A predominately outside and varied work life. How has yours been?

[Jwoodgardenmaintenance]

Im only 21 got kicked out of school on an off throughout my last 3 years there left with a C in maths and the rest of my subjects was a fail then went on to colledge and done a 2 year apprentiship at my local fast fit tyre centre doing tyre fitting and servicing then left there and went in to be a drain technician for a mate was there 1 year got sick of the hours so went onto a new build building site road building driveways drainage and landscapung contract ran out abd after that registered as self employed and done my own landscaping and get the odd job off a local tree surgeon dragging brash and feedjng the chipper but want to go in for my cs 30/31/38/39  and just learn the trade but need to pass my driving test first 

[felixthelogchopper]

3 hours ago, Mark Bolam said:

I enjoyed school and did well, leaving with 9 O Levels and 4 A Levels.

Did a gap yar to save a bit of cash before going to Uni (I drank it all).

Bar work, labouring on building sites, cleaning out shitters and washing pots for the army at Otterburn camp.

All good experience.

Got an Honours degree in Civil and Structural Engineering from the University of Sheffield, but couldn’t get a job easily (1993).

Mate from Uni asked if I fancied working on a road job for Alfred McAlpine in Kent.

Chucked my stuff in an Adidas bag and got on the train to go and live on site in a caravan.

Did a year for Macs then a chance meeting in a pub got me in to doing line-of-sight surveys for the then unheard of mobile phone networks.

10 years odd of big money and flash cars, working all over the country climbing towers, rooftop surveys and loads of MEWP work.

That work dried up and I was helping a mate with his gardening round when we did a couple of trees with ladders and my full body tower climbing harness (idiot gyppo style). Enjoyed that so started looking into it properly.

Back to college for 30,31,38 and 39.

Met a bloke on my 39 who I ended up working for for 4 years before setting up on my own.

A knee op put me on crutches for a couple of months so I started working for my wife’s landscape recruitment business.

She won’t let me leave, so I now split between that and tree work six days a week.

 

I still don’t know what I’m going to do when I grow up.

Is that the cover story that Vespasian gave you?

[Baldbloke]

Im only 21 got kicked out of school on an off throughout my last 3 years there left with a C in maths and the rest of my subjects was a fail then went on to colledge and done a 2 year apprentiship at my local fast fit tyre centre doing tyre fitting and servicing then left there and went in to be a drain technician for a mate was there 1 year got sick of the hours so went onto a new build building site road building driveways drainage and landscapung contract ran out abd after that registered as self employed and done my own landscaping and get the odd job off a local tree surgeon dragging brash and feedjng the chipper but want to go in for my cs 30/31/38/39  and just learn the trade but need to pass my driving test first 

Still young and plenty of time to replicate a similar CV to many on here[emoji3]

[Baldbloke]

You try telling the youth of today that . They won't believe you [emoji3]

I usually only tell people about my working life if they are interested. As you say, most youngsters can’t get their head around it.
However, if you saw my mothers fathers career it would make even the most interesting ones mundane

[eggsarascal]

1 minute ago, Baldbloke said:

Still young and plenty of time to replicate a similar CV to many on here

He could do with missing out a few bits of my CV?

[Jwoodgardenmaintenance]

20 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

He could do with missing out a few bits of my CV?

Nearly went down that route a few years ago but met a good woman and moved away from my family and she put me back on the right track☺

[Jwoodgardenmaintenance]

26 minutes ago, Baldbloke said:

Still young and plenty of time to replicate a similar CV to many on here

Theres a lot of cvs on here id like to have further down the line except of a few things ? but i find this thread really interesting. its nice to know that  even though i havent achieved much in education there is still a chance of me making something of myselff yet 

[eggsarascal]

2 minutes ago, Jwoodgardenmaintenance said:

Nearly went down that route a few years ago but met a good woman and moved away from my family and she put me back on the right track☺

You made a smart move by the sound of it. Thinking back over the years it's fair to say it's only been detrimental to work twice and both times the companies I worked for didn't bat an eyelid.... I guess if I'd have tried to get a 'better' job things might have been very different.

[Woodlover]

Started selling stolen stationery at school aged 10 , to teachers and pupils. My older brother and his mates found a way into a local factory. Lasted a few months, gave me a taste for money making about £20 a week.

Had a paper round at 11, had 2 by 13.

Then worked in a bed showroom helping deliver ect at 14 , did this till 16 sometimes clocking 40 hours a week after school and at weekends. Also made money at school renting out vhs videos bought on family hols to Malta, even sold cigs one year at school that my parents did not know we smuggled back.

At 16 I left school and got a YTS job in a warehouse ,40 hours for £40...only did it as parents said did not have to pay rent,earned more at bed shop but did not like that job anymore.

Became supervisor at warehouse when 17 and got pay rise, left at 18 because a 32 year old I was supervising earned more than me and by then I was managing the warehouse as manager too busy in office.

Moved from Slough Town to Burnley , got a job on a stone quarry .Sunday night got drunk , fell over trying to put keys in car door, started at quarry on Monday and by Tuesday morning I could not move, I had slipped a disc falling on the Sunday, so my quarry job ended after 1 day.Got a bit of stick for being a soft sothener for lasting one day but I had slipped a disc.

2 months later started work at a kitchen factory, did not like it and left to go and work in Tenerife as my brother was out there.

Did the night clubs and day time PR`ing jobs for 6 months but after that I was shagged out and drinking a lot every night...Got a proper job at Harry Ramsdens, hol pay contract the lot,about the best job poss...Lasted 2 months wearing that stupid f-ing straw hat and left Tenerife for Slough.

3 months in UK doing an office job for an uncle,and my parents want to sell up and move to Tenerife.

So at 20 I manage their bar/restaurant at night, lasts a year and they sell up...too much hard work for little return.

Then I ran a Holiday Hire company for 4 years until that got sold.Delivered for a printing company at siesta time.

At 25 I moved to Holland , worked in a tulip factory but season was short so was out of work quicker than expected.

Worked in Carbon fibre factory which was a top secret project type of thing, had to sign sht to say could not share stuff or work in similar company for so many years.They went bankrupt 3 months later.

Then I got a labours job at a pre fab cement works, loved the job which was hard but kept me fit,and the pay was more than I could spend...saved a few grand. Soon I got promoted after a year to work on another secret project involving hollow concrete piles. Loved Holland but I thought it is either time to learn dutch or go.

At 28ish I moved back to Saint Annes near Blackpool, did labouring for a general builder for a year whilst living in a caravan on parents drive.

29 moved to Nelson Lancashire and worked in a chocolate factory packing chocolate bars and stuff,absolute sht job but i could get 90 mini mars eggs in my pockets at a lunchtime, they searched you at home time.

3 months later got a job doing ground work on building sites, lasted about 3 years and learnt a lot.

Then did gardening / fencing for a few builders I knew...One day whilst chatting to a plasterer I asked if I could have a go and discovered I was a natural.Was a plasterer with him then for 18 months and then got an opportunity to do up houses.

Did up 100 or so houses in the 3 years that followed until my health let me down, I was working 12 hour days almost every day of the year and thought I was burnt out even though I loved it...turned out 18months of pain later it was a disc in the neck.

Since then I have recovered from an op and stuff and then become a father. At the Mo the misses works and likes to whilst I cook and look after the toddler.

I toy with projects all the time looking for something that I can do full time without any bad side affects to my health but theres not much.I am sure once my toddler starts school I will come up with something.

 

 

[Jwoodgardenmaintenance]

7 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

You made a smart move by the sound of it. Thinking back over the years it's fair to say it's only been detrimental to work twice and both times the companies I worked for didn't bat an eyelid.... I guess if I'd have tried to get a 'better' job things might have been very different.

Something needed to give otherwise id of been behind bars now . The first job i had was a brilliant job but it ended because me and the new boss had a fight because of my stupidity (Dyslexia) so gave him a good punch and few days later got my P45