Why am I embarrassed to run a blue-collar business?
Pressure from social expectations and the pursuit of white-collar prestige make it difficult to talk about running a lucrative blue-collar business, even when it earns well. This leads to hiding the work out of fear of judgment and mockery from peers who value traditional degree-based careers over manual labor.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Keeping the business a secret from friends and family membersDid this help you?
- 2Working extreme hours behind the scenes (nights, weekends, and early mornings) to maintain both jobs without social overlapDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“I can't help but feel embarrassed to know that I went to such a great college for a finance degree, and here I am shooting soap at cars and chiseling melted candy out of minivan cupholders.”source ↗
“The business does too well to ignore, but it feels so beneath me to tell people what I do.”source ↗
“I have had people make fun of the business when I was starting out which is part of the reason why I tried so hard to keep it hidden.”source ↗
“My side business is tree and stump removal. I’ve heard it all “too hard,” “too dangerous,” “that’s a meth head’s job.” And you know what? I don’t care.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 14How to handle running a business completely by yourself
- 19How to plan a business from scratch without missing key steps
- 33Why are clients suddenly ghosting contracts and sales slowing down?
- 12Why do I feel guilty on slow work days?
- 2Feeling like the youngest and least experienced at work
- 15How to change careers when you are stuck in a niche