The hard truth about the trades is you need to start young, while you're body is able to take the punishment, so you have time to learn the skills to take a less punishing senior/ownership role by the time your back/legs/arms start to give out. This isn't insurmountable, but it needs to be planned for.
Look for jobs where your background gives you more of a leg up, and are done indoors, with a stronger emphasis on health and safety.
Things like:
Industrial Electrical
Automation Technician
Machine Operator
Millwright
Avoid jobs done for small crews with a more cowboy attitude, like most residential trades.
This is absolutely true. I spend some time in trades before tech. I recall my first day, squeezing into a rocky and mildewy crawl space with barely enough room to flip over, only to fix up some busted plumbing using some very strong smelling chemicals with little ventilation. I knew then this wasn’t going to be a long term fit for me.
Trades work can absolutely destroy you. It’s also not really avoidable with good ergonomics - there are no good ergonomics. Some situations are just going to require you to do really physically awkward uncomfortable things to get the job done. There’s also the general slow erosion of health. Exposure to chemicals, saw dust, metal shavings, things getting in your eyes, getting poked by random nails, rolling over onto a bit of glass, tweaking your back trying to prevent a piece of lumber sliding off the roof, being constantly dehydrated and sunburned, etc. There is a reason tradesmen look like tradesmen. It’s the toll they pay.
Look, a job is a job and work is well, work. As noted in the other comments trades are hard work. Far harder than a desk job. I would suggest not romanticizing the trades as some replacement for a desk job. Go do some trade work in your free time (go build a fence in the middle of the summer as an example) and really find out how much hard work it is. If you still enjoy it after being in 95 degree heat for 8+ hours while hauling thousands of pounds of concrete, then a job change might be right for you. But first try it as a hobby.
I say this with lots of experience. I do a lot of trades work as a hobby, but the reality is in most cases it is labor of love. I'd be more efficient with my time and money by hiring it out.
I agree with the core of your advice: a friend of mine wanted to restore bikes. I gave him mine as a test, and the experience taught him that he doesn't really want to restore bikes.
That said, I'll proudly wear my "off-topic" downvotes to nitpick that "find a spare house" sounds to me as affordable as "find a spare Ferrari".
Second this,
Slightly different, but I dropped out of university and worked on a small farm for a season.
Turns out I'm a terrible farmer, but electrical engineering is actually a pretty good fit for me. Finished up my degree easily when I went back to school.
During the pandemic I was going stir crazy. I decided to immerse myself in some hands-on activities in the garage. Initially, I focused on restoration of antique tools. Then I had a small bit of blacksmithing. Then I learned the basics of welding. These activities were all great fun, very interesting to me, and gave me something to really look forward to for the weekends.
Not quite 2 months ago I launched a residential handyman business (no website yet). My day job is in software engineering, but I also have the handyman work as a part-time thing. So far, it's working out pretty good. My weekend work is completely different from my M-F day job. One of the things I like about handyman work is that it's not all the same. It's a bit of carpentry, plumbing, and electrical combined in various ways. I'm not a licensed plumber or electrician (nor a contractor), so I steer clear of jobs that require them.
The most interesting thing about programmers is our unshakeable confidence that we could easily do any else's job. Where does that even come from? Coding is not even the hardest job I've done.
I like this thought exercise, but I also think the analogy would be more accurate if we asked "heya weldingnews.com, what programming jobs would fit someone who has 10 years of TIG welding".
The answers would be bad I guess, which I believe is your point :)
The cut in pay is likely to drive you back to software pretty quickly, but: the debugging and problem-solving involved in electrical work on old houses bears a striking resemblance to working with legacy software systems.
(New installation work is maybe less interesting, but if you're the sort of developer who enjoys logic-ing their way through understanding why a complicated, undocumented system is behaving the way it's behaving, and why did the last guy decide to connect this to that, a hundred year old house that's been gradually updated from knob-and-tube might be just the thing.)
But I won’t judge and I think I can help! I would recommend HVAC or electrical work for a programmer. I manage the software team of a relatively large trade company which specializes in these fields. Many of our electricians are hobbyist programmers. Having done field work with both electricians and HVAC technicians I can say that both fields will provide you with challenging problems, and a familiar diagnostic and repair process to fixing software. I think HVAC is much easier to jump in to compared to electrical work (and you will still work on low voltage electrical components) so I would recommend looking for work in that space.
HOWEVER this is extremely hard work. I would not willingly trade places with any of our electricians. While it can be very fulfilling and enjoyable for the right type of person, what you’re talking about is essentially taking less pay to do more and harder work. And in that sense I would urge you to reconsider. But if it’s something that truly truly interests you, HVAC should be really easy to get into as long as it’s an active industry in your area.
Less pay and harder work sounds great, and I don't understand why people are so quick to knock it.
There's nothing quite as soul-draining as staring at a computer screen for 8 hours a day doing pointless, easy, busy work that actively makes the world worse and feels like being a slug.
IMO working with nature is a lot like programming. The genetic material (seeds) are like packages, the soil cycle is like memory management, and the water and sun are like your system's resources.
You get the satisfaction of building something beautiful (and eating it).
You are constantly learning about genetics, variants, processes and the language of plants.
There are role models and teachers creating new processes and testing theories (just like programming).
You are involving your entire body, puts you outside, and is amazing on your mind.
If you're looking to make money doing it, you could pick a high-value product like mushrooms, sprouts, or hot sauce and bring it to the farmer's market.
Amateur gardener here. The hardest part about this is time.
One thing I love about software is that I write it then run it and see the result. My turnaround time is often measured in seconds.
My garden? Weeks, at minimum, before I begin to see what results my work has wrought. Iteration takes months, if not years, depending on your climate.
However, it does feel very rewarding, doing something with your hands that results in something very tangible. Bringing in a bowl of lettuce, cucumbers, and tomatoes that you can immediately toss into a salad feels great.
The way I see it (admittedly, as a 24 year old working in tech for the past 7 years), manual labour is okay, but definitely not something I’d do as a means to get by. My dad worked in construction for most of his life (mainly motivated due to debts incurred while he was locked up and taken up by my “mother”) and it has had an immense toll on his body, mostly back injuries and other non-reversable issues it has caused. But there were still many occasions where I went along with him to Finland, Sweden, and Norway as a “helper”, which have all taught me the value of hard work and dedication, pushing through whatever hardships you might have, and have generally been great for father-son bonding. Now that he however has exited that fieid (to work as a trucker which he loves because it’s basically “getting paid to travel long distances” which he loves), although I value the work done by tradies and have an immense respect for them (or at least the ones working as hard as my dad did), I still don’t see myself ever wanting to do that as a “job”. Since my dad has those skills, he still puts then to good use for personal needs (remodelling the house, fixing the roof, building a gazebo in his yard, etc), I still love going there to help him with all that, but much more as a father-son activity than as work.
Electrician should be your first option. Pay is often better than other trades and it is more intellectually demanding and less physically demanding at the same time. There’s a shortage now too.
Most electricians easily work into their 60s so age should not be a factor. You will need to start off as an apprentice but given your demonstrated technical ability, I would hope you’ll be able to identify niche jobs within the profession that you will give you leg up for more rapid advancement.
I worked as an electrician in the military, albeit for aircraft. I do miss getting my hands dirty in that regard; however, the civilian side aircraft electrician pay is not remotely comparable to my SE salary (in fact it'd be a more than 50% pay cut). Is residential/commercial electrician pay closer to SE pay?
About to start working on a personal project involving cement: making planters for small fruit trees.
The reason: to learn more about cement, since my plan is to set up concrete piers for a future cabin. And, to eventually learn masonry for making a concrete + rock house.
I do have a bit of back pain already from a desk IT job. However I am relatively fit and I think with more calisthenics I'll improve my back & ab muscles to reduce my back pain.
The troubleshooting and diagnosis, as well as a combination of tech skills and curiosity is intriguing.
However, like most trades it is gated on years being an apprentice and being an apprentice at an older age is not easy because of the tasks given to apprentices.
It is. But head on over to the CNC forums at PracticalMachinist.com to hear the machine programmers bitch about how little they're paid and being nothing more than babysitters for large machine tools.
There will be a lot of opportunity in semi-automating residential/commercial property maintenance. Think robot mowers, smart irrigation/fertilization, smart composting ect. Lot of adoption potential from high-income Eco-conscious people that have already bought EVs.
Being an electrician always seemed interesting to me. I imagine this job to be ever more in demand as we move more and more from legacy energy sources (coal, oil, gas) towards electricity. The job can be dangerous though so that's a thing to consider
LightRailTycoon|2 years ago
Look for jobs where your background gives you more of a leg up, and are done indoors, with a stronger emphasis on health and safety.
Things like:
Industrial Electrical
Automation Technician
Machine Operator
Millwright
Avoid jobs done for small crews with a more cowboy attitude, like most residential trades.
appplication|2 years ago
Trades work can absolutely destroy you. It’s also not really avoidable with good ergonomics - there are no good ergonomics. Some situations are just going to require you to do really physically awkward uncomfortable things to get the job done. There’s also the general slow erosion of health. Exposure to chemicals, saw dust, metal shavings, things getting in your eyes, getting poked by random nails, rolling over onto a bit of glass, tweaking your back trying to prevent a piece of lumber sliding off the roof, being constantly dehydrated and sunburned, etc. There is a reason tradesmen look like tradesmen. It’s the toll they pay.
ChoGGi|2 years ago
knappe|2 years ago
I say this with lots of experience. I do a lot of trades work as a hobby, but the reality is in most cases it is labor of love. I'd be more efficient with my time and money by hiring it out.
arpyzo|2 years ago
This kind of work has turned out, in almost all cases, to be far more difficult and time consuming than I expected.
hdjfkfbfbr|2 years ago
If you are burnt out. This is a good way to recharge. But the work is hard and it doesn't get easier.
Did this a few years ago and I it helped me get back to software engineering.
probably_wrong|2 years ago
That said, I'll proudly wear my "off-topic" downvotes to nitpick that "find a spare house" sounds to me as affordable as "find a spare Ferrari".
Sent from my balcony-less apartment
spacemanspiff01|2 years ago
Turns out I'm a terrible farmer, but electrical engineering is actually a pretty good fit for me. Finished up my degree easily when I went back to school.
badpun|2 years ago
I agree, low paying hard work is not a good solution for boredom or a midlife/existential crisis.
neverartful|2 years ago
Not quite 2 months ago I launched a residential handyman business (no website yet). My day job is in software engineering, but I also have the handyman work as a part-time thing. So far, it's working out pretty good. My weekend work is completely different from my M-F day job. One of the things I like about handyman work is that it's not all the same. It's a bit of carpentry, plumbing, and electrical combined in various ways. I'm not a licensed plumber or electrician (nor a contractor), so I steer clear of jobs that require them.
tekla|2 years ago
This is effectively what the OP is asking.
giraffe_lady|2 years ago
mejutoco|2 years ago
The answers would be bad I guess, which I believe is your point :)
outsidetheparty|2 years ago
(New installation work is maybe less interesting, but if you're the sort of developer who enjoys logic-ing their way through understanding why a complicated, undocumented system is behaving the way it's behaving, and why did the last guy decide to connect this to that, a hundred year old house that's been gradually updated from knob-and-tube might be just the thing.)
rmilejczz|2 years ago
But I won’t judge and I think I can help! I would recommend HVAC or electrical work for a programmer. I manage the software team of a relatively large trade company which specializes in these fields. Many of our electricians are hobbyist programmers. Having done field work with both electricians and HVAC technicians I can say that both fields will provide you with challenging problems, and a familiar diagnostic and repair process to fixing software. I think HVAC is much easier to jump in to compared to electrical work (and you will still work on low voltage electrical components) so I would recommend looking for work in that space.
HOWEVER this is extremely hard work. I would not willingly trade places with any of our electricians. While it can be very fulfilling and enjoyable for the right type of person, what you’re talking about is essentially taking less pay to do more and harder work. And in that sense I would urge you to reconsider. But if it’s something that truly truly interests you, HVAC should be really easy to get into as long as it’s an active industry in your area.
muffinman26|2 years ago
There's nothing quite as soul-draining as staring at a computer screen for 8 hours a day doing pointless, easy, busy work that actively makes the world worse and feels like being a slug.
m4zey|2 years ago
IMO working with nature is a lot like programming. The genetic material (seeds) are like packages, the soil cycle is like memory management, and the water and sun are like your system's resources.
You get the satisfaction of building something beautiful (and eating it).
You are constantly learning about genetics, variants, processes and the language of plants.
There are role models and teachers creating new processes and testing theories (just like programming).
You are involving your entire body, puts you outside, and is amazing on your mind.
If you're looking to make money doing it, you could pick a high-value product like mushrooms, sprouts, or hot sauce and bring it to the farmer's market.
pavel_lishin|2 years ago
One thing I love about software is that I write it then run it and see the result. My turnaround time is often measured in seconds.
My garden? Weeks, at minimum, before I begin to see what results my work has wrought. Iteration takes months, if not years, depending on your climate.
However, it does feel very rewarding, doing something with your hands that results in something very tangible. Bringing in a bowl of lettuce, cucumbers, and tomatoes that you can immediately toss into a salad feels great.
xprn|2 years ago
yungporko|2 years ago
MassiveBonk51|2 years ago
BenFranklin100|2 years ago
Most electricians easily work into their 60s so age should not be a factor. You will need to start off as an apprentice but given your demonstrated technical ability, I would hope you’ll be able to identify niche jobs within the profession that you will give you leg up for more rapid advancement.
ptyyy|2 years ago
jimmychoozyx|2 years ago
About to start working on a personal project involving cement: making planters for small fruit trees.
The reason: to learn more about cement, since my plan is to set up concrete piers for a future cabin. And, to eventually learn masonry for making a concrete + rock house.
I do have a bit of back pain already from a desk IT job. However I am relatively fit and I think with more calisthenics I'll improve my back & ab muscles to reduce my back pain.
ohthatsnotright|2 years ago
The troubleshooting and diagnosis, as well as a combination of tech skills and curiosity is intriguing.
However, like most trades it is gated on years being an apprentice and being an apprentice at an older age is not easy because of the tasks given to apprentices.
MassiveBonk51|2 years ago
HeyLaughingBoy|2 years ago
pickitupsnake|2 years ago
HeyLaughingBoy|2 years ago
How does this help someone today?
iammjm|2 years ago