So back in march i lost my job in construction management. A friend owns a high end detail shop so i started to help him out for a low hourly rate. I was pretty much doing the detailing as he ran the business side of the detail shop and the other business's. Well that hourly rate is not enough to pay the bills so i had to take a job back in construction. Today my friend called me and we had a log talk about the entire situation. I am fairly mechanically inclined and i have turned into the maintenance/repair man for the rental fleet. I also have my hand in the car porter business. So i basically he told me i am indispensable to 3 out of the 4 business's. Here is where i am having an issue. His business's are all fairly new (under 2 years). I know that he will make it big but i don't know how long that will take. Winter is almost upon us and what happens when we are not detailing as much due to the snow? I hate construction will all that i have but it is stable and pays great. I love detailing and even though the pay is low at the moment i think we can work out a wage that i can make work. The part that has me worried is the stability. If it was just me and my wife it would be a no brainier but i have a 3 month old daughter to think of. My wife does work but makes so little that she might as well not be paid at all. So help me out give me your opinion on what you would do given my situation with a wife and child. I would go out on my own detailing but i am a loyal person and would feel like i am stealing work away from a friend. So would you go with stability and pay or Do what you love and uncertainty?
I'd go with stability and pay, and leave detailing as your second job for extra cash...it is certantly nice to have extra cash, and I love car detailing, but stability is more important to me.
You said that your wife makes so little that she may as well not work. That made me wonder if you guys would be better off with her staying at home? I don't have kids, but I'm guessing day care is enormously expensive. Anyway, to the topic at hand, since you've got a family, my vote is for the stable construction gig, even if you hate it. Once the economy picks up a bit, start looking for a construction gig that you'll like more (or start looking right now). Never hurts to send someone a resume.
I'd go with the riskier one, but that's just me. You're doing what you love, and it sounds like your friend is a great business man. It's a risk, but I would take it. Maybe get 2 jobs if you really need to, your life may suck for a while but in the end the reward will be worth it if it pays off. Like Confucius said "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." But, in the end, it's your decision. I would just hate knowing that I would be at a stable job, but in the end it's really not going anywhere.
Bottom line man......family comes first! Your wife and daughter are your responsibility. They depend on you to provide for them. If this means you go shovel fish heads over detailing because shoveling fish heads pays $0.50 more per hour......then that's what you do. You may not like working construction....but it is stable work with a good paycheck. Work at a newly fonded detail shop may not be (even though it is something you enjoy doing) the best idea. Not to mention winter is just around the corner:cold:, and as we all know the detail volume drops off drasticly around that time. This guy may not have the wherewithal to continue paying your salary. My advice....stick with construction through the winter. It's a safe bet. Then in the spring, reevaluate your situation again. Maybe your positioning will be better and then the detailing door may open. (wider in your situation). .........of course, just my :2cents: !!!
Stability first. If you like detailing, do your own thing on the weekends for extra cash. Your friend should be ok with it as long as you are not doing work for clients that his business is already servicing.
I would have to agree, being responsible is not the easiest task but family comes first and if that means putting what you consider 'potential opportunity' (aka unknown possibilities) aside then so be it. To put it in perspective, would you like to see your family suffer weather it be by you not being able to put food on the table or not being able to pay mortgage and have to give up your house...ect..ect..the point is I'll do what ever it takes to insure my family has a roof over their head, food on the table and in the fridge and dress presentable...everything else are just esthetics and can come as more funds become available but the bare essentials have to be there. Well that's just my :2cents: Best wishes to you and your family and keep us posted on how you make out eace:
