Critterhunter Gets A Job...

[Critterhunter]

Well, finally got an HVAC company to take a chance on me. They were looking for somebody with experience but said they'd try me out for a few days and see how much I know before deciding to keep me or not, as they are a very small company and said they don't really have room for somebody who only has the basics from school. They said the only reason why they are even trying me out is because I was the best in the interviews while a bunch of other guys with experience seemed to be total drunks or such. So I'm not guaranteeing I've got this job for sure to everybody.

Yesterday was my first day and the only good thing is that the owner, who I worked with, told me I did more work in one day then the last three guys he hired. I asked if that meant there was just a lot of work yesterday or that it meant I kept myself busy er. He said that I kept myself busier and liked that I always asked what I could do next instead of just standing around. Still, not sure if they are going to keep me or not because they really do need a guy with extensive field experience being a small company with only a handful of workers. Friendly guy. Only bad thing is that if and when they keep me and I gain enough experience to be out on my own I'll have to be on call nights every other week because they are such a small company. The bigger companies usually rotate you on call every 3 to 6 weeks or so because they have a larger pool of techs to take turns.

I'm very sore this morning. Haven't been used to doing that much physical activity in a while. The heat didn't help for sure. I'm sure once I get used to all the physical stuff again and the heat I won't be this sore and worn out. But honestly, as hot as it was I think I held up pretty good. He told me that not only was it one of the hottest days I'll ever see, but also that it was about the most brutal day in terms of work and is rare for that much to do in one day. We had two install jobs and then the rest of the day were service calls. He said doing installs like that is rare, especially two in one day. I didn't say anything but I thought to myself "if this is one of the hottest days and one of the rarest of hard work days it wasn't all that bad, so everything else should be a cake walk." Don't get me wrong, a lot of labor hauling around heavy stuff for the installs but he's got two guys that only do installs so usually they do that. He said he's training me to be primarily a tech for service calls and that's a lot less labor intensive. You mainly use your mind doing that. He just said he wants to train me to help on installs too so that if they are slow he can keep me busy.

If I'm feeling this tired and sore every day then I don't see myself doing much detecting. The last thing I want to do is do more kneeling and sweating in this heat. Oh, one other good thing. Only 3% of their work is commercial, which means I'll hardly be baking on a roof top and having to haul stuff up a ladder. He also said when it's this hot they usually are slower because the AC is staying on most of the time. Stuff breaks on those 70's temp days when the AC keeps coming on and off all the time.

So, not bragging I've got a job because I very well might not be the right fit for this company. There are companies that will take the time to train a newbie but they tend to be bigger ones I think who have many service contracts to do routine maintenance and such. You'll know if I'm still working by if I'm not posting as much anymore.

 

[jyt2017]

Congrats man. Congrats. I think you made good impression on pwner. Thats always a good thing. HH an GL. -Joe

Well, finally got an HVAC company to take a chance on me. They were looking for somebody with experience but said they'd try me out for a few days and see how much I know before deciding to keep me or not, as they are a very small company and said they don't really have room for somebody who only has the basics from school. They said the only reason why they are even trying me out is because I was the best in the interviews while a bunch of other guys with experience seemed to be total drunks or such. So I'm not guaranteeing I've got this job for sure to everybody.

Yesterday was my first day and the only good thing is that the owner, who I worked with, told me I did more work in one day then the last three guys he hired. I asked if that meant there was just a lot of work yesterday or that it meant I kept myself busy er. He said that I kept myself busier and liked that I always asked what I could do next instead of just standing around. Still, not sure if they are going to keep me or not because they really do need a guy with extensive field experience being a small company with only a handful of workers. Friendly guy. Only bad thing is that if and when they keep me and I gain enough experience to be out on my own I'll have to be on call nights every other week because they are such a small company. The bigger companies usually rotate you on call every 3 to 6 weeks or so because they have a larger pool of techs to take turns.

I'm very sore this morning. Haven't been used to doing that much physical activity in a while. The heat didn't help for sure. I'm sure once I get used to all the physical stuff again and the heat I won't be this sore and worn out. But honestly, as hot as it was I think I held up pretty good. He told me that not only was it one of the hottest days I'll ever see, but also that it was about the most brutal day in terms of work and is rare for that much to do in one day. We had two install jobs and then the rest of the day were service calls. He said doing installs like that is rare, especially two in one day. I didn't say anything but I thought to myself "if this is one of the hottest days and one of the rarest of hard work days it wasn't all that bad, so everything else should be a cake walk." Don't get me wrong, a lot of labor hauling around heavy stuff for the installs but he's got two guys that only do installs so usually they do that. He said he's training me to be primarily a tech for service calls and that's a lot less labor intensive. You mainly use your mind doing that. He just said he wants to train me to help on installs too so that if they are slow he can keep me busy.

If I'm feeling this tired and sore every day then I don't see myself doing much detecting. The last thing I want to do is do more kneeling and sweating in this heat. Oh, one other good thing. Only 3% of their work is commercial, which means I'll hardly be baking on a roof top and having to haul stuff up a ladder. He also said when it's this hot they usually are slower because the AC is staying on most of the time. Stuff breaks on those 70's temp days when the AC keeps coming on and off all the time.

So, not bragging I've got a job because I very well might not be the right fit for this company. There are companies that will take the time to train a newbie but they tend to be bigger ones I think who have many service contracts to do routine maintenance and such. You'll know if I'm still working by if I'm not posting as much anymore.

 

[Rick(ND)]

I wish you luck in able to keep the job so you will have the experience you need.
If you really enjoy detecting you will always find time to get out there and do a little swinging of the coil, just may have to cut out a few other things.

 

[deepdiger60]

Good luck and hold on to it always good to have some cash PS- i guess now you will not have time to write your 9 page essay's on the GT and Excal ? JK always glad to read your writing,s . Jim

 

[matthias]

Critter man! So far so good! Its great you made such a good impression. You know I've been to HVAC school and had the jobs in the past. I think I know what you are going thru. I wish you the best. Keep us posted when you can. Matt

 

[Mark ( ohio )]

n/t

 

[plugger]

Good luck, the more experience you get, the more they will need you. Hunting can wait awhile.

 

[gear box]

Congrats Critter!!! You deserve a break and good luck.
Gary

 

[Neil]

Good luck, the more experience you get, the more they will need you. Hunting can wait awhile.

thats the truth of it right there. experience and priorities.

best of luck to you in this job critter, its a long time coming and I hope you make the most of it

 

[Ism]

Good first impressions go a long way. The fatigue is likely due to the heat more than the work. Always hydrate before you go to work and keep it up throughout the day on these hot ones. I figure you already know that but the pre-hydrate makes a huge difference.
Best wishes for your job
Ran

 

[bik-il]

I always enjoy your posts.
Good luck with your endeavors!

I won't know where to go now with questions concernig iron or the 10 x 12!

 

[Ron from Michigan]

Critter,good luck with the new job.HH Ron

 

[hershey1]

Congratulations Critter! That is a good trade you are in and that type of work won't be going away. There is always room for one more good hand so the best of luck to you. Hunt when you can make money anytime you can.

 

[xwyokid]

Good Luck. Hope everything works out for you.

 

[E-TREC-Virginia]

Believe me, I would rather have a hard working less knowledgeable person than someone who sits around all the time and does nothing until you tell them what to do next. I've owned several different companies (fence business and landscaping) and you are the type of person that every small business owner loves to have. I'm sure you're excellent work ethic will keep you employed long enough for your skills to come up to speed. As far as the discomfort goes, it will get a little better each day and before you know it, your body will have adapted to the extra work load. I wish you the best of luck and continued employment and hope you Mding does not suffer to much. The job may give you the opportunity to hunt some private property. Strike up a conversation with the property owners about MDing and you may get lucky.

 

[dfxone]

Critter, congratulations on the new employment. I knew it would happen soon for you. Best of everything for you. GH, Don

 

[bootyhoundpa]

congrats on getting your foot in the door...welcome back to the world of working stiffs...ive been with the same company for 26 years and every day i still wonder if they are going to keep me....i wish you the best...

 

[Critterhunter]

Thanks to all, and I mean that. I'll say it again...Don't know if I've got this job for sure as they really needed a guy with extensive experience. I'm just happy for the shot and won't feel bad if they can't use me. Plenty of other companies who have the resources to spend the time to train a complete newbie. The bigger companies have tons of simple maintenance contracts to get your feet wet real slow like. I'm just in a "trial by fire" sort of position with this place so I won't feel bad if it's too much too fast and they just have to let me go. I wouldn't blame them for that as they made that very clear to me and I understand completely. Only good thing is the guy said I did more work in one day then the last 3 guys combined. Made me feel a little better about my chances hearing that.

Neil, I know we've had our difference of opinion on some topics but I can see you are a stand up guy so thanks to you in particular too for the kind words.

DeepDiger, Yes, not as many novel length posts from me. Except this one... Hey, even I look at some of my posts a day or two later and say "Where the heck were you going with that when you could have said it all in one paragraph!" I can type fast and I guess I just let it flow more than I should. Strangely, I don't run at the mouth in person though. A good thing, because that would not look good on an interview or at a job.

Ism and a few others, yes...Takes a few days to get used to the heat and physical labor. When I ran my own company I worked outside year round and did even more physical labor than this in certain respects. Just haven't been used to the heat/activity for a while. I'm sure it will get easier in those respects. Ran through a gallon jug of frozen water and a few other bottles to boot. Knew what I was in for having worked outside for years so I was prepared.

Matthias and anybody else who might be job hunting, and not even in HVAC...Here's a HUGE tip that I only recently learned and is how I found out about this job. Only posting this info in case others are job hunting, and it doesn't even have to be in the HVAC field. Other businesses are ran this way too.

The companies you can find listed in the phone book or on the net or who are putting up help wanted ads on the net or in the paper are NOT THE ONES you want to apply to. Many companies don't even advertise ANYWHERE as their business is all word of mouth. You won't even know they exist if you look in the phone book, on the net to find the company, or for help wanted ads in the paper or the usual other sources like on the net, and I'm not talking about just job openings. I'm talking the very company it's self is "off the grid" in terms of finding a name and a number in the phone book, on the net, advertising in coupon cliipers, or so on.

This is how I got lucky to even get this shot, and for that reason I won't be applying to any place you can "see" in those places. They develop enough word of mouth and relationships that they don't need to even pay to advertise. In fact, they prefer to only get customers by being friends of friends of customers of customers and such. It makes for a more strong "family" type atmosphere in terms of customer bonds. If they do advertise the only place you'll see a name and a number of the company is on the side of the van. That way they get your neighbor's business when they are in your driveway, because your neighbor figures if you can trust them then they can too. One big happy family that way.

For that reason the jobs on sites or in the paper or the companies you can find "on the grid" (net, phonebook, etc) are not where the real action is. I won't even bother with them any more if I have to look for another job. You've got to get word on the street by talking to people. Another tactic is to park at a busy intersection and watch vans drive by and write down names/numbers. You'll be shocked to look in the phone book or on the net and not be able to find the company name anywhere. That's my favorite method. Or frequent the supply shops where a company will stick a job position on the store's bulletin board. Only problem is many of those supply houses aren't even advertised either by being listed in the phone book or on the net. Same deal with them. They build enough contacts that they don't have a dime's worth of advertising or even any phone book listings for you to even know they exist.

It's like a whole underground subculture of suppliers and companies who don't even want to bother with gaining new customers through the phone book, the net, or any form of advertising. They PREFER word of mouth customer to customer business as it builds a stronger bond of customers who are all tied together in some way.

In just the short last few weeks I discovered this "underground" and started digging for those "hidden" companies I got several interviews. If this job doesn't work out due to my lack of experience I've got a whole note book full of companies that are "off the grid" so to speak to apply to, along with some supply houses that also fly under the radar where jobs are listed. Those are the ones where it's worth making the effort to apply to. The ones who have names in the phone book, on the net, or put help wanted ads on the net or in the paper are the ones that can afford to be real picky about wanting experience because they have a ton of applicants since they are so visible. In other words, the best job opportunities are the companies you never knew existed! If this job doesn't work out I ain't going to waste my time with the "visible" ones. In just the short few weeks of digging under all that I seem to have hit pay dirt real quick with several interviews.

 

[Critterhunter]

Sorry, ran out of time to edit my message and try to cut it down in size (for once) and fix a few things like the overkill of underling/bold. Even hurts my eyes to look at it.

Just wanted to give one small example of what I'm talking about.....There is a supply house only a few miles away from me down an industrial road that I never knew existed. They aren't in the phone book, on the net, or so on when I searched for those. My boss mentioned the place as we drove by and I thought "Hmmmm...yet another one of those hidden underground places that aren't even on the grid." Just one small example of what I'm talking about. You'll find companies and jobs listed in those supply stores that you can't find anywhere else (paper, net, phone book, etc).

But my favorite tactic I just discovered is van watching at a busy intersection. I've got a SLEW of company names that I can't find in the phone book or on the net and never even heard of before. HVAC related fields...Refrigeration only companies doing store coolers and such. Building automation companies that do environmental controls (whole field unto it's self), companies that specialize in ice machines, etc. Many of these companies I can't find listed anywhere. They've got their contracts and word of mouth and that's all the need, so why waste a dime on putting their name out there? The name and number on the van and word of mouth is all they need. Just wish I would have discovered all this stuff months ago, but better late than never I guess.

Just posting these job hunting tips for dummies like me even if you aren't in HVAC. Plenty of other companies the same way. One day when you are bored park at a busy intersection with a pen and paper and you'll be surprised how many names you come up with that you can't find anywhere listed but on that van that just passed. If it's a field that needs supplies talk to a few guys and find out where the "off the grid" supply houses are where you can find job postings.

 

[jyt2017]

Its funny you should say this ... I am lookin for new job. lol. I will read up later today. hh gl...hope new jobs goin well. -Joe

Sorry, ran out of time to edit my message and try to cut it down in size (for once) and fix a few things like the overkill of underling/bold. Even hurts my eyes to look at it.

Just wanted to give one small example of what I'm talking about.....There is a supply house only a few miles away from me down an industrial road that I never knew existed. They aren't in the phone book, on the net, or so on when I searched for those. My boss mentioned the place as we drove by and I thought "Hmmmm...yet another one of those hidden underground places that aren't even on the grid." Just one small example of what I'm talking about. You'll find companies and jobs listed in those supply stores that you can't find anywhere else (paper, net, phone book, etc).

But my favorite tactic I just discovered is van watching at a busy intersection. I've got a SLEW of company names that I can't find in the phone book or on the net and never even heard of before. HVAC related fields...Refrigeration only companies doing store coolers and such. Building automation companies that do environmental controls (whole field unto it's self), companies that specialize in ice machines, etc. Many of these companies I can't find listed anywhere. They've got their contracts and word of mouth and that's all the need, so why waste a dime on putting their name out there? The name and number on the van and word of mouth is all they need. Just wish I would have discovered all this stuff months ago, but better late than never I guess.

Just posting these job hunting tips for dummies like me even if you aren't in HVAC. Plenty of other companies the same way. One day when you are bored park at a busy intersection with a pen and paper and you'll be surprised how many names you come up with that you can't find anywhere listed but on that van that just passed. If it's a field that needs supplies talk to a few guys and find out where the "off the grid" supply houses are where you can find job postings.