Chapter
1
What do you
bring to the job market?
You will be amazed at what you already
bring to the job market. Attitude and perseverance, not experience, are
the main keys to job success on the road. Employers are crying for
responsible workers and increasingly prefer retired or semi-retired
people. Therefore, they advertise in publications and Web sites aimed at
RVers.
Working at Lake Powell one summer, we
heard a college-aged woman complain to her co-worker, “I have to go back to school in three weeks and I haven’t even had a
chance to see my friends.” She quit the first part of August. For
many employers, this is all too typical. Is it any wonder that many prefer
RV workers who don’t have school commitments and will honor their
agreements?
This chapter will help you identify
what you bring to the RV job market, but first, let’s look at some of
the things you could do.
HOW
CAN YOU MAKE MONEY ON THE ROAD?
Working and making money on the road
usually fall into one of the following categories. Which ones interest
you?
Seasonal temporary work
If you want to work only part of the
year, many seasonal and temporary positions are tailor-made for you.
Resort areas have RV parks that need help. What better source of labor
than RVers who understand the needs of their visitors?
In national parks, concessionaires hire
hundreds of seasonal workers to run hotels, stores, restaurants, and other
tourist activities and ser vices. They’ve learned that RVers are good
workers. About one-third of the workers for Yellowstone National Park
Lodges are “mature” workers (meaning not college-aged kids), many
living in their RVs. In fact, many openings occur in mid-season. A retired
couple stopped by Flagg Ranch, between Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons,
just to check it out. They were asked to start work the next day.
Jobs that include travel
“Home is where you park it,” reads
an Escapees RV Club bumper sticker on the back of our motorhome. RV
workers bring their houses with them so jobs that require moving from site
to site are natural for them. Working at craft fairs or shows, checking
gas pipelines, house-sitting, or leading caravans are just a few
possibilities.
Your own business
If you have the entrepreneurial spirit,
you can have your own business as you travel. From making money on the
Internet to supplying and servicing the burgeoning RV subculture, there
are many ways to make a buck. Some RV entrepreneurs use their creative
abilities like writing, performing, making arts and crafts to earn money.
Skills from your former life
You may be able to take skills from
your previous work life and use them to earn money on the road. RVers have
gone back and worked a few months a year for former employers, started
consulting businesses, or given seminars. Handy people and mechanics can
pick up jobs wherever they find RVers parked. Some of these options take
planning before you leave if you want to earn money right away.
Volunteering and exchange of services
Reducing your expenses is money in the
bank. Volunteers for federal and state agencies generally get a full
hookup site in exchange for their efforts. You won’t be spending money
on gas to travel or for a space in an RV park, two of the largest items in
most RVers’ budgets.
You could work out an exchange of
services for a place to park. Some options are to provide security by your
presence, housesit, take care of mail, plants or pets. For example, Ardith
and Page worked ten hours a week for their site in Anchorage, Alaska,
having plenty of time for paying jobs and exploring.
If you want a paying job in a new
field, volunteering is an excellent way to get experience and references.
Jim worked as a volunteer at Acadia National Park in Maine, doing the same
tasks that rangers did. After volunteering two seasons, the rangers
encouraged him to apply and he was hired for the following year. Nick and
Joanne were campground hosts at a state park. They asked for a letter of
reference that they used to get paying jobs at a state park in another
state.
WHAT
DO I HAVE TO OFFER?
I bet you are qualified for more
seasonal jobs than you would imagine. Your skills and abilities can
translate to cash in your pocket. Remember, you have life experience! That
counts for a great deal.
Most seasonal jobs are front-line jobs,
like cash register operation or registering campers. These skills can be
learned on the job. Employers will want to train you in “their way.”
Key
attributes needed for nearly all jobs are ones you probably have:
 | People skills — with customers, co-workers, management |
| Willingness
to follow directions |
| Sense
of responsibility |
| Common
sense |
| Flexibility |
| Reliability |
For positions requiring a trade, you
must show that you have the necessary skills, but they don’t need to be
from paid experience. For example, Bill had worked in steel fabrication
and management. He was applying for maintenance positions where skills in
several trades were needed—carpentry, plumbing, etc. On
applications, Bill listed the house he remodeled and the addition he
built, plus high school summer jobs as a plumber’s helper. He received
several job offers in maintenance.
I applied for maintenance worker and
motor vehicle operator positions for my first seasonal job. My background
was in teaching, sales, and customer service. However, I had done many
aspects of the job. As a teenager, I had driven trucks pulling horse
trailers. I’d been driving both our motorhome and 4-wheel drive Jeep. I
am an excellent assistant, having helped Bill and my dad with their
projects. Because I highlighted my relevant
experience, I was hired.
As you inventory your skills, knowledge, and
abilities, be sure to consider all your activities outside work as well as
past jobs. Hobbies, home maintenance, travel, and community activities
should be evaluated and included.
Your
turn!
Start your Job
Notebook now. (Refer to instructions in “How to use this book.”)
Record your answers to Your Turn!
in section one of your three-ring binder, beginning with the activity
below. You could also put your Job
Notebook answers on your computer. Caution:
Make sure you back up your computer periodically.
Now it’s your turn to identify what
you can bring to the job market. Be specific. Brainstorm to uncover all
the skills and abilities you have. Don’t edit. This will help you focus
your job search. We’ll be returning to this list several times. If you
have a spouse or travel partner, each of you should make a separate list.
My skills and abilities:
List jobs you’ve had, including part
time and summer jobs and the main skills you used. Then do the same for
the other categories. Three examples are provided: one for jobs, one for
home maintenance, and one for community activities.
Skills
Receptionist:
Used people skills for handling complaints.
Followed company procedures.
Remodel
house:
Hung
drywall and kitchen cabinets, installed dishwasher, rewired, painted.
Lions
Club:
In charge of annual fund-raiser, over $10,000 raised. Sold
refreshments, collected money.
Jobs:
Hobbies:
Volunteer
and Community activities:
Home
and vehicle maintenance:
RV
maintenance:
Tools/equipment
I can use:
People
skills:
Skills
that could be taken on the road: computer
skills, management skills, selling, writing, art, teaching a skill,
nursing, massage, hairdressing.
Begin
focusing:
Start getting
acquainted with the job market for RVers. I suggest you look at the
Job List in the beginning of Section
III. You can also scan through chapters in Section
III that interest you. Looking at issues of Workamper
News and looking on the Internet at employer and job-search Web sites
listed in Resources can also
give you ideas.
| In your Job Notebook,
list two or three jobs you could do on the road. |
| List
another two or three jobs you would
like to do. |
| As you come across specific jobs or employers that interest you,
record them in Section 3, Potential Employers. |
Finding
a job will not be a problem. To take advantage of the opportunities and
flexibility this lifestyle affords, you need to stop and think about your
dreams and goals. What have you always dreamed of doing? What kind of work
would you like to do? Where would you like to work? In the next chapter,
we’ll focus on identifying your dreams and goals.
Key points
| Attitude and perseverance are keys to job success on the road.
|
| RV workers have many different options for earning money. |
| Most seasonal jobs require good people skills, responsibility,
and common sense. |
| You have acquired marketable skills in all aspects of your life:
jobs, hobbies, community activities, and chores. |
© 2002, 2006 Jaimie
Hall
All rights reserved. No reproduction without written permission from the author. |
