So you want to be a welder? - Part 5

If you are a welder, you probably have been divorced or are about to be, if you haven’t taken time to provide for your family’s needs beyond the financial or your family/spouse does not understand and cannot tolerate the separation caused by a welder who is constantly away from home chasing work all across the country (or the world).  In many cases a welder who is pursuing the big “bucks” will be gone a lot and will have to leave wife/husband/children behind for long periods.

While the paychecks are nice, there is no substitute for simply being there in person, keeping the grass mowed, and pitching in with the kids and putting them in bed at night.

While a single welder may have to worry about a broken relationship due to long term absence, it is not near the crushing blow that a supposedly happily married welder experiences when he/she is providing well for the family, but finds out that there is something amiss at home when he returns and a divorce ensues for whatever reason.

If this is something that you don’t want to happen, seriously evaluate the local market demand for welders. Try to find an area, such as TIG welding, where you can excel and stay close to home while working out of a fab shop or similar type of business.  Or consider the self-employment aspect of welding.  While it takes a lot of work to create and keep a family-run welding business, it is usually not the strain that long term separation is on a marriage and family.