Discuss thinking of a career move, really need some down to earth advice in the British & UK Tiling Forum area at TilersForums.com.

G

grumpygrouter

hows it going Brian? quiet?! i've been on site nearly 15 years and have never seen things so bad:( anyway thats why im thinking now might be a good time to learn more skills, increase the ways i can bring food to the table, now im not daft enough to think that a four week course in tiling will make me a master tiler (i have much more respect for peoples trades than that!) but is a course like that enough to get me started in the tiling game, im thinking as a secondry income to begin with?:yes:
Hi Quackfly welcome to the forums. A 4 week course was exactly how I started, pick your course carefully. A good course will be very intense and hard work, I had a headache every day during mine....so much to learn and absorb.

Good luck.
 
U

Uheat

Hi ya,

If you want to learn new skills and try your hand at something new then i say go for it! There is nothing wrong with learning a new trade.

Where abouts are you? The NETT (NE) gets a lot of good comments on the forums and i know the guys from YTA (bradford) so if you are close to any of these then i would try them out. Although other training centres are available!!

The advice above is good and some people are struggling but a lot of people are busy if you spend the time and look for the work, don't sit and wait for it to come to you.

These forums are great for picking up help and information....so good luck!
 
U

user123

HI!!:hurray: Welcome to this mad and merry crew....

I went on the NETT course to support my artistic work, loved every intense minute of it and I reckon patience and positive thinking, lots of contacts and flexibility are the answer. It takes three years to establish any new business properly under normal circumstances, now we all just have to wait and see and be proactive about it all...but tiling is addictive I reckon.... so just go with what feels right, we do have instincts (not the same as wishful thinking) for a reason:yes:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
D

david campbell

hows it going Brian? quiet?! i've been on site nearly 15 years and have never seen things so bad:( anyway thats why im thinking now might be a good time to learn more skills, increase the ways i can bring food to the table, now im not daft enough to think that a four week course in tiling will make me a master tiler (i have much more respect for peoples trades than that!) but is a course like that enough to get me started in the tiling game, im thinking as a secondry income to begin with?:yes:


thats how i started just as a secondary income,had done my own properties an realised i wasn't too bad at tiling,a few mates asked me to do there houses after seeing my own(saved them a few quid as i usually charged my dinner a case of guinness and a nominal fee since it was friends)then decided to go and learn the basics on a course i.e setting out,what tools to use and when etc.....
it has taken me a few years to pick up speed and custom but now i'm used by 2 local kitchen co's and get many referrals so it is worth it.
just remember it wont happen overnight and it is a bit slow the now!!:8:
 
T

Trevor Harmer

Hello and welcome to tilers forums.
I started 6 months ago and seem to be doing OK the best thing I did was join a local B.N.I group (business networking International) you meet once a week for breky and give and receive referrals
this is how I got most of my work its not cheep at £500 to join and £10 a week but it has paid for its self 10 fold I met and now work in association with a plumber,kitchen suppliers,bathroom suppliers and a developer so have a good look and also look for other networking groups.
Hope this helps it did me!
Regards
Trevor.:punk:
 
L

Leatherface

Hi mate
good idea for a career in tiling !
Still plenty of work out there : ONLY PROBLEM IS : Other people have got it.
The hardest challenge in todays current climate is to get your foot in the door somewhere, keep the work and get more.
There are many guys out there with not much on ( established tilers I know are struggling ) I am one of the lucky ones, I have built up enough contacts to keep me busy.
Doesn't matter how good you are at the moment, it is not a case of what you know, but who you know !
by all means go for it, but prepare for a struggle !
I have noticed a slow down, phone not ringing off the hook compared to same time last year.
Good luck
 
O

oldgit

in some ways now is a good time to do a course.
1:you may get better value by negotiating a better course fee.
2:you are more or less certain to get very little work so you wont be tempted to pack in the day job.
3:you can do friends and family for a year or so to gain skills confidence and speed.
4:if work goes quiet with digger driving you have another trade to earn a bit extra.
5:you can do all this without feeling the pressure of jumping straight in the deep end and at the end of the downturn or recession you should have enough skills to make a start at tiling,
good luck....
 

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