You haven't checked back so I will offer my advice without benefit of more insight.

I left the Navy as a O-6 with promises of the next level from all the right people. I was simply tired of "ground hog day" so I retired.

I was really good at what I was doing I just didn't want to do it anymore for the Navy.

As you may have guessed from my previous posts here, I am not frequently Mr. Happy and don't aspire to always be happy: That is unrealistic and pedantic. Any person that tells you they are always happy is to be avoided at all cost.

What you are looking for is to be satisfied with the content of your efforts, the peaks and valleys, the Strum and the other word German's say: There are infinite trade-offs between money, time, effort and satisfaction in whatever the next act is in your life.

Your choice.

BTW, notice I didn't say "do what you love", "follow your passion" or any of the other trite homilies that will leave you broke and suicidal.

Find something you think you will be good at, work hard and be honest with yourself at the three and six month in periods: If you are satisfied with the content of your efforts you may be on to something.

Best of luck. There are more opportunities out there than good people to fill them. Trust me.

So, LeeH, having read all this, what do you think? Any ideas of what you’d like to do? Being financially pretty stable, with a lot of experience and business sense, and presumably a reasonable bedside manner, is a heck of a good place to start from.

Do you like to be public-facing or to be in the back office?

Do you like working alone or with others?

Do you like doing very technical stuff or more general stuff?

Do you want to go back to school for a bit or want to dive right in?

Of all the people you know and encounter, what makes you think “I could / would like to do that”?

Do you need to make a lot of money or could you go for the satisfaction?

Do you see yourself doing the next thing for 5 yrs, 10, 20?

Do you have a good sense of your strengths, weaknesses, skills, failings, tolerance, interests?

What sort of first impression do you make on people - energetic, trustworthy, attractive, empathic, capable, codger, incel, meh, doddering old fool, sex offender?

Hey I thought of something - when I started this biz, I could not find a bookkeeper to save my life. I got recommendations from friends who owned businesses, I called and called, never got a single return call. Seriously. I eventually decided screw bookkeepers, I’ll do it myself. But I think there’s an opportunity there, and maybe in the related area of payroll.

I am a licensed CPA working in Corporate Tax. I hate it and hated it since I started 25 years ago. It pays the bills. Once my 2nd is out of college, I’m off to something else. Sitting alone in an office day after day, year after year is no way to go through life IMO. I’m a people person who likes helping others. I will follow this closely.

Lee, those are good problems to have.

I've got nearly 27 years working in Diagnostic Imaging. Eyeing retirement as soon as they offer it.
There are days I dread walking into hospitals and imaging facilities, but that's kinda rare...but I think it's gaining momentum.
The last 12 months have been just bonkers.

I'm also our Team's Environmental Health and Safety Champ and I'm the "go to guy" for all things safety. I really do dig that stuff.
I could see myself being a larger hospital network safety guy that visits site, etc.

Not certain what I'll do next, but I do look forward to working hard at whatever it is.

Thank you Paul, that's great to hear. I get soooo tired hearing that.
Not saying that can't happen, but to put all my eggs in one basket is a nonstarter for me.

Sage advice.

I think you need help with anger management Scott. :D

That's what being a serial entrepreneur is like - exactly!
BTDT more than once. It's almost like an addiction.

I think the official nomenclature is "kerplewie". I'm on the tech side rather than the effects side so you'll have to check with them.

Weapons are supposed to be safe to 1/billion per unit per year in normal environments and 1/million per unit per event in abnormal environments. There are lots of people working to find (and mend) cracks in that, whether bad-guy or god-driven...

I thought about this thread driving home yesterday evening.

I recommend spending some time looking at how this guys views the world:

https://guykawasaki.com/

I don't agree with him on many things, but his perspective is invaluable. I also use his Five Year Plan spreadsheets, start-up spreadsheets, etc. They have been very effective.

Worth the time.

Edit: At the bottom of this link are additional links to the spreadsheets. I am not recommending you do a start-up, etc, but Guy gives those interested a firm foundation and a potential path forward whatever trail you choose.

https://guykawasaki.com/how-to-create-an-enchanting-financial-forecast-officeandguyk/

I was adopted, and the only things I know about my birth family is that all the women had auburn hair, and I have a half brother who is 4 years older than I am...

So maybe?

We are rebooting right now. We sold our publishing business 4 years ago and sold our commercial properties 2 years ago. We retired onto this 5 acres and are as busy as we can be. We had no plans to go back into business, but that ember Mike was talking about fell in our laps.
We're filing the papers to form an LLC next week and we're starting a quilting business. I'll be 71 in May and she'll be 67. I guess it's never too late.

Thanks for all the replies. Yes, I've come to the PBT in the past looking for inspiration and motivation. I think I get frustrated with myself. I went into the Navy right out of high school because I didn't feel a draw to any certain career. I am the textbook, "Jack of all trades, master of nothing." I can do a little bit of just about everything, but am amazing at nothing. Perhaps that's why my business did well. I could deal with office conflict in the morning, fix a pneumatic saw before lunch, price out health insurance in the afternoon, then key and install a house full of door locks on the way home at the end of the day.

This, this, and this. I got so sick and tired of hearing that over the years as I would hit a wall and wonder if I am doing the right "thing." Work is called work because it is not play. It is not all puppies and rainbows with a paycheck at the end. It's all about balance. I thank God frequently for the door that was cracked before me and that I had the skill set to break through and make it work. There is a lot to be said for timing and perseverance.

Actually, I did follow my interest - not exactly my passion, but a strong interest - when I left engineering to become a publisher. I really enjoyed writing and photography and hated working for someone else. You won't necessarily crash and burn if you go off to do something you love doing, but you do have to understand the difference between loving to do something and making a living at it. If you turn your hobby into a job you'll have to get a new hobby. They are fundamentally not the same thing.

Let me stand up and say it. This is an awesome thread.

There is a lot of wisdom here. Also a lot of looking and longing. I am inspired.

I have been thinking what seahawk said about passion and I think I have to agree. The more I consider this idea and look back at the one time I worked in Corporate America and then met people at social gatherings, everyone in life has different passions and some don't at all. Actually I might say most don't. So I can see why it's an annoying trope.

But it can be done if you are lucky enough. 6 years of Tru6 and I have worked probably 2 days out of every year. It IS play. But that's most everything I've done. When most people say work, they mean work. When I say work, I mean interesting, evolving and challenging. Obviously that can't be for everyone but it helps if you can see the world that way. I can't even imagine spending 8 hours per day 5 days a week doing something that didn't bring joy to my life.

I am glad that Lee is in a really good position in life to be able to sit back and comfortably assess what he wants to do. I hope one of those embers lands in his lap this year, it's starting off to be a fantastic year and will only get better. A lot of opportunities will be presenting themselves as the country opens up again.

How you see the world and your place in it I think is a defining factor in whether you work or not.

I went to a seminar years ago and it was about combining 2 things that you are really good at and evolving a career out of them.

My tortuous path has been:

BS Biochem, MS Chem
Research scientist at a big pharma working on breast cancer, neovascularization, apoptosis, arthritis
Owner of a graphic design business
Work as graphic designer in a different big pharma
Stockroom Manager, Purchaser, Safety guy in an academic chemistry dept (WORST JOB EVER!)
Hazardous Waste Manager for a university which will be my last job.
My financial planner has given me the thumbs-up to retire in two years when I hit 60.

I have spent much time trying to figure out why I cannot be like others and stay in one occupation and build a career and have no answers yet. Seems like the grass is always greener and I believe that trying and failing would be better than dying not knowing.

Lee, have you given any thought to selling either residential or commercial real estate? From your description it sounds like you might do well in either one of those fields.

As for me, here was my midlife career change: four days after I turned 18, I joined the army. Airborne infantryman in the 82nd Airborne, and then a move over into the 3rd Ranger Regiment. I was enlisted the entire time I was in the Army and during that time managed to get a four year college degree. When I was 30, I left active duty, but stayed in the reserves. Crew chief on a CH 47 helicopter. I then went to law school and graduated when I was 35. I stayed in the Army reserves and was probably the only crew chief/lawyer in the military. 30 years later and I’m now retired from both the military and the law.

I would not recommend my career path to anyone.

As someone who sold RE here in Phoenix, I wouldn’t recommend it. At any given time there are 2-3x as many agents in AZ as there are listings. Everyone always has a cousin that does it on the side part time that will cut their fee and you lose out on the deal. I left the game after a year and let my license expire. Only way I would get another is if I was planning on using it to buy and sell investment properties for myself.

If you put together Powerpoint slide decks and Visio diagrams, you could get a job as a business analyst.

I have a bit of a LeeH brain worm working for me. This is important stuff, at least to me. So.

I did a tour in the Navy as a "Detailer" at the Bureau of Naval Personnel. It is a prime gig and an indicator that the next rank is assured. Simply put, you manage naval officer careers and try and ensure they find the right fit for promotion, etc.

I thought, erroneously, that the percentage of folks that wanted to track to the next level would be 80/20. It turns out the ratio was more 40/60. I was the 80/20 guy.

I spent hours on the phone with really smart men and women that were making their way through life, a life I could influence positively or in a negative way.

I learned a lot: I listened and did not ever negatively impact a family...I never forgot that the officer I was detailing had a family, kids in school, a successful spouse, or goals different from mine and, in one case, a horse.

I moved some mountains to make sure the Navy didn't crush folks, trust me.

So: Happiness, family, satisfaction, then how do they transition to the next thing was always the theme, ever present. What do I do next?

Transition to the next thing, the inevitable reboot. Most Naval Officers get their commission at 22/23 and can retire with a pension as a Commander 20 years later, a Captain at 26 years from commissioning...in other words, a lot of tread on the tires; young people, in a relative sense, with skills.

The best at it were exactly like LeeH, thoughtful and honest about what they want in the next chapter.

My advice? Volunteer at one of the Tribal Reservations in Arizona. I'd get out of Phoenix and go south a bit.

It will change your life, alter your perspective and make your next choice less of a burden, more of a gift.

Worked for me.

Best, Lee. I am the age the Beatles sang about...you are a young man, embrace the the day, be of service, then decide.

Lee, can't offer you any advice or changing career but can suggest you go for what interests you

This route has worked very well for me, chose it over money and promotion opportunities

Never once had 2nd thoughts about it being the wrong choice and even after 30yrs of doing what interests me I still want to get out of bed and go to work

Well most mornings I do ;) and when occasionally the mornings turn into weeks of not wanting to go to work, I go and find another company that wants my help

This thread is very heart warming. I imagine this is one of the few places a person could come to find such gold.

Do what you enjoy. Happiness is the only motivation for me.
I'm in my late 20's. Contract through a local district, assistant coached some high school ball this last year and we won state. I run an orchard and been planting seasonal crops for me.

Can make a ton more money local doing other stuff, but i don't care about cash. Pursuit of knowledge interests me. But i like being out in the forest enjoying life

hahaha
All I need are some tasty waves, a cool buzz, and I'm fine. :cool:

I always messed around with cars. My family was typical Leave It To Beaver and not a gearhead in sight. So, after following my nose into one job/opportunity to the next (I was on a Formula 5000 pit crew for a year), one job came at me because I was well versed in fiberglass manufacturing. In fact, I had sort of looked at plastics (Hello Mrs. Robertson) as a career. This particular job took me to the Queen Mary which had just been acquired by the City of Long Beach.

I had to join a union to work the ship. Since fiberglass is initially a liquid, it was considered a coating, therefore. I joined AFL-CIO Painters and Decorators Local 33.

After the QM gig was over I was left with this expensive investment in a union card. IIRC, it cost me $350 in 1970 — you do the math. So I ventured out as a painter doing actual painting knowing nothing about what I was doing. I got fired a lot until this old Dane took me under his wing and taught me enough to hold a job. It was tough work. A 2 man crew was expected to roll on around 90 gallons of paint a day. That was 2 large tract houses or up to 10 apartments. No spraying as the union didn't allow for spraying tp keep more men working.

I lasted 4 years with that and never looked back. But I did start painting houses on my own and worked up to having 3 guys work with me. We took on some odd jobs here and there and I started doing drywall and carpentry.

My next opportunity was to go to work for a large general contractor as a junior superintendent. Sometimes I didn't know what I was superintending, but the job is being a babysitter and nothing more.

I quit and started building room additions and doing alterations and restorations of older properties. These were not all high end jobs, I did a lot of low rent apartments because there was always lots of work in that sector. By then I did know what I was doing and could just about do it all.

Well, I still had that thirst for following my nose and one day I get a call about some French doors. You can install FD's, right? Of course I said having only hung a few doors, maybe 20-25 at that point. So I end up making the frames to retrofit patio door openings and doing this as a sell up for a company installing those plastic sunrooms. I covered 3 counties for them and installed the doors. I thought this was a good business so I started doing some on my own advertising in the newspaper using display ads, not classified. By then it had been 20 years since the Queen Mary and I spent the next 25 years selling and installing doors and windows. Lots of windows.

So what does this have to do with career changes? Doors and windows follow the economy and when a recession hit, things got slow so I'd do other jobs for customers. The last Great Recession ended the window biz. I became a handyman just to make ends meet. Had to sell a couple 911's to pay bills. It was tough and I wasn't getting any younger.

I had always enjoyed fixing things and have hardly ever hired a fix it job out no matter what. Career change: I walk into an antiques store nearby and tell the proprietor that I can repair antiques. I think at this point you get the theme, I fake it until I'm not faking anymore and making a go of it. Been in the antiques repair business now 8 years this January.

Once in awhile I'll go back to contracting if something is really interesting. Better money. The last big reno job I ran was a $300,000 do over of a very classic and architecturally significant 3500 sq ft residence near the county club a couple miles over. That was the winter of 2017-18 and pretty much the end of my shoulder which got replaced later in '18. I've had some problems with that so all I do is the antiques.

This is a great thread and I had thought of doing some consulting AFA historically correct renovations are concerned, but today's market doesn't give a damn. They hire the cheapest labor they can find and cut every corner they can. That is not my life.

And I don't speak Spanish so I don't know what is going on at a jobsite anymore so why bother?

Great synopsis, Zeke. The headline of your resume could read "Journeyman Craftsman" which is not a bad thing at all in my worldview.

I'd like to hear more about what you do, how you started and grew your business. Have always thought your posts on what you do interesting.

Memorable line in a great post Zeke: I fake it until I'm not faking anymore

Also agree about construction. Materials costs, labor, and demanding clients have pretty much burned me out.

I built real estate projects for around 20 years before I started in my early 40s to dabble a bit in seasonal outdoor retail.

I went into it whole hog so to speak, and opened a pumpkin patch. First, with a tenant as a partner operator which didn't work out so I decided to take on all of the risk buying pumpkins, and I bought all of the stuff to make a small neighborhood pumpkin patch. I was really lucky to find and hire and train a really great crew. That I think was the key to success. They are still with me 10 years later. Within the next 4-5 seasons it grew into a regional event. We have a good following because of our emphasis on cleanliness, customer service, good value, and safety. I took 3 years off when I started to build and then open up an Arco AM/ PM gas station. It is now probably the highest grossing Arco in our area, 3 years after opening. It took us 2 years to reach that level. Through it all, and through good and bad tenants operating it and now with me taking it on again, my crew and customers have become my extended family.

Two years ago I got back into pumpkins again, taking back the operation and I moved it next to the Arco when I built a Starbucks on the former pumpkin patch location, which is today a tenant of mine. I also sell Christmas trees. The break even point for the trees is around 1,100 trees and for pumpkins it is around 4 semi truck loads (53' semi trailer full), so it is not for everyone. You have to be almost crazy. But put it this way: Last year I sold 12 semi trucks at one location. That's well over a third of a million pounds of pumpkins. If you type "# Planet Pumpkin" into google, you'll see some of our customer photos over the years. They post photos on social media of the carnival rides, food, pumpkins, face painting, photo booth, etc etc. I can sell over 2,000 trees if I can get them. Last year was difficult because I only got around 800 trees, so it was a loss on trees but a huge profit on pumpkins. We're going to try to rebuild the tree business but it's going to take time.

Last year was strange. I posted one post to Facebook and then just let the chips fall where they may. It was our riskiest year, but also probably our most memorable.
https://www.facebook.com/Planetpumpkin/posts/3534357946585040

I still develop real estate projects. I'm building apartments with partners, but my passion is putting on the seasonal holiday business, growing the retail business, and spending time with friends.

I could probably write a book about it all.... (p.s.: that's my tractor. I was going to disc the weeds, but needed to get some diesel first)

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614439351.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614439672.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614439714.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614439856.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614439893.JPG
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614440013.JPG
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614440111.jpg
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614440431.jpg
https://fb.watch/3W94fH3JWO/

+ getting yelled at a lot and moved everywhere.

BA is the SPAM of the business world. We can be anything you want :)

rjp

Mrs. Lee is a business analyst. She's been capped out for a while, can't really get promoted, doesn't really want to and her workload only ever increases as her employer lays off others and shifts their workloads to the survivors. I don't think she's real happy there other than having to be happy to have a job that pays pretty well. I worry what will happen if they decide to lay her off. She won't make this much money anywhere else, even if she finds a job right away.

That is absolutely fascinating, thanks for putting it all down. I would imagine you could do a TED Talk or something like that, be a guest speaker for an MBA course in entrepreneurialism, etc.

Thanks for the compliment. People who've got entrepreneurial ambition have my respect and admiration too. I would want to take a class that would have us as a guest speakers.

I had an interesting conversation with my son in law a few nights ago. He has an MBA and is a 3rd or 4th level manager at a food production plant. Being at a hiring level, he sees what is available out there, so employee retention is a lot more important to him than to the levels below him. He focuses on solving employee problems. He said he never tells anyone they are a good employee. They wouldn't be talking to him if they weren't having problems as employees. Assuming they do their work well, he doesn't tell them they do a good job, he tells them. "You do your work well." It's a subtle, but a big difference. The work you do is not your job. Most employee's point of pride isn't that they toe the corporate line (which is part of doing a good job), it's that they are good at what they are doing hour to hour, day to day, and they do it well. He leverages that pride in their expertise into convincing them to follow whatever corporate rules they are breaking. (One of them is no smoking on company property)
He can retire with a pension and benefits in 10 years. His ambition is go to work for an electrician. He just wants someone to point him at a job and let him do it. He is appalled at any suggestion I make that he become an entrepreneur. It just doesn't appeal to him, and he is amazed at his mother's and mine addiction to walking the entrepreneur tightrope.

Business Analyst = pimple on a manager's ass

There are a lot of people here who have a great experiences and expertise and valuable wisdom to share.

I think this is what seahawk was talking about in terms of passion. Entrepreneurship is definitely not for everyone.

Stability, to me, is monotony, is soul crushing. But to others it's comfort and the very definition of success.

Well, you can always DIY, but wait!

You can't. Middle management can't / won't figure it out, why they pay us.

rjp