I learned a trade before I realized college was a better fit for me and I do think there’s a bit a “grass is always greener” phenomenon when it comes to people thinking about the trades.
There are plenty of hardworking, skilled welders who have pretty unpleasant, low-paying jobs and originally intended to get a lucrative oil rig job but couldn’t seem to get an offer. Ironically the ones I knew talked about how they were learning python on the side.
The trades have their own problems.




Weak to slop and they don’t seem to have an internal “okay that’s enough I should put my phone down” voice.
Even young people I know who are on their phones a lot have some concept that it’s time to look up and forward, but endless content seems irresistible to the brains of boomers.