need to vent....

RobertThoreson

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jun 12, 2015
Messages
145
So iv been having a hard time lately. I'm 26, 2 kids with another due in feb. Family life is great but I'm stuck living paycheck to paycheck. What bothers me most; I work as a detailer, it's just me and one other guy working and the owner. The other guy couldn't use a screwdriver to save his life and the owner is so scattered brained, he would end up losing it. Needless to say they both rely on me to figure things out all the time. I make $12 an hour the other guy is lable my manager and makes around $20 and the owner just keeps all the profits. Tuesday, after all expenses I made him $250.... in one day... and that's after my cut was taken out, witch is much less. Now I live in such a small town that I can't just start out on my own bc there's not room for 2 detail shops and I have $0 saved to even buy anything. I'm just so sick of it. There is so much we could tldo to make more money but the owner don't want to even try. We don't even have an official name let alone business cards. Idk what to do. The owner is 67 so ik we won't be here 20 years from now. Not to talk myself up but I do better work than ether on of them and I feel I'm being held back so much.
 

RobertThoreson

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jun 12, 2015
Messages
145
Perfect example of what I'm dealing with... the other day the owner told us we needed to get cars out faster bc we needed the money... makes sense except we charge by the hour.....
 

ezmobee

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
23,767
Do mobile detailing on your own in addition to your work for your current boss. Create a Facebook page and join the pages of local car clubs to offer your services. Build up a reputation for yourself and then strike out on your own full time. I understand you don't have the money for all the best equipment now and I'm no detailer but I'm still thinking elbow grease is your most important tool. Start out with some Harbor Freight stuff and upgrade as you can afford to do so.
 

wrvond

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Mar 2, 2010
Messages
597
There may not be room for two detailing companies, but if you are so much better than them, yours should be that one company that survives or perhaps even thrives.
I should think a well thought out and executed gofundme account could give you the capital you need to start your own business. After all, you don't need more than a few thousand dollars to get started, do you?
 

MTboatguy

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Jul 8, 2010
Messages
8,988
You my son are the answer to your questions, you need to sit down, do some surfing and see what other younger guys are doing that are in the same "boat" and formulated a plan of action to improve your stake in life, even in a small town you would be amazed at what you can come up with to improve things.

Reputation and willingness to strive to be better is your best assets right now.

But it still takes a plan to get more.

Don't forget you are not limited to just detailing cars, you can do boats, bikes, trucks, all kinds of things people are willing to spend money on to get them clean and shiny.

Good luck.
 

RobertThoreson

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jun 12, 2015
Messages
145
Ik I should be able to survive if I'm better then them but I forgot to mention the only reason this shop is open is bc the owners brother owns a from dealership here in town and that's 98% of our work. We basically work for them.
 

aspeck

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
May 29, 2003
Messages
18,588
Okay, that last bit of information is important. Also, I wonder if your calculations of $250 profit for the owner includes materials and overhead (electric, water, heat, insurance, maintenance, tools), opportunity cost of building (what could he be receiving in rent for the building), etc. Not saying you didn't think of that, but I know many young people who see the $, but don't get the whole picture behind the $$ that come in and go out.

What is the job market like in your community? Is there anything else out there for you to do that will pay more? Do you LOVE detailing? If so, how can you make it work for you? Can you discuss the future with your boss? Do you have any chance at becoming a manager? What about a partner? At 68, I bet he would love to have a way to keep income coming in and yet be retired ... at least partly.

My advice to you is not to vent, but to channel the energies you have into constructively seeking a plan for your next 5 - 10 years. Do it for you, your wife, and your kids. You will all be much happier!
 

gm280

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Jun 26, 2011
Messages
14,585
First off, what does your detailing job actually incur? Is it merely cleaning and such, or do you also do custom paint work and pin stripping and such? If you do set up a plan, know whatever you decide will be tough going for a while until the transition gets going. So it could get tougher before it gets better. But that is when you have to go the extra mile to make it work. Fear of failure is probably your number one obstacle presently. I can understand that. But if you truly believe in yourself, you will come out better on the other end. Not gong to be easy, but striving to do better hardly ever is. But lots of folks take the chance and succeed. So think things thorough but understand you have to follow your ideas and heart as well.

If your present employer is using his brother's car business to funnel work his way, you could contact other car dealers for your business setup. JMHO
 

rbh

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Mar 21, 2009
Messages
7,939
Change is inevitable in life, and this includes careers.A good paying construction job, (union if you can find it) get a trade such as an unlimited crane operator-$100.000+ a year in most areas, power lineman $100.000+ a year in most areas (these included all the overtime)
 

avenger79

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
May 5, 2008
Messages
1,791
find a way to begin purchasing needed tools now. when you have the tools you need start branching out for side work, with good word of mouth references hang your shingle.
 

alldodge

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Mar 8, 2009
Messages
40,581
Hard work pays off only if you look to the future, 10 to 20 years from now. If the job has no future, only stay long enough to decide your next move. A buddy on FB does the same work on the side and every time he finishes a job he post pics. I'm getting ready to not-follow him because there is so much of it, but it works. Don't see detailing being something to retire on unless your the boss and you also expand into other things.

Put your mind to it and figure it out
 

G_Hipster

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Sep 24, 2016
Messages
131
As a young guy, I detailed in a body shop, not much money. Had a girl and a baby. Did what it took to keep things going. Bagged groceries in the evenings, cashiered at a gas station on weekends, cut grass, whatever I could do to make a few bucks. My girl took on a couple kids to watch. Expressed a desire, initiative, and seriousness in learning body and paintwork and started accumulating some small tools. Wasn't long before I was making much better money.

Expand and develop your skill set and learn how to put money away every week even if it's only $10 bucks and LEAVE IT THERE.. Tighten up your budget. Start thinking monthly budget and longer term instead of weekly. Just some food for thought. Sometimes you have to bounce to get ahead and go to where the opportunities are at.
 
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jkust

Rear Admiral
Joined
Aug 2, 2008
Messages
4,942
I can see you are in a tough spot with two kids and one on the way. You are still young and have a lot of earning years ahead of you. The one thing that has propelled me and many others and allowed me to go from poverty and living in my car to where I stand today is education. You sound like your work ethic is in the right place which is huge now days as well. Money follow skills and opens doors. I remember being frustrated and beaten down and the one way out, aside from the military, was to get educated. It sounds like you may need to work on some wholesale changes to your life and location. The kind of stuff that painful to talk about and take action on but that your family will thank you for in a few years. Luckily there is no shortage of opportunity as it is in limitless supply. For me, while I was getting educated, taking out 6 figure student loans and no longer living in my car, I worked in a restaurant as a server for tips which was tremendously more than 12$ per hour even back in the late 90's. If I lost it all today and absolutely was in a bind, I would work in a restaurant as a server or bartender. There is huge money in that field as unglamorous, stressful and physically exhausting as it is.
 

Sprig

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
May 2, 2016
Messages
571
You are obviously an intelligent, sharp hard working young man. An auto detailer is an entry level beginner unskilled job. It is a dead end. You sound like you can do way better than that. If you stay in that or a similar job for say 20 years you won't be any better off than you are today. You'll be 46 years old and poor. You need to make a life plan that includes a career path. You need to decide what field you are interested in and pursue it. You need a goal. Getting there may be difficult, hard work and you will have to make some sacrifices. You need to think long term and not just next week or next month. You may have to go to college, or a trade school, or a police academy or what ever. You may have to move from the small town you live in to an area where there are good paying jobs. if you don't want to go to college or what ever then find a company where you have potential to advance. You can start at the bottom and work your _ _ _ off and work your way up in an organization.
Even if your boss gives you a $2 or $3 an hour raise you won't be much better off, you'll still be in a dead end job and 20 years from now you'll probably be hating your job and broke.
 
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RobertThoreson

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jun 12, 2015
Messages
145
First off I would like to thank everyone for the support. To answer a few questions, the $250 I pit in his pocket was after all expenses including rent, utilities tools materials my pay... everything. And there is no way he is going to retire, he doesn't do anything the way it is. And my job isn't the car wash kid you see in the back at the dealer... I take the dirtiest, most scratched up and rusty cars you can imagine and make them like new. I hate the name "detailer" bc people think we just wash cars. What I do is more like restore cars. It's an art form. There are classes I can take but I'm on the teachers level. We even had a $15,000 that my boss went to and ended up showing the proper way to do things. And iv talked about moving but the school the kids are in is one of the best around. Their education is more important than us making more money I guess. It's just been so frustrating to feel like Gordon Ramsey working at a taco bell. So much potential and nothing I can do about it. Your a great group of people. And I'm going to post a few before after pics to show you a our work
 

jakedaawg

Rear Admiral
Joined
Jun 26, 2012
Messages
4,275
I did.not read this whole thread...I would just like to say that it is so refreshing to hear of someone who wants to work. You'll get something going simply because it sounds as though you have a work ethic.

I wish I could find just one person who wouldn't lie cheat or steal. I would pay so well.....
 

jkust

Rear Admiral
Joined
Aug 2, 2008
Messages
4,942
My wife owns a Human Resources Consulting company. She is maybe one of the biggest success stories I know of personally, given she started in extreme poverty as a child with no father and started the company with zero dollars and a telephone after college for which she took 100k of student loans (yes that was not smart). One of the many things they do there is recruiting. From twelve dollars an hour positions up to CEO level for Fortune 500 companies. They have a difficult time bringing in employees for manufacturing type clients who need to fill positions right at that 12$ per hour level because the social safety net pays more money for them to not work. It is even crazier for a family as the median income in the whole state is almost the same for a family of 4 with a head of household working versus nobody working and collecting benefits. The fact that the OP is shunning that lifestyle whereby he would receive substantially more in cash assistance and additional social welfare benefits by not working is admirable. It is disappointing and a little surprising when you see the absence of morals and ethics among so many people. You would be stunned at some of the scenarios.
 
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