I think it's odd that I have yet to meet any workers that have a low view of themselves nevermind company owners. Possibly my kind over compensates to cover up low self esteem but I don't think so.
It just occured to me what the problem might be. Society in general might have a low view of us. The guys who made good money in this industry wouldn't want their kids being looked down on. Personally I don't have a problem with my kids doing what I do so long as they get paid well and have a decent benefits package. One 20 year old kid told me that when his friends graduate college that they will be $100,000 in debt and he was going to have that amount saved. Another guy at work had a degree in plastic engineering but did drywall because the money was better than he could get with the degree. Don't get me wrong, plenty of us are degenerates of one kind or another but that has nothing to do with how we view ourselves in relation to the industry we work in. Most of us think we're rather smart.
LOL!
Alex,
If you're speaking specifically about drywall workers, let me say that you guys have a tough gig. There's not only tricky work involved where manual dexterity is key and attention to detail is critical, but there's also heavy manual labor involved. I tip my hat to all who master your craft. Good luck to you in your career.
I have no problem with master craftsmen in the trades making as much as a mid-level lawyer or doctor. Maybe not some hot shot neurosurgeon with triple figure malpractice insurance premiums, but people in the trades certainly should be paid well for doing excellent work.
I think this is pertinent to the thread topic because as many have observed, so many see careers like this as undesirable. Finding a way to combat that attitude would help solve the problem. I say this because I feel that many young people, beginning in middle school or so, will recognize that they are not interested in or good at academics, yet they can see that the entire educational system is set up to propel them toward a college education. At least in the schools I've been to, the vocational programs were seen as some sort of refuge for inferior people. This couldn't be more wrong-headed, and I imagine it's part of the reason why some students don't even try those courses, even if they could be the key to a better, more successful life for them.
If we do a better job of celebrating the accomplishments of those students who excel in vocational courses, perhaps the trades would eventually have less of a stigma--if that's not too strong a word.
Not too long ago, students in the computer lab were ridiculed for their geekiness. Maybe they still are, but I'll bet this is less an issue less than when my generation was in school (I'm 48). Now I wish I my rural school had had a computer. Perhaps I might have gotten into the computer field first, instead of taking a twenty year detour, leaving me with a mid-life career change.
Oh, and for what it's worth, my Dad was an amazingly skilled machinist. He pushed me neither toward nor away from any particular career, but he did tell me when I was in elementary school that if I wanted to go to college I'd better earn a scholarship, because he had no intention to pay for it.
Guess what. At the end of my high school days I was offered two full scholarships. Too bad I was to lazy and too busy partying to do well during that initial college experience.
The point to all this is that my Dad found a way to motivate me to do well through high school--too bad nobody made me understand that college would require some actual effort.
Merry Christmas, all who celebrate it, and for those otherwise inclined, Merry Yule!
