Some idiots spend over ten years in the same shop working for “coolie wages” never getting past the low 20 dollar an hour range. Others post anonymously to Usenet and Internet forums with bogus names like Joe788 and try and hold others back with lame advise about staying in the same shop for years that never holds up under close scrutiny. This article tells it like it is and sets the record straight.
http://www.cnc-west.com/Issues%20Folder/2008%20October%20November/Job%20Hopping%20to%20Success.htm
“Some people consider job hopping to be a sign of instability or a restless soul. On the other hand, Rob Markson, founder-president of Phoenix, AZ’s Action Machine LLC, considers it one of the best ways around for a young man to learn the things he needs to know to become a successful entrepreneur.
“I started machining for a neighbor when I was fifteen years old,” he says. “He had a little shop in his garage next door to our house. I learned all I could from him, then went out and got a job sweeping floors in a machine shop. I was soon setting up and operating CNC machines. I learned what I could there and moved on. Each time I moved I gained more experience. I probably worked at fifteen different shops around the Phoenix area before I decided to jump out on my own. The good thing is that I got to see all kinds of machining problems. I got to use a wide variety of CNC equipment, and I saw how different shop management systems worked and how the owners bought and used their equipment.”
Markson also learned another key lesson.
“One of the most important lessons that I learned is how to understand the problems and attitudes of the shop employees,” he says. “In this business you have to depend on your people to get the work done. You have to realize they’re people, not light bulbs you can change any time you like. I learned what they worry about, how they feel about changes, and what they want out of life. It was an amazing way to get an education.”
