Hi Alwyn
I have a pretty good example for you. My cousin and myself are a year apart age wise, he being a year older. He has always been more mechanically enclined, I have always been good at computers. Up to a point our lives followed exactly the same route. We both "had" to take electronics at school, because that is what the "clever" guys did. We both ended up signing up PF in the Airforce to study electronics. There we washed teleprinters and rewound transformers for 3 years, what a waste of experience - we did get our qualifications though. Then he left to go work for Sasol and started from scratch as an apprentice Analyzer, I left a year later for Sasol to start from scratch as an apprentice Instrument technician. Both because there were no electronic posts available. Both jobs do the same thing - one just fixes chemical instrumentation, the other fixes process instrumentation. Then at one point we were both sent to the mechanical department to run the vibration monitoring department. That is where the similarities end.
You see I always wanted to have my own business, even at school, but when you are young, you are stupid so I just kinda did what everybody else around me was doing and expected to do. I did however always have some kind of business on the sideline. In the airforce it was a mobile disco, at Sasol it was a wedding video business, then a printing business. My cousin on the other hand prefered to just relax and spend time on his hobbies after hours. Then in 1996 the printing sideline started started to become so busy that me and Mel, still my gf at that stage, were having to work through the night. I eventually plucked up the courage to start doing what I really wanted to do - be my own boss. So I decided to give up a good career, with good prospects, to follow my dream. Mel followed me soon afterwards.
It was tough and remains tough working for myself, but I don't regret it for one moment. Despite the fact that after 10 years, and working for some of the biggest companies in SA, the printing never really earned us more than a living wage. I then started an art studio, teaching guys to paint - my father had been doing this for years. Finally I was doing something that I enjoyed, but still not my real passion which has always been computers. Then one Friday I said to Mel - I don't know about you, but I am sick of the printing game. On Monday I am gonna phone all my printing customers and tell them to find another printer because I am now doing web design. She almost had a heart attack, although she agreed that we were getting nowhere with the printing business.
I sold my screen printing equipment to a friend a week later, bought new equipment and gave the 600 odd customers to my sister. 10 years of hard graft was basically given away. We started the web design company on the Monday with not a single customer to our name. We immediately did better than we ever did before for two reasons - the web design business didn't make R10 here, R20 there, it made decent amounts at a time, so we didn't have work through the night anymore. It also did better because we were both doing something we enjoyed. In a year we were able to do things we were not able to accomplish in 10 years with the printing, like buy our house, buy a new car, etc. Now we have moved to NZ and are starting from scratch again.
Comparing myself and my cousin - financially he is much better off at the moment. His house is probably almost paid off, he drives a company car, etc., etc. I am also sure he has the customary fair amount of debt too though that comes with having to keep up the image. I have no debt. Which one is happier? Probably me because I get up every morning and can't wait to get to work, I work till very late at night because i love what i do and it doesn't feel like i am working, he gets up in the morning and goes ugh. Who's career prospects are better? Mine by a long shot - he has hit his ceiling and will have to have a lucky break, or wait for somebody to die, or do the unthinkable - change careers or companies - to get any higher. I doubt he has the guts to do that because he has not challenged himself in that way for 20 years now. I will soon be back up to the same level with only the sky being the limit after that. Who has had a harder road to follow - me, but I choose to follow that road I could never be happy with a boss hanging over my shoulder the whole day.
So to get back to the actual question - who has changed careers. I have, many times.
From electronic technician, to Instrument technician, to Vibration analyst, to printer, to artist, to programmer. Will it be my last career change? No, I am working on the next thing already, although it is still in the programming line for now.
Life is too short to do stuff you don't wanna do, if you are unhappy, make the change. What is important though is that your wife supports you, if you are gonna start all over again, it's gonna be tough and you'll need a supportive shoulder to lean on.
