Switching to the trades at 45 from a desk job
Making a late-career change from a sedentary desk job to a physically demanding trade like plumbing or HVAC means weighing the reality of physical strain against the desire for a better life choice. Without knowing what training is needed to get your foot in the door, it is difficult to figure out how to transition into the industry.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Staying in the current office job
- 2Hitting the gym and shadowing a tradesperson for a day before making a decision
- 3Attending community college HVAC-R programs for hands-on labs and industry connections
- 4Applying to unions such as sheet metal unions or the UA
- 5Targeting stationary engineer jobs or roles in BAS controls and automation
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Yesterday I posted here saying I'm 45, I've spent 22 years sitting in front of computers, and I was starting to wonder if becoming a plumber might actually be a better life choice.”source ↗
“My lower back has officially voted to remain in the office chair for now.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 17Switching from audit to tax in accounting
- 2How to change careers after years of training
- 17Is teaching still a realistic option for me?
- 3How do I adapt my career to AI before I get laid off?
- 9How to know if you need a career pivot or just a new job
- 8Should I quit my demanding job for a simpler, lower-paying one?