So, I’m looking for a career change since I’m probably going to move to a city of approx 200K people. What’s something that everyone needs either it’s simple or more complex?
Not interested in funeral services 😛
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Do you know any CAD? Civil is desperate for CAD drafters and designers. Doubled my pay. I design Substations now.
I’ve done some in the past yes. Interesting… Will explore thank you.
Salespeople. I’m going to get downvoted for this, but there’s always good sales jobs for the right person.
If you’re willing to deal with the later costs on your body, learn a trade.
Plumber, electrician, HVAC. Everyone needs something serviced, it’s just getting your name out/getting with a good company. Bonus, these things can follow you anywhere. Big city to small townships.
Welding is another solid one. Good welders can be in high demand.
Again, be forewarned, take care of yourself now, and be ready for it to catch up with you down the line. It’s rough on your body.
Came here to say electrician. Or anything related to utility (gas, electric, water, Internet, transportation) maintenance. These are often “we need someone 365 days a year” jobs, because they are literally the ones maintaining infrastructure for the rest of us, but those jobs also pay well and are in demand everywhere there are people.
If you’re not qualified for that stuff, consider starting with something like Flagging/traffic control. You’ll start as the poor sap holding a sign in the rain, but you can study and eventually become the person who designs/approves the traffic control plans, etc etc. Pretty much all utility work requires traffic control.
Surveying/Right of Way/GIS, if you’d rather work in a cube
Only thing with welding over plumber, HVAC and electrician is they are likely going to be needed at a specific location ie industrial plant, construction or automotive stuff they may or may not be in that town and he has to travel to get there.
what is your goal? Are you planning on moving to a different city and employeer every year, or just want to settle down in aspecific place?
there are lots of jobs. However some places have specifit needs. Some jobs can be worked remote from anywhere. Some jobs depend on word of mouth so you can’t move after getting the skills.
Settle down there. Remote jobs seem interesting though usually require an IT degree.
Just one word: plastics.
Garbage men. You can shut down a city pretty well by not collecting any garbage. But I hope you’re not in the USA. The way I hear it it’s mostly really hard dangerous manual labour in that backwards country.
In what country is it not?
I worked summers in high school with my town street maintenance department, shoveling asphalt in the Virginia heat and other assorted fun tasks.
One day the trash department was short a body and my boss volunteered me to help them for the day. It was the single hardest work day of my life, and we were done with our route by noon. I have no end of respect for the people that do that job.
Hand jobs and cheeseburgers
I don’t know if he’s making good money or anything but in my town of around 100k there is one guy who is a bit of a jack of all trades (and to me it seems he could be a master as well, but I wouldn’t know). He does stuff like copying keys, leatherwork, sharpening knives and so on. This is the guy you go to if you need some more obscure thing done. Might be something for you if you like that sort of stuff.
In a city with no prominent industry, people will always needs healthcare, childcare, food, and maintenance on their belongings.
Healthcare: doctor, nurse practitioner, nurse, dentist, dental hygienist. Skin and hair care might be stretching the category, but everyone needs haircuts.
Childcare: teacher, ECE, nanny. Big spectrum here from no training required to professionally registered.
Food: production, supply, distribution, and sales. So farmer (but that’s capital intensive), food maker (baker, chef, cook, butcher) or distributor or seller.
Maintenance: vehicles (tires, oil changes, body shop, parts, detailing), homes (carpenter, painter, gas tech, electrician, window installer, roofer, landscaper), appliances (appliance technician), power equipment (mechanic, blade sharpening).
Probably more, but that should be a pretty decent list to start with, and all should be pretty portable no matter where you go, save for certain licenses that may be specific to a state or province.
Basic human needs,
Food, water, shelter. Go into any of these and you should be good.
Long term needs would add healthcare, education.
Does the city of $200K have advertisements for city jobs? Rather than trying to be universally employable, maybe cater to where you actually are/will be?
Starting during the Great Depression, my grandmother insisted that every one of her children become either a teacher or a nurse, because those were the only people who were never out of work during the Depression. Both can be hard jobs (in different ways), but if you’re looking for something where you’re constantly employable, that’s where I’d start looking.
Nearly every single business either employs a full time CPA or uses a CPA firm to check their books.
You said you needed something more immediate, I’d say there’s nothing wrong with being a waiter / waitress / bartender while learning something else. They’re not the most secure jobs for sure, but they’re not exactly going extinct.
Alternatively, hotel staff make a lot (at least a lot for the small town I grew up in).
If you’re looking for a trade skill - HVAC, plumbing and being a mechanic will all be skills that will stick with you through life and they all pay pretty well.
Truck driving is really, really in-demand right now. If you’re willing to drive 12-14 hours some days, shower at travel stops and sleep in your cab (at least, that’s what I’m hearing a lot) then that could be for you.
Like my grandmother used to say, there will always be a need for teachers and medical professionals.
Not promising either are easy to attain or will pay well though, much less have good working conditions.
Good luck!
