u/shadow_operator81

I started my first sales role last week doing door-to-door solar sales. I wasn't too excited to knock on random people's doors all day pitching them solar, but I thought I'd give it a try since the potential earnings are very high—$90,000 all the way to $450,000+ according to them. The problem now is that, since it's basically all commission, I've been essentially working for free. It's only my 4th day, but I haven't got one appointment set yet.

I couldn't pay rent last month and am literally about to be out of money. I think I need to change jobs, but I also wonder if I'll be giving up an opportunity to make a lot of money here if I were to just stick around longer. I kind of find it hard to believe though because I'm not naturally outgoing, and I don't even like doing this. That being said, the company seems reputable (A+ on BBB) and the people are solid.

I don't mean interesting. I mean fun as in do you have a blast doing it?

To give a little background, I'm 34 and spent my working life so far job hopping from one dead-end job to the next. My most valuable work experience has been in warehousing, machine operation in manufacturing, and a wastewater technician job. I completed an associate's in pre-computer science and am now a 3rd-year student hoping to complete a bachelor's in physics or engineering. However, my last semester as a full-time student was rough as I got a D+ and a W, so I'm taking a year off because I think I got burnt out and lost motivation.

Now I have to get back to work, so I started applying for jobs and got two good offers. One is a door-to-door sales role pitching solar energy systems, which surprised me because I have zero experience in sales and the earning potential, according to the job description, is $90k-$500k a year. It even says I can make $100k in my first year and that top earners make $450k+. I told the recruiter I accepted and am set to start Monday, but now I have another offer on the table for a junior toolmaker and precision machinist trainee. This is only $18/hr but is an entry point to a skilled trade, and the company will pay for relevant technical training and courses at community college starting in the Fall.

If I'm only looking at earning potential, the sales roles seems to be the obvious choice. However, as you can probably tell by my background and education, I never planned on or imagined a sales career. I applied anyway because I'm jobless and can't afford rent, so I'm willing to try to make it work. But as an introvert who's not naturally charismatic or outgoing, I'm worried that I'll fail and lose both job opportunities. The toolmaker/machinist position appears to be the safer choice, whereas this sales roles seems to be a high risk, but possibly high reward choice.

This seems like a pivotal moment in my working life because I've spent so many years getting nowhere. Now, when I have the chance to start a rewarding career, I don't know what to do. I feel that I can't reject the sales job because, in addition to the earning potential, I like to try something at least once before deciding "I can't do it" or "It's not for me." On the other hand, the toolmaker/machinist trainee position is relevant to my past work experience and education and could carry me further in any potential future physics/engineering role if and when I complete a physics/engineering degree. The job description says I'll master "drilling machines, milling machines, precision measuring and layout, hand tools and benchwork, engine lathe, blueprint reading, CNC machines, metallurgy, shop math, etc." I'd love to learn all that, but I'm 34 and the job still only pays $18/hr with the median salary for machinists being $51,000.

I finished the semester with a D+ and a withdrawal, so I'm going to lose financial aid. This is my second attempt at college, and I just can't seem to lock in consistently for years straight. I made it two years with straight As at community college and then transferred to a prestigious state university. Now after my third semester I have two Ws and a D+ on my transcript. GPA is just above 3.0 but of course would be worse had I not withdrawn from courses.

I'm so disappointed in myself. Do I give up and go to trade school? Do I give college the middle finger and throw a hail Mary to try and make it as a musician since I love music more than math and science? Do I go back to working dead-end, menial labor jobs and tell myself I'll be okay so long as I can pay the bills?

I just don't know anymore. It may be a sunk-cost fallacy, but I probably won't give up on college since I've made it this far.

I decided to give college another try at 30, so I enrolled back in community college and spent 2 years getting straight As. Then I transferred to a prestigious state university and did okay the first semester getting As and Bs. Second semester I withdrew from 1 class and now at the end of my 3rd semester I got a D+ and withdrew from another class. I'm probably going to lose financial aid, so it's starting to look like I'm going to fail college again.

I think I burned myself out and transferred a little too soon. I should've spent more time taking preparatory classes, specifically math beyond Calc I. So, I'm thinking I should take a year off here and go back to community college to take the Physics and Calc II classes I dropped, as well as Calc III and IV. I want to come back better prepared, more confident, and with renewed interest and motivation. That being said, if I lose financial aid from my university, is it worth it to transfer again so I can start with a fresh academic record and cheaper tuition?