Read Blue Collar and Proud of It: The All-In-One Resource for Finding Freedom, Financial Success, and Security Outside the Cubicle for Free Online

than they used to be. Installing a solar panel requires training, repairing a car often involves intricate and complicated computers, and much construction work is driven by sophisticated machinery.
    Did You KNOW?
    Have you heard the term green collar ? The term is used to refer to careers that focus on blue-collar jobs in environmentally related careers. Green-collar jobs combine blue-collar work with green industries, and many are in the alternative energy sectors. Organic farming, sustainable fishing, and eco-friendly landscaping are all green-collar jobs. We talk in much more detail about these opportunities in Chapter 5.
    In the next chapter, we give you a lot of specifics on what it takes to get started in a blue-collar job. We’ll tell you a ton about what skills and disposition you need to go into a variety of jobs, and we’ll go through the type of training, or preparation, you need to become successful. While we’re hoping this book will put you well on your way to a successful blue-collar career, we can’t guide you through every job out there. Instead we’ve focused on the most popular, the most lucrative, and the ones with the most projected growth. That said, we haven’t included in our discussion hundreds of other blue-collar jobs .
    But just to get you thinking, the blue-collar jobs I am talking about include—but are in no way limited to—plumber, logger, tool-and-die maker, shipbuilder, carpenter, electrician, forklift operator, truck driver, landscaper, mason, miner, fisher, bus driver, fabricator, auto technician, fence installer, septic builder, carpet installer, trucker, tile setter, railroad conductor, construction worker, truck driver, and air conditioner installer. I could go on for a long time, but I’msure you get the picture. A lot of jobs are out there, but how do you figure out which one is right for you? How do you know if you are blue collar or are meant to be blue collar, or if you just want a blue-collar job? I can try to help.
    I’m sure you’ve been asked, “So, what do you want to be? ” or “What do you want to do with your life? ” These questions can be frustrating, and they used to drive me crazy, especially when I was a senior in high school. If you don’t know the answer, it’s really okay, and even if you think you know, you may end up changing your mind. Answering the question is even harder for those of you in schools that don’t offer career and technical education (CTE) classes. Thinking about your future work is tough if you’ve never had a chance to try auto mechanics, take a woodworking class, or test your skills at landscaping.
    “Don’t be afraid to jump around at first, ” says Joe Ross, a sheetmetal contractor and owner of Ross Air Systems in Pickering, Ontario. “Try to find a trade that you are happy in.” Ross says people who are just starting out in the trades may find that the field they initially started in isn’t the one where they are going to settle. “You may have to change some to find what you want.” Ross was fortunate that he knew what he wanted to do. He followed his father into the sheet metal industry. He had always worked with tools and cars while growing up, and he knew that he wanted to keep working with his hands.
    Ross spent six years working through his apprenticeship and then worked in someone else’s business for about seven years before deciding to open his own. He knew the trade well and didn’t want to have a boss. At this point, Ross, who is in his early fifties, spends more of his time working with clients, landing business, and doing customer service. It’s something he really enjoys. But Ross is one of those skilled trades company owners who is always happy to help out an aspiring tradesperson. He says more youth should go knock on doors, show curiosity, and ask for internships or job shadowing opportunities.
    He’s right. You can’t just expect to waltz out of high school and start making a high salary.You