I ended up enrolling in technical school last year to become an air conditioning technician, and even though my dad was bummed, he was still really happy for me and my decision
My dad has been a plumber for many many years, and I’ve come along with him on a few jobs in the past. It’s not the most glamorous job out there, but it’s pretty rewarding to find the problem, come up with a plan, execute, and see the results right away. I can see how it provides a bit of instant gratification. Even though he wanted me to follow in his footsteps as a plumber, I always felt myself pulled towards air conditioning instead. My uncle is an air conditioning repairman, and it’s also one of those jobs that feels really satisfying. Being that we live in a hot and humid climate, we heavily rely on air conditioning in our day to day to keep us comfortable. That’s why I would accompany my uncle on some of his jobs so that I can learn the basics of air conditioners in the event I need to fix my own one day. Being around him taught me that there is a unique science to air conditioning that I think is taught in both the classroom and on the job. Having a mixture of classroom and field experience is the best way to improve skills as an air conditioning repairman. I ended up enrolling in technical school last year to become an air conditioning technician, and even though my dad was bummed, he was still really happy for me and my decision. I’m happy that I can still have the best of two worlds because they are both such valuable tools to learn and understand.