“The world’s favorite season is the spring,” wrote American naturalist Edwin Way Teale. It’s no wonder many people who work indoors start wondering whether there might be some greener pastures outside.
Spring is the time of year that the idea of working outdoors becomes more appealing. Even jobs that offer the chance to drive outside are more enjoyable when there’s no ice and snow to contend with.
The University of California’s Janet Hartin, author of FabJob Guide to Become a Landscape Company Owner, says it’s only natural that many people dream of working outdoors.
“Think back to some of your fondest childhood memories,” said Hartin. “Chances are they include playing an outdoor sport such as baseball, chasing fireflies through the grass, climbing trees, lying on your back in a park watching the clouds, or smelling freshly cut roses from your backyard.”
“I’ve always loved exploring nature and have been in awe of it as far back as I can remember,” she added. “That’s why I chose the career I’m in.”
Janet said a great way to break into the landscaping profession is by getting a spring and summer job in landscape maintenance or gardening, “providing services such as mowing, fertilizing, irrigating, shaping and pruning.”
That may lead to future dream careers such as landscape designer, landscape architect, greenskeeper, golf course superintendent, or arborist (tree care specialist).
In addition to landscaping, there are a variety of other outdoor career opportunities to appeal to everyone from laid back types to extreme adventurers.
In his book Sunshine Jobs: Career Opportunities Working Outdoors, Tom Stienstra describef a variety of careers for outdoors types. See if any of the following sound good to you:
- bicycle tour leader
- bush pilot
- conservation director
- firefighter (seasonal)
- fishing guide
- lifeguard
- mountain climbing guide
- rafting guide
- park ranger
- party boat skipper
- sailing instructor
- tour leader
- tree planter
- wildlife biologist
- windsurfing instructor
- youth camp director
With so many fun and fabulous career choices, it’s no wonder spring is the time many people start considering a career outdoors.
But while some people like to play in the dirt (as Canadian author Margaret Atwood wrote, “In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt”), others think of spring as the ideal time to get rid of dirt. That’s why the term “spring cleaning” is so popular.
In fact, spring is the time of year many visitors to FabJob.com have told us their dream career is to start a cleaning business or become a professional organizer.
As the job title suggests, professional organizers make a living helping people get their homes, offices, and lives organized.
Professional organizers who specialize in home organizing might be hired for projects such as organizing basements, closets, or kitchens, or preparing a household for a move. Of course, homes aren’t the only places that can use a good spring cleaning. If you have ever worked in an office, chances are you saw many things that could have been better organized!
Professional organizers help with things like choosing, purchasing, and installing organizing equipment (filing cabinets, storage containers, racks, etc.), designing time schedules and systems that help people get things done, sorting out files on a computer that have gotten overwhelming, or purging an overgrowth of knick-knacks, paper and other clutter from room to room.
If spring cleaning isn’t for you, and you’re not keen on working at a traditional outdoor job, maybe you’ll like one of the following three careers that visitors to our website have told us they would enjoy breaking into this spring:
Wedding Planner
As the excitement of the wedding season builds, many brides-to-be and wedding party members start thinking, “I wonder if I could be a professional wedding planner?”
If you have wondered the same thing, the answer is “yes!” The number of couples using wedding planners has doubled in the past three years, resulting in more opportunities for professional wedding planners than ever before.
Professional Golfer
Professional golfers get to enjoy sunshine, exercise, and the pleasure of watching that little white ball drop in the hole. As professional golfers say: “Play golf for a living and never work a day in your life.”
Personal Trainer
As bikini season approaches, it means more opportunities for personal trainers. With millions of people eager to lose weight and get in shape, personal training is one of the fastest growing careers in the health and fitness industry today.
No matter what your dream career is, I hope your spring is spectacular!
Tag Goulet is co-founder of FabJob.com and Academic Director of the International Association of Professions Career College which offers certificates for dream careers online at www.iapcollege.com.