invoice...

[AliGage]

Can he not pay you a wage whilst you gain the practical experience?

 

[Mr T]

apparently not lol I called him out of the blue asking for experience and in return I would do all the dirty parts of the job i told him i didn't want any money and tbh it doesn't seem like he earns enough to pay me anything anyway and he did explain that he wouldn't be able to give me money so i cant moan i love the work im doin so it feels rite to stick wth it and see where i end up the worst thing that could happen is i come out with nothing but a lesson learned and back to factory work and a miserable life lol

 

[AliGage]

I need more people like you around my way. Someone to wash out my buckets and sweep up for free.
Get back on the phone and find someone that can at least pay for your efforts. Think your getting a bum deal to be honest.

 

[Mr T]

nobody wanted me for free mate so i doubt il find anyone who wants to pay me.... i called every tiler i could find before making a descision and the only one who wanted to know was this guy. i already accept im being a moron by doing this for absolutely nothing but until mr super rich tiler comes along and offers me money theres nothing i can do but bite my tounge and play the fool... don't worry mate when im ready i wont be doing another day for free in my life im no mug

 

[AliGage]

Have you done any trade training?

 

[Mr T]

what do ya mean trade training?

 

[AliGage]

Trade course? College? Or is it just what you've done for free with this other tiler?

 

[Mr T]

well i cant go to college because i wouldn't get the small amount i get signing on and doing voluntary work... im picking everything up as i go along basically. I go with him when he prices up and collects materials and when im ready i have somewhere to go for all the advice i need to be prepared to go self employed and am looking into it on the net so i will have a good idea when im getting ready to start my own thing. I know its not the best way to go about it but its the only possible way i can think of.

 

[AliGage]

Your signing on? How old are you if you don't mind me asking?
You're in the (for want of a better word) perfect position. The job centre will fund a tiling course for you.

 

[Mr T]

yeh mate was laid off in December im 24..... I told them about what I was planning on doing and all they seemed concerned about was finding out if I was gonna be earning any money and how it would affect my jobsearch... so after 6 years of working without askin them for a penny im put in the same boat as the rest of the dole dossers so I just blag my jobsearch and tell them im just looking for work its a joke mate they don't help you with anything.

 

[AliGage]

Search the net for some skills centres and go to your local college. Get as much information as you can on different courses etc.
Then make an appointment to speak to an advisor (or skills assesser i think they're called) take the info to them and tell him/her that you want to get qualified. The job centre will fund this for you. A lot of centres can also deal with the funding side for you as well.

You have the advantage of falling in the 16-24 age bracket as well. You're one of the ones that would be offered the most help.

 

[Mr T]

well my cousin has had funding and a 2 year advisor from the princes trust for the business that she is setting up so I was just gonna wait until I feel more conpitent as a tiler and start looking into that but il look into what your talking about thanks mate

 

[AliGage]

In your position its definitely the route id take. If its what you want to do then take the funding. As long as it IS what you want to do.

 

[Mr T]

yeh mate its what I wanna do that's why im working for nothing lol sound

 

[joshtiler]

Stick at it mr tiler, I'm also 24 and worked in a factory and being a self employed tiler is the best thing I ever done its tough and sometimes I wonder why I do it with the stress and organising ect but when jobs go right and you see a customers face, the feeling is unbeatable

 

[joshtiler]

I dot want to give you false hope tho either mate as it is really tough at the moment probably the worst time to go self employed, I'm lucky I've got a little bit of a customer base plus mates who are plumbers, kitchen fitters and plasterers but I speak to plenty of older tilers who have been tiling for years who are struggling to get work at the moment, just got to be hungry for the work

 

[Wood's better]

To be frank, its a bit more than being hungry for work.
As previously said, being trained is the way forward. You cannot just make things up as you go along. Yes, everyone makes mistakes, however, you cannot make too many on paying customers homes.

I feel for young people finding their way. But being trained is vital (in my opinion)

 

[joshtiler]

Totally agree with you being qualified to do the job is a big part of it but what I meant was if you have two tilers who are equally trained one sits at home waiting for the phone to ring and the other is out there doing everything he can to get work I'd like to think the guy who is "hungrier for work" gets it. I also accept that you can do everything you can to find work and still have none but just trying to give the guy a few words of advice as I was in same boat not that long ago

 

[Wood's better]

You would hope so!!

 

[Martyn Leeds]

Surely if someone is un-employed they can get on a proper NVQ college course, for 2-3yrs or whatever?
Then they're qualifed and doing it the right way

 

[Mr T]

I could get on a course at college but it means not getting my small amount of dole money that I need and it wont take me 2-3 years to learn how to tlie properly and a bonus about not learning on the job is that I will see every aspect of it and some things just cant be learned in a class room and that's partly the reason why I done it the way I have

 

[Peter]

You only do a day a week in tech with the rest done on site, and they'll give you 40-50 a week plus travel so you're no worse off.

 

[Mr T]

whats this your talkin about mate? got a link at all?