I've been a mechanic for about 18 years so far. I started in a two bay, family owned, small 'taters repair shop that only did smaller repairs and gravy work. That didn't bring home a whole bunch of money for me, but it was enough, and also really didn't offer much of a challenge for me once my 'green' wore off. I moved to a sprawling six bay shop in '04, owned by a very callous, rather fearless, and very knowledgeable old fellow that would take in and repair most anything. Mantis tiller, to a TD18 bulldozer, and Geo Metro, to 379 Peterbilt; I learned a helluva lot from him, made a lot of cash for him, a better amount for myself than ever before, and now the biz belongs to me, and his daughter since he decided to retire to working on tractors, and equipment exclusively. Currently, my life is pretty good. I make what I need and then some, do what I love, get what I want, and put a little away for retirement every year.
I've never worked at a franchised repair shop, or a dealer because of the hyper-competitive atmosphere, and the political hierarchy that every mechanic there has to claw their way thru in that environment. Some of the pay rates, and such are not quite fair to the mechanic. Asphaltgambler can expound upon this; he's posted on that subject a couple of times and really made me appreciate where I've worked so far. I know I could have POSSIBLY made a little more money, but the two private shops I worked for payed me a decent salary, and I would rather have a consistent income instead of one that fluctuates with amount of work available. Plus, I like having a little exposure to my customers, and take a the time to explain the 'how come and how much' to people that trust me with their vehicle. I know that they appreciate it very much, too.
I'm sure some of you have noticed I've been around here more since before Christmas. We decided to close shop 'till the 5th. Since I'm currently the ONLY guy doing repairs, and I'm half owner, WITH the customer base my former boss-turn-landlord built up for 30 odd years, my days are 12 to 14 hrs long. It's still not a job to me yet, because I still really enjoy what I do, but down time is a cherished commodity for me anymore. I've got a fellow coming in to work full time starting on the 5th, so I'll be able to cut back my time there. (Yay!)
I can't help but say that there's a steep learning curve to the trade these days. Working on only one marque will be much easier than having to work on anything that stops out front, but even that isn't easy anymore. The tools necessary, and the information needed to be competent is mind boggling. I remember about a year ago Fastfred made a post here comparing his tool bill over the years to a mortgage, and that buying a house is cheaper by far. He's right.
Wear on your body is another factor, like folks before pointed out. When you have to do the job as fast as you can, and as competently as you can, because somebody else will get the privilege if you can't, then you are FORCED to overwork yourself. Like I said, I was never in a dealership environment, but in order to satisfy the the amount of business we've had, and to do so under the pretense that some customers that you have to send away because you can't be timely may not return, I've been nearly maxed out for the last 80 work days since my last hired helper had to go. I gotta say that it has progressed my age beyond my years a little bit. A fellow on the cusp of his 40's shouldn't have tired feet, sore knees, and a sore back, but I do. My hands shouldn't look 20 years older than the rest of my arms, but they do. So long as people rely on me, and I enjoy my job, I got to keep on.
If you get into the trade, I guess the biggest blanket statement I can say is be prepared to make a monetary investment, and protect yourself both physically, and financially.