How do you know when you have been in your trade too long?

12 comments

1. When you realize you are making less money than you did 15 years ago when adjusted for inflation and cost of living.

2. When I’m old enough to retire.

3. In a positive or a negative way?

   Positive way, in my industry (civil engineering, transportation, public sector), when you drive on a road and can call a sub grade failure before it happens.

   Another indication, where are the culverts. Some get buried over the years and if it’s been decades since they were installed, likely there’s no record. Drive the road and a good experienced OR a very calculating individual in general will just take a look at the layout and know where’s the culverts and almost every time they’d be right.

4. Probably 25 years.

5. When you don’t have your own business for trade you specialize in and other workers under you as the boss.

6. *”How do you know when you have been in your trade too long?”*

   When you ask yourself this question.

7. When you start having dreams about work

8. When you get bored

9. When it no longer brings you any joy or you are unable to give a fuck about the quality of your work.

10. Coming on to a new project, reviewing the communication archives, finding an email from 10 years ago covering the same bullshit you’re dealing with today. 10 years later and it’s still the same shit.

11. When you realize you havent had to come up with a new (to you) solution to a problem in a year, because you ve basically seen it all.

12. When you have zero interest in new techniques or products in performing your trade.

    Many grumpy old timers say “I’ve been doing this for X years. Nobody is going to tell me what to do.”