By Joel Johnson, Founder and President of True Task Home Services
We’ve been sold a familiar formula: Go to college. Accumulate tens (or hundreds) of thousands in student debt. Get an office job. Work 40+ hours a week climbing the corporate ladder. Retire comfortably—maybe.
For some, that path brings meaning and success. But for many others—especially in today’s shifting economy—it’s a promise that doesn’t always deliver.
I recently came across a Fortune article that stopped me in my tracks: Gen Z men with college degrees are now experiencing the same unemployment rate as those without degrees. Think about that. After years of expensive schooling, many young men are ending up in the same spot as those who skipped college entirely—except with a pile of student loans and little clarity about what’s next.
So where does that leave those of us who think a little differently? What if your talents and interests aren’t best expressed behind a desk? What if you like building things, fixing problems, and seeing a tangible result from a hard day’s work?
If you’re wrestling with the question, “Is a skilled trades career right for me?”—here are seven signs that might offer some direction:
1. Sitting still feels like a punishment.
If the idea of staring at a screen under fluorescent lights for eight hours makes you feel trapped, you’re probably not meant to live your life in a cubicle. Skilled trades offer movement, variety, and physical engagement—your body and mind are both in motion.
2. You find deep satisfaction in working with your hands.
There’s something honest and grounding about manual labor. Whether it’s laying tile, repairing a sink, or framing out a room, it’s deeply satisfying to create or fix something real—and see the finished product at the end of the day.
3. You’d rather get to work than sit in a classroom.
The idea of spending four more years in school—and going tens of thousands of dollars into debt—makes you cringe. You’d rather start doing something, earning money, and building real-world experience. Trades careers let you learn by working, not by taking notes in a lecture hall. And here’s the kicker: you can often make a great living while you train.
4. You enjoy solving practical problems.
You don’t mind when something breaks—in fact, you kind of enjoy the challenge. The trades are a constant puzzle, where every job site is a new opportunity to make someone’s life a little better through skill, creativity, and persistence.
5. You’re the go-to handyman in your circle.
If your friends or family call you first when their AC goes out or their fence falls over, that’s not just a compliment—it’s a sign you have a natural aptitude. You might not even think twice about it, but many successful tradespeople got started just by being the go-to person who could “figure it out.”
6. You’ve always been curious about how things work.
You were the kid who took the toaster apart “just to see.” That same instinct—to understand the mechanics, to improve the design, to rebuild something better—is the heartbeat of every great tradesperson.
7. You dream about running your own business.
Skilled trades are one of the most accessible entry points to entrepreneurship. The demand is high, startup costs are relatively low, and the scalability is real—especially if you combine technical skill with a strong business drive.
How I Found My Path
I’ve held more jobs than I can count—snowboard instructor, carpenter, crop farmer, D.C. consultant, organic chicken farmer, operations director in construction, project manager in tech—you name it. Each role came with its own lessons, challenges, and rewards.
But through all the shifts and seasons, one truth kept resurfacing: I’m at my best when I’m working with my hands, solving real problems, and staying physically active in the process.
I left a successful tech career to start True Task Home Services because I wanted more freedom, more purpose, and more connection to the work I was doing. For me, it’s the perfect blend of problem-solving, craftsmanship, and business ownership.
If this resonates with you, maybe it’s time to try the path less traveled and jumpstart a career in the trades.
