When I was fresh out of school, they opened a brokerage in the building where I worked on the first floor. So I would pass this place very day, sometimes several times. There was a young guy that worked there when it opened, and I watched within 6 months he put on something like 40-50 pounds. It was really disgusting. I think all he did was work and watch CNBC or Bloomberg.

Hmm, toast? How does that explain Jim Kramer?

I had a guy call me once, and I swear I used a line from a movie..."I only deal with 6 figure deals..." or some nonsense. He called me a month later. A month after that on my cell. Some folks don't have a clue.

Len, how's the biz doing? I guess things haven't gotten any better? :(

Steve, I'm just spitballing so I have some direction in the event of bad news. The business is still my main concern and we have hope(a little at least).

Thanks, they were just hiring ATCs here.

if you're gonna go into sales i'd suggest looking into the insurance biz.

or, what about sales in the field you had a bsns in? you have a base of knowledge that would put you ahead of the game vs. somebody who is just looking for a paycheck. lots of traveling salesman think a $150k year is something to be ashamed of.

With all due respect...it's your biz to lose isn't it? Someone once told me to do what you love and the money will come. I didn't believe it at the time, but it's working. You just seem to be "distracted" is all. (I only base this on your posts...).

Good luck!

Just saw this thread. The air traffic controller position is something I mentioned to my son. http://msn.careerbuilder.com/custom/msn/careeradvice/viewarticle.aspx?articleid=1226&SiteId=cbmsnhp4122 6&sc_extcmp=JS_1226_home&GT1=10785&cbRecursionCnt= 1&cbsid=044475c9b15b4b5ca4a078655a88784b-254882615-WM-2

Len, it's good to see that you are considering other options, but as a manufacturing in America type of guy, I'm still rooting for your business to come out of this mess.

That being said, I would doubt you'd have any trouble landing a job as a manufacturing manager, but you might need to relocate. Experience seems to matter much more than a degree, IMO. I've been looking at jobs in the Seattle area which pay in the $60-100k range, but the economy there is highly dependent on the big fish, Boeing.

Sales might be another option. I am far more impressed with a salesman who can actually answer technical/process questions, rather than one who is clearly there to make a buck, but who can "give me the number" of someone who can answer my questions. Your experience as a business owner will give you a leg up, and your customers will appreciate your knowledge.

Which ever direction you decide to go, I wish you the best.

Jim

Terrible article. Great logic: Bill Gates has no college degree. That means you can be successful without a college degree. It however does not mean that it is LIKELY that you will be successful, leave alone wealthy without a college degree. I get tired of the media celebrating college and high school drop outs who end up successful and famous. Not good for the moral of today's kids to say the least. I guess you can write blogs without a degree as well ...

The traffic controller is on top of that list and sounds great. But isn't that a shift job? Serious shift work (nights) is very unhealthy if you do it long term. Other jobs on that list have some hazard pay as well: Would you like to be a nuclear technician or a funeral director? If you don't want to get irradiated or work on dead bodies, at least there is the dental hygienist, where you can poke around in stranger's mouths every day. Really, looking at that list a little harder, you have to admit that a college degree may actually be a good investment. It is not only for the earning potential but also to reduce the hazard and dirt in your daily job.

The blog is from 2008, otherwise we'd find the real estate agent and the loan officer on the list. :D

No offense to any PP members in the discussed professions. These would just not be on top of my list. The best job for someone without a degree is their own business, hands down. ;)

Cheers, George

Amen. Ignorance of the EMH and the reason and wisdom of the Chicago School supports a huge industry, indeed!

Best,

Kurt

Ditto on insurance biz. Case in point: I have a friend whose family owned a successful chain of c-stores/gas stations. He focked off partying in college then moved back home in his mid 20's to take over the family bidness. No degree but 6-7 years of fun.

He threw himself into the family biz, but about 10-12 years ago family lost everything due to a sitiuation not of their making. He ended up going personally bankrupt.

Only job he could find was as regional mamnager of a company that cleaned nursing homes/small hospitals under contract. Paid about 35K a year. But they worked his azz off...and he had to actually do the physical labor if a crew didn't show. But he worked hard to foster relationships with the hospitals/NH's under his company.

After a few years there, some 25 y.o. Business major become his boss and came in and demoted him.

He was lamenting his dilemma...50 y.o.., no degree, dead end job. He began to interview with insurance companies. He asked about one in particular he was interviewig with and I happened to have a client who used to be their district manager but had left to run another major ins company. I intoduced them so he could pick his brain on the company he was considering.

Turns out my client decided to hire my friend.

He then parlayed his former contacts in hospital/NH's to get in and to start to sell ins (and now various investment vehicles) as small group policies. He sells virtually no individual policies/investments.

That was 2 years ago. He's currently making over $200K per year with no end in sight.

YMMV

Good info guys, thanks.

FWIW I freely and openly admit that I screwed the pooch by not getting a degree. My children will be advised.

I just got a little downtime last night after getting home from work real late and was trying to think of other things, things I don't normally get to mull over.

Back to the grind :)

Good that you're thinking about this.

I'd guess the next 5 or so years will be critical for you - it is hard to start something new, in this society, after age forty.

I started a new career at age 36, had a pretty tough time getting the first job as many of the people interviewing me couldn't see hiring someone older than they were. It worked out, but I kind of feel like I got in under the wire.

I don't know much about your industry, and don't know what other industries you might be thinking about switching to, so can't give any useful advice. But there's a lot of experience here.

Explored this option with some friends in (or who have been in) the industry.

The big places like Merrill and Edward Jones, UBS will ask you to take a personality profile assessment and/or an aptitude test. The first will determine how you approach and work through various social, personal and business situations. Example: "How would you approach people at a party? A) Introduce yourself to most of the people B) Find a small group and socialize with them for the duration C) Introduce friends to others at the party"
It also asks about past leadership experiences such as "Were you captain of a team sport"? "President of any clubs"?, "Were you in the military..and what rank"?.....you get the idea.

The aptitude test assesses your general financial and mathematical aptitude. "How is the GNP derived"? Which is larger A) .001 B) 1/1000 C) .0100 etc...some of the finance questions get into fairly specific trading type territory.

FWIR, they call their out-of-the-box sales force Financial Analysts or Advisors and not Brokers.

If you are brought on board you will need to pass Series 7, Series 65 and 66, insurance certs etc. as they will expect you to have the ability to sell any of their product offerings. Essentially a jack of all trades and master of none.

You pass clients off to "analysts" who deal with clients through what is not unlike a call center arrangement. Unless your client invests a large amount you will not handle them as directly as in the past. It basically amounts to being a salesman who passes customers off to the advisers.

I'm sure there are variation throughout the industry and between companies but this is what I saw while considering a career change.

One thing to note is Wall Street is in a contraction, substantial layoffs ongoing, especially at the large investment banks who are struggling to maintain their capital levels. Doesn't mean not a good time to start in the industry, but could make it harder to do so. But, again, I don't know about the retail broker business.

I was told it may not be a bad time to start as many investors seek new blood. The thinking is that clients bail from advisors/brokers who they blame for the the recent negative effects on their portfolio.

FWIU, 90% of "recruits" in the retail space bail within the first two years as they can't gain traction. Unless one has a vast network of well-to-do people who are willing to invest with you it's a long uphill battle.

Isn't he syndicated and wrote books and all sorts of crap? He also doesn't work for a brokerage.

I was speaking more to a fresh-out-of-college recruit. At that point, make one mistake and you are gone. If you are an established money-maker, a few bad predictions won't kill your career.

If I remember right the lifespan of a retail broker isn't that long either. few years for most in the business then they are out looking for something more quiet and less stressful.