Career advice...

T

twinkle_toes

Member
Would you rather a career that pays well and offers job security, or one that you’re passionate about?

As we all know, most jobs in the ski industry pay horribly. And living in a ski town isn’t cheap. But working the 9-5 and living to ski on weekends is so depressing. Especially when skiing is the only thing that keeps me mentally sane lol

But making just above minimum wage in the ski industry is really stressful. I want a job I can be serious about, and know that I’m investing in my future by being there. Its also impossible to get ahead financially, pay off student loans, etc.

I’ve had a ski resort job, and also started a career. I’m still confused about where to go from here.

There are trade offs on both ends for sure. I’ll figure it out eventually, but mainly posting because it helps to hear a different point of view.

To people who have established careers, how did you find a balance?

And to people who haven’t, I’d love to hear thoughts on this topic in general.

Finding myself a bit lost recently and nobody quite understands the struggle like fellow skiers. TIA :-)

**This thread was edited on Jun 18th 2021 at 2:45:18pm
 
Im at a similar crossroads in my life as well....Stuck living near a ski town where all the action is yet no jobs pay well, Would like to go back to school to finish my degree or pursue something else, and would like to find a good balance of both work + stability plus some play as well. If you live somewhere thats close-enough to recreation, then its pretty sustainable honestly. Sure, you're not skiing as many mid-week days as you'd like but thats life sometimes. Going broke to work ungoldy amounts for ungrateful brats in an industry that just sucks all together for something you love that they dangle in front of you just doesn't work anymore. I'm sorry. Gone are the days of having fun and bumping chairs.

TBH i see nothing wrong with weekend warrior skiing at all. You're still skiing on average way more than your average american and its right in your backyard vs. having to spend money to travel to ski frequently or whenever it allows.

Still holding out for something that I am passionate about but also job security + stability especially in this climate also sounds really nice right now. Unless you have a really solid gig figured out, Id avoid ski jobs all together.
 
I had my years working the low-paying jobs that I was "passionate" about. There were pros and cons, but it was great for me then. However, I've since found that people can personally evolve and become passionate about other things. I never in my life thought I'd have my career that I do, much less be passionate about it, but I make great money and benefits, and I genuinely love my work. Sometimes the right career finds you when/where you least expect it.
 
I'm currently in the college phase of life, so I don't really know what I'm talking about with careers, but a silver lining to the whole covid thing is that there will most likely be more opportunity for remote work (in fact, I believe there are companies allowing people to stay remote if they would like). You may have to start in an office for a bit, but then you'll have an opportunity to be able to work remotely and live wherever you want. Is there any industry about which you are passionate that is also able to be done remotely?
 
14298396:DeebieSkeebies said:
Im at a similar crossroads in my life as well....Stuck living near a ski town where all the action is yet no jobs pay well, Would like to go back to school to finish my degree or pursue something else, and would like to find a good balance of both work + stability plus some play as well. If you live somewhere thats close-enough to recreation, then its pretty sustainable honestly. Sure, you're not skiing as many mid-week days as you'd like but thats life sometimes. Going broke to work ungoldy amounts for ungrateful brats in an industry that just sucks all together for something you love that they dangle in front of you just doesn't work anymore. I'm sorry. Gone are the days of having fun and bumping chairs.

TBH i see nothing wrong with weekend warrior skiing at all. You're still skiing on average way more than your average american and its right in your backyard vs. having to spend money to travel to ski frequently or whenever it allows.

Still holding out for something that I am passionate about but also job security + stability especially in this climate also sounds really nice right now. Unless you have a really solid gig figured out, Id avoid ski jobs all together.
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I work a corporate job 1 1/2 hours from the mountain. I got 50 days in this year weekend warrior'ing, and hitting select weekdays and evenings. I am semi passionate about my industry as it is in renewable energy, and I have a direct hand in my role in the commissioning and daily operation of thousands of wind turbines.

It doesn't hurt that it pays well.

I can see working a trade during the summer to pay for your winter, but at some point a normal person will want more.
 
With carefully building a skill set and a lot of luck you can find something that fits both. I know a few people doing year round, full time in the outdoor industry and make it work well for themselves and family. They all got there in different ways, whether through grinding it out as a seasonal for a long time, pursuing a degree, networking extremely well, etc. Unfornatly there is no clear cut career path in the outdoor industry. A good place to start may be meeting with someone you already know who has is year round in a position you may like amd bounce questions off of them. Idk, its hard to make happen but you're young so what you have to lose right?
 
Im a marine engineering officer. Its a dope job, work 5-6 months of the year and take the whole winter to ski. Been doing it for 13 years now.

Perks also include: being usefull at all things mechanical, be able to fix or build anything, 60-80G a year for 6 months work, travel for free and a pension at retirement. Plus you are allowed to have a marine uniform with ranking epaulets.

Job is super stable and is in need. Its maybe one of the oldest trades in humanity. Its a safe career.

its only a 4 year college program too.

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I'm 20 and have been a (pedal) bike mechanic for about 3 years now. Started in the summers in between school then switched to that fullish time 3x10 hour shifts so I could ski more. I've also coached freeride at Jay peak on weekends for 3 winters. All good jobs, unfortunately, felt somewhat stuck doing the same thing. Not much room to move up, or adopt more responsibilities, ie a bigger paycheck.

Signed up for classes at community college so I can learn to be an AMT (aviation maintenance technician). The goal being that I can still turn wrenches, which I love, but at a much higher technical level, and for industry instead of the often foolish consumer who wants their already clean bike wiped down.

Ski bum jobs are great, but maybe not so great to be doing at 40.
 
I’m in the same boat as you. Funny how being a ski bum isn’t as appealing at 23 than at 18.. I should have done a gap year IMO
 
There's plenty of good paying seasonal jobs that folks here do so they have winters off. Others live close to mountains and ski a good amount. Others like me make enough and have enough days off to travel frequently throughout the winter although I'm envious of those who live near mountains. Not all jobs are 5 days a week.

Another option is healthcare. Various positions have various shift models. Depending on your income, you could choose to work as much or little as you want. If you work night shift places, it's typically a 7on7off schedule. Or other jobs are 10hr shifts so 3 days off each week. I've heard of nurses doing 3x12's per week so that's 4 days off. Doctors have the income to work as much or little as they want. CRNAs at some places can work 2 days a week (think 2x18hr shifts).

Tbh op do what you will want to do everyday. Working a job you don't enjoy is agonizing. A career can be fulfilling and enjoyable but having a job just to pay the bills is terrible and you'll get burnt out quickly.

Don't waste your money on a stupid major either.
 
My advice…….. do what you want to do for the time being. As you get older, your goals, your needs will change and you will possibly change careers a few times. Yeah, benefit packages are nice and the earlier you start, the better. Have fun, follow your gut, money will always be there and there are many ways to make it. Love can happen and can completely change plans/goals. The cliche saying “be young, have fun”, do it! Take all this with a grain of salt but go be happy and take care of you, not others(unless you are in the hospitality industry,lol). Enjoy it, before you know it you will be old like me. I can look back at my life and go, yeah, I had fun! Cheers and best of luck to you!
 
There's probably other jobs outside of the ski industry you might like. I definitely think finding a job you like is important though. That's where people spend most of their time. To me it seems like a shitty way to live to hate your job everyday but keep going for the rest of your life.

Even within a particular job some places pay better or offer a better working environment. You don't have to stay with any job forever.

Kinda vague but everyone is so different. I like what I do do but a lot of people would probably hate it.

The idea that you'll never work a day if you like what you do is bullshit to some extent. Sometimes work is work regardless of how much you love the job, but finding a job that you like is important in life.
 
Just get a remote corporate job.

I travel constantly, ski all the time, chase snow, see family. It's not a bad lifestyle, make decent money so don't have to worry about paying my bills.

Way better than waiting tables for assholes in ski towns.
 
Prologue: I wrote this and almost just deleted it. It's long and feels ridiculous, but it's me and maybe someone would enjoy reading it. So, if that's not you then no worries. But here's my post:

I love seeing these threads pop up because usually they come with some really useful advice and IMO the best advice that can be given is simply a telling of individual experience because - as many have said - there is never a single right path and everyone's different. I'm sitting on the couch and sick of studying, so if you feel like reading, I'll give you mine.

I knew I was going to make ski movies. I had a beautiful plan of a degree in film, two years bumming in Big Sky, getting my name out there, and living the ski life. Life had other plans.

I met a girl, and she was much more important than my dream, so I was dreamless for a time. I was terrified of getting looped into "the 9-5 grind". I was a free spirit and wouldn't be robbed of that by the corporate machine. So I graduated with a teaching degree, a dream of getting my PhD and teaching college...and a pretty strong hatred for teaching. Short lived dream, but no matter. I still had passion for skiing, but also cooking. That girl and I were pretty serious and talking about moving to Colorado. So I set myself on the path of culinary school. I'd grind out years as a chef and the day would come that I would open my own restaurant. However, in the meantime there were bills to be paid. So we moved to Denver and I waited tables during the day and fixed computers at DISH Network overnight. At this point I was 22. Eventually my girl got a job too and I ditched the serving job in favor of the higher paying option. As luck would have it, I set next to a guy a few years older than me who was a chef. He opened his own restaurant, and lived his dream. Except it wasn't a dream, it was a nightmare. The strange environment was the death of relationships, family, stability, and any hope of a bigger dream besides years in the kitchen and endless worry about bills. It was a life that some could thrive in, but not what he grew to want. While I worked that terrible job at a terrible company I made some great friends. I spent my free time skiing and mountain biking and I spent my "terrible" time in the office joking with my friends and lamenting about the corporate ridiculousness. We worked hard, we kicked ass, and I got good at some important stuff and moved on. And then the process repeated at a different job. Then a different company. And another job. Now I still work in an office, I still kick ass, I still have a lot of fun with the people I work with, and I still lament the corporate ridiculousness. I don't ski quite as often as I used to, but that's ok. My life has grown and room was made for other hobbies, more friends, grander experiences that are easier to pay for now.

After all my changed dreams and forfeit plans I think I've decided on this. Your passion is part of you. Not the hobbies you have. If you don't let your life change on you, that passion could burn out. This isn't a manifesto to get you to abandon your dreams. Everyone is different and you have to chase what you want when you want it - regardless of what that is. All I'm saying here is that your life is going to twist and turn and flip and flop, and that's ok. Let it. And if, down the road, you end up at a desk during the week, laughing with co-workers, kicking ass, and getting good at things you never thought you would - that's going to be ok too.
 
14298778:CaptainObvious. said:
Prologue: I wrote this and almost just deleted it.
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I'm glad you didn't delete it!

"you have to chase what you want when you want it - regardless of what that is. All I'm saying here is that your life is going to twist and turn and flip and flop, and that's ok. Let it. "

This is such a realistic piece of advice. Life can be so unpredictable. and things never go according to plan. But you learn as you go I guess, and take the experiences with you. It's so easy to get caught up in having a concrete plan as opposed to just going with the flow, and taking life as it comes

I do like reading the long replies so thanks for typing that out :-)
 
Could not be more relatable to me right now, theres a lot of people in the same boat as us and that's ok i've realized recently. (I'm 22)
 
14298818:*ninja* said:
Could not be more relatable to me right now, theres a lot of people in the same boat as us and that's ok i've realized recently. (I'm 22)
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It's the classic "what the hell are my priorities in life" stage haha.
 
I don’t know. I feel like I had to grind my ass off to move up to a position (construction) where I have work life balance. I know how to do stuff in my particular field that would be hard to replace, so I get leverage to take time off at will and set my own schedule/workload/pace and no one bothers me about it. I had to grind for a long time though idk if that is helpful
 
I think when it comes to a 9-5 office job, its more important to have coworkers you enjoy talking to than being passionate about the work. 8 hours goes by much faster if you have people to joke around with and talk to or even vent about stupid bullshit at your job.
 
14298844:TOAST. said:
I think when it comes to a 9-5 office job, its more important to have coworkers you enjoy talking to than being passionate about the work. 8 hours goes by much faster if you have people to joke around with and talk to or even vent about stupid bullshit at your job.
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This is very important. I work a 8-5 job and have pretty decent pay, enough to afford cost of living and have money for my hobbies but I'm not getting rich, but my co-workers are all in their 60s-70s so I can't really be social at all and I have nearly zero collaboration in my actual workload. It's pretty fucking miserable and every single day I consider how long it will be before I realize that I need to prioritize my mental health and just quit even if that means taking a lower paying job and finding out something that I actually enjoy.
 
Two options be a real ski bum that and consistently broke Ina a 2004 Subaru with 244k mi or make millions and then ski every day. The middle ground is a tough thing.
 
go to college and major in something you can find a job in. I was one of the most passionate ski bums there was and had zero interest in a career. Now I'm later down the road and happy my parents forced me to go to college and now i'm making a good income. If you have any interest in settling down and having kids the only choice you have is to major in something that's needed for jobs. Accounting / finance, construction management, engineering. You'll always have a job in that. You'll thank yourself later on in life even if you don't think you will now.
 
I work in the ski industry and have done basically every job there is on mountain. The past season I was snow school director and also in an amorphous role akin to general manager at a small, community ski hill in a remote northern part of Canada . I made $22/hr which I consider to be reasonably good. I was on skis almost every day from January until mid May.

I also received considerable discounts on all kinds of ski gear, got a free meal most days and obviously didn't have to buy a season pass. My commute was 5-10 minutes. All those factors really helped cut costs.

In the summers I have done all sorts of jobs from restaurant work to trail building, construction and scenic painting for film production. I've lucky enough to be in situations where I can live cheaply in the summer and save money.

I have a Fine arts degree too, and each year I've had at least one show of my art, been part of a festival or residency or sold some work. That provides a bit of income too for something I'm also passionate about, and I can see it being a bigger part of my career in the future.

If you can find work that lets you do at least part of your job remotely and/or set your own schedule, that will let you open up more time for skiing. Living near a mountain with night skiing is also a great way to be able to ski every day, even if it's a small local with night skiing and then you spend weekends at a bigger resort with more terrain.

This lifestyle is stressful at times for sure, but it keeps a mix of different things and is always interesting. I'm constantly meeting people and being part of amazing events.

Being thankful and always trying to learn from new situations and new people really helps keep a positive outlook.

Don't sweat things too much. There's no right or wrong way to go at this.

I'm 31 now but I remember being extremely anxious about how things would work out in my early and mid twenties.

**This post was edited on Jun 21st 2021 at 4:00:51pm
 
major in Liberal arts degree. Tons of job opportunities, just ask them. Just make sure they make your burger before you ask.
 
what a relatable thread

I'm 26 and I have my dream job that I've wanted since I was about 13; supervising terrain parks in the mountains. once I got there I realized pretty quick that it's way sicker to be the dipshit with a rake who shows up and does whatever, rather than being the babysitter/paperwork guy/middle man to every other dept on the mountain. I make good enough money for a city but in a ski town I'll never own a house without being house broke.

I've looked elsewhere as far as careers but I've worked in the ski industry since I was 15 and the thought of not skiing for free whenever I feel like it hurts a bit. I moved to back into a city last summer for 3 months and realized I'm not currently a real useful person in the real world. I'll find something else I want to do at some point I'm sure, but for now I'm stumped and not looking forward to starting from scratch.

tldr: my short sighted goals have put me in a sticky situation
 
You don't have to pick between something you're passionate about and something that pays well. It's cliche as fuck to say,, but if you find something you love doing, you can make a good living doing it if you work hard.

I think the problem with resort jobs is that most people aren't passionate about the actual job, they are just amped to be working alongside something they're passionate about (the most obvious exception to this is park crews/builders).

My advice is try as many different jobs as possible until you find something you really like and then stick with that. I worked so many different jobs until I found something I really enjoy.

Sidenote: I'd say if you find something that you're happy to get out of bed in the morning to go do 80% of the time, that's about as good as it gets. Nobody loves their job 100% of the time.
 
I work from home for a big company as a software engineer. I think the 9-5 stigma sucks because working from home feels different. I'm working generally 7ish to around 3-4ish. Ski 50-100 days a year (as much as my body can handle) and I get paid well with tons of opportunities to move up. I can ski 7 days a week if I want to between evenings and weekends, all while having very little financial stress and being able to purchase safe and reliable gear to make my skiing experience fun. I used to be a fulltime photographer. I tripled my income when I made this career switch. I still love photo/video but now I can do them on my terms and afford to buy the equipment too.

On top of that, I love what I do. I get to sit home all day, work on projects, talk to people and run my 3d printer. This job isn't fore everyone, but I got into it with a 6 month bootcamp and a lifetime of computer interest. You don't have to choose between your biggest passion ever and something you hate to make money. Find something you enjoy and are good at that is a valuable skill to the market. Literally all of the trades are awesome money/benes and can be really rewarding (Not counting the money you'll save knowing those skills and owning a home and car that you can do work on yourself). College also isn't for everyone but don't be afraid of reasonably priced 4 year degrees (Don't pay to go to an expensive school, there's lots of cheap and good schools). Do some career searches with websites that have you input all your interests and skills and whatnot. From there you can learn more about each suggestion and gauge whether it sounds good to you or not.

I'm 26 with 2 degrees unrelated to what I'm doing now. And I just started this job in January. It takes time, just keep plugging away at it.
 
Does anyone know much about doing remote CAD design work? I am going to college for engineering and it seems like it would be a great ski bum job for a couple years after college. I can't think of many jobs where I could do engineering without having a serious city job at an engineering firm.
 
14300152:mrk127 said:
Does anyone know much about doing remote CAD design work? I am going to college for engineering and it seems like it would be a great ski bum job for a couple years after college. I can't think of many jobs where I could do engineering without having a serious city job at an engineering firm.
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I'm sure it exists, but I dunno if it's as common as you think. I design manufacturing equipment and both jobs I've had you kind of have to be in house to troubleshoot things when they hit production. We do a lot of custom work, so every machine has it's own unique problems.

For remote work I would think your best bet would be going with a large company where you have a long time to engineer one small part of something.

As remote work becomes more common o could definitely see a lot of design jobs going at least to half in office half from home schedules.
 
I consider myself a Generalist Engineer because I like to work many different types of jobs in many different types of industries.

There are many ways in which a broad knowledge and skillset can serve the community and make good dough. It keeps ya learning, useful, and sharp.

To balance life, I make time between projects and endeavors to do whatever stupid ideas I dreamed up during work hours.

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Hmm tips... boldly entertain your curiosity about the world and get smart and ballsy. Learn everything about everything. Be versatile and skilled. Always keep cash flowing.
 
I prefer pays well with a good work life balance. I like what I do as an engineer and it pays well, but its not my passion in life. I am fortunate to have a job that I can take any day off for any reason. I may not be able to ski every single day/all day in the winter, but I can cut out early and catch afternoon skiing or biking in the summer. The biggest incentive for this suggestion is, with a job that pays well, I can get all the gear I need and go on trips, buy season passes etc, without saving up or thinking twice. Not trying to sound like a snob with that, its just a fact. I get 4 weeks vacation and another 2 weeks personal days. That is plenty of time off on top of cutting out early etc.

A buddy of mine hates what he does. It has nothing to do with his degree, but it pays well. He is also 100% work from home, so he can work from anywhere with internet. He gets to travel and do what he is passionate about (seeing the world and tons of different cultures), while holding a full time job. There are options out there. You dont have to sell your soul to get a decent job. You also dont have to live paycheck to paycheck to enjoy life. Just my 2 cents.
 
14298451:freestyler540 said:
Im a marine engineering officer. Its a dope job, work 5-6 months of the year and take the whole winter to ski. Been doing it for 13 years now.

Perks also include: being usefull at all things mechanical, be able to fix or build anything, 60-80G a year for 6 months work, travel for free and a pension at retirement. Plus you are allowed to have a marine uniform with ranking epaulets.

Job is super stable and is in need. Its maybe one of the oldest trades in humanity. Its a safe career.

its only a 4 year college program too.

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Hell yeah, I'm a year away from getting my Ocean Engineering degree and I'm pretty stoked about it. Are you on the East Coast?
 
14300584:kingsskier said:
I prefer pays well with a good work life balance. I like what I do as an engineer and it pays well, but its not my passion in life. I am fortunate to have a job that I can take any day off for any reason. I may not be able to ski every single day/all day in the winter, but I can cut out early and catch afternoon skiing or biking in the summer. The biggest incentive for this suggestion is, with a job that pays well, I can get all the gear I need and go on trips, buy season passes etc, without saving up or thinking twice. Not trying to sound like a snob with that, its just a fact. I get 4 weeks vacation and another 2 weeks personal days. That is plenty of time off on top of cutting out early etc.

A buddy of mine hates what he does. It has nothing to do with his degree, but it pays well. He is also 100% work from home, so he can work from anywhere with internet. He gets to travel and do what he is passionate about (seeing the world and tons of different cultures), while holding a full time job. There are options out there. You dont have to sell your soul to get a decent job. You also dont have to live paycheck to paycheck to enjoy life. Just my 2 cents.
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Another bonus is potential injuries from skiing or biking probably wont put you out of work unless it's a head injury or really serious.
 
14300599:TOAST. said:
Another bonus is potential injuries from skiing or biking probably wont put you out of work unless it's a head injury or really serious.
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And even then, with my job, I have insurance for anything that leaves me unable to work for longer periods of time. Also, having good health insurance through work in general is another plus.
 
14300600:WoFlowz said:
Selling individual white claws to highschoolers
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After going to the Mt. Hood Solstice party this year I was thinking I should hike up a bunch of white claws and beer and sell em. You can probably sell a claw to drunks on the top of a mountain for more than even high schoolers would pay.
 
I work east coast hours and live in CO. Work 6am-3pm. I've been working remote out of shared co-working offices near ski areas/in the mountains that I rent for $10-$20 a day. The tradeoff is I'm doing the van life thing bumming around, but am getting paid a Denver Salary. After the time zone change it wasn't getting dark until 8-9pm. I'd ski after work until the sunset (catch 45 minutes of lift service) or ride backcountry every day of the week. When I'm in Oregon I work 5am-2pm and have lot's of time to ski.

Might not be an orthodox way to live, but I like skiing alot. Back paying rent in Denver currently waiting for winter to go back to the bum lifestyle above.
 
I think you should consider the long term. Personally, I just graduated uni and am moving to NYC for work, at a job where I’ll learn a lot about managing companies and ski very little. Hoping for 20 days this season. Then, I want to start my own company in the next 5ish years, and the autonomy afforded by that will catalyze the growth of my skiing days.

Why? I met a 30 something year old guy this winter in UT. He basically worked in NY then started a company, and he is absolutely killing it. He skis like 60-100 days a year, at all the best locations including heli and yurt trips etc. House in LA, cabin right by Alta/Snowbird. He just flies to UT for all the storms, and if it isn’t snowing there, he goes elsewhere in North America. He invested in his career early on, worked hard, and it is paying off. It won’t work for everyone but a guy can try.
 
14300598:little1337 said:
Hell yeah, I'm a year away from getting my Ocean Engineering degree and I'm pretty stoked about it. Are you on the East Coast?
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I do the arctic trips now. At the beginning of my career I was working in the Great Lakes on the bulk carriers, then shifted to the canadian maritimes for grain and ciment and now posted on the trans-arctic to move mining equipment. My ship is anchored in the Rankin Inlet bay in Nunavut for unloading. Its my favorite community because I got cell service here!

What kind of job are you lined up to do after grad? Its crazy how in demand maritime transportation has become. There is a crazy shortage in that industry now.
 
ski industry is killing me, burnt out on working shit jobs and going broke to ski a lot, no degree and feel stuck in poverty to pursue seemingly childish dreams, exploring creative outlets to generate revenue but "not quitting my dayjob"

early 20s ski bum life is gr8
 
14302127:freestyler540 said:
I do the arctic trips now. At the beginning of my career I was working in the Great Lakes on the bulk carriers, then shifted to the canadian maritimes for grain and ciment and now posted on the trans-arctic to move mining equipment. My ship is anchored in the Rankin Inlet bay in Nunavut for unloading. Its my favorite community because I got cell service here!
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Awesome! I'll be joining my ship in Kugluktuk in a month, maybe I'll see you. Probably not, because not many ships need an ice escort in August, but weirder things have happened up there. We're scheduled to mostly do hydrography work this year so I'm expecting to be somewhat bored.

As for OP. I tried the dream job thing, but it turns out I care more about what I do outside of work than what I do at work. And so I started looking for a job that gives both stability and lots of time off. Wound up at the Coast Guard College and now I'm a Navigation Officer. I've got a pension, the security of a government job, the flexibility to live wherever I want and a month-on month-off gig where with added vacation time I often only have to work 5 months of the year. Plus when I'm at work I have a professional chef cooking my meals, stewards to clean the bathroom, and even someone to make my bed. Yeah working 12hr days is tough, but seeing as I don't need to commute/cook/clean, everything outside of that 12hrs is my own time.
 
Congrats on gradding the CCG college. Just wondering what was the graduation rate over there. My year at Georgian was 20%.

Sounds like your working the Western part of the arctic. Desgagnes has the eastern contracts. I did hear rumors that we do have a western run to do this year. Ill PM ya with details if we do so that we can wave to each other up there.

good luck with your sea assignment.

14302204:paige. said:
Awesome! I'll be joining my ship in Kugluktuk in a month, maybe I'll see you. Probably not, because not many ships need an ice escort in August, but weirder things have happened up there. We're scheduled to mostly do hydrography work this year so I'm expecting to be somewhat bored.
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topic:twinkle_toes said:
Would you rather a career that pays well and offers job security, or one that you’re passionate about?

As we all know, most jobs in the ski industry pay horribly. And living in a ski town isn’t cheap. But working the 9-5 and living to ski on weekends is so depressing. Especially when skiing is the only thing that keeps me mentally sane lol

But making just above minimum wage in the ski industry is really stressful. I want a job I can be serious about, and know that I’m investing in my future by being there. Its also impossible to get ahead financially, pay off student loans, etc.

I’ve had a ski resort job, and also started a career. I’m still confused about where to go from here.

There are trade offs on both ends for sure. I’ll figure it out eventually, but mainly posting because it helps to hear a different point of view.

To people who have established careers, how did you find a balance?

And to people who haven’t, I’d love to hear thoughts on this topic in general.

Finding myself a bit lost recently and nobody quite understands the struggle like fellow skiers. TIA :-)

**This thread was edited on Jun 18th 2021 at 2:45:18pm
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I'm still figuring it out but I got a good job out of college and while I don't love what I do I have plenty of money and time off to do the things I love. The quality of the trips I can take and the resources I have to put towards the other areas of my life is more valuable to me than having a job that I "enjoy". Having a career away from your passions makes the time you spend doing them more valuable IMO
 
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