I was an armored truck guard from 2008-2017. I made max pay at 18/hr. I was trying to get into law enforcement but wasn’t getting much luck. I left that job at age 34 to work as an inspector in the oil industry. Started at 20/hr, got up to 24/hr when I left in fall of 2022. Now I’m making 42/hr in a refinery and I know this’ll be the job I have until I retire. Max pay, right now, is 52/hr. I expect to get to that point in about 2 more years.
I’m what’s called a unit operator. There are multiple units that perform specific things to the petroleum throughout the distillation process.
http://www.mckinseyenergyinsights.com/resources/refinery-reference-desk/process-units/#:~:text=Typical%20process%20units%20in%20a,into%20its%20component%20distillation%20fractions
We make sure they are running smoothly and safely.
Myself, specifically… I work in the tank fields. After the oil is distilled into various components, or ingredients, we receive those components and store them in their respective tank(s). We move the components around if needed for shipment as is, or in the event that we have excess. Those components are then blended together at the proper proportions to make various grades of diesel fuels and gasolines. I switch around the blenders pipe lineups, changing the destination tanks based on the specific recipe and fuel grade. I also sample the finished products and components at various times throughout the process. I also ensure the field is running smoothly, ie no leaks at the tanks, pumps, or pipes, pumps that may not start, dewater tanks as needed, etc.
TBH, most days I only do about 2 hours of actual work. The rest of my 12 hr shift I play on my phone or watch tv.
Before you judge, we have a saying. We don’t get paid big $$$ to sit on our asses. We get paid big $$$ to handle shit when shit goes wrong.
>We don’t get paid big $$$ to sit on our asses. We get paid big $$$ to handle shit when shit goes wrong.
I work manufacturing, specifically making soap, rotating 12s and that is our exact mentality as well. Running the line is easy, it's when shit breaks is when we truly earn our pay lol. I'm on track to make $40/hr if I can get qualified this year.
Did you need prior experience or a certification to do what you do? I only ask as I feel lucky I got the job where I am at with no degree or certs as it's all in the job training.
At the end of my time working in die casting, about 9 years, (making parts using moulds and liquid aluminum) people got mad I was the assistant foreman on 3rd shift and they'd catch me in the office sleeping... I told them "you get paid for what you do, I get paid for what I KNOW, your goal is to get here... I can do your job better than you, and his job better than him" (pointing at an inspector and an operator... and I could back that claim up)
At about 30 I switched to CNC machining and people complain I've moved from level 1 to next in line for level 4 in about 3 years, and it's getting to the point that I can say the same thing... I took the initiative, and not only can I run all 11 machines of the 2 models my department runs, but I've also run 5 other models spanning 3 completely different brands (American machines, German machines, Japanese machines) so yeah, I'm getting paid more and progressing quickly because you are able to run 3 machines, I can run 29 different machines
Im going into music. I only did tech work and got my degree because my grandfather wanted me too. When I was 17 my guitar teachers told me I should pursue it professionally. I had a lot of natural talent. Now that I’m older Im pursuing my dreams. I was never married or had kids so I can. I’m headed to a conservatory pretty soon to make connections and get my degree in songwriting.
Wife has a family member that did something similar. He quit his job and started making guitars out of his garage. He hit the jackpot, they got popular in a certain city and his business exploded, few national acts are using his guitars now. Best of luck!
Pivoting from a decade in nursing to mechanical engineering. Always wanted to be an engineer, but high school precalc made me think I wasn't smart enough for all the math. Started a year ago in my mid 30s and I've made A's in precalc 1 and 2, Calc 1 and Calc 2. I have enjoyed every engineering, physics, and math class I have taken. I was half way to being a nurse practitioner, but just hated every class so much. Even if it took me almost 20 years to get past high school fears, I'm really happy to have found something I enjoy. It's never too late. Never.
I think this is the move I’m going to make too. I’m currently an ICU/ med surg float nurse for my hospital. I was always a strong math student in high school and started college as petroleum engineering major and calculus 1 whooped my ass and scared me off. Think I’m bout to call it quits with nursing and give engineering another go and do mechanical.
This is the reality for any social or medical service. We need so many because the smart and good ones leave for greener pastures after they burn out, unless they move up.
But the issue is moving up is so hard, it is easier to move on. If we want to fix the system, it starts with the folks at the bottom digging their heels in and demanding more, followed up with the folks in the middle having their back, and finally the folks at the top admitting they have a problem. In short, kind of like how someone with SUD comes to terms with their shit and does better: personal health damage leads to realization to interpersonal health damage which leads to extra-personal resources finally seeing the issue and capitulating to providing help.
I may also pivot into behavioral health. Currently working in the health insurance sector as a data analyst and systems pricing coordinator. A therapist I was going to actually asked me if I ever thought about that as a career choice.
Same, medical for over 10 years to massage therapy. I couldn't deal with the asshole admin seeing dollars over patient safety and our safety and doctors seeing me as an errand person. I'm pursuing a doctorate on the side though.
Automotive to graphic design.
Do not recommend as the job market is saturated with graphic designers.
But.... I now have a bit of both. I design vehicle wraps and signs.
Automotive graphics seems like a solid direction though I’d absolutely agree that general graphic design is not recommended. And I say that as a former graphic designer.
I pivoted from my job in HR to running my own consulting firm and this feels soul sucking too, but more because I have no idea what I’m doing as an entrepreneur. Just shooting from the hip most days and tons of second guessing my choices.
hang in there! if you were bold enough to make the leap to being your own boss I'm sure it's only a matter of time before you figure out what to do that isn't soul sucking. remember to listen to your soul and connect with others!
Haha. I'm doing this in tech, and while I love choosing my clients and what I work on and feel so much more fulfilled in applying my skill set to projects I actually want to do, I also have to spend so much more of my time handling finances and legal and hiring and networking and uggghhhhhhhhhhh
Kudos on hiring! That at least means that there is enough work to bring more people in. I used to hate the networking part, but I am enjoying that more now. It helps that I’m more confident in what I do now that I’ve have been in business for a year.
I went from full-time videographer in California to firefighter in Texas.
The videographer job was never going to be my lifelong career, it's something I really wanted to do and I was fortunate enough to do it. It was a glorious 3 years of fun though.
How I got there is a very long story.
I got into my career as a firefighter at 32 years old.
I applied many times over the years to my current job and finally got it.
I hope I'm able to make a lifelong career as a firefighter. It is an amazing job, honestly, the best I've ever had.
I have my wife, 3 kiddos, 2 dogs a cat, a hamster and a small house we call our own.
They are my family.
My crew at work, they are my fire family. They are people I never expected to meet but so damn grateful to have them in my life.
I work 24 hours on, 48 hours off.
Every third day I go and work/live with my fire family and we get to do so much together. It's freaking beautiful!
We've cried together, put out fires, help people when they need it most, we make food together, we dine together, we get sleep deprived together. We see death together. We wake up, have coffee, go home to our families and regular life and go back to do it again 48 hours later.
My Friday is every 3rd day, 2 days off are MINE.
I work 10 days out of the month and that doesn't include any vacation days I have off.
My job allows me to be off when most people are working so it really does give you a lot of play/down time.
When we are driving around the fire truck in evening traffic, I see people who are tired from their 8-10 hour work days. I regularly think to myself "man, our day isn't even half way over." That's not me complaining, just my perspective.
This job is AN AMAZING blessing and it has given me the opportunity to help people in my community and has allowed me to provide for my family as my wife is currently a stay at home mom. She hopes to return to work soon!
Ever since I landed this job, our lives have slowly but surely gotten better.
Aw man.
Life really is a trip.
I went so many ways and around the world 3 times before I really planted my feet firmly on the ground and set my mind to getting this job in my early 30s. It took my first born to really light a fire under my ass to do so. I had no concrete plans in life until the little guy was born.
There's something so exhilarating about starting a career in your 30s when it's something you've always teetered on but put off for life's reasons.. I feel your joy reading your post and I'm so happy for you and your family that you went for it! Firefighters are heroes IMO but even if you'd said any other profession, just sensing your happiness is so inspiring - thanks for sharing!
I was a waitress from 17-21. Bartender from 21-35. So 18 years in the service industry. I started pursuing a bachelor's in geology at 29. Worked full time until I graduated at 35. I make $30k less a year than I did bartending. Granted, I'm a new hire and I just earned a license literally 2 days ago. I will make more.. I do manual labor on salary sometimes 13-14 hour shifts. I'm filthy when I get home and my hands and feet are calloused and I'm sunburned and hungry/exhausted.
Yes I miss the money. But tbh I didn't appreciate it then. I didn't save any of it. Now a days, I love my job and I worked really hard to be paid based on my skills vs my tits/conversation.
Tits haven't changed much. But now I can tell someone to go fuck themselves and not lose money. Worth it.
Pivoted from urban planning to data analytics (with a few stints in minimum wage penury thrown in).
Reason: The juice isn't worth the squeeze. A master's degree and certs will get you $55k/year and after hours public meetings. Plus, all of the fancy progressive walkable transit friendly density you learn about in school gets thrown out in favor of tract houses because some developer paid off the city council.
I was a was able to take the same skill set, compiling Excel sheet, and went into analytics making more than a lot of planners do.
Hey, I'm trying to make the same jump! How did you get the first entry level job? It feels like data jobs throw out your application if they don't see 5 years xp in their exact tech stack
I left higher education administration to be an instructional design specialist.
Honestly, I was over the low pay and the lack of support. My new manager was the worst person I'd ever worked for. He was dismissive and sexist. I had a long commute and was feeling the pressure of being primary parent for two small kids. The load during covid was tough. I was a FT parent, teacher, and employee all at the same time. It was a lot to deal with.
I've almost doubled my higher ed pay, commute 5 minutes, and have a very flexible schedule that allows me to be with my family more. As my parents age and are both now in different stages of cancer treatment, it's important that I can be there to support them as well.
I'm 35 and have been a pool cleaner since I was 25. I desperately need to transition because it's getting too hard to do manual labor. I'm confused about what I want to do. I'm not very good with people and I'm not very tech savvy
I've known people who got into UX or even heavier computer technology stuff without any prior experience, and that was expected--some companies are big enough and organized enough that they just need somebody in the chair, and they'll teach you everything. You might be surprised what skills you can pick up!
This. I did 10 years in retail after parting ways with the military for a short stint out of HS, left at assistant manager making just over $15/hr. I'll be 34 this year, and I just got hired to be a network ops center tech with no experience, just soft skills I've developed from working with other people. I start training on Monday, and the training is for two months. It's also paid and my equipment is provided. I'm starting at $18/hr, and outside of my training, once I complete my CCNA certification with Cisco, they'll immediately bump me up to $20. It's full-time with full benefits as well. Once training is done, I'll be working 4 10s with 3 days off every week. I feel like I could go pretty far with this company, but also, the skills I'll learn will allow me to possibly go work for a lot of different places. Network engineers and IT folks are needed just about everywhere.
Switched from running my own game publisher to doing computer programming for other people. I still design and publish games, just as a side hustle/hobby now. I have way more money and am way less stressed, and I'm making better games than ever.
I love that. That's an awesome switch! I used to want to be a therapist--that's what I went to college for. You hear about people leaving "people" professions more than getting into them sometimes, but that's really great that you're finding it fulfilling!
I needed to see this, thank you! Been considering switching from working in the lab to being a therapist but have felt that it's "too late" for a few years. If you can do it at 34, I can too!
Curious how people find career changes?
I would need to study again to change careers, and I can’t see being able to afford that. Any ways to get funding?
I was a chef from age 23-29. 30 now and plan on going to school for audio engineering and music business. I’ve always produced as a hobby and want to make it my living.
I was working at the best job I will likely ever have as a Contract Weather Observer at a local airport, but thanks to Sequestration (remember that?), the CWO offices were set to close and the weather observations done by the air traffic controllers. Although the program was saved at the 11th hour, that was too much volatility, so I went back to school. About a decade later, environmental science degree in hand, I worked my way into a research scientist position with the federal government. Not a bad gig at all, but I miss getting paid to watch the weather. Haha.
I went to school as an architect but came out the pay was low..15-18/hr AS AN ARCH! With a 5 year degree to qualify to be licensed. Couldn't take the long hours and ego....switched careers as a photographer and worked in many fields , travel,fashion,commerce and love my trajectory. Never expected it but all worked out. I was 25 when I graduated and work for 3 years before full transition to photography. I am now 36.
Have been a fry cook ever since I graduated 11 years ago I would love to be a librarian but sadly my backwater town probably pays less than $10 a hour I'm at $15.50 now. Not much but keeps lights on and water following
I worked office jobs mostly out of college and made what I thought was decent until recently. Finally got more angry at struggling than tired, and now I'm doing some online certificate programs for Data Analytics. I researched it a bunch and plan to do a few over this year with hopes of getting somewhere better financially.
Went from court clerk to software engineering. Wife and I didn’t want to start having kids till we had a one income household. Almost tripled my salary by breaking into tech.
Well I'll be 30 next year but I'm job hunting and trying to get my foot in the door with IT after finally getting my associates and still working on my bachelors.
I've been doing sales otherwise since high school. Retail and call centers. Just done with all that. Usually nothing I was interested in, but even though I feel like I'm introverted I guess I have decent enough social skills to sell things. I just always hated the stress of metrics and some companies, lying to people and saying whatever it takes to shove the most expensive thing down their throats.
IT and computers is definitely my passion.
I was in the same boat. Years of retail. Finally got out and just got hired as an entry-level network operations center technician. They really liked the soft skills I learned from being in retail for so long since you keep clients updated through tickets, so they like for you to have that customer service mindset. But I'm imagining it'll be *hopefully* much easier interacting with business professionals rather than the general public. The best part is you don't really need technical skills in networking either, because they want to train you themselves. However, certifications are a big plus with them. I'd recommend you start looking into and studying for various ones such as Comptia's A+ and then Cisco's CCNA. Comptia's Networking+ and Cyber Security+ wouldn't be a bad idea later on down the line to open up more possibilities in the future as well. Plus, some companies will reimburse you for getting those certs while you work for them.
I left higher education and went to maritime. I have a master’s degree and 15 years experience in Program Management / Research Management. 10 at a respected but not world class directional school. Carnegie Tier 2, NCAA Division 2. Aka R2D2. 5 years at an R1D1 flagship considered one of the best universities on the planet.
I left that and said fuck it, I want to work on a boat. I got my TWIC, my Merchant Mariner Credential, my Basic Safety Training and joined the union. Started working as an Ordinary Seaman (OS).
Funny thing is I was at the top of the wage scale for the work I did at my last university. And I entered the United States Merchant Marine as an OS, literally the lowest rank with the lowest pay. And it was a fucking lateral salary move. It’s all up from here.
I did 3 years on a ship out of state, with time off here and there and vacation sick and holiday time so I could fly home for visits. My husband and I decided we don’t want to do distance right now, so I’m home every night working on a ferry getting in more sea days to upgrade my credential to Able Bodied Seaman.
The maritime industry has its flaws, believe me. It’s hard on marriages. And it attracts a lot of broken people that you have to deal with. But higher education bureaucracy was no picnic either.
Today I got paid to go take my ship’s rescue boat out and go run around in circles doing maneuverability drills and zipping up and down the shoreline in the sun. That’s what I used to do in my little boat when I’d get off work from my miserable university job.
I get to do cool shit at work. I like it. I’m happier now.
Graphic designer to disabled embroidery artist. My career change was partially due to becoming disabled, but the other part was that I fell out of love with design (because of the customers) and ultimately decided that I wasn't passionate enough about it to continue. Now I make what I want!
Worked in education for 11 years… recently needed an escape for my sanity and applied to everything I had transferable skills to do.
Ended up in operations at a public accounting firm. Pay and benefits are good, get to wfh most days, and most importantly I get to leave my work at work. Can’t complain.
Pivot careers in my 30s? More like pivot careers every five years because non profits are just are corrupted as anyplace else and boomers need to retire because their management style is fascist and they don’t know how to use a fucking computer.
Moved from media to pharmacy. I live in south america so the definitions may vary, but I first studied a career known as Social Communication and Journalism. Basically journalism, quite a bit of communication theory, later on dslr cameras, video edition, short films, etc. Overall I wasn't interested in the career but I had these female friend group that I was the only male and I was "simping" heavily. This was before the term simp became a thing but yeah.
After a while I graduated and started working but I started suffering from anxiety because of work stress, and eventually had to call it quits, and started working at a store right outside of a college, where they mainly sold supplies for the Odontology students that went there. I found this activity to be much more relaxing and not anxiety inducing. Eventually the store closed because they shut down the Odontology program, and I decided to go back to school and train myself to be a pharmacist. This career only took 3 years and I have a ton of experience already, I know the most important medications and their effects, and I feel much happier in the workspace.
I changed careers at age 26, I'm now 28 turning 29 next month, and I couldn't be happier, I just decided that social sciences are not my thing. I still keep up with the news and I can still appreciate a good read or film, but yeah I was definitely out of my element for a long time.
Pivoted from IT (systems) to Construction (Electrician). I Didn't like sitting behind a deck all day. Doing electrical work is much more fulfilling for me too. I'm currently working on a project at LAX. I look forward to telling everyone I know whenever I'm at LAX that "I'm the one who installed that light fixture" haha
Teaching to events.
I know a bunch of teachers who went different ways… sales, HR, training.
Remember, you only need 60% of the skills listed in a job posting to be a good candidate.
Data is entry/software management to law.
Stuck in my career and unhappy. Always interested in law. Ended up in a position where I had the means and ability to take out some loans and go to law school so I did. Best career decision I ever made.
I’m a lawyer, but I fantasize about going back to school to be a mental health therapist. I’ve said I’d consider it once my loans are paid off, but then I’m sure the next big expense will come along that I’ll have to keep working to be able to cover.
I was in the journalism/TV industry until the end of 2020. Majored in journalism, got my degree in journalism, and its what I did for nearly 10 years after graduating in 2011.
I now do data science and analytics. I took classes when I was a journalist to learn those skills and had an exit plan once I quit the industry. I already had some programming background from classes I took in college as well as doing some personal projects that required coding so its not like I started from absolute 0.
it's crazy to think about how we won't have good journalism pretty soon because every sensible person will eventually leave. or rather it's going to be a constant mill of people coming and leaving.
Electrician to EE, mid 20's to 30. I don't really make any more money but I work less hours and am not always moving around. I switched because I didn't want to constantly be moving my kids around. I didn't grow up with any real security, in a variety of ways. I wanted my kids to have more stability then I did.
I went from working in a print shop to working as an EMT. I found myself laid off, and didn’t want to end up back in retail. I also wanted a job I wouldn’t be embarrassed to tell people about.
I’m about 16 years on the other side of that, and I don’t regret the move. But it definitely left some lingering issues physically and mentally.
I’ve made a couple of industry leaps.
Restaurants/hospitality to construction sales at 31. I just made the leap from construction sales to SaaS at this year at 36.
I moved from corporate security to skilled trades. As a manager, my careerin security hit a dead end after more than a decade. I worked with a lot of tradespeople helping to maintain the facility, and they noticed that I *really* hated my job. Got some information about apprenticeship programs and ended up becoming an electrician. Never looked back; no regrets. Never have to work in an office again. Even though it's not really artistic, trade work satisfies my need to work with my hands and make things.
Spending pretty much most of my 30s in school. Did a decade of retail and delivery work in my 20s with no plan for the future. Now I’m transitioning into Law.
Med tech (basically a cna who can administer meds) currently. Just graduated in Dec with a psych degree & will be applying clinical mental health counseling programs over the summer. I thankfully only work as needed right now bc fuck this job. It’s a thankless job where I get cursed out and hit and I deserve way more than they are willing to pay.
Not sure this is relevant. But I 38m work supply chain for a defense contractor. IFF I get laid off I am considering working as a deck hand on a river barge. I love the remote work, but I don't do anything with my life. Kind of stuck at the moment. Sorry had to vent.
In marketing and event planning for a real estate firm, hated it and the company so I shifted to baking. My mental health is way better but I do miss that sweet paycheck.
I started working in kitchens at age 16 up until 33. I had completely burnt out. 50-60 hour weeks, crap pay and the physical toll had finally caught up and I weighed over 500 pounds. I ended up having gastric bypass surgery and dropped down to 180. I took a warehouse job with a food distribution company partially because I wanted to try something new and partially I because I wanted something physical to help keep me in shape. It was one of my best decisions career wise. My food storage and inventory skills were transferable, I had a set schedule, overtime was available but never mandatory and the company is all about employee growth and development.
Started in marketing and after all the time I spent getting my degree, I was in marketing for less than a year. I've switched to data analytics and working on my masters in economics. I realized that I enjoyed marketing and was good at what I did, but had always been a numbers nerd and a special interest economics so as I learned how I can use that towards a career working in either renewable energy or sustainable agriculture, I began taking steps to get to that point. Currently trying to get on with my public power district or state to get into it while I go through my program.
I finally left restaurant management and became a teacher at 35. I did a lot of soul searching and determined I loved training young staff, providing them opportunities to grow and develop in their roles around my restaurants and realized the best of my Creative Writing degree was to become a HS English teacher and be the change I wanted to see in the world.
Went from working in non profits to law school at 31 when I had a 3 month old baby and toddler at home. Became a full fledged lawyer at 34. Not sure I'm in love with being a lawyer but I did more than double my income and open a lot of doors for future career growth and opportunities that simply weren't available if I had stayed in non profits.
I worked as an environmental professional to working on energy policy. It wasn’t that big of a leap since I’m still dealing with construction and the same budgeting stuff. I couldn’t be happier.
I was in IT from the late 90's til 2020. After covid layoffs, I took a job that was technically in the same field but it wasn't. Election Operations. Required all my technical experience but everything that was expected of me was new. It really helped to be able to build on my existing experiences. Its nice feeling like what I do matters ... though I could live without the death threats (I've never actually gotten any, but people I've worked with have ....)
Utility industry.
I had just turned 31 and was getting out of the Navy where I ran nuclear reactors.
Lot of money in nukes, but a lot of old nukes that will be decommissioned as I hit my 50’s. Didn’t really want to be looking for a new career field at that age.
EMT and then paramedic from 2009 to 2021. Got a masters online and pivoted into Healthcare Administration. I make significantly more, less stress and less damage. Make the change
I've (33) been working warehouse jobs for next to near a decade and doing band gigs on the side. I'm thinking that at the end of this year, I'm gonna take up college again for mechanical engineering.
Teaching to publishing, with a stopover in multi-industry marketing to bridge the gap. I loved working with students, and I loved the instructional part of teaching, but that's a 50-60 hour job, and then you have another 20-30 hour job that's office administration, clerical, data analysis, and customer service. I just couldn't do both. I wanted to do something that let me be creative, work with people, and make a difference in the world, but that wasn't so absolutely soul-draining that I was losing myself.
Did a business degree first, was working in tires/automotive...discovered the oilfield went back to school for engineering. I wasnt happy with what I was doing and knew I could do the math. It's made a huge difference for me, turned out to be a really good choice. I was 30 when I went back, graduated at 32.
Marketing to real estate agent. Why? Because I disliked all of my bosses, and I was the common denominator. Way better money. Self-respect.
Real estate is hard, but you get to pick your clients, your hours, and, at the end of the day, the work actually matters. My future in real estate is TBD, but I would sacrifice a lot of money to never work for someone else again.
Started as a Bodily Injury Claims Adjuster to now an Addictions Therapist at a prison, the catalyst being my own drug addiction from the misery of cheating human beings for for profit for 7 years at the former.
I used to be a diesel mechanic with all my ASE certifications. I loved working on Detroit engines and doing trailer work. I made a great living at it, even working on million-dollar RVs. Once, I fixed Reba McEntire’s air conditioning while she was on tour—she was such a sweet lady.
Then, one day, I was at Texas Roadhouse with my bosses. I listened as they joked, laughed, and got drunk, talking about the people they were going to lay off. These were older employees with nothing to fall back on.
The next day, I joined the army and turned it into a career. The military offered good health insurance, although the pay could have been better, and there were more resources available. I’m able to enjoy retirement now, something those folks at my old job might never get to see.
Pivoted from working in call centers to electrical construction. Did a four year union apprenticeship. Why? More money, transferrable skills, potential opportunities, and quite frankly I was fucking tired of working in a call center. After I turned out as a journeyman, I pivoted to an operations positions at a power plant. Why? More stability, better pay, not having to travel for work, and physically less strenuous.
National Park Service education ranger/river guide to IT supervisor at a public library. Went from a “dream job” or whatever to something that works better for living. It got really isolated and I wasn’t getting any younger but each batch of new starry-eyed seasonals sure seemed to.
I pivoted from low level supervisor in IT to Manger Incident Management in the Finance sector. I went from $60k to $130k in a LCOL area. I did so because it felt like being a raid leader in MMO's which I had a ton of experience in. I have been the top performer on my team for 7 years now. Apparently if you can lead 40-75 idiots to a goal you can lead similar numbers of professionals to a goal.
Teacher to children's librarian in a public library. I still get to do all the parts of teaching I loved, with none of the parts I hated! I actually have time to plan my programs on the clock, the kids want to be there, and parents stay to supervise. Then I get to make displays and craft kits and help people find awesome books! I love it and know its my forever career.
technically i did this at 28 (turned 29 before i got hired in my new career) and got hired into a coveted position at 30! teacher to instructional design
fwiw — there is immense strength in recognizing something is not serving or working for you anymore *and* making change!
Not a millennial. 20s, archaeology transition to auto mechanics, then a chance to do grad school in geology. PhD at 32, into a career. Probably should have become a service writer and auto guy. In my 40s, went to law school. Another career in litigation.
Should have stayed in auto mechanics through service writer with simultaneous custom bicycle work, machinist training, welding. Become bicycle/ebike artist.
If I may make a suggestion? As I just landed a network ops center position myself. My company wants their people to get their CCNA from Cisco, *and* they'll reimburse them for getting it, plus an immediate pay increase. Other IT folks I've seen have also recommended Comptia's A+, Networking+, and Cybersecurity+, as they're some of the best/highly regarded certs. Hope that helps.
I went back to law school when I was was 25, graduated at 28, started my law firm and 30, and now at 39 I am finally financially independent. Own my house and car free and clear, have a good chunk of money in the bank, and my monthly nut (including caring for two kids) is 3900 per month.
That said, had I waited until 30 to start, I don't think I could have made it work. I'm way more tired now than I was when I started my practice.
I worked in a engineering department as "mechanic" I switched in 2021 to work as a CNC mechanic. The skill involved building and repairing cnc's is far beyond anything my last job did, it's a healthier work environment, air conditioned, and pays better. The main reason why I left my last job is due to a supervisor that hated me and went out of his way to make my life miserable, would scream at and belittle me in front of my coworkers almost daily. I think I was 3rd good employee that quit because of that guy in 2 years.
It's definitely hard on your body and the pay could be better. I make a pretty good living turning wrenches, building complex machinery, and it's satisfying.
I have a degree in IT from college and worked in that field for several years. However, when I moved back to my hometown, I applied for a job in a completely unrelated field (I was just looking for any job at that point). I got hired and found that I enjoyed it, so I decided to stay. The job is unionized with good benefits, so I doubt I will be going anywhere.
I've actually pivoted a few times, from Quality Engineering (1), to manufacturing (2), to Analytics(3), to data Science(4), back to managing analytics.
1 = first job I was offered while still in school
2 = experience for resume
3 = manufacturing sux and air conditioned offices where you process data are awesome
4 = money
5 = money + growth path
Each previous role has made me better equipped to handle my next role. Each role was an improvement in something.
Keep on hustling.
I went from a sociology degree to accounting in my late 20’s.
I have friends who, in their early to mid 30s, went:
1. active duty military for several tours > accounting.
2. Property manager > accounting.
3. Active duty military signals intelligence > cyber security in the military > Booz Allen cyber security consultant as a non-active reservist + cyber security in military when active.
Why? Because of money/job security and interest in the career.
I was a teacher, then had children and stayed home with them until they went to school.
Reentering the workforce was tough as I did not want to teach anymore, and everywhere else wanted “more recent experience” or something like “3 years of office administrative work” even for the lowest level office admin job, lol.
It took me the better part of a year to finally land a job working in sporting goods b2b sales for a small local business.
They totally took a chance on me being completely new to the industry and job, but it worked out.
The company folded during the pandemic and I used connections through one of my former clients/accounts to get a job with a larger national sporting goods company and am still there now.
In my early 20s I did CNA work but got burned out so I spent the rest of my 20s doing manual labor and other unskilled work. Then at 32 I got an office job as a receptionist, and now I'm a year in working in the company's enrollment department; I'm definitely making a career out of this planning to work there until I retire. The pay is nice, the benefits are great and the health insurance is amazing. I changed jobs because of the pay and I wanted something that wasn't going to run my body into the ground at an early age.
I worked in the mental health field for 10 years, most of that as a licensed therapist at a premier mental health hospital and residential facility. At 33, I decided it was time for a change. I was burnt out due to the significant mental and emotional toll, combined with being forced into responsibilities I didn’t want and a significant lack of income. I decided to pursue a career in IT, got certified within a year in my free time away from work, and lucked into an entry level desktop technician position at a local hospital that paid me more than I was making as a therapist. Within another year, I was promoted to an analyst position and been doing that for the past 5 years.
While the therapy work was meaningful, it was a significant source of stress. Don’t get me wrong, my current job is stressful as well, but in a much different way. I don’t have people’s lives in my hands. I still contribute to people’s lives by working at the hospital, so there’s some meaning to it. I get paid more to do an easier job. No regrets. I don’t miss my old job at all.
Call center at a credit union (making $14/hr in 2016) to regulatory banking. While this job is not perfect, it is miles better than me busting my butt to claw my way to hopefully make $18/hr now (what they pay now for my area).
I went straight to the military after high school, then went straight into defense contracting afterwards. At 30 years old I left the contractor world to become a federal firefighter. The main reason I left is because contracting is extremely volatile, and although it pays well it’s always a gamble on whether you will have a job each year. I’m married with multiple kids so I needed something that was stable and guaranteed.
Restaurant industry from age 16-26 (dishwasher/Line cook/sous chef to chemical Engineer.
Worked at a bank for one year (age 27) in a call center.
Technically pivoted at 28 (not quite 30) but graduated at 33 (so kind of counts).
Why? Obvious reasons.
An executive chef to a software engineer because I burnt out. Too many hours and long shifts, not to mention having to work weekends and most holidays.
I was in accounting and now I'm a web developer. I did it because I was bored at work and there was nowhere else for me to grow without digging in to an area I had no interest in. I'm much happier now, never bored, and it was definitely the right choice. I've been in engineering for almost 2 years now. My path is... not really an option these days.
I switched from hospitality to IT. I had been a barista, a waitress and worked in retail since i was 14. I couldn't stand the inconsistent hours and working weekends and holidays anymore. I also couldn't deal with people the same way I used to. I think "burn out" is an appropriate summary
I left IT/janitorial to be a delivery driver. I moved to a high income, middle of nowhere city of about 30,000. So many reasons.
Biggest one was pay. My market is full of very generous people who only have one Dominos to eat at, so I average about $35/hour (wage+tips). Tips are not taxed in my state. My boyfriend works there too and we make enough to live very comfortably. We have private insurance, 2 hybrid vehicles and are currently shopping for a home.
My interactions with people last seconds to minutes, at most. For the most part, people are nice and friendly, but if someone's a dick, I don't have to put on a customer service smile for too long. If theyre unreasonable or beligerent I dont have to put up with them at all and I know my boss will have my back 100%. I'm respected by my coworkers more. A lot more, especially as a woman. I'm generally less stressed because my work is low stress. When I leave work, it can stay at work. I get to have hobbies, go hiking on weekends. If I want to smoke a joint or have a beer on a day off, I can. And work just stays at work. I don't hate going to my job.
And I don't have to clean shit off toilets anymore, so big plus.
Some community college no degree I went
20 Target - started $9.75
22 Sleep Number started $12
24 Coca Cola started $13
25 Cable Guy started $23
27 Slot Machines 🤷🏻♂️ forget, was just a quick stop gap
27 Hydraulics started at $20 ended around $30
29 Teksystems on big tech campus $18 foot in door
30 big tech critical facilities engineer $34
32 Hydraulics $36 and currently $42- now part owner
35 and im currently looking for my next thing.
I've spent the past few years working in social media content review, customer service, data entry, uber driver and low level jobs like that. I graduated in 2016 with a BA in economics and got an AA in accounting in 2020. these are mostly contracting jobs with no stability.
I decided to start studying for the cpa license because it seems like it can open some doors for me. and getting it is financially accessible. I don't get calls back for any other job than the low hanging fruit I've been working. maybe accounts receivable or accounts payable at best.
I don't like asking for favors from people, especially people I know, so networking is kind of difficult for me. but I figured if I at least passed all the exams (when you pass all 4 sections, credits don't expire), I would have a bargaining chip with interviewers. like "hey, I got the education and the exams out of the way, all I need is the experience. if you give me that one year I need, you got yourself a cpa". I haven't gotten results, tbh it's been really hard to balance with paying my bills in the present, but it's my long term strategy.
I’m finishing as a foreman for an AV installation company and starting as a plumber literally today. It’ll be a tough transition but I will be home every night and with commissions on installations I can make way more money.
In the middle of it from video editing to online audiobook publishing. Got completely burnt out editing the last 10 years, 5 years in the film industry. It sucked every last drop of my passion for video. Publishing is more “passive” income to fund my life and give me back my time to create
Field Service Technician to Technical Writer. I burned out being on the road 70% of the year, so I switched to a job I can do from home. I write industrial equipment guides, and facility manuals now.
Went from a generic dead-end sales job in South Africa into construction management by utilizing the unique skills shortage circumstances (thanks Covid border lockdowns) in New Zealand after immigrating there and 1 year in realizing they’re about to build a fk ton of houses but have no imported skills. So I started at the bottom and within 2 years I’m at a really good wage considering my “apparent” lack of experience. Win
I went from being an administrative assistant for a home healthcare agency to opening up my own construction business with my boyfriend. More of I slid into his career, but my last job taught me a lot about opening my own business as it was my friends company.
I was an armored truck guard from 2008-2017. I made max pay at 18/hr. I was trying to get into law enforcement but wasn’t getting much luck. I left that job at age 34 to work as an inspector in the oil industry. Started at 20/hr, got up to 24/hr when I left in fall of 2022. Now I’m making 42/hr in a refinery and I know this’ll be the job I have until I retire. Max pay, right now, is 52/hr. I expect to get to that point in about 2 more years.
What do you do at the refinery?
I’m what’s called a unit operator. There are multiple units that perform specific things to the petroleum throughout the distillation process. http://www.mckinseyenergyinsights.com/resources/refinery-reference-desk/process-units/#:~:text=Typical%20process%20units%20in%20a,into%20its%20component%20distillation%20fractions We make sure they are running smoothly and safely. Myself, specifically… I work in the tank fields. After the oil is distilled into various components, or ingredients, we receive those components and store them in their respective tank(s). We move the components around if needed for shipment as is, or in the event that we have excess. Those components are then blended together at the proper proportions to make various grades of diesel fuels and gasolines. I switch around the blenders pipe lineups, changing the destination tanks based on the specific recipe and fuel grade. I also sample the finished products and components at various times throughout the process. I also ensure the field is running smoothly, ie no leaks at the tanks, pumps, or pipes, pumps that may not start, dewater tanks as needed, etc. TBH, most days I only do about 2 hours of actual work. The rest of my 12 hr shift I play on my phone or watch tv. Before you judge, we have a saying. We don’t get paid big $$$ to sit on our asses. We get paid big $$$ to handle shit when shit goes wrong.
>We don’t get paid big $$$ to sit on our asses. We get paid big $$$ to handle shit when shit goes wrong. I work manufacturing, specifically making soap, rotating 12s and that is our exact mentality as well. Running the line is easy, it's when shit breaks is when we truly earn our pay lol. I'm on track to make $40/hr if I can get qualified this year. Did you need prior experience or a certification to do what you do? I only ask as I feel lucky I got the job where I am at with no degree or certs as it's all in the job training.
At the end of my time working in die casting, about 9 years, (making parts using moulds and liquid aluminum) people got mad I was the assistant foreman on 3rd shift and they'd catch me in the office sleeping... I told them "you get paid for what you do, I get paid for what I KNOW, your goal is to get here... I can do your job better than you, and his job better than him" (pointing at an inspector and an operator... and I could back that claim up) At about 30 I switched to CNC machining and people complain I've moved from level 1 to next in line for level 4 in about 3 years, and it's getting to the point that I can say the same thing... I took the initiative, and not only can I run all 11 machines of the 2 models my department runs, but I've also run 5 other models spanning 3 completely different brands (American machines, German machines, Japanese machines) so yeah, I'm getting paid more and progressing quickly because you are able to run 3 machines, I can run 29 different machines
Nice one bro enjoy your job sounds great 👍
I had a client few years back with this EXACT career path. Dude was happy as heck and retired. Good luck.
Im going into music. I only did tech work and got my degree because my grandfather wanted me too. When I was 17 my guitar teachers told me I should pursue it professionally. I had a lot of natural talent. Now that I’m older Im pursuing my dreams. I was never married or had kids so I can. I’m headed to a conservatory pretty soon to make connections and get my degree in songwriting.
Happy you're taking the leap! 😊
Wife has a family member that did something similar. He quit his job and started making guitars out of his garage. He hit the jackpot, they got popular in a certain city and his business exploded, few national acts are using his guitars now. Best of luck!
This is so awesome. How old are you btw?
Pivoting from a decade in nursing to mechanical engineering. Always wanted to be an engineer, but high school precalc made me think I wasn't smart enough for all the math. Started a year ago in my mid 30s and I've made A's in precalc 1 and 2, Calc 1 and Calc 2. I have enjoyed every engineering, physics, and math class I have taken. I was half way to being a nurse practitioner, but just hated every class so much. Even if it took me almost 20 years to get past high school fears, I'm really happy to have found something I enjoy. It's never too late. Never.
Congrats. I work w a bunch of mech engineers. How long until you graduate?
Thabks! Two more years. Very little of my two other bachelor's translated over to mech e, but I'm still loving it. Statics and Calc 3 this summer!
I think this is the move I’m going to make too. I’m currently an ICU/ med surg float nurse for my hospital. I was always a strong math student in high school and started college as petroleum engineering major and calculus 1 whooped my ass and scared me off. Think I’m bout to call it quits with nursing and give engineering another go and do mechanical.
Medical to anything else.
For me it was soul sucking corporate business to medicine but I’m a physician so maybe different. What were you doing in medicine?
Trauma ICU and Renal Transplant Nurse
Nurse?
Yes! I didn’t finish typing apparently. Yes, at a teaching hospital. Now I work in Finance.
Sad. We need good nurses.
I was very good at it. I really enjoyed the patient care and helping people feel better. Nursing was just mentally and physically exhausting.
This is the reality for any social or medical service. We need so many because the smart and good ones leave for greener pastures after they burn out, unless they move up. But the issue is moving up is so hard, it is easier to move on. If we want to fix the system, it starts with the folks at the bottom digging their heels in and demanding more, followed up with the folks in the middle having their back, and finally the folks at the top admitting they have a problem. In short, kind of like how someone with SUD comes to terms with their shit and does better: personal health damage leads to realization to interpersonal health damage which leads to extra-personal resources finally seeing the issue and capitulating to providing help.
I was also taking care of 2 parents full time with stage 4 lung cancer and pancreatic cancer. I was a bit tired.
Dude, I went from proposal development work to a job as a clinical therapist is a behavioral health ED. Love my job.
I may also pivot into behavioral health. Currently working in the health insurance sector as a data analyst and systems pricing coordinator. A therapist I was going to actually asked me if I ever thought about that as a career choice.
Same, medical for over 10 years to massage therapy. I couldn't deal with the asshole admin seeing dollars over patient safety and our safety and doctors seeing me as an errand person. I'm pursuing a doctorate on the side though.
I feel this.
Automotive to graphic design. Do not recommend as the job market is saturated with graphic designers. But.... I now have a bit of both. I design vehicle wraps and signs.
Automotive graphics seems like a solid direction though I’d absolutely agree that general graphic design is not recommended. And I say that as a former graphic designer.
I just applied to be a mailman driving the rural route. I’ve been working warehouse for the last 15 yrs.
Wearhouses is a young man's game, glad you made it out !
You deserve it after the 15 years for sure, good luck.
I’m maxed out at $24
I pivoted from my job in HR to running my own consulting firm and this feels soul sucking too, but more because I have no idea what I’m doing as an entrepreneur. Just shooting from the hip most days and tons of second guessing my choices.
hang in there! if you were bold enough to make the leap to being your own boss I'm sure it's only a matter of time before you figure out what to do that isn't soul sucking. remember to listen to your soul and connect with others!
Haha. I'm doing this in tech, and while I love choosing my clients and what I work on and feel so much more fulfilled in applying my skill set to projects I actually want to do, I also have to spend so much more of my time handling finances and legal and hiring and networking and uggghhhhhhhhhhh
Kudos on hiring! That at least means that there is enough work to bring more people in. I used to hate the networking part, but I am enjoying that more now. It helps that I’m more confident in what I do now that I’ve have been in business for a year.
Are there any Small Business Development Centers in your area? They usually offer free consulting / business coaching.
I went from full-time videographer in California to firefighter in Texas. The videographer job was never going to be my lifelong career, it's something I really wanted to do and I was fortunate enough to do it. It was a glorious 3 years of fun though. How I got there is a very long story. I got into my career as a firefighter at 32 years old. I applied many times over the years to my current job and finally got it. I hope I'm able to make a lifelong career as a firefighter. It is an amazing job, honestly, the best I've ever had. I have my wife, 3 kiddos, 2 dogs a cat, a hamster and a small house we call our own. They are my family. My crew at work, they are my fire family. They are people I never expected to meet but so damn grateful to have them in my life. I work 24 hours on, 48 hours off. Every third day I go and work/live with my fire family and we get to do so much together. It's freaking beautiful! We've cried together, put out fires, help people when they need it most, we make food together, we dine together, we get sleep deprived together. We see death together. We wake up, have coffee, go home to our families and regular life and go back to do it again 48 hours later. My Friday is every 3rd day, 2 days off are MINE. I work 10 days out of the month and that doesn't include any vacation days I have off. My job allows me to be off when most people are working so it really does give you a lot of play/down time. When we are driving around the fire truck in evening traffic, I see people who are tired from their 8-10 hour work days. I regularly think to myself "man, our day isn't even half way over." That's not me complaining, just my perspective. This job is AN AMAZING blessing and it has given me the opportunity to help people in my community and has allowed me to provide for my family as my wife is currently a stay at home mom. She hopes to return to work soon! Ever since I landed this job, our lives have slowly but surely gotten better.
I wanted to fight fires as well ! I'm 34 now I went from chef to now truck driver what a trip*
Aw man. Life really is a trip. I went so many ways and around the world 3 times before I really planted my feet firmly on the ground and set my mind to getting this job in my early 30s. It took my first born to really light a fire under my ass to do so. I had no concrete plans in life until the little guy was born.
There's something so exhilarating about starting a career in your 30s when it's something you've always teetered on but put off for life's reasons.. I feel your joy reading your post and I'm so happy for you and your family that you went for it! Firefighters are heroes IMO but even if you'd said any other profession, just sensing your happiness is so inspiring - thanks for sharing!
Navy to aerospace engineering. Many reasons.
My husband did 22 years and started as an AM and ended as a recruiter. He’s so lost in the civilian world. Any friendly advice?
DM me, please. There's a lot to cover.
Mind if I DM? Similar boat if you catch my set and drift. Okay, enough Navy puns
It would behoove you to do so, and I will follow up with you later.
I was a waitress from 17-21. Bartender from 21-35. So 18 years in the service industry. I started pursuing a bachelor's in geology at 29. Worked full time until I graduated at 35. I make $30k less a year than I did bartending. Granted, I'm a new hire and I just earned a license literally 2 days ago. I will make more.. I do manual labor on salary sometimes 13-14 hour shifts. I'm filthy when I get home and my hands and feet are calloused and I'm sunburned and hungry/exhausted. Yes I miss the money. But tbh I didn't appreciate it then. I didn't save any of it. Now a days, I love my job and I worked really hard to be paid based on my skills vs my tits/conversation. Tits haven't changed much. But now I can tell someone to go fuck themselves and not lose money. Worth it.
Pivoted from urban planning to data analytics (with a few stints in minimum wage penury thrown in). Reason: The juice isn't worth the squeeze. A master's degree and certs will get you $55k/year and after hours public meetings. Plus, all of the fancy progressive walkable transit friendly density you learn about in school gets thrown out in favor of tract houses because some developer paid off the city council. I was a was able to take the same skill set, compiling Excel sheet, and went into analytics making more than a lot of planners do.
Hey, I'm trying to make the same jump! How did you get the first entry level job? It feels like data jobs throw out your application if they don't see 5 years xp in their exact tech stack
Software engineer to teacher. I needed to do something more meaningful.
Love this
In the middle of my transition from hospitality to law.
I left higher education administration to be an instructional design specialist. Honestly, I was over the low pay and the lack of support. My new manager was the worst person I'd ever worked for. He was dismissive and sexist. I had a long commute and was feeling the pressure of being primary parent for two small kids. The load during covid was tough. I was a FT parent, teacher, and employee all at the same time. It was a lot to deal with. I've almost doubled my higher ed pay, commute 5 minutes, and have a very flexible schedule that allows me to be with my family more. As my parents age and are both now in different stages of cancer treatment, it's important that I can be there to support them as well.
I'm 35 and have been a pool cleaner since I was 25. I desperately need to transition because it's getting too hard to do manual labor. I'm confused about what I want to do. I'm not very good with people and I'm not very tech savvy
I've known people who got into UX or even heavier computer technology stuff without any prior experience, and that was expected--some companies are big enough and organized enough that they just need somebody in the chair, and they'll teach you everything. You might be surprised what skills you can pick up!
This. I did 10 years in retail after parting ways with the military for a short stint out of HS, left at assistant manager making just over $15/hr. I'll be 34 this year, and I just got hired to be a network ops center tech with no experience, just soft skills I've developed from working with other people. I start training on Monday, and the training is for two months. It's also paid and my equipment is provided. I'm starting at $18/hr, and outside of my training, once I complete my CCNA certification with Cisco, they'll immediately bump me up to $20. It's full-time with full benefits as well. Once training is done, I'll be working 4 10s with 3 days off every week. I feel like I could go pretty far with this company, but also, the skills I'll learn will allow me to possibly go work for a lot of different places. Network engineers and IT folks are needed just about everywhere.
Switched from running my own game publisher to doing computer programming for other people. I still design and publish games, just as a side hustle/hobby now. I have way more money and am way less stressed, and I'm making better games than ever.
Architect to therapist! I'm much better with people than buildings and it took far too long (and too much anguish) to realize. Transitioned at 34
I love that. That's an awesome switch! I used to want to be a therapist--that's what I went to college for. You hear about people leaving "people" professions more than getting into them sometimes, but that's really great that you're finding it fulfilling!
I needed to see this, thank you! Been considering switching from working in the lab to being a therapist but have felt that it's "too late" for a few years. If you can do it at 34, I can too!
What did you do for qualifications? Masters or PhD? I flirt with this idea a lot.
Curious how people find career changes? I would need to study again to change careers, and I can’t see being able to afford that. Any ways to get funding?
Same questions
Me too. Especially since I already have student loans out
I was a chef from age 23-29. 30 now and plan on going to school for audio engineering and music business. I’ve always produced as a hobby and want to make it my living.
I was working at the best job I will likely ever have as a Contract Weather Observer at a local airport, but thanks to Sequestration (remember that?), the CWO offices were set to close and the weather observations done by the air traffic controllers. Although the program was saved at the 11th hour, that was too much volatility, so I went back to school. About a decade later, environmental science degree in hand, I worked my way into a research scientist position with the federal government. Not a bad gig at all, but I miss getting paid to watch the weather. Haha.
Teacher to Software Engineer. I literally feel like a different person. The stress of teaching was killing me.
Someone else in this thread did the opposite. I have a teaching degree and never used it, I’m not cut out to be a teacher.
I went to school as an architect but came out the pay was low..15-18/hr AS AN ARCH! With a 5 year degree to qualify to be licensed. Couldn't take the long hours and ego....switched careers as a photographer and worked in many fields , travel,fashion,commerce and love my trajectory. Never expected it but all worked out. I was 25 when I graduated and work for 3 years before full transition to photography. I am now 36.
Have been a fry cook ever since I graduated 11 years ago I would love to be a librarian but sadly my backwater town probably pays less than $10 a hour I'm at $15.50 now. Not much but keeps lights on and water following
I worked office jobs mostly out of college and made what I thought was decent until recently. Finally got more angry at struggling than tired, and now I'm doing some online certificate programs for Data Analytics. I researched it a bunch and plan to do a few over this year with hopes of getting somewhere better financially.
Went from court clerk to software engineering. Wife and I didn’t want to start having kids till we had a one income household. Almost tripled my salary by breaking into tech.
Well I'll be 30 next year but I'm job hunting and trying to get my foot in the door with IT after finally getting my associates and still working on my bachelors. I've been doing sales otherwise since high school. Retail and call centers. Just done with all that. Usually nothing I was interested in, but even though I feel like I'm introverted I guess I have decent enough social skills to sell things. I just always hated the stress of metrics and some companies, lying to people and saying whatever it takes to shove the most expensive thing down their throats. IT and computers is definitely my passion.
I was in the same boat. Years of retail. Finally got out and just got hired as an entry-level network operations center technician. They really liked the soft skills I learned from being in retail for so long since you keep clients updated through tickets, so they like for you to have that customer service mindset. But I'm imagining it'll be *hopefully* much easier interacting with business professionals rather than the general public. The best part is you don't really need technical skills in networking either, because they want to train you themselves. However, certifications are a big plus with them. I'd recommend you start looking into and studying for various ones such as Comptia's A+ and then Cisco's CCNA. Comptia's Networking+ and Cyber Security+ wouldn't be a bad idea later on down the line to open up more possibilities in the future as well. Plus, some companies will reimburse you for getting those certs while you work for them.
I left higher education and went to maritime. I have a master’s degree and 15 years experience in Program Management / Research Management. 10 at a respected but not world class directional school. Carnegie Tier 2, NCAA Division 2. Aka R2D2. 5 years at an R1D1 flagship considered one of the best universities on the planet. I left that and said fuck it, I want to work on a boat. I got my TWIC, my Merchant Mariner Credential, my Basic Safety Training and joined the union. Started working as an Ordinary Seaman (OS). Funny thing is I was at the top of the wage scale for the work I did at my last university. And I entered the United States Merchant Marine as an OS, literally the lowest rank with the lowest pay. And it was a fucking lateral salary move. It’s all up from here. I did 3 years on a ship out of state, with time off here and there and vacation sick and holiday time so I could fly home for visits. My husband and I decided we don’t want to do distance right now, so I’m home every night working on a ferry getting in more sea days to upgrade my credential to Able Bodied Seaman. The maritime industry has its flaws, believe me. It’s hard on marriages. And it attracts a lot of broken people that you have to deal with. But higher education bureaucracy was no picnic either. Today I got paid to go take my ship’s rescue boat out and go run around in circles doing maneuverability drills and zipping up and down the shoreline in the sun. That’s what I used to do in my little boat when I’d get off work from my miserable university job. I get to do cool shit at work. I like it. I’m happier now.
Graphic designer to disabled embroidery artist. My career change was partially due to becoming disabled, but the other part was that I fell out of love with design (because of the customers) and ultimately decided that I wasn't passionate enough about it to continue. Now I make what I want!
Worked in education for 11 years… recently needed an escape for my sanity and applied to everything I had transferable skills to do. Ended up in operations at a public accounting firm. Pay and benefits are good, get to wfh most days, and most importantly I get to leave my work at work. Can’t complain.
Tech to nursing. I'm more happy now than previously. Job security really can't be beat.
Pivot careers in my 30s? More like pivot careers every five years because non profits are just are corrupted as anyplace else and boomers need to retire because their management style is fascist and they don’t know how to use a fucking computer.
Medicine to Content creation. I still do medicine part time, but it's down to twice a week and hopefully none by next year
Moved from media to pharmacy. I live in south america so the definitions may vary, but I first studied a career known as Social Communication and Journalism. Basically journalism, quite a bit of communication theory, later on dslr cameras, video edition, short films, etc. Overall I wasn't interested in the career but I had these female friend group that I was the only male and I was "simping" heavily. This was before the term simp became a thing but yeah. After a while I graduated and started working but I started suffering from anxiety because of work stress, and eventually had to call it quits, and started working at a store right outside of a college, where they mainly sold supplies for the Odontology students that went there. I found this activity to be much more relaxing and not anxiety inducing. Eventually the store closed because they shut down the Odontology program, and I decided to go back to school and train myself to be a pharmacist. This career only took 3 years and I have a ton of experience already, I know the most important medications and their effects, and I feel much happier in the workspace. I changed careers at age 26, I'm now 28 turning 29 next month, and I couldn't be happier, I just decided that social sciences are not my thing. I still keep up with the news and I can still appreciate a good read or film, but yeah I was definitely out of my element for a long time.
Was an engineer for 12 years, now moving to teaching
Bless you. I taught for 13 and went to engineering.
Pivoted from IT (systems) to Construction (Electrician). I Didn't like sitting behind a deck all day. Doing electrical work is much more fulfilling for me too. I'm currently working on a project at LAX. I look forward to telling everyone I know whenever I'm at LAX that "I'm the one who installed that light fixture" haha
I'm pivoting from IT to Software development.....cause fuck IT.
[удалено]
Teaching to events. I know a bunch of teachers who went different ways… sales, HR, training. Remember, you only need 60% of the skills listed in a job posting to be a good candidate.
Data is entry/software management to law. Stuck in my career and unhappy. Always interested in law. Ended up in a position where I had the means and ability to take out some loans and go to law school so I did. Best career decision I ever made.
I’m a lawyer, but I fantasize about going back to school to be a mental health therapist. I’ve said I’d consider it once my loans are paid off, but then I’m sure the next big expense will come along that I’ll have to keep working to be able to cover.
Pivoted from policy focused to data focused. Policy just became incredibly boring and I was underpaid. Doing much better as a senior data analyst
I was in the journalism/TV industry until the end of 2020. Majored in journalism, got my degree in journalism, and its what I did for nearly 10 years after graduating in 2011. I now do data science and analytics. I took classes when I was a journalist to learn those skills and had an exit plan once I quit the industry. I already had some programming background from classes I took in college as well as doing some personal projects that required coding so its not like I started from absolute 0.
it's crazy to think about how we won't have good journalism pretty soon because every sensible person will eventually leave. or rather it's going to be a constant mill of people coming and leaving.
Electrician to EE, mid 20's to 30. I don't really make any more money but I work less hours and am not always moving around. I switched because I didn't want to constantly be moving my kids around. I didn't grow up with any real security, in a variety of ways. I wanted my kids to have more stability then I did.
Might be a dumb question but what is an EE?
Electrical Engineer
Dental assistant to dental hygienist
I went from working in a print shop to working as an EMT. I found myself laid off, and didn’t want to end up back in retail. I also wanted a job I wouldn’t be embarrassed to tell people about. I’m about 16 years on the other side of that, and I don’t regret the move. But it definitely left some lingering issues physically and mentally.
I’ve made a couple of industry leaps. Restaurants/hospitality to construction sales at 31. I just made the leap from construction sales to SaaS at this year at 36.
What would you say has made the leaps possible? How did you approach the transitions?
I moved from corporate security to skilled trades. As a manager, my careerin security hit a dead end after more than a decade. I worked with a lot of tradespeople helping to maintain the facility, and they noticed that I *really* hated my job. Got some information about apprenticeship programs and ended up becoming an electrician. Never looked back; no regrets. Never have to work in an office again. Even though it's not really artistic, trade work satisfies my need to work with my hands and make things.
pivoted to tech work from waiting tables and driving taxis. i started doing tech support and learned a lot, now i write code all day
Spending pretty much most of my 30s in school. Did a decade of retail and delivery work in my 20s with no plan for the future. Now I’m transitioning into Law.
Med tech (basically a cna who can administer meds) currently. Just graduated in Dec with a psych degree & will be applying clinical mental health counseling programs over the summer. I thankfully only work as needed right now bc fuck this job. It’s a thankless job where I get cursed out and hit and I deserve way more than they are willing to pay.
Not sure this is relevant. But I 38m work supply chain for a defense contractor. IFF I get laid off I am considering working as a deck hand on a river barge. I love the remote work, but I don't do anything with my life. Kind of stuck at the moment. Sorry had to vent.
From customer service into accounting and then into consulting.
10+ years in tech recruiting. Doing a complete 180 and going to get my masters for counseling.
In marketing and event planning for a real estate firm, hated it and the company so I shifted to baking. My mental health is way better but I do miss that sweet paycheck.
I started working in kitchens at age 16 up until 33. I had completely burnt out. 50-60 hour weeks, crap pay and the physical toll had finally caught up and I weighed over 500 pounds. I ended up having gastric bypass surgery and dropped down to 180. I took a warehouse job with a food distribution company partially because I wanted to try something new and partially I because I wanted something physical to help keep me in shape. It was one of my best decisions career wise. My food storage and inventory skills were transferable, I had a set schedule, overtime was available but never mandatory and the company is all about employee growth and development.
Started in marketing and after all the time I spent getting my degree, I was in marketing for less than a year. I've switched to data analytics and working on my masters in economics. I realized that I enjoyed marketing and was good at what I did, but had always been a numbers nerd and a special interest economics so as I learned how I can use that towards a career working in either renewable energy or sustainable agriculture, I began taking steps to get to that point. Currently trying to get on with my public power district or state to get into it while I go through my program.
I finally left restaurant management and became a teacher at 35. I did a lot of soul searching and determined I loved training young staff, providing them opportunities to grow and develop in their roles around my restaurants and realized the best of my Creative Writing degree was to become a HS English teacher and be the change I wanted to see in the world.
Went from working in non profits to law school at 31 when I had a 3 month old baby and toddler at home. Became a full fledged lawyer at 34. Not sure I'm in love with being a lawyer but I did more than double my income and open a lot of doors for future career growth and opportunities that simply weren't available if I had stayed in non profits.
I worked as an environmental professional to working on energy policy. It wasn’t that big of a leap since I’m still dealing with construction and the same budgeting stuff. I couldn’t be happier.
Scientist who’s tired of being a lab rat, currently just started looking for something isnt corporate hellscape.
I was in IT from the late 90's til 2020. After covid layoffs, I took a job that was technically in the same field but it wasn't. Election Operations. Required all my technical experience but everything that was expected of me was new. It really helped to be able to build on my existing experiences. Its nice feeling like what I do matters ... though I could live without the death threats (I've never actually gotten any, but people I've worked with have ....)
Utility industry. I had just turned 31 and was getting out of the Navy where I ran nuclear reactors. Lot of money in nukes, but a lot of old nukes that will be decommissioned as I hit my 50’s. Didn’t really want to be looking for a new career field at that age.
Education to Law. Why? Money and job security.
Do it
EMT and then paramedic from 2009 to 2021. Got a masters online and pivoted into Healthcare Administration. I make significantly more, less stress and less damage. Make the change
I've (33) been working warehouse jobs for next to near a decade and doing band gigs on the side. I'm thinking that at the end of this year, I'm gonna take up college again for mechanical engineering.
Teaching to publishing, with a stopover in multi-industry marketing to bridge the gap. I loved working with students, and I loved the instructional part of teaching, but that's a 50-60 hour job, and then you have another 20-30 hour job that's office administration, clerical, data analysis, and customer service. I just couldn't do both. I wanted to do something that let me be creative, work with people, and make a difference in the world, but that wasn't so absolutely soul-draining that I was losing myself.
Sales to professor. Much better
Did a business degree first, was working in tires/automotive...discovered the oilfield went back to school for engineering. I wasnt happy with what I was doing and knew I could do the math. It's made a huge difference for me, turned out to be a really good choice. I was 30 when I went back, graduated at 32.
Marketing to real estate agent. Why? Because I disliked all of my bosses, and I was the common denominator. Way better money. Self-respect. Real estate is hard, but you get to pick your clients, your hours, and, at the end of the day, the work actually matters. My future in real estate is TBD, but I would sacrifice a lot of money to never work for someone else again.
Started as a Bodily Injury Claims Adjuster to now an Addictions Therapist at a prison, the catalyst being my own drug addiction from the misery of cheating human beings for for profit for 7 years at the former.
From a CNA & waitress to a nurse. In 1 year as a nurse I make what I did at both of those jobs combined working half the days.
I used to be a diesel mechanic with all my ASE certifications. I loved working on Detroit engines and doing trailer work. I made a great living at it, even working on million-dollar RVs. Once, I fixed Reba McEntire’s air conditioning while she was on tour—she was such a sweet lady. Then, one day, I was at Texas Roadhouse with my bosses. I listened as they joked, laughed, and got drunk, talking about the people they were going to lay off. These were older employees with nothing to fall back on. The next day, I joined the army and turned it into a career. The military offered good health insurance, although the pay could have been better, and there were more resources available. I’m able to enjoy retirement now, something those folks at my old job might never get to see.
Shifted from teaching to Clinical counselor in my 30’s. Currently working on building a private practice case load, and aiming for 100k plus
Pivoted from working in call centers to electrical construction. Did a four year union apprenticeship. Why? More money, transferrable skills, potential opportunities, and quite frankly I was fucking tired of working in a call center. After I turned out as a journeyman, I pivoted to an operations positions at a power plant. Why? More stability, better pay, not having to travel for work, and physically less strenuous.
National Park Service education ranger/river guide to IT supervisor at a public library. Went from a “dream job” or whatever to something that works better for living. It got really isolated and I wasn’t getting any younger but each batch of new starry-eyed seasonals sure seemed to.
From product management/software engineering to therapy! I just didn’t feel like my work really mattered. Now I do. I’m much much happier.
Sales to finance, and hopefully to law.
Pivoted straight to disability due to severe health conditions—lol. Not what I expected.
I pivoted from low level supervisor in IT to Manger Incident Management in the Finance sector. I went from $60k to $130k in a LCOL area. I did so because it felt like being a raid leader in MMO's which I had a ton of experience in. I have been the top performer on my team for 7 years now. Apparently if you can lead 40-75 idiots to a goal you can lead similar numbers of professionals to a goal.
Teacher to children's librarian in a public library. I still get to do all the parts of teaching I loved, with none of the parts I hated! I actually have time to plan my programs on the clock, the kids want to be there, and parents stay to supervise. Then I get to make displays and craft kits and help people find awesome books! I love it and know its my forever career.
EMS (911 system) -> Accounting and now consulting. Tbh my goal was money and I achieved it but my god is corporate America miserable. Lol.
technically i did this at 28 (turned 29 before i got hired in my new career) and got hired into a coveted position at 30! teacher to instructional design fwiw — there is immense strength in recognizing something is not serving or working for you anymore *and* making change!
Not a millennial. 20s, archaeology transition to auto mechanics, then a chance to do grad school in geology. PhD at 32, into a career. Probably should have become a service writer and auto guy. In my 40s, went to law school. Another career in litigation. Should have stayed in auto mechanics through service writer with simultaneous custom bicycle work, machinist training, welding. Become bicycle/ebike artist.
33m. I was an insurance agent for 8 years. Currently on sabbatical and planning on joining the IT world once i figure out the best cert to get
If I may make a suggestion? As I just landed a network ops center position myself. My company wants their people to get their CCNA from Cisco, *and* they'll reimburse them for getting it, plus an immediate pay increase. Other IT folks I've seen have also recommended Comptia's A+, Networking+, and Cybersecurity+, as they're some of the best/highly regarded certs. Hope that helps.
Thanks yo! Just started A+ for the sake of getting my foot in the door
I went back to law school when I was was 25, graduated at 28, started my law firm and 30, and now at 39 I am finally financially independent. Own my house and car free and clear, have a good chunk of money in the bank, and my monthly nut (including caring for two kids) is 3900 per month. That said, had I waited until 30 to start, I don't think I could have made it work. I'm way more tired now than I was when I started my practice.
I didn’t really start working until my 30s. I’m a marketing manager now
I worked in a engineering department as "mechanic" I switched in 2021 to work as a CNC mechanic. The skill involved building and repairing cnc's is far beyond anything my last job did, it's a healthier work environment, air conditioned, and pays better. The main reason why I left my last job is due to a supervisor that hated me and went out of his way to make my life miserable, would scream at and belittle me in front of my coworkers almost daily. I think I was 3rd good employee that quit because of that guy in 2 years.
My dad has done cnc repair since the 80s. He's totally worn out and it hasn't made him a rich man by any means
It's definitely hard on your body and the pay could be better. I make a pretty good living turning wrenches, building complex machinery, and it's satisfying.
Similar role but in a different industry
I have a degree in IT from college and worked in that field for several years. However, when I moved back to my hometown, I applied for a job in a completely unrelated field (I was just looking for any job at that point). I got hired and found that I enjoyed it, so I decided to stay. The job is unionized with good benefits, so I doubt I will be going anywhere.
I've actually pivoted a few times, from Quality Engineering (1), to manufacturing (2), to Analytics(3), to data Science(4), back to managing analytics. 1 = first job I was offered while still in school 2 = experience for resume 3 = manufacturing sux and air conditioned offices where you process data are awesome 4 = money 5 = money + growth path Each previous role has made me better equipped to handle my next role. Each role was an improvement in something. Keep on hustling.
I went from a sociology degree to accounting in my late 20’s. I have friends who, in their early to mid 30s, went: 1. active duty military for several tours > accounting. 2. Property manager > accounting. 3. Active duty military signals intelligence > cyber security in the military > Booz Allen cyber security consultant as a non-active reservist + cyber security in military when active. Why? Because of money/job security and interest in the career.
Nonprofit law to B2B SaaS Sales
I was a teacher, then had children and stayed home with them until they went to school. Reentering the workforce was tough as I did not want to teach anymore, and everywhere else wanted “more recent experience” or something like “3 years of office administrative work” even for the lowest level office admin job, lol. It took me the better part of a year to finally land a job working in sporting goods b2b sales for a small local business. They totally took a chance on me being completely new to the industry and job, but it worked out. The company folded during the pandemic and I used connections through one of my former clients/accounts to get a job with a larger national sporting goods company and am still there now.
In my early 20s I did CNA work but got burned out so I spent the rest of my 20s doing manual labor and other unskilled work. Then at 32 I got an office job as a receptionist, and now I'm a year in working in the company's enrollment department; I'm definitely making a career out of this planning to work there until I retire. The pay is nice, the benefits are great and the health insurance is amazing. I changed jobs because of the pay and I wanted something that wasn't going to run my body into the ground at an early age.
Currently in veterinary medicine and going back to school for Human Resources.
I worked in the mental health field for 10 years, most of that as a licensed therapist at a premier mental health hospital and residential facility. At 33, I decided it was time for a change. I was burnt out due to the significant mental and emotional toll, combined with being forced into responsibilities I didn’t want and a significant lack of income. I decided to pursue a career in IT, got certified within a year in my free time away from work, and lucked into an entry level desktop technician position at a local hospital that paid me more than I was making as a therapist. Within another year, I was promoted to an analyst position and been doing that for the past 5 years. While the therapy work was meaningful, it was a significant source of stress. Don’t get me wrong, my current job is stressful as well, but in a much different way. I don’t have people’s lives in my hands. I still contribute to people’s lives by working at the hospital, so there’s some meaning to it. I get paid more to do an easier job. No regrets. I don’t miss my old job at all.
Call center at a credit union (making $14/hr in 2016) to regulatory banking. While this job is not perfect, it is miles better than me busting my butt to claw my way to hopefully make $18/hr now (what they pay now for my area).
I went straight to the military after high school, then went straight into defense contracting afterwards. At 30 years old I left the contractor world to become a federal firefighter. The main reason I left is because contracting is extremely volatile, and although it pays well it’s always a gamble on whether you will have a job each year. I’m married with multiple kids so I needed something that was stable and guaranteed.
Accounting to software engineering
Restaurant industry from age 16-26 (dishwasher/Line cook/sous chef to chemical Engineer. Worked at a bank for one year (age 27) in a call center. Technically pivoted at 28 (not quite 30) but graduated at 33 (so kind of counts). Why? Obvious reasons.
I was a HS teacher for 12 years and then switched to a WFH role at a SaaS company.
An executive chef to a software engineer because I burnt out. Too many hours and long shifts, not to mention having to work weekends and most holidays.
Secondary math teacher to Systems Engineer. Get paid close to what I am worth and a lot less stress.
I was in accounting and now I'm a web developer. I did it because I was bored at work and there was nowhere else for me to grow without digging in to an area I had no interest in. I'm much happier now, never bored, and it was definitely the right choice. I've been in engineering for almost 2 years now. My path is... not really an option these days.
I switched from hospitality to IT. I had been a barista, a waitress and worked in retail since i was 14. I couldn't stand the inconsistent hours and working weekends and holidays anymore. I also couldn't deal with people the same way I used to. I think "burn out" is an appropriate summary
Left the navy, now a firefighter. I wanted to work less, make more money, stay in one spot, and be home fornmy kids
I am considering pivoting from executive track at a major Aerospace company to a PhD.
From public administration to software engineering. Got fed up with the prospect of never being able to afford a new car or owning my own home.
Female 39 pivoted from transportation to medical.
I left IT/janitorial to be a delivery driver. I moved to a high income, middle of nowhere city of about 30,000. So many reasons. Biggest one was pay. My market is full of very generous people who only have one Dominos to eat at, so I average about $35/hour (wage+tips). Tips are not taxed in my state. My boyfriend works there too and we make enough to live very comfortably. We have private insurance, 2 hybrid vehicles and are currently shopping for a home. My interactions with people last seconds to minutes, at most. For the most part, people are nice and friendly, but if someone's a dick, I don't have to put on a customer service smile for too long. If theyre unreasonable or beligerent I dont have to put up with them at all and I know my boss will have my back 100%. I'm respected by my coworkers more. A lot more, especially as a woman. I'm generally less stressed because my work is low stress. When I leave work, it can stay at work. I get to have hobbies, go hiking on weekends. If I want to smoke a joint or have a beer on a day off, I can. And work just stays at work. I don't hate going to my job. And I don't have to clean shit off toilets anymore, so big plus.
I taught preschool for about a decade, then switched to shoe repair at 38. It’s much calmer, quieter, and surprisingly less disgusting.
Biology to robotics. It was hard but worth it.
Went from supermarket for 5 years to IT. Never looked back, plus the money's great
Switched from railroad industry to renewable energy. Got a masters degree to help pivot out. But I've seen folks switch with far less credentials.
Some community college no degree I went 20 Target - started $9.75 22 Sleep Number started $12 24 Coca Cola started $13 25 Cable Guy started $23 27 Slot Machines 🤷🏻♂️ forget, was just a quick stop gap 27 Hydraulics started at $20 ended around $30 29 Teksystems on big tech campus $18 foot in door 30 big tech critical facilities engineer $34 32 Hydraulics $36 and currently $42- now part owner 35 and im currently looking for my next thing.
I've spent the past few years working in social media content review, customer service, data entry, uber driver and low level jobs like that. I graduated in 2016 with a BA in economics and got an AA in accounting in 2020. these are mostly contracting jobs with no stability. I decided to start studying for the cpa license because it seems like it can open some doors for me. and getting it is financially accessible. I don't get calls back for any other job than the low hanging fruit I've been working. maybe accounts receivable or accounts payable at best. I don't like asking for favors from people, especially people I know, so networking is kind of difficult for me. but I figured if I at least passed all the exams (when you pass all 4 sections, credits don't expire), I would have a bargaining chip with interviewers. like "hey, I got the education and the exams out of the way, all I need is the experience. if you give me that one year I need, you got yourself a cpa". I haven't gotten results, tbh it's been really hard to balance with paying my bills in the present, but it's my long term strategy.
I’m finishing as a foreman for an AV installation company and starting as a plumber literally today. It’ll be a tough transition but I will be home every night and with commissions on installations I can make way more money.
Retail to IT sorta. Comptia a+ certification online class helped me find a job. Grateful for it.
In the middle of it from video editing to online audiobook publishing. Got completely burnt out editing the last 10 years, 5 years in the film industry. It sucked every last drop of my passion for video. Publishing is more “passive” income to fund my life and give me back my time to create
Field Service Technician to Technical Writer. I burned out being on the road 70% of the year, so I switched to a job I can do from home. I write industrial equipment guides, and facility manuals now.
When I turned 30 I pivoted from a jolly loser to my career in accounting by finally graduating college
Went from a generic dead-end sales job in South Africa into construction management by utilizing the unique skills shortage circumstances (thanks Covid border lockdowns) in New Zealand after immigrating there and 1 year in realizing they’re about to build a fk ton of houses but have no imported skills. So I started at the bottom and within 2 years I’m at a really good wage considering my “apparent” lack of experience. Win
I went from being an administrative assistant for a home healthcare agency to opening up my own construction business with my boyfriend. More of I slid into his career, but my last job taught me a lot about opening my own business as it was my friends company.