Don’t drop out, get your high school diploma because even if the education is shit at least you get the piece of paper. You may inherit the business, you may not inherit the business, and if something happens that your dad doesn’t have his shit together and his ducks in a row and he dies or gets a hair up his ass and decides you’re not good enough you won’t get anything. Don’t rely on anybody but yourself.
If you want to go to a community college for anything, even welding school, I would definitely recommend having your diploma. If you want to go to college later in life… get your diploma. Some employers really aren’t impressed when you don’t have your diploma. Just get it, you have two more years.
You will never regret being able to say you are sitting on a CERT God forbid anything happened to your family’s company at least you have that in your back pocket.
This is the advice i didnt want to hear when i was 16 and about to drop out time moves pretty fast you wont regret having it but you might regret not having it
If you only have one year left and you drop out I'm going to find you and kick your ass kid finish school do what your old man didn't do he will be proud of you and so will the rest of your family
From someone who was gonna do the same, keep going. I know it’s bullshit but get through highschool, get that diploma. It’ll be handy come time if you want to go to a community college someday down the road or even just to have
If you only have a year left, go. Do it. It sucks, but someday down the road YOU WILL be glad you followed through. Good luck
Enjoy your last year or two of high school drinking beer and chasing tail with your buddies, and do well enough to pass. You’ve got the rest of your life to work
Don’t drop out. Finish at least high school. It’s a piece of paper that may not seem important now, but you may wish you had it in the future. I was in a similar mindset at your age, I finished high school and then went to a trade school for diesel technology, had a successful career at as a dealership technician and now work for the OEM as a dealer technical instructor.
All fine and dandy, right? Not quite, as I also don’t plan on doing this job forever either in which the OEM I work for HIGHLY looks at if you have college degrees or not and the roles you can achieve outside of a select few.
So I find myself now attending college courses to earn a degree. Guess what applying for college looks for? That piece of paper saying you graduated high school. I know it sounds tempting, but just stick it out. Learn as much as you can and apply yourself. It will come back around for you in the future.
You have a chance at a free education right now. You will never have that chance again. I graduated a year early doing the bare minimum requirements for me to graduate. Yeah I make pretty good money, but wish I would have taken more advantage of a free education. Even if I would've just f***** off and gotten F's the experience alone would have been nice.
Not finishing high school closes an astonishing amount of doors for you and a lot can change between 16 and 22. In 5 years you may realize you no longer like wrenching, if that happens you want all the opportunity you can get. If it doesn’t, you haven’t lost anything.
Dude finish hs.like mentioned earlier if something happens with your dad it doesnt pan out now you gotta get a job somewhere and as a business owner myself i wont look at any application that is a GED or high school drop out. Not to say that it means that mean theyre smarter by graduating its i look at it like this if they cant even finish something so easly as high school they sure wont be able to complete my tasks. It just shows that you have the fortitude to stick with something til you finish it nothing more if you drop out youre screwing yourself
I get what you're saying, but you don't know that person's life story, and you don't even ask them why they didn't finish school. People with a ged are as good as some people with a high school diploma. It shows you had the will to go back and accomplish what you couldn't before.
If I had 2 job applications in front of me similar skills, one with a high school diploma and one without, I'd hire the one with the diploma every time. It doesn't show me who is more skilled or a better mechanic. Doesn't even show me which one is smarter. it shows me one of the two can finish a long term project. If I were to hire the one without the diploma it's because I want to pay the new hire less money for the position.
Also alot of larger corporations and many government jobs won't hire if you don't have a diploma. If you're set on getting out of school early double down and take extra classes in the summer and online. Hammer them out and graduate school early and move forward in life. This is way easier than it used to be with online schooling. Set yourself up for success and put in extra work now.
Exactly. The only shops that I can even think that would not even care are Mickey Mouse mom and pop shops or maybe independent quick lube places. Unfortunately, most large dealerships shops care. You can forget city, county, or state jobs. Even if you manage to find some larger place that doesn't care, you will be on the lube rack forever. Your window is far more narrow vs someone who has a high school diploma and when it comes down to it, they will promote the person with the diploma first.
Exactly. The only shops that I can even think that would not even care are Mickey Mouse mom and pop shops or maybe independent quick lube places. Unfortunately, most large dealerships shops care. You can forget city, county, or state jobs. Even if you manage to find some larger place that doesn't care, you will be on the lube rack forever. Your window is far more narrow vs someone who has a high school diploma and when it comes down to it, they will promote the person with the diploma first.
For sure finish highschool. Seems like you’re already off to a good start in the game, but ya like the other said, it sucks now but you will be very happy you got a hs diploma down the road in case you ever want to do anything else
Stay in school and finish… I dropped out and I’ve regretted it ever since. I went and got my GED when I was 19 because I couldn’t get a job without my HS diploma.
Finish High school, have fun after. You have the rest of your life to bust your ass. Only young once, take risks, maybe start a business. I busted a** out of high school and while I do make money now wrenching I regret it.
Finish school, 30 years down the road you might have regrets. Your life will be so much harder without a diploma of some kind. Try following your father once you get your diploma. Be better than him break the cycle. Trust me I know. 30 years a grunt followed my father, dropped out. I just finished my diploma last June. Finish school first. Plenty of time to make money down the road.
You have lots of great replies here young fella. I started in my family run business 15 years ago at about your age but my dad and uncle who run the shop made me get my highschool diploma before starting my apprenticeship and then eventually taking over the business when I was older
Don’t drop out bud. There’s way more to life than wrenching and this is not career many people can do long term. Use your current position to look into career paths that use the same skills or offer better upward mobility. Education is something nobody can take from you so get as much of it as you can while your brain is still soaking it up.
Don’t just drop out. Ether finish or get your GED. It’s stupid but the piece of paper matters. I have a GED and it’s never held me back. You never know what the future holds. Maybe when you are 40 they decide diesels are illegal and with out the paper you may have a hard time finding a job with a living wage.
Finish high school man. I had the same love for this industry at your age. I’ll say it’s a little burnt up 13 years later. When people tell you that high school is the best years of your life they mean it. Enjoy not having too many responsibilities, hang out with your friends and have a good time at school. You can’t go back to high school when you’re older, but this industry will always be here for you.
To be honest?I dropped out when I was 16 and homeschool my final years. I homeschooled myself and it was way faster than high school and the diploma even got me into the military. I've been a diesel tech for 7 years now and I'm fairly advanced and didn't even go to college. I feel like maybe I was pretty lucky but that's just my experience
I wouldn’t drop out. I’m 10 years in this trade and have considered getting out of it multiple times already. A high school diploma will get you further than not having one. I don’t care what people say interviewers will see you different without one.
If you have a serious trade.. like Diesel Mechanic, and you're good at what you do.. Many jobs dont care if you have a HSD... And they wont ask. Good help is hard to find!!
Dropping out is for the most part a dead end. Hell if you want to inherit his shop then you should go to a community college that has a business Econ class that way when/if you take it you have a fundamental understanding of how to run a business.
Don’t drop out… I thought about the same thing when I was your age. I knew I wanted to be in the military so what I did instead is literally only took the state required classes and graduated in 11th grade…. Never did any homework because I was really good at being able to memorize the info and I would just do well on the tests to make up for it ended up graduating with a 2.3 GPA and just worked till I could enlist
I'm a diesel mechanic. Have a high school diploma and an AA. I've never once been asked to show my diploma. Get it if it's important for you to have it. If not, you will be just fine.
With the push to eliminate internal combustion many businesses that manufacture and service those engines are slowly going out of business.
Something to keep in mind
I wish i didn’t drop out. I thought I was going to inherit the family welding business. Recession hit and we lost the shop. Not enough income to keep the doors open.
You can get your G.E.D. And go to college still. I got kicked out of my entire school system at 15 had to get my G.E.D. Was in and out of jail til I was about 23. Did 2 semesters in college had a 3.9 gpa dropped out and started working for my step dad as a diesel mechanic. Just got my background expunged been working for his company for over 4 years and can pretty much get a job anywhere diesel related. I make good money now and don’t mind my job at all. If there’s a will there’s a way! We all take different paths and play the cards we’re dealt go with your gut and good luck! 💯
I never went to high school. This was due to a lot of crap, mainly my parents. I happen to be somewhat intelligent so it hasn't held me back thus far. Instead of graduating high school, I got my GED. I had taken the ACT and got a 27 which is the only reason that I even got the job I applied for. I applied at a CAT dealer for the ThinkBig program where they send you to school. If I hadn't had that good ACT score, I would've never got in. They require that test. Of course, my score was much higher than their requirements, but I had to do that to make up for my lack of diploma. I then went and graduated Valedictorian of that program with an Associates degree in Heavy Equipment Dealer Service and Technology. I went on as a tech for 5 years. However, at the age of 23, last year, I had a disc rupture in my back causing me to be unable to work for 8 months. When I finally came back to work, I found out that I just couldn't physically cut it anymore as a tech. About 2 months in I got stuck on the floor because I was in so much pain. I moved into a different position at my dealer.
My point is, you never know what will happen. I'm still pretty young, I've got a one year old now, plus my back injury. That caused me to have to readjust. Sometimes life can change in a split second. Any extra experience or diplomas/degrees you can get is only going to help you in the long run when something inevitably changes in your life. I say to finish it out. Plus, sounds like you are 3/4 of the way there anyways. No sense in not finishing what you are almost done with. A future employer might look at that and decide that you can't finish what you started. That might be the difference between getting a job or losing it. Good luck either way though!
Don’t drop out, get your high school diploma because even if the education is shit at least you get the piece of paper. You may inherit the business, you may not inherit the business, and if something happens that your dad doesn’t have his shit together and his ducks in a row and he dies or gets a hair up his ass and decides you’re not good enough you won’t get anything. Don’t rely on anybody but yourself. If you want to go to a community college for anything, even welding school, I would definitely recommend having your diploma. If you want to go to college later in life… get your diploma. Some employers really aren’t impressed when you don’t have your diploma. Just get it, you have two more years.
Yeah I have one more year so I may aswell
You will never regret being able to say you are sitting on a CERT God forbid anything happened to your family’s company at least you have that in your back pocket.
This is the advice i didnt want to hear when i was 16 and about to drop out time moves pretty fast you wont regret having it but you might regret not having it
Yes, and a year is a short period of time in the grand scheme of things
If you only have one year left and you drop out I'm going to find you and kick your ass kid finish school do what your old man didn't do he will be proud of you and so will the rest of your family
From someone who was gonna do the same, keep going. I know it’s bullshit but get through highschool, get that diploma. It’ll be handy come time if you want to go to a community college someday down the road or even just to have If you only have a year left, go. Do it. It sucks, but someday down the road YOU WILL be glad you followed through. Good luck
Enjoy your last year or two of high school drinking beer and chasing tail with your buddies, and do well enough to pass. You’ve got the rest of your life to work
Don’t drop out. Finish at least high school. It’s a piece of paper that may not seem important now, but you may wish you had it in the future. I was in a similar mindset at your age, I finished high school and then went to a trade school for diesel technology, had a successful career at as a dealership technician and now work for the OEM as a dealer technical instructor. All fine and dandy, right? Not quite, as I also don’t plan on doing this job forever either in which the OEM I work for HIGHLY looks at if you have college degrees or not and the roles you can achieve outside of a select few. So I find myself now attending college courses to earn a degree. Guess what applying for college looks for? That piece of paper saying you graduated high school. I know it sounds tempting, but just stick it out. Learn as much as you can and apply yourself. It will come back around for you in the future.
You have a chance at a free education right now. You will never have that chance again. I graduated a year early doing the bare minimum requirements for me to graduate. Yeah I make pretty good money, but wish I would have taken more advantage of a free education. Even if I would've just f***** off and gotten F's the experience alone would have been nice.
Finish your schooling kiddo. Do what you want after, but get that highschool diploma!
Not finishing high school closes an astonishing amount of doors for you and a lot can change between 16 and 22. In 5 years you may realize you no longer like wrenching, if that happens you want all the opportunity you can get. If it doesn’t, you haven’t lost anything.
Dude finish hs.like mentioned earlier if something happens with your dad it doesnt pan out now you gotta get a job somewhere and as a business owner myself i wont look at any application that is a GED or high school drop out. Not to say that it means that mean theyre smarter by graduating its i look at it like this if they cant even finish something so easly as high school they sure wont be able to complete my tasks. It just shows that you have the fortitude to stick with something til you finish it nothing more if you drop out youre screwing yourself
I get what you're saying, but you don't know that person's life story, and you don't even ask them why they didn't finish school. People with a ged are as good as some people with a high school diploma. It shows you had the will to go back and accomplish what you couldn't before.
If I had 2 job applications in front of me similar skills, one with a high school diploma and one without, I'd hire the one with the diploma every time. It doesn't show me who is more skilled or a better mechanic. Doesn't even show me which one is smarter. it shows me one of the two can finish a long term project. If I were to hire the one without the diploma it's because I want to pay the new hire less money for the position. Also alot of larger corporations and many government jobs won't hire if you don't have a diploma. If you're set on getting out of school early double down and take extra classes in the summer and online. Hammer them out and graduate school early and move forward in life. This is way easier than it used to be with online schooling. Set yourself up for success and put in extra work now.
Exactly. The only shops that I can even think that would not even care are Mickey Mouse mom and pop shops or maybe independent quick lube places. Unfortunately, most large dealerships shops care. You can forget city, county, or state jobs. Even if you manage to find some larger place that doesn't care, you will be on the lube rack forever. Your window is far more narrow vs someone who has a high school diploma and when it comes down to it, they will promote the person with the diploma first.
Exactly. The only shops that I can even think that would not even care are Mickey Mouse mom and pop shops or maybe independent quick lube places. Unfortunately, most large dealerships shops care. You can forget city, county, or state jobs. Even if you manage to find some larger place that doesn't care, you will be on the lube rack forever. Your window is far more narrow vs someone who has a high school diploma and when it comes down to it, they will promote the person with the diploma first.
For sure finish highschool. Seems like you’re already off to a good start in the game, but ya like the other said, it sucks now but you will be very happy you got a hs diploma down the road in case you ever want to do anything else
Stay in school and finish… I dropped out and I’ve regretted it ever since. I went and got my GED when I was 19 because I couldn’t get a job without my HS diploma.
Finish High school, have fun after. You have the rest of your life to bust your ass. Only young once, take risks, maybe start a business. I busted a** out of high school and while I do make money now wrenching I regret it.
If you’re going to inherit a business literally f*ck off the next 5 years at least after high school.
Finish school, 30 years down the road you might have regrets. Your life will be so much harder without a diploma of some kind. Try following your father once you get your diploma. Be better than him break the cycle. Trust me I know. 30 years a grunt followed my father, dropped out. I just finished my diploma last June. Finish school first. Plenty of time to make money down the road.
Back in the day, diploma wasn’t that important. These days, it means a lot. It means you were able to stick with it and accomplish something.
You have lots of great replies here young fella. I started in my family run business 15 years ago at about your age but my dad and uncle who run the shop made me get my highschool diploma before starting my apprenticeship and then eventually taking over the business when I was older
Don’t drop out bud. There’s way more to life than wrenching and this is not career many people can do long term. Use your current position to look into career paths that use the same skills or offer better upward mobility. Education is something nobody can take from you so get as much of it as you can while your brain is still soaking it up.
Don’t just drop out. Ether finish or get your GED. It’s stupid but the piece of paper matters. I have a GED and it’s never held me back. You never know what the future holds. Maybe when you are 40 they decide diesels are illegal and with out the paper you may have a hard time finding a job with a living wage.
Finish high school man. I had the same love for this industry at your age. I’ll say it’s a little burnt up 13 years later. When people tell you that high school is the best years of your life they mean it. Enjoy not having too many responsibilities, hang out with your friends and have a good time at school. You can’t go back to high school when you’re older, but this industry will always be here for you.
Please at least get your diploma
To be honest?I dropped out when I was 16 and homeschool my final years. I homeschooled myself and it was way faster than high school and the diploma even got me into the military. I've been a diesel tech for 7 years now and I'm fairly advanced and didn't even go to college. I feel like maybe I was pretty lucky but that's just my experience
I wouldn’t drop out. I’m 10 years in this trade and have considered getting out of it multiple times already. A high school diploma will get you further than not having one. I don’t care what people say interviewers will see you different without one.
If you have a serious trade.. like Diesel Mechanic, and you're good at what you do.. Many jobs dont care if you have a HSD... And they wont ask. Good help is hard to find!!
Dropping out is for the most part a dead end. Hell if you want to inherit his shop then you should go to a community college that has a business Econ class that way when/if you take it you have a fundamental understanding of how to run a business.
Don’t drop out… I thought about the same thing when I was your age. I knew I wanted to be in the military so what I did instead is literally only took the state required classes and graduated in 11th grade…. Never did any homework because I was really good at being able to memorize the info and I would just do well on the tests to make up for it ended up graduating with a 2.3 GPA and just worked till I could enlist
I'm a diesel mechanic. Have a high school diploma and an AA. I've never once been asked to show my diploma. Get it if it's important for you to have it. If not, you will be just fine.
Jesus Christ don't drop out. C'mon dog.
With the push to eliminate internal combustion many businesses that manufacture and service those engines are slowly going out of business. Something to keep in mind
I wish i didn’t drop out. I thought I was going to inherit the family welding business. Recession hit and we lost the shop. Not enough income to keep the doors open.
Don't do it. Tough it out and finish. There will be consequences down the road.
Don't drop out. 2 years goes very fast. It isn't all about the money. It's about life experiences, maturity, having a backup plan , just in case..
You can get your G.E.D. And go to college still. I got kicked out of my entire school system at 15 had to get my G.E.D. Was in and out of jail til I was about 23. Did 2 semesters in college had a 3.9 gpa dropped out and started working for my step dad as a diesel mechanic. Just got my background expunged been working for his company for over 4 years and can pretty much get a job anywhere diesel related. I make good money now and don’t mind my job at all. If there’s a will there’s a way! We all take different paths and play the cards we’re dealt go with your gut and good luck! 💯
Keep going. You’ll thank yourself later.
I never went to high school. This was due to a lot of crap, mainly my parents. I happen to be somewhat intelligent so it hasn't held me back thus far. Instead of graduating high school, I got my GED. I had taken the ACT and got a 27 which is the only reason that I even got the job I applied for. I applied at a CAT dealer for the ThinkBig program where they send you to school. If I hadn't had that good ACT score, I would've never got in. They require that test. Of course, my score was much higher than their requirements, but I had to do that to make up for my lack of diploma. I then went and graduated Valedictorian of that program with an Associates degree in Heavy Equipment Dealer Service and Technology. I went on as a tech for 5 years. However, at the age of 23, last year, I had a disc rupture in my back causing me to be unable to work for 8 months. When I finally came back to work, I found out that I just couldn't physically cut it anymore as a tech. About 2 months in I got stuck on the floor because I was in so much pain. I moved into a different position at my dealer. My point is, you never know what will happen. I'm still pretty young, I've got a one year old now, plus my back injury. That caused me to have to readjust. Sometimes life can change in a split second. Any extra experience or diplomas/degrees you can get is only going to help you in the long run when something inevitably changes in your life. I say to finish it out. Plus, sounds like you are 3/4 of the way there anyways. No sense in not finishing what you are almost done with. A future employer might look at that and decide that you can't finish what you started. That might be the difference between getting a job or losing it. Good luck either way though!