Starting a new career at 38 - worth it ?

What do you do now? What do you think you want to get into?
 
sub_thug said:
What do you do now? What do you think you want to get into?
Click to expand...

I'm an FTO that trains and certifies officers for high risk security details for the state. I enjoy my job at times, but overall I've lost the desire. I don't want to become a cop. I'm thinking about starting over.
 
Defanged said:
I have a girlfriend, no kids. 100% debt free. I'm currently making $60K but have peaked in my dept. I want to get to $75K or higher but don't mind leaving for the same pay.
Click to expand...
Keep in mind, if you switch careers you'll be entering that field as a beginner, at a beginner's salary. The odds of changing fields and getting a new job at the same salary you're getting now is pretty low. It seems you should be able to tread water at a lower salary for a few years, just something to keep in mind.
 
Defanged said:
While I currently have a solid state job I could retire well from, I've lost any/all desire to do it anymore. I've been here for almost 10 years, and I've been promoted twice in that time.

The pay is decent and good benefits, but there is absolutely nothing about the job which challenges me. I feel that it has changed in direction and things just seem different from how I remember them.

Is 38 too old to start a new career ?

I'm hoping to get advice from guys older than 35 who might have done this.
Click to expand...
Wow this could have been me posting. Exact same situation. The thought of another 25 years at this to pension out is just laughable at this point.

Heh, let me know when you figure it out.
 
Defanged said:
I have a girlfriend, no kids. 100% debt free. I'm currently making $60K but have peaked in my dept. I want to get to $75K or higher but don't mind leaving for the same pay.
Click to expand...

Doesn't sound like you really have anything holding you back..is what you're considering getting into related in any way to your current field, or basically starting over from scratch? You'll likely have to take a significant pay cut initially, so factor that.

It might be a good idea, if you're determined to change careers, to write up a super frugal budget, and stack as much $ as you can before pulling the trigger on a change.
 
Grrrr said:
Didn't have time to stop today....dumped 2 scoops of c4 into a shaker this morning and rolled out. No monster for me today. Enjoy your girl sized can of the goat though.
Click to expand...
Thank ben!! Enjoy your C4!! I still have some C4 in my gym bag :)
 
In your case why not. Just depends on what you want to do. I had a state job, although was within my career field. It was my first job out of my internship. I had great coworkers, flexible hours. Worked 4 days a week and didn't even work close to my 10 hr shifts. Live 5-10 minutes away from work (except for the last year). Job was easy overall. Pay was at the low end for my career field, but good benefits. After a while though it got monotonous and not challenging whatsoever. I was so damn comfortable, but decided to leave when a good opportunity was presented. Although it was scary it was the best decision ever. My skills have increased ten fold. The perks are not as great as a state worker, but I make almost double what I would be making at my previous job. Pretty much the same for my wife too, except she went from state to federal worker.

I have a friend that was a dental assistant. She decided to go back to school part-time while still working in her high 20s to become a RN. It felt like forever, but she finally got her BSN and now works as a ICU RN. In that timeframe she had a baby too. She even wants to go back to school to become a NP. She busted her ass, made sacrifices and it paid off. I'm so happy for them.

My brother-in-law is in his low 30s. He was working construction for my dad and making pretty good money. He decided to go back to school in electrical/computer engineering. I think he has 3 more semesters and he will be done. They just had a baby too a few weeks ago. Lucky for them they live in one of my parents house all to themselves for free. My parents could easily rent that place out for $3500-3800/month.

It's never too late. Just find something that you are passionate about that you can make a decent living on.
 
its never too late for anything if your head comes up with any doubt just relay to this solid mantra: two magic words; FUCK EVERYONE
 
i started a new career and in my early 30s, i know plenty of people who changed in their 40s and 50s.

but you can't half ass it, and don't quit your other job until you've got your next plans lined up.
 
Defanged said:
While I currently have a solid state job I could retire well from, I've lost any/all desire to do it anymore. I've been here for almost 10 years, and I've been promoted twice in that time.

The pay is decent and good benefits, but there is absolutely nothing about the job which challenges me. I feel that it has changed in direction and things just seem different from how I remember them.

Is 38 too old to start a new career ?

I'm hoping to get advice from guys older than 35 who might have done this.
Click to expand...

I crave your job lol. I switched at 42 and hit a home run pay wise and challenging wise but im stressed alll the time. But in my first year alone I was out of debt and had 20k in the bank and 45k put in a 401k. After 3 years I would love the stability and stress free job you have.
 
Defanged said:
I have a girlfriend, no kids. 100% debt free. I'm currently making $60K but have peaked in my dept. I want to get to $75K or higher but don't mind leaving for the same pay.
Click to expand...
Then yes, I'd look for a new career. What are you thinking about going into?
 
I feel ya, TS. I'm goin to be 35 this October 3rd, and come October 22nd I will have been at my state gig for 10 years and become vested in the pension system as well.

I'm a Web services programmer. Most of the time I sit around twiddling my fucking thumbs because when not developing I'm doing support for the Web applications my team had built. But there are rarely any issues, and practically all new development is through this new Pega environment that I have yet to be trained in using.

It is literally the most unfulfilling career.

I'm thinking of making the jump into private industry once I get vested, a few of my buddies work for a software company involved in the pharmaceutical industry. They are looking for .Net developers.

It's tempting, but I'm still paying down student loans and remodeled my kitchen and two bathrooms on credit. Can't take too big of a hit salary wise.
 
Defanged said:
While I currently have a solid state job I could retire well from, I've lost any/all desire to do it anymore. I've been here for almost 10 years, and I've been promoted twice in that time.

The pay is decent and good benefits, but there is absolutely nothing about the job which challenges me. I feel that it has changed in direction and things just seem different from how I remember them.

Is 38 too old to start a new career ?

I'm hoping to get advice from guys older than 35 who might have done this.
Click to expand...
A lot of people do this. Even when you stay at the same employer for long enough it's good to switch what you do there to learn new skills

I went from working on cars and selling service at shops at 20 to going back to school at 24 for journalism... writing for publications part time while in college until graduation at 29.. to working in product support for an automotive sales and marketing company at 30 to working in the lab at said company doing quality control testing at 36.

I have been fortunate to push for and get opportunities to learn new things here and I'm sure I'm not done diversifying.. here or at another company.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Forum statistics

Threads
1,236,970
Messages
55,458,084
Members
174,787
Latest member
Freddie556

Share this page

Back
Top