Originally Posted by
tbone550
Hey Billy,
Yes, you can absolutely make it on trade skills alone. I had to delete my first reply because I originally thought you were asking if you could make it in a welding business without knowing anything about business LOL.
Most guys in the welding industry aren't in business for themselves. Actually a tiny fraction of us are self-employed. To make more money, you need to specialize in a particular process, a particular industry, and/or be willing to travel. It also helps to be good at more than just welding. A person who can weld and wrench is hard to find, and if they know hydraulics or electrical as well, they can pretty much name their price. $100K+ as an employed person is perfectly doable depending on your area and expertise, but you'll need to put some years in to get there.
Self-employed guys like myself often are making about the same amount of money that employees are by the time you take all of our expenses out. If we're making more, it's not a crap ton more like most people think. I can't remember the last year that I didn't gross over $100k, but that word *gross* is the key. I have a LOT of expenses that employees don't, and I can't just unplug and walk away at the end of the day. The flip side is that I don't have any loser coworkers, and I only have one person to blame if I see bad decisions in my business. I have more freedom to pick my work than an employee does, and if I want to take a month's vacation, I can theoretically lock my shop up and do just that.
WeldingWeb Journeyman
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