I’m a 19-year-old auto mechanic and I’m starting to realize the limits of my job. How can I assess my career path so that I’m able to maximize my financial growth and job satisfaction?
When you’re fairly young, you may be inclined to take any old job you can get to collect a paycheck. But you might soon realize that accepting a lower-paying job isn’t going to cut it on a long-term basis.
If you’re 19 years old working as an auto mechanic, you may be making a decent wage, but it might not necessarily lead to a high enough net worth or comfortable lifestyle. Indeed puts the average hourly auto mechanic wage at about $28, which amounts to about $1,120 per week for a 40-hour schedule. Multiply that by 52 weeks, and you’ve got an annual income of just over $58,000.
Now that income actually isn’t so far off from the median weekly U.S. wage of $1,192 as of the fourth quarter of 2024. Someone earning that wage working 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year is looking at an annual income of nearly $62,000.
But you may be looking to aim higher. And if you’re young, it means you have plenty of opportunity to pivot into a career that may be more lucrative and rewarding. Here’s how to go about it.
It’s not just a myth that going to college can lead to higher earnings. The Social Security Administration reports that men with bachelor’s degrees earn approximately $900,000 more in median lifetime income than those who only have high school diplomas. For women, the difference is $630,000 in median lifetime income.
At the same time, there are huge costs associated with going to college. U.S. News & World Report puts the average cost of public, in-state college at $11,011 for the 2024-2025 academic year. But that’s just for tuition and fees, not including room and board. And if you go to a public out-of-state college or a private one, your costs could rise even more.
So while college may be a good option for you in the context of growing your career, you’ll need to decide if it’s worth the investment. The average American today with federal student loan debt owes almost $38,000, as per the Education Data Initiative, which also says it may take borrowers almost 20 years to pay off their student loans.
If you’re more interested in trade work, as opposed to corporate America, then it could make sense to skip college and go with a required training or apprenticeship program instead. But if you can picture yourself working your way up the ladder at a big corporation, then it could pay to invest in a degree.
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You may feel that as a mechanic, there’s only so much room for growth in your industry. So it could pay to explore careers that offer more long-term opportunities.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) maintains a list of the fastest-growing occupations in the country, so it could pay to see if any of these jobs interest you. The occupations that top this list include wind turbine technicians, solar installers, nurse practitioners, data scientists and information security analysts.
However, don’t choose a new career path solely on recent growth. It’s important to find a career you’re passionate about and that you can see yourself wanting to do for years.
And also, pay attention to wages when researching career paths. Wind turbine technicians may be seeing a lot of job growth, but the BLS puts the median annual pay for that job at $61,770 as of 2023. That may not be much more than what you’re earning now as a mechanic. On the other hand, data scientists earned a median $108,020 in 2023.
The idea of moving into a new career can be daunting. And you may be convinced that if you switch industries, nobody is going to want to hire you. But you may be surprised at how you can use your current skills to be successful at a new job.
Many employers, for example, value time management skills. And as a mechanic juggling multiple tasks per day, that may be something you excel at.
Similarly, the ability to problem solve and come up with creative solutions is something employers value. If you can prove that you’ve done your share of that in the context of your current job, you may be invited to use those skills at a new job.
Finally, a lot of jobs place a strong emphasis on customer service. And in your line of work, there’s a good chance you’ve had plenty of customer interaction. That’s something you can talk about both on your resume and during job interviews in the hopes of landing a role that’s not only more fulfilling, but more financially rewarding.
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
Heather Ochoa is a news writer at the Failsafe Podcast. She has been writing about politics, health, business, parenting and finance for over a decade. She also loves to go hiking in her free time.
