How old was you when your career started?

How old was you when your career started? - Printable Version

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Re: How old was you when your career started? - nick crisp - 05-03-15

(05-03-15, 08:21 AM)odbguy link Wrote: Iv been thinking motorcycle dealership Nick Crisp, and having never worked in that sector was reading up on quals you can get to try sell yourself abit, City and Guilds do courses. Not sure if they are actually worth while?

Well, qualifications would certainly be useful if you want to do spannering. But there's bike sales and parts/accessories/clothing sales too. Don't need any quals for that, just a bit of knowledge.
When I left the RAF, I had worked on my own bikes, had owned several different ones by then, had read bike magazines for years, all the usual you do as an enthusiast. So I had built up quite a bit of knowledge. The first dealership I applied to asked for my CV, which was all avionics/RAF related, so I wrote a short history of my biking background separately, and I think it was more that which clinched getting the job.
Probably, most of the folks on this forum could do it. All the parts catalogue, ordering, warranty procedures etc; that's easy to learn on the job. Every place I've worked there's been those who could show me anything I didn't know about, get me started. Give it a shot, you've nothing to lose.
Oh, money -wise, my last parts job was at £17.5k so not huge, but I've recently seen places advertised at £20k+.
And keep an eye on this site:

http://www.bikejobs.co.uk/

Although I've either used local papers, word-of-mouth or just walked into places on a gis-a-job basis before.

Some interesting stories coming up in this thread.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - Deefer666 - 05-03-15

I left school at 17 and went to work for the AA answering the phone lines breakdown calls, it wasn't long before they recognised my brilliance and pulled me off of the phones and trained me in other stuff and it wasn't long before I was a manager 8 years later I was headhunted by a local engineering company who wanted me to implement a stock control system for them and head up the sales team, 4 years later I was head hunted again by Vodafone and I went and worked in their in house tech support team. Then I met the current Mrs Layley and moved to Northants and having being used to walking out of one job and into another and never even having to try at an interview when I lived in Newbury, I had a shock when I could not even get warehouse work up here.

I went through a series of shitty jobs up, before being offered a job by a friend of a friend who had a bike shop and wanted someone who knew their way around bikes, I have been tinkering with bikes from a very early age and was lucky enough to retrain & gain qualifications & I have enjoyed working for myself at Motorcycle Republic fixing bikes and building up a business but now I am looking around at other stuff as Laura and I have also built up the second business with Fat Maggot Clothing so am considering diversifying and doing something different.

The important things to remember are:
If you want an easy life, then do not work for yourself.
If you want less time at work, then do not work for yourself
If you want less stress, then do not work for yourself

But once you work for yourself, its really difficult to even contemplate ever having a "proper job" with a boss, office politics, and all the other shit that goes with it.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - mickvp - 05-03-15

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Re: How old was you when your career started? - bigbluebear - 05-03-15

Left School at 16 and did mechanical engineering apprenticeship, made redundant once time served, fell into office equipment sales for photocopiers, franking machines etc, then into IT sales, then decided to start my own IT company 7 years ago. Got a wife with a credit card and a kid at private school.....so I'm foccin skint despite robbing all the profits :'(

Re: How old was you when your career started? - odbguy - 05-03-15

Hey Slimwilly. I was advised about working up on the Pylons by an old boss about 8 years ago but I'm not much for heights and hi voltage :/ lol
Cheers Noggy so judging by what our have read my next job is the one to stick at ! Haha seems like I just need to stop avoiding it and take the step, it seems harder cos if I could give 2 weeks notice and leave I'd look for a job and go but because it needs a year's notice I'm just thinking what will I be doing this time next year. I'm over thinking it all, I just need to go for it.
It was 'Vehicle Parts and Vehicle Sales (VCQs)' Nick the course I seen .. but when thinking about it seems to be a course on stuff you should already know and common sense .. lol .. I'l definetly check out that site thanks muchly.
I have a few mates self employed Deefer and they have all said the same. Lol .. One of the lads now works for British Gas and although he has taken a massive pay cut he loves the massive relief off pressure and just does whatever jobs he gets called too.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - nick crisp - 05-03-15

If you do decide to go for the motorcycle trade, it'd be worth getting this magazine regularly:

http://www.motorcycletrader.net/aboutus.aspx

It'll tell you what's going on in the industry, articles about new products and the ins/outs/benefits/how it's made of them, job ads, all sorts, much of which you don't get in the usual off-the-shelf publications, allowing you to keep a step ahead of your customers and just generally helping you to build a knowledge base.

Anything you want to know, just PM me, I'll try to help :thumbup

Re: How old was you when your career started? - maddog04 - 05-03-15

left school in 79/80......the Thatcher years begin and Liverpool had foc all as did I qualification wise.
drifted from shit job to shit job but wouldn't get on me bike to the South (coz Tebbit said we should) but was out everyday looking for work. had foc all money when me few mates did which was hard going, done whatever I could......both legit and cash in hand and at 35 managed to get into the fire brigade.....been in 15 years now which has been great bar all the political shit that goes with it. Probably could've done better years ago but I would never settle for 2nd best (failed the paras so told the army to shove it as the rest were all crap hats) or be told what to do by politicians.
You're never too old so go for whatever takes your fancy....YOLO

if I had my time over, and knowing what I know now through life experiences.... I'd have either tried for Civil engineering/joined another Army reg/left the country

I went to the University of Life Wink

Re: How old was you when your career started? - bigralphie - 05-03-15

Quote:HR folks who pull the strings

I work for a company with global HR and that is not how we do it

I read all the CV,s ,I interview all candidates and I ultimately decide who to hire

HR only handle terms of contract ,communications, and may sit in to give an view the of candidates general demeanour
As I have been hiring for a while I sometimes ask other function managers instead and I sit in on their hires

Re: How old was you when your career started? - noggythenog - 05-03-15

(05-03-15, 01:26 PM)bigralphie link Wrote:
Quote:HR folks who pull the strings

I work for a company with global HR and that is not how we do it

I read all the CV,s ,I interview all candidates and I ultimately decide who to hire

HR only handle terms of contract ,communications, and may sit in to give an view the of candidates general demeanour
As I have been hiring for a while I sometimes ask other function managers instead and I sit in on their hires

What about these matrix system things then Ralphie?, i thought that they were a HR thing where they match up the job spec to the applications, surely HR do all the ground work before they pass it to you otherwise youd be sifting through endless CV's & applications.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - bigralphie - 05-03-15

Depends on the role and the response really

I see every CV sent including all the "on the spec ones" for anyone asking about engineering roles but I am only a small dept

for warehousing or telephone jobs HR will will apply matrix filters due to the sheer number of applicants

Re: How old was you when your career started? - odbguy - 05-03-15

(05-03-15, 11:31 AM)nick crisp link Wrote: Anything you want to know, just PM me, I'll try to help :thumbup

You will probably hear from me soon ! Lol

We are all crap hats Maddog ! Lol should have gone civil engineer ... actually no .. left the country !! Haha

Re: How old was you when your career started? - alan sherman - 05-03-15

Sometimes when you get to do what you want to do, then you decide it is not the best thing for you! I left the IT management consulting thing that was my target job a few years before to work in the media industry (IT but I had no previous experience of broadcasting stuff).
Being able to get home in the evening became more important to me than it was when I was younger. Now I have kids I don't know how the wives of those that work away manage (unless they have paid help or very helpful family close by).

There are times to work your arse off, then you'll get sick of it. You may want to travel the world, or you may want to have a home life. You may want to earn lots on money and pay other people to do stuff, or yo might be a control freak and happier with less cash! It's all a personal choice, and can change as you age. We are lucky in the UK as we can change careers more easily than a lot of other countries.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - Mick-H - 05-03-15

Strange how some post come up just when your thinking along a similar line.
I left school in 1977 and started working at Franny Lee's toilet roll factory shit job (excuse the pun) no career as such but very good money in it's day.
Then comes along the Mrs the house the kids the occasional holiday and before to long 24 years 9 month 3 week 3 days have passed and I find myself being made redundant.
I received a fantastic £4970 pay off :rolleyes but luckily walked into a job as a Residential Child Care Worker. A drop in pay of £20000 yup dropped from £34000 to £14000. That was 13 years ago almost to the day.
I initially loved the job and wanted to make a career out of it but several years in I kinda worked out that while it paid a wage and therefore paid the bills that's about all it did, promotion chances are limited although me not being a YES man maybe hasn't helped.
I'm still there but have put in for early retirement March 2017 if I get it I'll be setting up a butty van and working for myself doing something I want to do.
So all in all nothing majorly exciting no massive career, but a nice house loving family nice bike and car's not bad for a toilet roll maker.

Sorry to go on.
One thing that has had me thinking over the past few days after the footballer dying aged 83, forget his name.
I'm currently 53 if I go at 83 my life will consist of approx. 10 years worth of sleeping 6 years worth of working and 14 years worth of living, I need to make sure that that 14 years worth of living is done to the full.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - odbguy - 05-03-15

Wanting to he home with the family is the biggest thing on my mind Alan ... I'm currently sat in a room on my tod thinking I should be home tucking the kids into bed.
Wow mick that's crazy, less than 5k payout for almost 25 years! Toilet paper maker, it's funny how when you use the stuff you never think of how it's made ... I'd make anything for 34k ! Haha
I almost didn't ask the question yesterday but I'm glad I did. I haven't mentioned it to anyone as i wouldn't normally care for there opinion as those at work who obviously try tell you there's nothing in civi street. But to be fair I didn't join the army til I was 25 so I know there is plenty out there if you look. Plus its good to hear ideas from different people with varied backgrounds.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - acid drop - 05-03-15

I was 15 when I started my career and 55 when I retired with a big redundancy package and a good pension.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - Oldgit - 07-03-15

21 --navy then the oil industry--job done now retired

Re: How old was you when your career started? - Aegis Bearing Mel - 07-03-15

Left school, hit Uni, did my post grad and been teaching since 2001, so I was 22-23.
I'm one of the lucky ones in that I love my job and have been employed full time since Feb 2002, even when I resigned after seven years in the same school to come across here to NZ I only missed a days work before blagging my way into long term supply for six months before I flew over.

Good thing about it is that it's never the same, granted after seven years you know what lesson you'll be doing by what tuesday of september it is, but changing schools is like starting a new job again.

Also means I'm able to head to other places and still do what I love, although getting Kiwis to understand my lilting Scottish brouge has been guid for a giggle.

Folks thought I was bonkers for leaving everything and everyone I knew behind and shipping off 12000 miles, but I'm only 36 and figured that a change is as good as a rest, so why not change up everything and see how foreign climes suited.

Reckon you just need to work out what you like and what you are like, have a good rummage around and see what else out there fits.

Re: How old was you when your career started? - His Dudeness - 08-03-15

(07-03-15, 10:46 PM)Aegis Bearing Mel link Wrote: Left school, hit Uni, did my post grad and been teaching since 2001, so I was 22-23.
I'm one of the lucky ones in that I love my job and have been employed full time since Feb 2002, even when I resigned after seven years in the same school to come across here to NZ I only missed a days work before blagging my way into long term supply for six months before I flew over.

Good thing about it is that it's never the same, granted after seven years you know what lesson you'll be doing by what tuesday of september it is, but changing schools is like starting a new job again.

Also means I'm able to head to other places and still do what I love, although getting Kiwis to understand my lilting Scottish brouge has been guid for a giggle.

Folks thought I was bonkers for leaving everything and everyone I knew behind and shipping off 12000 miles, but I'm only 36 and figured that a change is as good as a rest, so why not change up everything and see how foreign climes suited.

Reckon you just need to work out what you like and what you are like, have a good rummage around and see what else out there fits.

Exactly. Change it up. We'll all be brown bread soon enough so don't spend your time wondering about what ifs. Give it a go and see what happens. If you're lucky you'll find something you're happy doing.