New career suggestions
April 26, 2019 12:07 PM Subscribe
Career suggestions needed for someone with a heavy coaching background. What else works with that skill set?
Mr. Attackpanda (mid 30s) is a point where he needs a change career wise. He’s currently a gymnastics coach and while he loves that, it works every evening and week and it’s wearing on us both now that we have two little pandas to take care of. We’re looking for career suggestions given his skill set. Also more schooling is an option if that's what it takes
Things he loves about coaching and his general traits – he’s a natural teacher and can hold his students attention from pre-schoolers to teenagers. He loves building their confidence and teaching them new skills, he loves the weird questions that they have and teaching them how to move through space, he loves being physically active. He’s a great leader and has been described as John Wayne-esque.
Things he doesn’t love –No healthcare, 401k, or vacation time. Working every evening until 10pm and every Saturday. Working 50+ hours in a week. Sometimes the parents/managers keep him there over an hour after he’s done because they “want a 5 minute chat”
He’s looking into HVAC, and thought about teaching, but is worried he won’t find stable work as a teacher. We have a lot of craft breweries around us and he might try to apply at one of those as he’s interested in making beer. He’s good with his hands and going into something with repairing mechanics appeals to him. But he doesn’t know where exactly to start with that either. He has some credits towards a kinesiology degree and thought about becoming a physical therapist. The chemistry part of the degree was difficult for him. He’s extremely driven once he decides to do something and he’s smart.
We are in Houston, Texas if it matters.
Mr. Attackpanda (mid 30s) is a point where he needs a change career wise. He’s currently a gymnastics coach and while he loves that, it works every evening and week and it’s wearing on us both now that we have two little pandas to take care of. We’re looking for career suggestions given his skill set. Also more schooling is an option if that's what it takes
Things he loves about coaching and his general traits – he’s a natural teacher and can hold his students attention from pre-schoolers to teenagers. He loves building their confidence and teaching them new skills, he loves the weird questions that they have and teaching them how to move through space, he loves being physically active. He’s a great leader and has been described as John Wayne-esque.
Things he doesn’t love –No healthcare, 401k, or vacation time. Working every evening until 10pm and every Saturday. Working 50+ hours in a week. Sometimes the parents/managers keep him there over an hour after he’s done because they “want a 5 minute chat”
He’s looking into HVAC, and thought about teaching, but is worried he won’t find stable work as a teacher. We have a lot of craft breweries around us and he might try to apply at one of those as he’s interested in making beer. He’s good with his hands and going into something with repairing mechanics appeals to him. But he doesn’t know where exactly to start with that either. He has some credits towards a kinesiology degree and thought about becoming a physical therapist. The chemistry part of the degree was difficult for him. He’s extremely driven once he decides to do something and he’s smart.
We are in Houston, Texas if it matters.
Yeah, if he's good at "classroom management" and keeping kids interested, it seems like teaching would be right up his alley. PE teacher, coach, teaching a subject he has interest or experience in, special education. It would require some training, but being good with kids and able to hold their attention is the hard part, and he's already there.
posted by gideonfrog at 1:37 PM on April 26, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by gideonfrog at 1:37 PM on April 26, 2019 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Some type of education work with kids like whats been suggested above may be a great fit. Keeping the attention of kids is a super power, equal to being bulletproof, the ability to fly, super strength, etc. I believe most of those professions require a 4 year bachelors degree though.
If he wants an active, helping type profession that only requires two years of education, a Physical Therapy Assistant may be a great fit. The job appears to be stable and in demand. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics says the job demand for Physical Therapy Assistants will increase by 30% from 2016 to 2026. Source and more info about the profession . They say the annual mean wage for Physical Therapy Assistants in Texas is $69,890.
I glanced at two Physical Therapy Assistant Programs and I didn't see any chemistry courses. Here's a list of Physical Therapy Assistant Programs here.
In the past I was considering a career in Physical Therapy but decided it wasn't the best fit for me. I did spend about 40 hours or so volunteering at an Outpatient Physical Therapy Clinic and I found that Physical Therapists and Physical Therapy Assistants were on the whole, the happiest and probably the least stressed amongst Doctors, Nurse, Pharmacists, etc.
Sounds like he would make a great teacher but maybe this is one alternative.
posted by mundo at 2:06 PM on April 26, 2019
If he wants an active, helping type profession that only requires two years of education, a Physical Therapy Assistant may be a great fit. The job appears to be stable and in demand. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics says the job demand for Physical Therapy Assistants will increase by 30% from 2016 to 2026. Source and more info about the profession . They say the annual mean wage for Physical Therapy Assistants in Texas is $69,890.
I glanced at two Physical Therapy Assistant Programs and I didn't see any chemistry courses. Here's a list of Physical Therapy Assistant Programs here.
In the past I was considering a career in Physical Therapy but decided it wasn't the best fit for me. I did spend about 40 hours or so volunteering at an Outpatient Physical Therapy Clinic and I found that Physical Therapists and Physical Therapy Assistants were on the whole, the happiest and probably the least stressed amongst Doctors, Nurse, Pharmacists, etc.
Sounds like he would make a great teacher but maybe this is one alternative.
posted by mundo at 2:06 PM on April 26, 2019
The obvious answer is teaching, but I can see why that might not be desirable. What about personal training? Similarly athletic. Maybe teaching yoga or something like that if he wants to be a little more chill.
posted by kevinbelt at 5:10 PM on April 26, 2019
posted by kevinbelt at 5:10 PM on April 26, 2019
I was going to suggest Physical Therapy. I'm not aware of pay and benefits but know that the schedule and its flexibility works well for a friend who is a parent.
posted by salvia at 5:49 PM on April 26, 2019
posted by salvia at 5:49 PM on April 26, 2019
Kevinbelt suggested teaching yoga - there is nothing chill about lack of financial stability, no healthcare and constant hustling (which by the sound of it your other half is experiencing at the moment)? Much as I love yoga, any fantasies of teaching have been squashed by conversations with fellow yogis, it’s like MLM https://ournextlife.com/2017/11/06/yoga-multilevel-marketing/
posted by coffee_monster at 11:04 PM on April 26, 2019
posted by coffee_monster at 11:04 PM on April 26, 2019
I know someone whose first career was coaching, and he got a business degree and is now a very successful process improvement business consultant. He says the skills translate remarkably well between domains.
posted by oblique red at 10:03 AM on May 1, 2019
posted by oblique red at 10:03 AM on May 1, 2019
This thread is closed to new comments.
That said, I'm going to say speech therapist (or maybe occupational therapy.) It is in high demand, it is well-paid, has regular hours, and honestly, to be good at it you have to be a coach. My kiddo has speech issues, and the best therapists he's seen are those who are willing to play with him intensely, interact well with parents, and yeah, basically coach his language the way his soccer coach teaches him about his feet. Some are awful and have no coaching/kid skills at all -- in that they aren't able to sense when the kid can be pushed and when he can't.
It does take graduate work, but I think it would be worth it. (Same goes for occupational therapy). Every speech therapist I know loves their job.
posted by caoimhe at 1:33 PM on April 26, 2019 [3 favorites]