Career advice question

I'm interested in doing internet marketing and other online passive income ideas. I also do plumbing and it can potentially pay pretty well and steady. There is always a need for a good plumber in the job market economy but it won't make you a millionaire or gain you financial freedom at a young age. I've always been around computers and technology since I was a kid so I think that I have an advantage in this field compared to the general population.

I feel that internet marketing and generating income via the internet is a stronger calling of mine. More specifically, I think my personality type and lifestyle is better suited in this career field compared to plumbing. But I may be ok with doing plumbing if I don't have to deal with customers. As anyone working in the service industry can attest to, at one point or another, I'm sure we've all had to deal with difficult customers. Dealing with difficult customers is particularly draining for me, because I'm pretty introverted. I also don't mind doing some of the technical work of plumbing, it can be pretty interesting actually. Understanding plumbing systems of a building can be interesting. Right now I'm just studying for the plumber union entrance exam and am not currently working. In the Union the pay is really good (range from $25 per/hr as a first year apprentice to $50-$60 per/her depending on how many years you've been an apprentice, the promotions are good and steady too. plus health insurance and retirement pensions perks). In the plumber union, I don't have to deal with customers. I heard I may only have work just 6 months in a year. In construction, the job availability is heavily dependent on the economy. If the economy is bad, construction comes to a halt therefore there is less work out there for a plumber in the union.

I heard long ago, technology is the future and those who master it will become tomorrow's millionaires. I tend to think this is true and with my background I think I am in a good position to take advantage of this opportunity. There are advantages to internet marketing compared to plumbing, such as gaining the freedom of working from home, and potential of making big money. My impression of internet marketing is that a lot of it can be automated, so once I get a good system set up, I can generate passive income stream, so I can also free up a lot of my time potentially, working in internet marketing. I also see some disadvantages in Internet Marketing, and technology field in general. technology is rapidly changing. What might be a great field or niche to get into today might become obsolete tomorrow.

I would rather ask this career advice here, than any other place, because What we do here is a niche market and I'd like to keep it private between those who are working in this field.

Is Internet Marketing a good field to go into?

Right now, I am 37 years old. I have 2 years experience in plumbing, and no experience in internet marketing. I am a quick learner in technology areas in general and am a self-starter. I practically learned how to do all aspects of plumbing from watching youtube videos and reading online forums. I believe I could achieve this similar formula for success in internet marketing if I put in the effort. I could learn how to do internet marketing from google research, video tutorials and from online forums. If you have any other advice pertaining my situation, that would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Why dont you combine the two? Set up your own plumbing business website for your local area to bring in clients, learn local seo etc to achieve that. To start you can fulfill the contracts and then as you grow take a step back and pay other people to do the plumbing work while you concentrate growing the online part.

GringoMonkey said:

Why dont you combine the two? Set up your own plumbing business website for your local area to bring in clients, learn local seo etc to achieve that. To start you can fulfill the contracts and then as you grow take a step back and pay other people to do the plumbing work while you concentrate growing the online part.

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True. I could combine the two, and have/am considering combining the two. I heard with clickbank, and affiliate marketing programs, it may take some amount of investment in cash, and trial and error, before you find a good affiliate/niche that can generate you a good income stream. More specifically, I could use the money I make in plumbing and invest it into promising affiliate products/niche. I would rather not start my own plumbing company though, as that can be really stressful managing people, and dealing with customers. I would rather get into the union, and work on construction sites where I don't have to deal with customers, if I were to continue doing plumbing. In the union, you don't have to go out searching for customers as the jobs are given to you by the union and they are mostly big project (such as constructing a skyscraper building or airport, etc).

the thing is, I can work any full-time job (even as a janitor which is a really easy job), to pay for the intial investment into affiliate/internet marketing. If I determined internet marketing is a far better option, as a career, than plumbing; Then I wouldnt have to devote more of my time into plumbing right now, and could free up time, and speed up the process/transition into internet marketing. Doing plumbing takes up a lot of time and requires quite a lot of devotion and sacrifice. As a plumber, I will be working under a manager and supervisor and they demand a lot from you. After work, I'm usually pretty exhausted and don't have time to do other things.

If I were in the union though, and only had to work 6 months in a year, in this scenerio, I could use my free time to learn how to do internet marketing. But at some point, I would have to either A) start up my own plumbing company and do the internet marketing as you say, or B) choose between internet marketing or working for the union.

B) choosing between internet marketing or working for the union seems like the more likely (future) scenerio at this time. because the idea of starting my own plumbing company doesn't appeal to me at this point of my life at least.

or C) determining internet marketing is a far better career path than plumbing, and taking on any easy full time job as I make a career change into internet marketing.

I guess if I were to rephrase my question better, I would get the insights I am looking for.. Do you guys, as internet marketers, feel you made a good career choice? do you guys find the work you do fulfilling? Does it pay well? Does it also give you a lot free time and travel options/mobility? Do you think there is job security 10-20-30 years from now, as internet marketers?

Your questions in post 2 make incorrect assumptions. Your looking at it as a job, it is not it is a lifestyle choice.

Your also asking what would our life have been like had we not chosen this path. How would we know we did choose it!

Anything where you are self employed has ups and downs. Do it well and you can have all the benefits you list, dont do it well and you wont.

But you will find things a lot easier and be more successull if you combine skills you already have with a way to build a business from that online.

To be successful you will have to go through some pain. I dont know anyone who is succesfull at anything that did not make a sacrifice. Only you know if that is something you are prepared to do.

If you never want deal with people it will be unlikey you will be successful with your skillset. Big money is built by building relationships.

If you're looking for a change from plumbing, consider MMA. http://www.businessinsider.com/conor-mcgregor-from-plumber-to-prize-fighter-2017-7.
On the serious side, you obvious have a nack for writing and do it well, so you have that going for you. Like was previous said, you can combine the two. In addition to creating a plumbing business or affiliate marketing, you could do local lead gen and sell the leads to plumbers. You could also do local SEO, specializing in the trades (think beyond plumbing) since you speak the language and can gain their trust once you have some successful customers under you belt. Reach out to your contacts in the business and find the ones that aren't paying for services. You can offer your services to them for free, learn with their businesses and when you figure it out, branch out into neighboring markets or other trades within the same markets.
Whatever you do, you have to be passionate and disciplined about it. Is it something you look forward to after working a full day in the summer heat? If so, there's your answer.

thresh2 said:

I guess if I were to rephrase my question better, I would get the answers/insights I am looking for.. Do you guys, as internet marketers, feel you made a good career choice? do you guys find the work you do, as internet marketers fulfilling? Does it pay well? Does it also give you a lot free time and travel options/mobility? Do you think there is job security 10-20-30 years from now, as internet marketers?

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There is job security for any self employed person but one needs to understand that in the IM industry the amount of fluidity is higher than most when it comes to a steady long term income.

Things may work well for 6 months, 2 years, 5 years or even longer but you will almost always be tweaking to be the top dog.

Plumbing on the other hand has very little change as water will always follow the easiest path, sewage will always be sewage, and pipes will always be pipes. There will be code changes for sure but those are insignificant to the kinds of changes we have in IM.

You have an opportunity to be a union plumber and that does not come easily and is not an opportunity that is available to most.

A little story for you.

Back in the 80's I was working at JFK airport as a subcontractor for an environmental remediation company. I was not union as I was self employed but all the guys I worked with up there were union guys.

We were digging up some jet fuel tanks to replace them and everytime they dug into the ground water seeped in and the water was contaminated with fuel as the tanks leaked. My job was to suck the water up into 2 20,000 frak (holding tanks), clean it using filters that took up a 16X16 shack we built with a plastic tarp for a roof so the fuel was out and then dump it into the local sewer.

I got the work because the guy that got the contract to remove the tanks was a friend of mine and he knew I had a background in the water industry and I told him I knew how to clean the water.

I got paid pretty good... 22.00 per hour portal to portal + a 10% premium on any equipment that I rented or bought for the job. The 10% added up because the equipment was expensive to rent and I ended owning a bunch of equipment I bought that was paid for by the environmental firm and got 10% for them paying for it to boot.

My days were long as I started at 03:30 and JFK was about an hour and a half from my home and my day ended at 15:30 so I could get home before rush hour started.

Anything I did and anywhere I went I had a union guy with me as I was not allowed to turn a wrench, crank a pump or move a hose because I was not union. That was fine as I was making money just walking around and explaining we needed to do thus and so and the union guy did it.

I had 2 different guys for the most part; one was a young guy just getting his feet wet and the other was an older fellow who was probably in his 50's (50 is not older any longer) who knew the ins and outs of everything it seemed.

The job was not long... about 4 months if I remember correctly but working hand in hand you get to know people fairly well.

It turns out the "older fellow" had a home on Long Island paid for, a condo in Naples, Florida, paid for and put himself in a very good position financially working in the union. I found that information out by chatting with the younger guy who was just getting his feet wet and his goal was to have the life that the older fellow had after 20 or so years in the union.

Unless you are up for dealing with changes on a regular basis (your income could fall off the earth over night), staring at a computer screen for hours, having people think you are some kind of silk road guy because you make money online, and are disciplined enough to make sure you get out and exercise and develop relationships with people IRL, you may well be better off in the union.

I banked for 4 or so months and then that income went away and I was back to working on my business plan for my next venture much like how IM goes... you bank for a while and in that process you build other revenue streams because at some point it is very likely that revenue stream is going to dry up.

I've done very well in IM and the fluidity suits my personality and I like that I have to be creative but that is not for everyone so you need to know the pitfalls are real life pitfalls.

The older fellow was not rich but he was doing just fine and should you follow his path I bet you would be in the same position after 20 or so years.

You have to pick your poison - do you want to work like the older fellow from JFK and have a nice life or do you want to pivot on a regular basis to make sure you are moving in the right direction.

Neither is wrong but one is better suited for you and you (and your SO if you have one) have to make that call.

GringoMonkey said:

Your questions in post 2 make incorrect assumptions. Your looking at it as a job, it is not it is a lifestyle choice.

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If it were only a choice between a job and a lifestyle choice, I would majority of the time choose lifestyle, but I also have student loan debt to pay off so the sense of urgency to make money sooner rather than later is greater for me. It seems the most optimum pathway for me would be to try to get into the union and then to pay off debts once i'm put to work in the union, and pursue internet marketing at a later time after my debts are paid off, since I am already half way there in my plumbing career to making good money in plumbing.

The alternative would be to make a career change into internet marketing now (while i work any kind of part time or full time job to fund this), which would then likely cause me to go into further immediate debt (while i learn how to do internet marketing thru trial and error), and risk having internet marketing possibly taking longer than expected to generate a good income to pay off debts, or risk internet marketing not panning out for me at all. I applied for the plumber union before and passed their exam but didnt get in at their interview I think because I didnt have any plumbing experience at the time; this was about 2 years ago. If I pass the union entrance exam and don't get in the union, on their interview again, then I may likely give up on plumbing for the time being and pursue plan C) which is to just get any easy full time job outside of plumbing (like janitor job) while I pursue an internet marketing career. Because I really don't want to go back to doing service repair plumbing work; because I don't think service repair plumbing is my calling. I would much rather do internet marketing, or at the very least construction plumbing for the union.

Internet marketing is something I have been considering doing for a long time now, but haven't made that leap yet although I've read up on it quite a bit.

BassTrackerBoats said:

There is job security for any self employed person but one needs to understand that in the IM industry the amount of fluidity is higher than most when it comes to a steady long term income.

Things may work well for 6 months, 2 years, 5 years or even longer but you will almost always be tweaking to be the top dog.

Plumbing on the other hand has very little change as water will always follow the easiest path, sewage will always be sewage, and pipes will always be pipes. There will be code changes for sure but those are insignificant to the kinds of changes we have in IM.

You have an opportunity to be a union plumber and that does not come easily and is not an opportunity that is available to most.

A little story for you.

Back in the 80's I was working at JFK airport as a subcontractor for an environmental remediation company. I was not union as I was self employed but all the guys I worked with up there were union guys.

We were digging up some jet fuel tanks to replace them and everytime they dug into the ground water seeped in and the water was contaminated with fuel as the tanks leaked. My job was to suck the water up into 2 20,000 frak (holding tanks), clean it using filters that took up a 16X16 shack we built with a plastic tarp for a roof so the fuel was out and then dump it into the local sewer.

I got the work because the guy that got the contract to remove the tanks was a friend of mine and he knew I had a background in the water industry and I told him I knew how to clean the water.

I got paid pretty good... 22.00 per hour portal to portal + a 10% premium on any equipment that I rented or bought for the job. The 10% added up because the equipment was expensive to rent and I ended owning a bunch of equipment I bought that was paid for by the environmental firm and got 10% for them paying for it to boot.

My days were long as I started at 03:30 and JFK was about an hour and a half from my home and my day ended at 15:30 so I could get home before rush hour started.

Anything I did and anywhere I went I had a union guy with me as I was not allowed to turn a wrench, crank a pump or move a hose because I was not union. That was fine as I was making money just walking around and explaining we needed to do thus and so and the union guy did it.

I had 2 different guys for the most part; one was a young guy just getting his feet wet and the other was an older fellow who was probably in his 50's (50 is not older any longer) who knew the ins and outs of everything it seemed.

The job was not long... about 4 months if I remember correctly but working hand in hand you get to know people fairly well.

It turns out the "older fellow" had a home on Long Island paid for, a condo in Naples, Florida, paid for and put himself in a very good position financially working in the union. I found that information out by chatting with the younger guy who was just getting his feet wet and his goal was to have the life that the older fellow had after 20 or so years in the union.

Unless you are up for dealing with changes on a regular basis (your income could fall off the earth over night), staring at a computer screen for hours, having people think you are some kind of silk road guy because you make money online, and are disciplined enough to make sure you get out and exercise and develop relationships with people IRL, you may well be better off in the union.

I banked for 4 or so months and then that income went away and I was back to working on my business plan for my next venture much like how IM goes... you bank for a while and in that process you build other revenue streams because at some point it is very likely that revenue stream is going to dry up.

I've done very well in IM and the fluidity suits my personality and I like that I have to be creative but that is not for everyone so you need to know the pitfalls are real life pitfalls.

The older fellow was not rich but he was doing just fine and should you follow his path I bet you would be in the same position after 20 or so years.

You have to pick your poison - do you want to work like the older fellow from JFK and have a nice life or do you want to pivot on a regular basis to make sure you are moving in the right direction.

Neither is wrong but one is better suited for you and you (and your SO if you have one) have to make that call.

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Interesting story. I can say myself that there are days I'd rather not deal with the randomness that comes with IM. Some days I'd prefer a job in a trade that gets me out of the house dealing with different people and exercise.

OP, I'd recommend that you stick with plumbing and try to combine the two. You can make local directories for plumbing, a National directory, sell leads to other plumbers, establish a blog that helps people with plumbing problems (thus making money off of people who are thousands of miles outside of your service area), you can setup a web development/SEO type side-gig that builds sites for plumbers and other tradesmen as well. You knowing the trade will help a lot and will make it easier for you to connect with other plumbers. And being outside of their service area will calm their nerves in regards to "working with the competition." There are plenty of ways to go about it.

Last thing I'd like to add is that going full-time into IM without having a solid income stream first is something I'd only ever recommend to young guys (23 & under). This is because the risk is much less for us young guys and failure isn't tantamount to losing the house, kids going hungry, etc. Stick with plumbing and monetize it via IM. Having a stable income stream like plumbing gives you an advantage not many in IM have, which is time.

Floopa75 said:

Interesting story. I can say myself that there are days I'd rather not deal with the randomness that comes with IM. Some days I'd prefer a job in a trade that gets me out of the house dealing with different people and exercise.

OP, I'd recommend that you stick with plumbing and try to combine the two. You can make local directories for plumbing, a National directory, sell leads to other plumbers, establish a blog that helps people with plumbing problems (thus making money off of people who are thousands of miles outside of your service area), you can setup a web development/SEO type side-gig that builds sites for plumbers and other tradesmen as well. You knowing the trade will help a lot and will make it easier for you to connect with other plumbers. And being outside of their service area will calm their nerves in regards to "working with the competition." There are plenty of ways to go about it.

Last thing I'd like to add is that going full-time into IM without having a solid income stream first is something I'd only ever recommend to young guys (23 & under). This is because the risk is much less for us young guys and failure isn't tantamount to losing the house, kids going hungry, etc. Stick with plumbing and monetize it via IM. Having a stable income stream like plumbing gives you an advantage not many in IM have, which is time.

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Well if it makes any difference, the only mounting expense I have is student loan debt (probably around 25k at this point). But you bring up an interesting point. One that I am contemplating. I think BassTrackerBoats hit the nail on the head with his post. It may come down to which career path I desire most. It's hard to do both and be good at both without failing at both it seems like sometimes.. I like to go back to an article I read awhile ago that I found profound. It won't let me link the article here but you can find it on google. Here are some quotes from the article "10 Life Lessons to excel in your 30s" by Mark Manson:

5. YOU CAN’T HAVE EVERYTHING; FOCUS ON DOING A FEW THINGS REALLY WELL
“Everything in life is a trade-off. You give up one thing to get another and you can’t have it all. Accept that.” (Eldri, 60)

In our 20s we have a lot of dreams. We believe that we have all of the time in the world. I myself remember having illusions that my website would be my first career of many. Little did I know that it took the better part of a decade to even get competent at this. And now that I’m competent and have a major advantage and love what I do, why would I ever trade that in for another career?

“In a word: focus. You can simply get more done in life if you focus on one thing and do it really well. Focus more.” (Ericson, 49)

Another reader: “I would tell myself to focus on one or two goals/aspirations/dreams and really work towards them. Don’t get distracted.” And another: “You have to accept that you cannot do everything. It takes a lot of sacrifice to achieve anything special in life.”

A few readers noted that most people arbitrarily choose their careers in their late teens or early 20s, and as with many of our choices at those ages, they are often wrong choices. It takes years to figure out what we’re good at and what we enjoy doing. But it’s better to focus on our primary strengths and maximize them over the course of lifetime than to half-ass something else.

“I’d tell my 30 year old self to set aside what other people think and identify my natural strengths and what I’m passionate about, and then build a life around those.” (Sara, 58)

For some people, this will mean taking big risks, even in their 30s and beyond. It may mean ditching a career they spent a decade building and giving up money they worked hard for and became accustomed to. Which brings us to…

6. DON’T BE AFRAID OF TAKING RISKS, YOU CAN STILL CHANGE
“While by age 30 most feel they should have their career dialed in, it is never too late to reset. The individuals that I have seen with the biggest regrets during this decade are those that stay in something that they know is not right. It is such an easy decade to have the days turn to weeks to years, only to wake up at 40 with a mid-life crisis for not taking action on a problem they were aware of 10 years prior but failed to act.” (Richard, 41)

“Biggest regrets I have are almost exclusively things I did *not* do.” (Sam, 47)

Many readers commented on how society tells us that by 30 we should have things “figured out” — our career situation, our dating/marriage situation, our financial situation and so on. But this isn’t true. And, in fact, dozens and dozens of readers implored to not let these social expectations of “being an adult” deter you from taking some major risks and starting over. As someone on my Facebook page responded: “All adults are winging it.”

“I am about to turn 41 and would tell my 30 year old self that you do not have to conform your life to an ideal that you do not believe in. Live your life, don’t let it live you. Don’t be afraid of tearing it all down if you have to, you have the power to build it all back up again.” (Lisa, 41)

Multiple readers related making major career changes in their 30s and being better off for doing so. One left a lucrative job as a military engineer to become a teacher. Twenty years later, he called it one of the best decisions of his life. When I asked my mom this question, her answer was, “I wish I had been willing to think outside the box a bit more. Your dad and I kind of figured we had to do thing A, thing B, thing C, but looking back I realize we didn’t have to at all; we were very narrow in our thinking and our lifestyles and I kind of regret that.”

“Less fear. Less fear. Less fear. I am about to turn 50 next year, and I am just getting that lesson. Fear was such a detrimental driving force in my life at 30. It impacted my marriage, my career, my self-image in a fiercely negative manner. I was guilty of: Assuming conversations that others might be having about me. Thinking that I might fail. Wondering what the outcome might be. If I could do it again, I would have risked more.” (Aida, 49)

ojaiman said:

Whatever you do, you have to be passionate and disciplined about it. Is it something you look forward to after working a full day in the summer heat? If so, there's your answer.

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I'm not really passionate about plumbing--especially service plumbing. I'm more interested in being self-employed and working in Internet Marketing if I can earn a good living doing it.

thresh2 said:

I'm not really passionate about plumbing--especially service plumbing. I'm more interested in being self-employed and working in Internet Marketing if I can earn a good living doing it.

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Try doing both for sometime and analyze. I am currently doing IM only but I plan to expand to physical businesses as well. The reason for that is it helps you interact with people, make friends. There is money in IM but it gets boring after some time.

thresh2 said:

I'm not really passionate about plumbing--especially service plumbing. I'm more interested in being self-employed and working in Internet Marketing if I can earn a good living doing it.

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Internet marketing is just a catch all phrase for marketing on the internet. You are simply stating that you like the idea of being your own boss and working on the internet. But you need to have something to market and know how to do it to be successful. If you don't want to do plumbing and combine it with internet marketing and you don't have any knowledge/passion for anything else don't do internet marketing, as you will struggle to make a living from it.

If you were good at both plumbing and internet marketing then you have a choice to make but as it stands you would be giving up a potentially good career in plumbing for nothing concrete in return.

I would have liked to have been a pro footballer instead of an internet marketer, but I am not good enough, so it was not really an option. C'est la vie!

GringoMonkey said:

Internet marketing is just a catch all phrase for marketing on the internet. You are simply stating that you like the idea of being your own boss and working on the internet. But you need to have something to market and know how to do it to be successful. If you don't want to do plumbing and combine it with internet marketing and you don't have any knowledge/passion for anything else don't do internet marketing, as you will struggle to make a living from it.

If you were good at both plumbing and internet marketing then you have a choice to make but as it stands you would be giving up a potentially good career in plumbing for nothing concrete in return.

I would have liked to have been a pro footballer instead of an internet marketer, but I am not good enough, so it was not really an option. C'est la vie!

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you bring up a good interesting point. I would potentially be giving up a good career in plumbing for nothing concrete in return. The reason I like internet marketing is because I like the idea of being my own boss and working on the internet. My basis for believing plumbing is possibly a bad career choice for me and internet marketing is a good one, is based on somewhat unproven theories. I've taken several career surveys that tell me different things about my personality my interest and strengths.

MBTI: A personality type survey. after much research the results (I got INTJ) indicated that (as a career choice based on my results) plumbing is a bad idea and internet marketing is a seemingly perfect idea. But MBTI is universally rejected by the academic (and psychology) community because it had failed to show any meaningful coorelations with any outcomes of interest, or mbti type and coorelation to job satisfaction.

Holland codes: An interest and work style survey. After taking it a couple times, it indicated that plumbing was the best fit for me. But when combined with MBTI, I'm apparently falling into the INTJ trap of pursuing my inferior functions (Se) when I do plumbing work and that, according to MBTI, if i were wise I would avoid skilled trades like plumbing, carpentry, electrician, and work on my dominant function strengths (i.e. to do internet marketing instead). Although the evidence that holland code coorelation to job satisfaction is apparently stronger than using MBTI to finding a good career fit.

Big 5: Another personality type indicator that actually has some scientific backing, and its results (showing your big 5 personality type coorelation to job satisfaction) are backed by academic/psychology field. I couldn't get any conclusive specific result on what job I should do based on taking a the big 5 test. It seems like the Big 5 is more about personal growth than a job/career placement/finder.

So like you were saying before, I think you bring up a good point in that I would be giving up a potentally good career in plumbing for nothing concrete in return. My basis for thinking plumbing is a bad career choice for me and internet marketing is a good one, is based on more or less unproven theories and pseudoscience (MBTI is regarded as a psuedo-science).

Maybe I should try to combine the two, in some way.. Although I think I may have to choose between the two at some point in the future. This is something that I am contemplating. Meanwhile, according to my previous plans, I'm supposed to be studying for the plumber union entrance exam that is due next month. There so much information to choose from, it makes it difficult to decide. Thanks for all the helpful advice. If you guys have any more great advice, pertaining my situation, it is always welcomed. thanks.

I'm also heavily investing in cryptocurrencies. I started in October of last year.

If my investments pan out, I'm not going to want to continue to do plumbing. I'm going to use the money I made in my cryptocurrency investments, and put it into Internet affiliate marketing SEO start-up stuff; And also paying off my student loan debts.

Then I will be stuck paying union dues for the union, if i pass their test next month and get in the union. Or worse, get kicked out of the union for inactivity (i'm not totally sure how they deal with inactivity amongst their members in the union, I probably will just get stuck paying union dues every year). But once you get kicked out of the union (and they kick out a lot of people all the time) it's usually pretty final. I wouldn't get a second chance of getting back in the union.

plumbing is basically my fall back plan if anything else doesn't pan out. If Internet marketing doesnt pan out. If cryptocurrency doesn't pan out. I'm not interested in combining the two, if any of the others pan out. Because with affiliate marketing, I heard you are marketing several products ranging from different kinds of markets. Plumbing may not even be a profitable niche in affliate/internet marketing.

I'm basically doing plumbing, as a fall back plan. If other things pan out, I will be ditching my plumbing career.

my current plan is to pass the plumber union exam, and then take on an easy full time job (like janitor) and continue to invest in cryptocurrencies and studying how to make money online (e.g. internet/affiliate marketing). I wouldn't be able to do these things (keeping up with cryptocurrencies, affiliate internet marketing, etc) with the same level of efficiency, if I went back to working for a plumbing company doing what I was doing before, service repair plumbing, because the work requires a lot of effort/energy and is pretty exhausting.

In my early 20s I got college degree in film which I also ended up deciding it was the wrong career for me. Which I'm glad I discontinued it, because film-making was a bad career choice that I didn't think through before going to school for it. I have absolutely no interest in film-making today. Photography (as a hobby) is ok though, when I have the time for it.

Do you guys think I should keep doing plumbing (or combining it with internet marketing) after all the information I provided?

GringoMonkey said:

Internet marketing is just a catch all phrase for marketing on the internet. You are simply stating that you like the idea of being your own boss and working on the internet. But you need to have something to market and know how to do it to be successful. If you don't want to do plumbing and combine it with internet marketing and you don't have any knowledge/passion for anything else don't do internet marketing, as you will struggle to make a living from it.

If you were good at both plumbing and internet marketing then you have a choice to make but as it stands you would be giving up a potentially good career in plumbing for nothing concrete in return.

I would have liked to have been a pro footballer instead of an internet marketer, but I am not good enough, so it was not really an option. C'est la vie!

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BTW if you don't think Internet Marketing is a concrete career path, then why are you in this field? Do all internet marketers have other knowledge/passion for other things in order to do internet marketing successfully? Based on my research into internet marketing, you guys just market products that generate income via sales or clicks, and the products have wide range of different markets.

thresh2 said:

BTW if you don't think Internet Marketing is a concrete career path, then why are you in this field? Do all internet marketers have other knowledge/passion for other things in order to do internet marketing successfully?

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It is not a job, it is not a career. A job is something you have to go to everyday. A career is when you are employed. Internet marketing, done properly, is a self employed lifestyle choice that you have the skillset to do. I frequently take months off work and go traveling and still make money automatically, you don't do that with a job.

The money is in owning the product you market. My point is I am good at it, however I would rather have been a footballer. But you cannot always have what you want in life and have to make do with the skills you are given.

My skill set happens to be a perfect fit for internet marketing. Basically you need to have an understanding of sales, some programming ability and some creativity or money to pay people that do and I don't think you have any of that.

The best thing you can do is take what you know and apply it to an online venture, in your case that is plumbing. Otherwise you are taking a massive gamble for an unknown outcome.

In the few days you have been on here analysing this, I have built and launched a new website. Your still trying to make a decision about if you should start or not. If you cannot make decisions quicker than this, without consulting academic studies, aptitude tests and basically everybody under the sun you will struggle to run anything and are best being employed and being told what to do.

You do not have real money to invest in the venture, so you cannot shortcut anything and you do not have any relevant skills so it is going to take you a very long time to get up to speed. Then even when you do there is no guarantee you will have an aptitude for internet marketing.

So for me it is a perfectly valid income generation model that fits my skill sets and lifestyle choices, but I do not think it is for you.

Wanting to do something and being able to do it are two very different things.

You asked in an earlier post do we think you should do internet marketing. In short and based on the information you have provided you have not demonstrated you currently have a single skill needed to be successful in it. So NO!

GringoMonkey said:

It is not a job, it is not a career. A job is something you have to go to everyday. A career is when you are employed. Internet marketing, done properly, is a self employed lifestyle choice that you have the skillset to do. I frequently take months off work and go traveling and still make money automatically, you don't do that with a job.

The money is in owning the product you market. My point is I am good at it, however I would rather have been a footballer. But you cannot always have what you want in life and have to make do with the skills you are given.

My skill set happens to be a perfect fit for internet marketing. Basically you need to have an understanding of sales, some programming ability and some creativity or money to pay people that do and I don't think you have any of that.

The best thing you can do is take what you know and apply it to an online venture, in your case that is plumbing. Otherwise you are taking a massive gamble for an unknown outcome.

In the few days you have been on here analysing this, I have built and launched a new website. Your still trying to make a decision about if you should start or not. If you cannot make decisions quicker than this, without consulting academic studies, aptitude tests and basically everybody under the sun you will struggle to run anything and are best being employed and being told what to do.

You do not have real money to invest in the venture, so you cannot shortcut anything and you do not have any relevant skills so it is going to take you a very long time to get up to speed. Then even when you do there is no guarantee you will have an aptitude for internet marketing.

So for me it is a perfectly valid income generation model that fits my skill sets and lifestyle choices, but I do not think it is for you.

Wanting to do something and being able to do it are two very different things.

You asked in an earlier post do we think you should do internet marketing. In short and based on the information you have provided you have not demonstrated you currently have a single skill needed to be successful in it. So NO!

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dude I seen an old lady of african american descent teach internet marketing on youtube. If she can do internet marketing, I'm sure I can. I've been around computers and technology all my life. I can learn some programming. And yes, there is also the option of outsourcing the ad creations in the beginning, so your point is invalid. And sales I'm sure is not a problem. I already have an account with clickbank, it's just been inactive since like 2015, because I been busy with plumbing. I learned how to do all aspects of plumbing on my own from watching youtube videos, and reading online forums. That's about as difficult as learning internet marketing, more or less. You are dealing with gas when you fix plumbing, it is no joke. fixing gas leaks and measuring gas and water pressure by the cubic inch, with measuring tables and manometer tools, etc. Some of the guys in the plumbing online forums were just like you, telling me I couldn't do it because I asked too many questions. You are just like them, you don't know what you are talking about. You probably just feel threatened that I am going to take your job, just like those plumbers at the plumber forum. lol get over it.

First you said, in order to be successful you have to have knowledge/passion in another area of occupation. But in a previous post you said "Your also asking what would our life have been like had we not chosen this path. How would we know we did choose it!" You're totally contradicted yourself in these two post when giving me advice.

Oh and lastly, internet marketing IS a career. It's called self-employed career. But that is getting way too nit picky on the semantics. You called it a lifestyle, I find that funny. Anything can be called a lifestyle, hot shot. You don't think any other occupations lead a certain type of lifestyle? Whether you agree with their type of lifestyle or not is just your opinion

You ask for peoples opinion and then have a go at them for giving it.

Asking questions isnt a problem, its not being able to process the answers, make a decision and see it through that is.

You are 37 years old, still have a student debt and cannot focus on making a go of something.

But you have a clickbank account so your sorted, because they dont just give those to anybody!

So prove me wrong give up your plumbing career and become an internet marketer, you have seen a few youtube videos, so it will be easy for you.

GringoMonkey said:

You do not have real money to invest in the venture, so you cannot shortcut anything and you do not have any relevant skills so it is going to take you a very long time to get up to speed. Then even when you do there is no guarantee you will have an aptitude for internet marketing.

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you don't need that much money to invest in a affiliate ad venture. if you can find one that generates profit early on. I could probably put 1000$ a month into a venture, that is, if I'm not allocating those funds into cryptocurrency.

GringoMonkey said:

You are 37 years old, still have a student debt and cannot focus on making a go of something.

But you have a clickbank account so your sorted, because they dont just give those to anybody!

So prove me wrong give up your plumbing career and become an internet marketer, you have seen a few youtube videos, so it will be easy for you.

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that's the beauty of internet marketing, anyone can get started into it by creating a clickbank account, if they know how to do it.

the interesting part about me not able to focus on making a go of something, is perfect fit for internet marketing personality imo. It's because I'm overly analytical type of person. I can stare at a computer for hours analyzing data, before I make a decision on where I put my money into.