Job Seekers Mull Careers as Artisans & Blue-Collar Workers

A recent article by CNN columnist Anne Fisher ("Ask Annie") brings up the notion of unemployed white-collar workers who choose to shed their jackets and roll up their sleeves for some "real work".

A compelling excerpt from Anne's article:

"Dear Annie: I just finished reading Matthew B. Crawford's new book, Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry Into the Value of Work, and it has really got me thinking. I always liked working with my hands, and I spend most of my free time woodworking (building furniture and cabinets for my family and friends) and tinkering with old cars. But like lots of other people, I got a college degree because I was told it would be the ticket to a lifetime of employment security. Ha! Pretty funny, right? Having been laid off twice in three years, I'm not laughing. Meanwhile, my wife's brother, who did an apprenticeship instead of college, owns a successful business as an electrician and has been urging me to come to work for him."

REALITY

As sure as most desk jobs come with paychecks cut by a faceless bean-counter in the corporate office, the impending reality of white-collar work is the "unseen axe" that may one day drop onto your head - dropping most likely upon the order of same said bean counter.

DOUBLE-TAKE

With Americans steeped for generations in the belief that desk jockeying is a far better cry from work as a handyman, landscaper, or as an artist, the sullied US economy has turned the tables on conventional thinking. Given that in some parts of the US unemployment rates are edging upwards of 20%, many workers have good cause to reconsider lifestyle as a growing factor in future prospects for work.

No more pencil pushing and shuffling forms. It's time to do a double-take on the prospect of getting one's hands dirty.

REAL WORK WITH TANGIBLE VALUE.

Despite seeing risk peering from every corner, some folks have made a successful go at a new career closer to their hearts.

Gary the Mechanic (last name withheld at his request) had his start years ago in the Midwest as a factory worker and worked his way up - and off - the shop floor doing administrative work. Unfortunately Gary was laid off from a factory last year in the midst of the economic downturn. After several months of sitting around cafés waiting for things to get better, he realized the economy was in a slump that was bound to last. After months of fruitless searching for similar administrative work elsewhere, Gary sat down for a long hard think.

His idea: to take his life into his own hands.

AN EXAMPLE OF BLUE-COLLAR SUCCESS

Because of a life-long passion for tinkering with autos, Gary decided to open up his own shop to offer simple repairs: oil and brake changes and the like. As time went on, his reputation grew by word of mouth. Eventually he added another line of work - one paying a high dollar when offered to the captive audience rolling up to his garage: car and truck performance customization, AKA "hot rods".

Despite the sad state of the economy, surprisingly there are still many wielding a disposable income allowing the extravagance of having their wheels revved up. In the end, Gary gives these folks what they ask for. As he delivers with flying colors, green bills fly into his bank account every.

Says Gary the Mechanic of his new job, "Yep, they laid me off without batting an eye. When I got tired of sitting around, I tried turning a wrench again. I never looked back. As long as there are cars, I'll still have work."

CAREER TRANSITION: WORK AS AN ARTISAN

The idea of not searching for work where you need to wear a suit and tie is attractive. But a more compelling notion is an ever-growing need for self development. For this reason more and more white collar workers are considering the prospects of work in a "softer" realm.

One inspiring example of such personal transformation is Colorado-based Don Voss, a Toltec artist whose work embraces the core themes of awareness and freedom.

Voss had a well established white-collar career in academia, which he eventually gave up in favor of working full-time as an artisan and co-founder of Ravencircle Creations. Featuring original hand-crafted works made with his wife Lorraine Voss, their work is a "constant obsession and a love of pattern, line and the magic of water mixing randomly on paper media of any kind".

Says Don Voss of his new life, "There is no other way for me to live, because this way is exciting and new, fresh and alert in every breath taken."

OPPORTUNITY IN ADVERSITY

Both Gary the Mechanic and the The Voss Family say their transitions to blue collar careers were staged among tenuous circumstances. While they caution us that career transition is in itself marked by risk, they also point out that it is the growing risk of staying unemployed or in an untenable job which provides the impetus for change in the first place.

Says Don Voss on transitioning to a meaningful job, "What's at stake here is not your means of income, but your life, your being, your awareness in action, and the impeccability of being able to say that a life well lived is a meaningful life. Basically it becomes an issue of whether you're working for a paycheck, or working in a meaningful way for living. By the word 'living' - I mean a life lived in the present. Now! Not a mere passing of days until one's inevitable death."

THE NEW REALITY: BLUE COLLAR & ARTISAN WORK

Whether one seeks work as a blue collar worker or as an artisan through a forced situation (such as layoffs) or through an act of transcendent self-awareness, the tables have turned now.

In our society a renewed outlook demanding transparency and easily measurable value - "face value" if you will - is readily supported by blue collar and artisan work. Blue collar equity through car repair, or work in the crafting of a piece of beauty destined to adorn a sacred space in someone's home - these support the concept of "seeing is believing".

Measurable, tangible, long-lasting, even beautiful: these are the attributes we see more and more in the handiwork of blue collar workers and artisans alike.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: John Melendez is a Colorado-based technical writer and freelance photojournalist reporting on the environment, alternative energies and "green" issues. John Melendez is a writer for hire. To email him, CLICK HERE.

DON VOSS is a Toltec artisan whose work embraces the core themes of awareness and freedom. To email him or make an appointment for a showing, CLICK HERE or go to www.RavenCircle.com.

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