is a volunteer firefighter, and while he is knackered 99.9% of the time, absolutely loves it.
brainsnova
28-10-11, 11:16 AM
Me too lol
i like to vegetate lol
i tried that... But i just couldn't make the cabbage hover
Round here, my friends with mortgages are paying considerably less than those who are renting :(
How long have they been paying it off? are the interest only mortgages? did they buy when interest rates were cheap? and so on... I know lots of people paying 'naff all' for mortgage but there are lots of caveats that makes it a worse deal than either renting or being homeless lol
Stu, my mortgage is way less than rent, but if the interest rates go back up, then it'll be a touch different
Lewi
Get. A. Trade. In what is your choice, but you have the right idea.
It's something I wish I had done when younger, at the grand old age of 29, I finally have one. I'm working for a company that offers me the opportunity to progress too with adult apprenticeships in engineering etc so I am happy.
Will stick with being a hydraulic/plant fitter for now, but I reckon I will take on an apprenticeship too. It's never too late! lol
Stu, my mortgage is way less than rent, but if the interest rates go back up, then it'll be a touch different
But if something breaks then you have to fix it.... rented (unless you broke it yourself) you just call someone and voila.
If interest rates go mental, rent stays loosely the same, and if it goes up too much you just move with ease.
Decorating is never on the list of things to do.
As I've said before, aslong as rent isnt much above 60% of the equivalent repayment mortgage then you are financially better off renting forever
much more free cash available etc etc blah blah blah
Ok, but soon i won't have a mortgage, and then i'll be able to spend money of things for me.....lol
OK, for those of us who arent verging on the 2nd half century, the mortgage isnt going to go away/be less of a cost for a long time yet ;)
unless some relative kicks the bucket and you get an instant 25-50% deposit its gonna be a long hard struggle. Granted now we are 'on the ladder' we kinda have to stay here till the bitter end :(
i took two years out of the whole job scene to work out what i wanted, Most of that was signed of sick tbh due to a nervous break down, in that time i did an apprentiship with tattooing, and although i love it, i dont want to settle in to a self employed job.
So i stuck with what i know to pay the bills now i feel better minded and that i can cope with it, some how i landed an awesom 100% garenteed for 10 years job with the council doing NNDR Business rates, had no experience in it, all i knew was how to answer a phone and use computers but my god the maths and legislation and transitional, sliding scales all that you learn on the job.
My advise as a 22 year old who has been there and some how come out the other side well off.. Is to just get on with it! dont over complicate it, A good job these days is hard to come by, you need to think of the pro's and cons of working with cars...how much work are you going to have on a monthly basis, would you get layed off in the next 10 years, or would you want to take out the relevent time to train/test as a fireman... personally ide take the time out to train as its a good job, its respected, and you learn good team work skills...
And girls like that kinda thing (i should know)
And girls like that kinda thing (i should know)
I must be odd then...firemen don't do it for me.
No advice, i'm only 21 myself. But good luck with whatever path you choose :)
:O its fire men and greased up mechanics (only the sexy ones not the fat grumpy sods u get) that do it for me hmmmmm
would say police but only armoured the normal police just tend to bully me for the way my nova looks so i dislike them :( they are mean loL! (they always laugh and point =[)
OHH and young farmers, and valeters...which is fitting as ive been with a valeter for 6 years lmao
MattBrown
28-10-11, 03:40 PM
Dads mate is a fireman/alcoholic.
I speak to him, and he says alot of the crew drink, keeps there minds of the horrible things they have to see!
Theres money in a lot of things, electrical engineering where I am, mechanical engineering (apprentaship like me?) Work your way up?
Plumbing is alright, if you dont mind sticking your hands in other peoples toilets lol
Id be looking round at local places, machine shops? Electrical places?
If you fancy the fire brigade then I say go for it.
turbojolt
28-10-11, 04:03 PM
OHH and young farmers, and valeters...which is fitting as ive been with a valeter for 6 years lmao
Anything with a pulse then lol
Anything with a pulse then lol
When I was around 19~20 I went through a hell of a lot of the application scheme for a firefigther. You seriously have no idea & are very underestimating how hard it is to a career in that! When I was going through my application the sucess rate was 3% of applicants. 3 in every 100 would get past the main application stage & onto the physical tests. The applicatoin form was a little over 30 pages long. If you suffer from any kind of back pain (like me) you got no chance; same goes for confined pitch black spaces, scared of hights etc etc.
100% garenteed for 10 years job with the council
We'll return to that in 10 years. lol
Hmm, I still don't see the advantage in renting. Friend of mine with a £130k mortgage on a £150k house pays about £700pcm - the same house here would rent for £700-750.
Surely as well though, come retirement age when the homeowners have paid off their mortgages (apparently lol) they can sit in them and use their pension to cover the rates? Where as if I rent all my life, I'll have no house at the end of my days and need to use my pension to cover rates AND rent?
We'll return to that in 10 years. lol
Hmm, I still don't see the advantage in renting. Friend of mine with a £130k mortgage on a £150k house pays about £700pcm - the same house here would rent for £700-750.
Surely as well though, come retirement age when the homeowners have paid off their mortgages (apparently lol) they can sit in them and use their pension to cover the rates? Where as if I rent all my life, I'll have no house at the end of my days and need to use my pension to cover rates AND rent?
Swings and roundabouts, but I dont plan to be about much past 60 lol saves needing to pay into a pension scheme etc.
I hate renting,last week i added up how much i have wasted on rent since 2007.I wanted to cry.
I hate things about the house,if it was my own i would spend m,oney on sorting them,whereas i will not spend on anything more than decorating.
Round here mortgage payments are ALOT less than the rent.
That said,i would never take out mortgage just for the sake of having one to then go and buy a house in compton or beirut.
I'll never buy in an area i dont want to live,a friend of my mrs bought a house on a council estate and now wants to leave to a better area,her house has been for sale for 2 years..............
On topic-do you live at home still lewi???
I hate renting,last week i added up how much i have wasted on rent since 2007.I wanted to cry.
I hate things about the house,if it was my own i would spend m,oney on sorting them,whereas i will not spend on anything more than decorating.
Round here mortgage payments are ALOT less than the rent.
That said,i would never take out mortgage just for the sake of having one to then go and buy a house in compton or beirut.
I'll never buy in an area i dont want to live,a friend of my mrs bought a house on a council estate and now wants to leave to a better area,her house has been for sale for 2 years..............
On topic-do you live at home still lewi???
ahhhhh but, for every £1 you borrow on a mortgage you generally payback £2..... and in the first few years its frankly soul destroying to get the statements in each year, We have paid just shy of £10K per year for 4 years and its only 'just' knocked £10K off the balance of the mortgage.... yeah that seems like real value lol
ahhhhh but, for every £1 you borrow on a mortgage you generally payback £2..... and in the first few years its frankly soul destroying to get the statements in each year, We have paid just shy of £10K per year for 4 years and its only 'just' knocked £10K off the balance of the mortgage.... yeah that seems like real value lol
Unless your massively flush with cash its the only way though :/ Id rather pay those £2's back then pay a mortgage on a house that belongs to some one else. But thats just me lol
Im the same Mike,and not to mention the owner of the house can just turf you out at any time if they decide to sell.And moving house is the most demoralising,stressfull thing ever.
Stuart how much is the total if you dont mind me asking??
As by the sounds of it-in Herts you will be in the ground before its paid??!!!
Im the same Mike,and not to mention the owner of the house can just turf you out at any time if they decide to sell.And moving house is the most demoralising,stressfull thing ever.
Even then though, getting a mortgage is a mare!! When I was self employed I applied for a mortgage & obviously they need to know your income. In my case at the time, it was a company income pre deductions (pre my wages, 11 blokes wages, matierials, fuel, vans etc etc) the business income was just over double the house value & they still couldnt offer me any mortgage deal at all!!!
On the flip side, a friend of mine whos a self employed tiler/real wood floor layer put a £34k deposit down with an average income & got a mortage fine! Altho the daft (unt nearly died in a bike accident (non fault involving indicating but not turning taxi!) to get the deposit :/
'paid' £182K for an ok sized 2 bed mid terrace, mortgage was £152K though. Will be paid off in 24 years, even with the move we have lined up (as said, once in there is no point getting out, but given the choice I'd have not come in)
As for the paying off, its the old "relly kicks the bucket" to cover that properly, slightly morbid but its how its worked for a few generations. Feck with the insurances we have Amber is gonna have a right old pile of dosh when we check out.
You can get a detached 3 bed with driveway & garage here for that kinda money!
You can get a detached 3 bed with driveway & garage here for that kinda money!
Could have purchased north Wales for that kinda cash, but there arent any well paying jobs up there, NET cash in pocket at the end of the month would probably be the same.
Yeah thats true. Pointless moving somewhere where theres no work or a long ass commute I suppose.
I'd move to cornwall tomorrow but there are no jobs (well there is sort of one I know of but its badly paying although amazing) to sustain what we have/do now :(
The problem i have is that while were renting,there is absolutely no chance on this earth that we could ever save up a deposit on a house.I'd like to stay in the village i live,i love it-after growing up on estates in Hull its a total lifestyle change for me.The house we live in is worth £150k iirc and its a semi 2bed bungalow..
Saving for a deposit is a massive problem nowadays
I know quite a few friends with kids that have had to move in with parents for a year to save
Back on topic
I applied for the Police dispatcher job when I was 21 as I thought at the time I wanted to be a regular and it would be a good stepping stone....6 years later im still in the same job and have realised that a) being a police officer is one of the crapiest jobs in the world from my point of view and b) I really want to get into CSI but I should of figured that out when I was back in 6th form so I could of gone to Uni to get my Forensics degree instead of getting a job..but hey ho. I had no idea what I wanted to do when I was 17 other than get the hell out of school.
I feel quite trapped in my job now as the pay is reasonable (due only to shift work) and there is no career progression in my department so my advice would be just to have a good think about what you would like to do as a career and just go for it. Dont get to the stage im at where you feel its a bit too late to do anything else or you have become used to a certain wage so are too scared to take a pay cut for a job you may enjoy more. Im still hopefull I can get into CSI but I think id have to kill a few people to get there. :d
there was an article on the tv a year or so back about the fact that 3000 odd people qualify with csi degrees annually, yet there are approx 300 people in full time employment actually doing it..
there was an article on the tv a year or so back about the fact that 3000 odd people qualify with csi degrees annually, yet there are approx 300 people in full time employment actually doing it..
blimey. I need to kill more people than I thought!
you might need to change county, or you'll just end up swabbing sheep for dna...
Pistol Pete
28-10-11, 08:50 PM
Ok, on topic...
If the answer to the question about you still living at home is yes, then enjoy it lol
You will probably have the most money now than you ever will! Put some away for a rainy day. I wish i had.
Dont get me wrong, i had a blast whilst i lived at home, but now i have a mortgage along with all the bills that go with a house, my son is a year old, looking to pay for a wedding blah blah blah.....i wish i had saved a little.
We rented for a while (just over a year and a half) and it was good, but TBH a little extra and we now "own" our house.
With regards to a job, if you have one stick with it and look for something else. Or look into being a retained fireman. A few of the lads at my place do it. If you like it then maybe make the transition and go full time.
16v Nova Kev
28-10-11, 09:25 PM
do what the guys round here do. buy a transit get it sign written any trade you want really all you need is the brass neck to chance it.
brainsnova
28-10-11, 09:35 PM
I've got a transit but do nothing with it apart from help my mates out and I stay with just my mummy lol
do what the guys round here do. buy a transit get it sign written any trade you want really all you need is the brass neck to chance it.
People like that are everywhere it seems.
Sign of the times...
16v Nova Kev
28-10-11, 09:54 PM
it is abit of a joke. people get away with it too. total chancers and ask for big money.
Saving for a deposit is a massive problem nowadays
I know quite a few friends with kids that have had to move in with parents for a year to save
lol thats what im doing. Although theres more spending than saving, as spending alot of money on my room now :/ lol
lewi all i'd say is oil and gas, becoming an mech engineer or such takes a few years granted and a lot of hard work hnc/d then your two years at uni, but the rewards once you acheive this are massive, get a slot on a rig which u would do after a while (year) onshore your looking at 2 on 2off, or month on month off, starting on around £400 a day and rising every year, you also get a bonus every year and a good quality off life, in my eyes you'd be stupid not to, if u aint got the grades to get a place in college then start studying and acheive them, like i said it takes a while but by the time ur 30 you'd easy have a pad, an m3 and whateva else u want...simples lol
LEWI007
30-10-11, 09:51 PM
Isnt working on oil rigs very hard to get into ?
I think you have to know somebody in the trade to get into it, i think a member of my family works on oil rigs, whats that kind of trade called ill google it and do a bit of reading.
Meanwhile, im going to go to a careers advice place in town this week and get some info and advice on joining the fire brigade and see whats up.
ffs, just nip round the fire station.
w_wall_2001
04-11-11, 05:08 AM
Lewi im in oil and gas and i love it, it is hard work to get the quals etc but once u have them you can get offshore, not necessarily on a rig, i been in holland 3 times and now im in china and i love it. we are building a one of its kind largest vessel in the world that ays pipes in shallow and deep water, lifts the topsides (actual oil rig) then it lifts the jackets (the legs) then takes them to shore to be de comissioned. Its interesting work but you have to like that kind of thing to really enjoy it.
Isnt working on oil rigs very hard to get into ?
I think you have to know somebody in the trade to get into it, i think a member of my family works on oil rigs, whats that kind of trade called ill google it and do a bit of reading.
Meanwhile, im going to go to a careers advice place in town this week and get some info and advice on joining the fire brigade and see whats up.
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