What to do next with my life

[ohdaho]

Do what you can see yourself doing for the next 30 yrs or so.

I went to college...wanted to be a doctor...changed majors from Biology to Aerospace Engineering and career goals after my freshman yr...did some thinking when it came time to graduate in 05 and decided I wanted to do the Air Force thing as an officer after job interviews with Lockheed and NASA JPL.

Not everyone in the military has the 20 yrs til retirement mentality. Ive definitely done a lot of cool shit while being in. Ive flown in F-16s, T-38s, and C-12s as a test engineer dropping bombs and testing out cool shit. They paid for my first Masters in Aero Engr from Cal Poly with tuition assistance and currently paying for my 2nd Masters in R&D Management at AFIT...and Im only 26 right now been in for 3 yrs.

Its been a great experience for me and Im pretty sure i dont want to be in 20 yrs. Id rather be sitting on the beach in Santa Barbara, CA day trading or something.

The Army doesnt necessarily pay more. There might be bonuses for signing up but an E-1 no matter which branch will make E-1 basic pay...its all about the bonuses and incentives for specifc jobs.

Im partial to going to college and then joining the military (esp USAF) as an officer. Standard of life is better. Ive got tons of buddies that did the whole Army ROTC thing and wish they went USAF. If education is important to you then I would probably go USAF.

Id disagree with the person that said the military would be the easy thing as with having a career path set. Sure youll come in with a set training plan but that doesnt set up for the rest of your life. You may only do 3-4 yrs and get out...and then what? Id argue its just as easy/hard if you wanted to be a welder.

College is great. You have to understand that its not only there to provide an education but a great place to learn who you are/what you want to do with the next phase in your life.

[speedytriple]

I agree wil I.P. If I could go back 15 yrs I would have gone with my plan I had back then and went into the armed forces. I instead took a year off school and landscaped. Never ended up going to school. Found a job that paid good, made more then my dad by the time I was 21, he talked me into not doing the armed forces thing or school and insisted I stay where I was at. Long story short, I have been there 15 years, found a very fertile woman had 4 kids and f'ing hate my job and most of my life choices I did not decide to take. I will say this take a good look at where you want to be in 10 years. I didnt look at my job as long term and didnt care if I enjoyed what I did cause I made good money. Not I hate my job, am to old and tied down to change feilds. And have only worked at one real job since I was 19. At 33 It is not going to be as easy to change anything as it would when I was your age. Oh by the way I make welding flux for a living, and use to make mig and cored wire. I plan to go to our welding school over the winter it is free for me to go to. If I get my certs at least i have a back up skill.

[kawi kid]

i just went through alot of the kellogg brown and root site and damn it if i had a little military experience i would be all about it! with my hazmat training and experience i would be a shoe in.

[Artmageddon]

Take this how you want' date=' but I'm in my thirties... If I could have the last 15 years back I'd go into the Military. Most likely the AirForce, but any branch can offer you substantial compensation for the time spent. The GI Bill is a wonderful thing if used with common sense.[/quote']

+1. I planned my whole life to go in to the military, but blew out my knee and several reconstructions. They don't take people with screws holding joints together. Would love to able to go back, but now I'm just old.

If you're in doubt, it's pretty hard to go wrong joining any branch. You have a job for 4 years, get an good eduation during and tuition assistance afterwards, and you'll meet a ton of contacts for the future.

I doubt many of the vets on this board will tell you different.

[jporter12]

I wish I knew then what I know now (duh) about the military, and life in general. I MAY have done things differently. I don't regret my life, but I do see how I could've made some better choices. I may not be where I am today though, so as I said, no regrets.

[kawi kid]

im gonna go with alot of the other folks and say military is your best bet buddy. there is so much to gain you couldnt beging to list it all.

[Fazerlady]

Umh, I thought you want to see what you want to do with your LIFE???

Why would you want to become a Marine??? That is the fastest way to come home in a body bag these days!!! Marines and Army are the majority of casualties in the war...

If anything join the Air Force, much safer and you can still serve your country!!

[jagr]

Especially now. I'd snuff a small village to get back in the Corps.

That doesn't read well but it's the trufe.

[jagr]

Umh, I thought you want to see what you want to do with your LIFE???

Why would you want to become a Marine??? That is the fastest way to come home in a body bag these days!!! Marines and Army are the majority of casualties in the war...

If anything join the Air Force, much safer and you can still serve your country!!

[ohdaho]

Dont join the military if youre just lost as to what you want to do.

Join because you want to serve in some capacity. If you want to deploy downrange and have a more direct impact on the mission, go marine or army. If youre looking just to develop a skill in electronics or some type of mx, join the air force.

Just dont join if youre lost. Make sure you know exactly what youre signing up for. You be "given" alot of direction and expected to carry it out to the "t" and beyond.

[jporter12]

Dont join the military if youre just lost as to what you want to do.

Join because you want to serve in some capacity. If you want to deploy downrange and have a more direct impact on the mission, go marine or army. If youre looking just to develop a skill in electronics or some type of mx, join the air force.

Just dont join if youre lost. Make sure you know exactly what youre signing up for. You be "given" alot of direction and expected to carry it out to the "t" and beyond.

It sounds like the OP has his head on straight, and enjoys SERVING as can be noted by his current employment. The military has many ways to do this, and many ways to learn a skill set, or a trade, and even to go to college. Or, do the college first, go in to be an officer. At this point in your life, the possibilities are endless! I don't have as many of those options, due to age, life experiences, and having a family.

Do the exciting things now, earn a really good living and SAVE MONEY like there's no tomorrow, then later do what you want, and you'll be set! If I had it all to do again, I would have been MUCH more responsible with the money I earned, saving it, and investing in something other than my beer gut, and high cholesterol!

Don't let your youth be wasted, and later say that youth is WASTED on the young!

[socaln8tv]

i know my babysitter just left for college in cinci on full 1st year scholarship paid by the rotc. after the year, should she commit to them, they will finish paying for her college and enter her career in the military as an officer. i know of no other details other than that. i havent forgot it though bc i miss her dearly and it seemed like a pretty stellar set up for a young, talented lady.

[scottb]

No kidding, I had no idea. Who is it that you work for?

I work for Lincoln Electric in Euclid as an automation robotic welding service tech. Welding robots are popular due to the lack of skilled welders. The only draw back is with the downturn in the economy, there is not much demand for manufacturing, excect for military suppilers. I started at Lincoln 15 years ago. I was a shop floor pieceworker, then moved over to computer support. I got a degree in computer networking. After 8 years of computers, I was selected for this robotic field support tech job.

If your robot is not working correctly and we can not resolve the issue over the phone, once a purchase order is created, I'll come out to your shop and resolve the issue for you on site.

In high school, I knew I did not really want to go to college,but I wanted to learn a trade. I like working with my hands. I turned down the Scripps-Howard full ride journalism scholarship to John Carrol . Instead, I went to General Motors tech school ( GMI) and became an auto tech. I worked in the auto field until 1994 when i was hired by Lincoln.

[MidgetTodd]

what ever you pick do it because you want to , not for the money. I made my choice for the money now I make killer money and Ill be the first to admit Im prolly way over paid but I hate my job I hate getting in the truck to go to work in the morning and everyday I want to make an excuss to call off , it sucks . Military or medical field would be my choice if I could go back and do it over , both have a future and job security.

[shittygsxr]

go become a nurse, you can thank me later

That guy is right;)

[NeverEnough]

Thanks guys....I've been reading it all, all much appreciated input and personal life stories. I'm continuing to research different jobs and career fields....

[jporter12]

I work for Lincoln Electric in Euclid as an automation robotic welding service tech. Welding robots are popular due to the lack of skilled welders. The only draw back is with the downturn in the economy, there is not much demand for manufacturing, excect for military suppilers. I started at Lincoln 15 years ago. I was a shop floor pieceworker, then moved over to computer support. I got a degree in computer networking. After 8 years of computers, I was selected for this robotic field support tech job.

If your robot is not working correctly and we can not resolve the issue over the phone, once a purchase order is created, I'll come out to your shop and resolve the issue for you on site.

In high school, I knew I did not really want to go to college,but I wanted to learn a trade. I like working with my hands. I turned down the Scripps-Howard full ride journalism scholarship to John Carrol . Instead, I went to General Motors tech school ( GMI) and became an auto tech. I worked in the auto field until 1994 when i was hired by Lincoln.

We had one of Lincolns robotic deals where I used to work (before they shipped everything to Mexico, thanks G.H.W.Bush, and Clinton for NAFTA) Sweet setup, but our parts weren't consistant enough for it to work well enough for production. That robot got moved to a couple areas, trying to do different things with it, but never made it to production, due to a lack of time and experience with robots. It seems like everything they wanted a robot to do was virtually impossible to do. Very fun to work with though!

[speedytriple]

Thats funny I have been with Lincoln Electricfor 15 years also. Started in Mentor.

So scottb you ever make it down to plant 2 anymore? Thats where I work, down in dept 37. Funny there is someone on here that works at the same place I do and I never knew it? So how many other people here work for Lincoln Electric? Learn as much as you can before you pick a job to jump into.

[scottb]

I started in the Motor division when it opened in plant 3. I worked with Dave Newton on the ODP motor line. Dave should still be in plant 2. Even when i was providing computer support, I did not spend much time in plant 2.

Mike Latessa works in R&D and has a sweet Aprilla. I have thought about trying to start a Lincoln riders club. On nice sunny days, there is usually about 30 bikes parked out front.

That is the funny thing, people hear you work for Lincoln, (with over 2000 people) and they ask if you know a certain person. Sometimes,but not always you know who they are talking about. I currently work with a former electrician, Roberto Flores.

Thats funny I have been with Lincoln Electricfor 15 years also. Started in Mentor.

So scottb you ever make it down to plant 2 anymore? Thats where I work, down in dept 37. Funny there is someone on here that works at the same place I do and I never knew it? So how many other people here work for Lincoln Electric? Learn as much as you can before you pick a job to jump into.

[speedytriple]

I know Roberto he use to be our electrician in both of my depts I have worked in euclid. Don't know Mike Latessa, But I know Joe Latessa and his wife. I use to ride my triumph to work all the time, then I rode my cbr all the time till I got rid of it. It was the bright green speed triple that use to be out there from early march till late nov. I have seen your bike outside before. I would say to the o.p to get a job at L.E. but I dont like my job much anymore since they cut our prices.

[MidlifeVenture]

I started in the Motor division when it opened in plant 3. I worked with Dave Newton on the ODP motor line. Dave should still be in plant 2. Even when i was providing computer support, I did not spend much time in plant 2.

Mike Latessa works in R&D and has a sweet Aprilla. I have thought about trying to start a Lincoln riders club. On nice sunny days, there is usually about 30 bikes parked out front.

That is the funny thing, people hear you work for Lincoln, (with over 2000 people) and they ask if you know a certain person. Sometimes,but not always you know who they are talking about. I currently work with a former electrician, Roberto Flores.

ITS A SMALL WORLD AFTER ALL Im a 20 yr Lincoln employee currently in automation.......If you like the heat welding can make you some money Lincoln has a great school.