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Career change advice

Terzian

New member
Messages
4
Location
south Wales
Just wanted to ask what people did for a job before you became a window cleaner and was the change of career a positive one or not?

I am looking to change from office work to window cleaning and am trying to get some info from people who have been through this change.

Thanks in advance

Phil

 
Welcome to the forum, You may not get many answers this time of the day before the start of work so please  be patient ?  

 
Just wanted to ask what people did for a job before you became a window cleaner and was the change of career a positive one or not?

I am looking to change from office work to window cleaning and am trying to get some info from people who have been through this change.

Thanks in advance

Phil
Window cleaning is all I've known.  Used to go out with my dad as a kid and earn a £1 pocket money.  Then started solo at 18.  11 years on still going! Love it.

 
I went to school and am certified as a computer network engineer / system administrator.

Worked three years as a store clerk (with added responsibility for the computers, long story) at an optometrist.

Then I started cleaning windows, and went at it for three years.

I've since been a teacher (computer electronics and analogue signals), as well as working in the IT department at the school.

Now I'm back and self employed on the windows, and wouldn't have it any other way.

 
Just wanted to ask what people did for a job before you became a window cleaner and was the change of career a positive one or not?

I am looking to change from office work to window cleaning and am trying to get some info from people who have been through this change.

Thanks in advance

Phil


If you can I suggest you window clean part-time to start off with, then at least you'll find out whether it's the job for you or not.

Starting out is probably the most difficult part since firstly you need to get good, regular customers (which is a slow process - canvassing is the best way to start) and then when you start actually cleaning every muscle in your upper body will ache until you get into the swing of things. It's at this point that you begin to ask yourself whether you have made the correct decision.

However if you like the outdoors, meeting people and bit of physical exercise I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Unlike in an office you can choose the customers you want to work for,  you can make the rules up for your business (rather than having to adhere to your office manager's rules) and once you're up & running and you have some decent work you'll get a sense of satisfaction at what you've achieved. One of the good things about window cleaning (unlike plumbers, electricains etc..) is that you're never going to get called out for emergencies so you can generally work to your own timetable.

I do 50/50 window cleaning & IT work from home. I started up the window cleaning business nearly 4 years ago, beacuse I thought I was going to be made redundant (but I haven't been so far). The window cleaning went so well  that I reduced my IT hours to do more window cleaning. I have roughly 200+ regular customers.

Whereabouts are you in South Wales?

 
Thanks everyone for your help on this.   I've been considering the move to window cleaning for a long time as I used to sell the equipment a long time ago.  Been discussing it with the wife but she is not convinced.

Hi cookie I am based just outside Cardiff. So hopefully there is a pretty descent amount of customers near me.

 
What I will say is, you must have some drive and motivation. With most jobs, you just roll in, because you have to. Yeh, its great to have freedom to be your own boss, create your own destiny etc, but Ive noticed with myself, sometimes just feel so lethargic, and to a pint you can be. But that wont get your business thriving. I would say, anyone with common sense can go far with window cleaning, but you need to keep your motivation going. Then its great when you can enjoy the fruits of your labour at the end of the week, ?

 
I’ve mainly had active/physical jobs. After a short spell on the phones it was clear that i was never cut out for office/computer/desk work. So for ten years i bounced between various chef jobs (was good at it but usually very high stress levels & very unsociable hours, not something i fancied a lifetime of) . qualified plumber as well so had a few spells doing that on & off. I then qualified through fast track on gas and really struggled, i wasn’t very experienced and worked for a company for a short time, it didn’t end well. The pressure was too much, especially when working away for sometimes a week at a time on site, in places like slough (council estate work, wasn’t pleasant at all) kind of had a nervous breakdown at the end of that.
Never fully found my feet in anything for one reason or another. age 25 i was like right, time to wipe the slate clean and start over, better late than never. My brother who was 19 at the time had just been made redundant and things wern’t looking too promising for him, so we decided spur of the moment we’d go in to something together while we were both still young. So we thought, right, ...what can we both do. Ding ding. Window cleaning. No training, straight in to it 2014 been at it together since. It has it’s pros and cons as does everything, but year by year it’s got stronger and stronger, we don’t make brilliant money but we try our damnedest!



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I have done lots of things and retired from the fire service and didn't know what to do. At the same time my old window cleaner was selling his round and I wanted to buy it. Surrounded by naysayers I let it go and he sold it to a big company. They only wanted the care homes and scrapped the rest. I set up cleaning the neighbours and now have 30 good customers. Got anther 2 in another scheme on Saturday so I guess I will get plenty more in there. Problem is, no one seems to want to do it where I am so I think I will get plenty more.

 
Aye bud i’m cardiff north, there’s a few fellow cardiffians/newport lads on here now
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and a few out west. Got a little community going on here!


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Had a look on map, there's 8 Swansea based lads on here

 

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