Day Labor
A few times I found myself in need of work with no prospects. I went to the day labor places and did a variety of jobs for them- from making sandwiches to running a jack hammer to probing graves.
As a day laborer, you are paid poorly, worked like a dog, and looked down on- regular employees call day laborers, “Hire a Drunks.” Rightly so, oftentimes as many of them are exactly that.
But..
You get experience and exposure to people that might hire you. You also benefit from the intense drive to find something better and you see people around you who are much worse off than you.
My progression:
That last time I worked for a day labor place, I was assigned to an apartment complex. I worked there about 3 months. During that time, I learned about fixing things wrong in apartments. Because their main guy was sick or something, they had a stack of work orders an inch thick. I burned through them and turned whole place around almost single-highhandedly.
That apartment place hired me out from under the day labor place with much better pay and benefits. I worked there about a year learning more all the time and gaining confidence. After a change in management and working environment, I decided I didn’t want to be there anymore.
I quit and started my own handyman business using the knowledge and confidence I had gotten along the way.
I’ve been self employed ever since.
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