Avoiding trade-offs

Since joining business-to-business publishing in 2013, one rallying cry has been consistent: How can [insert trade industry here] get more young people interested in joining the workforce?

Back then, it was rubber manufacturing. I spent more than six years in that world, and just about every company and trade association I dealt with was trying to backfill the industry’s talent pipeline by spreading the word to young people across the nation.

And based on the opening panel at the National Demolition Association Phoenix convention, it seems as if the demolition, construction and environmental services industries are facing the same issue. You can read more about that discussion in detail on our website, www.cdrecycler.com.

Many of the same arguments were made in favor of entering the skilled trade: earlier entry into the workforce (compared with college), high starting salary, little to no college debt and a skill set that’s likely to stay in demand.

All those arguments have merit. As a society, we absolutely need to do a better job of celebrating trade work and engaging young people about its rewards earlier in their education journeys. College isn’t for everyone, and many youth are unaware of the viable alternatives available.

With that said, and despite all those advantages, forgoing a college degree altogether might not be the right way to go, either.

I’m sure everyone reading this is aware that trade work is hard work. Not everyone is cut out for it. Just like so many college students fail to identify their correct major off the bat, it’s probable that more than a few people who went through trade school regretted their investments.

Fair or not, a college degree opens more opportunities for upward mobility in the corporate world. It’s very hard to navigate into a senior management role without those three magic initials: MBA.

The alternative is to branch out and start a company. And while I’ve met many self-made millionaires covering the trades, I can’t help but wonder how many other businesses failed for every one success that I’ve profiled. My guess is many more.

Blindly jumping into trade school is the equivalent of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a seven-year degree with no marketable skills. There is no magic bullet to choosing the right career. The students who seriously think about what they need to get out of their education—be it college, trade school or something else altogether—and put in the work are usually the ones who succeed.

It’s crucial we give them the whole picture so they don’t make unnecessary trade-offs with their futures.