By Jeff Altman, Big Game Hunter
EP 1763 Many people have trouble finding a job or launching a career and forget that there are certain careers that are in demand but in short supply.
Stop being so “professional”!
I’m thinking about a younger audience for this video – people in their 20s, and for some of you the typical stereotype is living in your parents’ basement. Let’s think of it like “you haven’t figured out what to do with your life and career yet”. If this is you, then this is the video for you. It might also apply to people who are in the middle of their career and are like, “I really think my job sucks. I don’t enjoy doing it anymore. What do I do next?”
I’m telling you, for many of you, there are so many careers out there that you just don’t notice. For me, it came about because I was talking to someone about my small town, Asheville, North Carolina.
Asheville is a town that basically has some basic occupations. You can pursue a career related to medicine as there is a big hospital here. You can work in the hospitality industry. You can take your work with you. That’s what this video is about. The fourth category is those who provide services to local residents. What kind of service or those? Plumber. electrician. carpenter. Home inspector…you know where I’m going?
A lot of you are very focused on your work, so you don’t get your hands dirty because you’re wearing a nice shirt and maybe a tie and you’re working in an office somewhere. You’ve lost sight of the fact that there are so many professions that have disappeared or are disappearing, not because there’s no need, but because, frankly, there’s just not the labor force out there to do it.
Most People Miss What Hiring Managers Want
So, think about it. Where there are houses, there needs to be restoration companies. For a plumber. I belong to the BNI chapter and there is a plumber there and there are over 20 weird trucks on the road. They are always working. All in all, these are high-paying jobs, and there are many places that are in dire need of talent.
There are jobs in manufacturing that require training, and there are factories that will train you and then hire you if you get good grades and don’t act like an idiot during training. After the training you have the opportunity to land.
So, think about it. Go explore. Talk to people who do this type of work. Just call and talk to some place and say, “Hey, listen, I haven’t really launched yet. I’m one of these college grads who doesn’t want to serve coffee at Starbucks, and I’m thinking about getting into your field. Can I spend 1/2 hour talking to you about what it’s like to be (fill in the blank)?” Someone will spend some time with you. They may even pay to send you to school for training. Obviously, you should have the ability to work in these areas and, perhaps, tell a story about how you built such and such or fixed such and such when you were a kid. You shouldn’t look for a job just for the sake of looking for a job. The idea is to be able to do that as well.
