laid off from carpentry job, considering career change

[samanil]

Hi Mustachians,

I was just laid off from my carpentry job. The silver lining is that I can probably get unemployment for a while, which may be what my body needs most. I burned out last winter after trying to commute in the rain on my bike, and never fully recovered from it. I was implementing mustachianism but WAY over did it, and didn't take into account my own limitations.

I can't help but wonder if I am just too sensitive for this profession, and that I should look for something else. It's very physically and mentally demanding, you're often not treated well or appreciated, and you have to be outside in inclement weather for extended periods of time. I believe I am a highly sensitive person (HSP) and doing carpentry on a jobsite with a bunch of other carpenters is too much for me. It seems like I'm always struggling psychologically with something work related.

That being said, what are my options? I have a degree in psychology, 5 years of experience doing construction, 5 years experience lifeguarding, and some interesting life experience (hiked the PCT in 2016). I'm 34 with a net worth of around 150k.

I'm thinking maybe a job with the city (of Seattle) that isn't particularly demanding but pays decently with decent benefits? My goal is simply something that will allow me to save a little (maybe max out an IRA), allow me to have mostly positive social experiences, and is low stress. I am more Coast FIRE oriented than regular FIRE, as I think I need some work to give me routine and opportunities to socialize. I'll most likely not have kids.

Do you think a temp agency may be a helpful resource? Any other resources that may be of help?

Thanks a lot for any advice.

[darkskys]

Well no wonder why you got burnt out by biking. I imagine your job is really physical and you may have pushed a bit too far. I bet if you worked an office job you may find the bike to be really refreshing.

I’m not familiar with your profession, but can you do carpentry on your own for money to take the pressure off figuring this out right away? Maybe finding a job working with 1 or 2 other people would be a good fit. I don’t have any specific recommendations on a particular job as your criteria is fairly wide.

You may get better responses on recommendations if you shared some more of your interests.

[Dicey]

I'm interested in how someone who has a degree in psychiatry decides to become a carpenter. Not throwing shade; I'm genuinely curious.

[sonofsven]

I'm interested in how someone who has a degree in psychiatry decides to become a carpenter. Not throwing shade; I'm genuinely curious.

I've been on jobsites with folks with Masters  degrees, and one PhD (political science).
Me, I went to Evergreen ;-)

[Dicey]

I'm interested in how someone who has a degree in psychiatry decides to become a carpenter. Not throwing shade; I'm genuinely curious.

I've been on jobsites with folks with Masters  degrees, and one PhD (political science).
Me, I went to Evergreen ;-)

That's nice, but I was asking the person who started this thread. They asked for help and I'm thinking about their situation and trying to come up with useful feedback, per their request.

[sonofsven]

I'm interested in how someone who has a degree in psychiatry decides to become a carpenter. Not throwing shade; I'm genuinely curious.

I've been on jobsites with folks with Masters  degrees, and one PhD (political science).
Me, I went to Evergreen ;-)

That's nice, but I was asking the person who started this thread. They asked for help and I'm thinking about their situation and trying to come up with useful feedback, per their request.

My point is, all kinds of people do construction work. Some highly educated, some not.

[Dicey]

I'm interested in how someone who has a degree in psychiatry decides to become a carpenter. Not throwing shade; I'm genuinely curious.

I've been on jobsites with folks with Masters  degrees, and one PhD (political science).
Me, I went to Evergreen ;-)

That's nice, but I was asking the person who started this thread. They asked for help and I'm thinking about their situation and trying to come up with useful feedback, per their request.

My point is, all kinds of people do construction work. Some highly educated, some not.

My question had nothing to do with levels of education. It was the change of fields that interested me. Let's see what the OP has to say before making any assumptions.

[samanil]

I'm interested in how someone who has a degree in psychiatry decides to become a carpenter. Not throwing shade; I'm genuinely curious.

Oops, I thought I deleted this thread, as I posted it elsewhere and it took off. But to answer your question, I wasn't even slightly career oriented or driven in college so chose psychology simply because I found it interesting (and it was pretty easy). And for the record, I still do find it interesting. I'm usually reading a book about psychology. I love the works of John Haidt, Steven Pinker etc. Currently reading The Boy Crisis.

I'll admit that part of my focus on psychology is me trying to figure myself out (psych majors have this reputation, in my case it's true). So my 20s were basically a journey of self discovery, with no focus whatsoever on money or career. Part of the journey was me hiking the PCT in 2016. That experience was so intense that it forced my hand--after that I absolutely had to keep moving. So I worked as a bike courier for about a year and then, in search of something that actually involved skill and could lead to a decent income, I got into home remodeling. It's kind of funny to me that I was into biking and carpentry--and then discovered MMM whose bread and butter is biking and carpentry.

The only thing that has given me "drive" in the standard sense of focusing on career and money is my discovery of MMM and my resulting desire for freedom.

[samanil]

I'm interested in how someone who has a degree in psychiatry decides to become a carpenter. Not throwing shade; I'm genuinely curious.

I've been on jobsites with folks with Masters  degrees, and one PhD (political science).
Me, I went to Evergreen ;-)

In my job I just got laid off from, I worked with a pleasant fellow with a PhD in the "built environment" from UW. I'm not sure exactly what that is--I think it's something related to urban planning but a bit more abstract/philosophical.

[lhamo]

I wondered what happened to the other thread.

A point of forum etiquette:  if you don't like the direction a thread you started is going or feel you have sufficient input to answer the original question posed, it is better to just say "thanks y'all" and then just opt out of reading/responding.  OR, you can ask a moderator to lock the thread.  Deleting a whole thread entirely is not generally done unless there are real issues of personal safety involved because you are wiping out posts that others have put thought and time into, even if they were off track from your original query.

[samanil]

I wondered what happened to the other thread.

A point of forum etiquette:  if you don't like the direction a thread you started is going or feel you have sufficient input to answer the original question posed, it is better to just say "thanks y'all" and then just opt out of reading/responding.  OR, you can ask a moderator to lock the thread.  Deleting a whole thread entirely is not generally done unless there are real issues of personal safety involved because you are wiping out posts that others have put thought and time into, even if they were off track from your original query.

The other thread is alive and well (thanks for your input). I had actually tried to delete it before anyone responded as I thought this was a better location, but it didn't work for some reason. Then people started commenting so I eagerly allowed that to continue. And I'm not opposed to more input...

Is it bad to post in 2 places?

[lhamo]

Oh -- sorry, my bad.  I hadn't seen it pop up under unread posts for awhile and then this one came up and I misread and thought you had deleted the other one.  I don't think there is any rule against multiple threads on the same topic, but it can create confusion because the discussions take different turns and then uncaffeinated brains like mine this morning get confused....