Sabre
New Member
**Warning: Wall of text**
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[FONT="]Well guys… At the beginning of the year, I started evaluating my life, what’s important to me and where I wanted to be down the road. Which led to the question “Am I proud of where I am?”… Working hard as a one-man show as a sideline to a computer business? Desperately trying to keep up with demand and somehow manage to keep both feet in the computer side of things which is always in need of my original skill set. I’m completely self-taught based on the ever-frownable “Go buy a computer and printer, suddenly you’re a sign shop” type mentality. I continue to struggle with stuff I should be burning through relatively easy, and being constantly pulled into the computer side has hindered my growth from the very start. Quality I have always strived for, but nobody likes waiting weeks for something that should take days. Promises get broken and people get hurt feelings. [/FONT]
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[FONT="]Is this where I want to be? [/FONT]
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[FONT="]After 2 months of really trying to figure out where I wanted to go with the sign stuff… I’ve decided I couldn’t afford to go anywhere with it. If I really wanted to break out into my own shop, I could never afford to take the time and finances away from my family which brings me full circle to my original question. What’s important to me? Family is everything… 100%. An amazing wife and 4 kids would keep any person busy for as long as they can tolerate… and I just can’t get enough of them. [/FONT]
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[FONT="]Solution? I put some feelers out in our community and asked around to determine what my “ideal” employment would be. Who provides the best benefits for my family? Who pays the most? What company gives you the most time off or the best schedule? Everything pointed to one place, which I called up for a basic inquiry on feasibility of employment. The team leader, who I fortunately grew up playing Nintendo with, invited me out for a tour. Now, 2 weeks later, I received word they gave me a green light for a starting Power Engineering position starting April 4th with Spectra Energy. Its details are a wage twice what I’m doing now, 4on/4off shift work and incredible benefits package. I’m ecstatic at what this means for my family, but a little sad that I have to give up this designer dream of mine so early. My last "official" day here will be April 3rd. Man do I have a lot to get done... :|[/FONT]
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[FONT="]Only 3.5 years in, I feel I have barely scratched the surface of what it means to be a sign guy. It’s such an amazing industry with incredibly creative people in it that are always willing to lend a hand. Signs 101 in particular, has been one of the greatest assets to an aspiring sign shop in so many ways. I genuinely appreciate everyone’s input and ideas even if I’m just lurking the threads trying to soak it all in. [/FONT]
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[FONT="]I plan to do some freelance design work in our community so I won’t be cancelling my premium membership. I have already established myself in my community and imagine I will still get some extra work after I’m out of the official business. That is, as long as it’s cool with Fred and the administrative powers. Plus I’ll be able to still somewhat participate in what I consider one of the greatest forums on the ‘net. [/FONT]
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[FONT="]Thanks again, 101. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes
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[FONT="]Well guys… At the beginning of the year, I started evaluating my life, what’s important to me and where I wanted to be down the road. Which led to the question “Am I proud of where I am?”… Working hard as a one-man show as a sideline to a computer business? Desperately trying to keep up with demand and somehow manage to keep both feet in the computer side of things which is always in need of my original skill set. I’m completely self-taught based on the ever-frownable “Go buy a computer and printer, suddenly you’re a sign shop” type mentality. I continue to struggle with stuff I should be burning through relatively easy, and being constantly pulled into the computer side has hindered my growth from the very start. Quality I have always strived for, but nobody likes waiting weeks for something that should take days. Promises get broken and people get hurt feelings. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]Is this where I want to be? [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]After 2 months of really trying to figure out where I wanted to go with the sign stuff… I’ve decided I couldn’t afford to go anywhere with it. If I really wanted to break out into my own shop, I could never afford to take the time and finances away from my family which brings me full circle to my original question. What’s important to me? Family is everything… 100%. An amazing wife and 4 kids would keep any person busy for as long as they can tolerate… and I just can’t get enough of them. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]Solution? I put some feelers out in our community and asked around to determine what my “ideal” employment would be. Who provides the best benefits for my family? Who pays the most? What company gives you the most time off or the best schedule? Everything pointed to one place, which I called up for a basic inquiry on feasibility of employment. The team leader, who I fortunately grew up playing Nintendo with, invited me out for a tour. Now, 2 weeks later, I received word they gave me a green light for a starting Power Engineering position starting April 4th with Spectra Energy. Its details are a wage twice what I’m doing now, 4on/4off shift work and incredible benefits package. I’m ecstatic at what this means for my family, but a little sad that I have to give up this designer dream of mine so early. My last "official" day here will be April 3rd. Man do I have a lot to get done... :|[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]Only 3.5 years in, I feel I have barely scratched the surface of what it means to be a sign guy. It’s such an amazing industry with incredibly creative people in it that are always willing to lend a hand. Signs 101 in particular, has been one of the greatest assets to an aspiring sign shop in so many ways. I genuinely appreciate everyone’s input and ideas even if I’m just lurking the threads trying to soak it all in. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]I plan to do some freelance design work in our community so I won’t be cancelling my premium membership. I have already established myself in my community and imagine I will still get some extra work after I’m out of the official business. That is, as long as it’s cool with Fred and the administrative powers. Plus I’ll be able to still somewhat participate in what I consider one of the greatest forums on the ‘net. [/FONT]
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[FONT="]Thanks again, 101. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes
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