financial independence

I've done some research into prospective industries I can partake in. hopefully this can guide me to a promising industry for work

12.3/46.9 Total, 16 years and over
35.6/36.4 Bus service and urban transit
30.8/23.8 Barber shops
30.2/18.1 Taxi and limousine service
28.6/44.6 Postal Service
27.0/24.5 Investigation and security services
25.8/32.5 Automotive equipment rental and leasing
25.5/39.1 Animal slaughtering and processing
22.1/23.1 Couriers and messengers
21.8/31.5 Warehousing and storage
21.1/24.9 Transportation and warehousing
19.5/13.6 Ship and boat building
19.3/30.6 Wired telecommunications carriers
19.2/24.4 Transportation and utilities
19.2/29.5 Rental and leasing services
18.4/31.7 Other consumer goods rental
18.0/25.8 Services incidental to transportation
17.9/46.1 Sugar and confectionery products
17.7/26.4 Beverage and tobacco products manufacturing
17.7/42.9 Air transportation
17.5/16.1 Waste management and remediation services
17.4/15.2 Tire manufacturing
17.3/43.9 Soap, cleaning compound, and cosmetics manufacturing
17.0/24.4 Not specified retail trade
16.9/15.7 Car washes
16.9/27.1 Beverage manufacturing
16.9/45.8 Public administration
16.7/25.0 Motor vehicles and motor vehicle equipment manufacturing
16.5/30.9 Paperboard container manufacturing
16.4/28.3 Household appliance stores
16.3/42.9 Administration of economic programs and space research
15.9/34.0 Justice, public order, and safety activities
15.7/40.3 Management, administrative, and waste services
15.6/12.5 Truck Transportation
15.4/14.8 Petroleum refining
15.3/27.7 Plastics product manufacturing
15.2/32.7 Radio and television broadcasting and cable subscription programming
15.1/33.9 National security and international affairs
15.1/41.4 Food manufacturing
14.5/26.2 Plastics and rubber products manufacturing
14.2/16.0 Petroleum and coal products manufacturing
14.1/40.0 Fabric mills, except knitting mills
14.1/41.4 Sporting and athletic goods, and doll, toy and game manufacturing
14.0/31.6 Electronics stores
13.9/40.6 Seafood and other miscellaneous foods, n.e.c.
13.7/46.4 Apparel, piece goods, and notions merchant wholesalers
13.5/23.8 Glass and glass product manufacturing
13.5/38.8 Funeral homes, and cemeteries and crematories
13.4/24.3 Grocery and related product merchant wholesalers
13.3/37.8 Other general government and support
13.1/23.8 Transportation equipment manufacturing
13.1/29.3 Aluminum production and processing
13.1/30.1 Electrical lighting and electrical equipment manufacturing, and other electrical component manufacturing, n.e.c.
12.7/18.1 Metal forgings and stampings
12.4/31.2 Electrical equipment and appliances manufacturing
12.4/36.2 Nondurable goods manufacturing

Access Denied

Hopefully you find what suits you. Looks like quite a list. Do you have a top 5 set of favorites?

i'm thinking of courier and messenger, as well as automotive repair (or Services incidental to transportation.) I know nothing about cars though, so I'd have to read a lot of books and stuff. I won't be willing to get my own car either, as it would be a liability if I become homeless. Courier and messenger could mean my handing out flyers or helping to promote other businesses, which I could see myself doing.

I know many ways to measure local supply, but not local demand.

I think one way to measure demand is to observe jobs openings. This can be found on job-post websites or through local newspapers. I can even look through past newspapers to study past demands.

Another way I think I can measure demand is through some theory of needs and existence. The theory is that something (or someone) doesn't exist if its needs aren't met. For example, I live in a neighborhood of houses. A house needs certain maintanence or else it will no longer be a house. So that certain maintenance becomes a need with an assumed demand.

I can also observe demand through the law and governments. Sometimes the governments have requirements for certain things. For instance, sometimes citizens are required to file taxes. Some immigrants are required to pass examinations to become citizens. Spare drivers are assumed demanded to help drive intoxicated drivers who legally can't drive. Governments and law can have an indirect effect on demand.

I'm going to focus on car repair. At first, I thought of helping spanish speakers learn english, but only 8% of people have low proficency of english. And the demand would be lower because my governments already provide free translation services.

But the automotive repair demand is different, I feel. I think almost every household has a vehicle. And vehicle repair is necessary for maintaining a car. even the governments have laws and requirements for drivers, which also affect the demand for vehicle repair.

car repair is looking more and more promising. the government requires drivers to have their cars inspected yearly, i think. so that might motivate drivers to get repairs before or after inspections.

In my zip code alone, there's about 11,000 car owners. I will serve about 5 zip code areas. the demand for auto repair must be high, especially during heavy weather seasons. I can even find estimates of a car's lifespan and use that to predict the number of car owners who'd be requesting repair services.

I should also study the supply though. How many auto repair stations or service providers are in my area? I was walking home and came across an auto repair station. They might be quite common. But since I'm focused on sole proprietorship and small business, I probably won't be much competition. Maybe I can approach auto repair service providers and make light partnerships with them.

I'm going to review statistics of my community again. auto-repair is promising work with good demand, but I don't know anything about auto repair and so I'd take some time to start that business. There could be other promising work that's more aligned with my current skills and resources.

instead of serving people in my community district, I'm going to serve people in my zip code area. The community district can provide me more information about my neighborhood, but the district spans quite a distance and I don't have the resources to serve people from far distances. It's better for me to focus on areas that I can reach, as I'd be able to collect more accurate information of those local areas.

I think you may be looking at the wrong thing. Not industry but rather employer.

I work for the Federal Government. I have worked in State and Local Government for most of my career.

Federal Government pays pretty well, but the real reason to get the job there are the benefits.
- low or reasonable health insurance.
- 401 K (called the Thrift savings plan)
- Pension
- Usually a cost of living raise each year.
- Typically a merit raise each year.
- Powerful lobby.
- a large workforce.
- You probably will never be fired -- it is just the culture of the place (though you an be fired and there is a probationary period).

A lot of the people that I know that went to work in the private industry because they would be paid a lot, burned out just a few years later. Find an employer that is going to be stable and long term.

Get an entry level job with a federal, state, or local agency and work your way up.

i've wanted to work with the federal government or any government or agency in my area. It's quite competitive though. I'm going to be trying a Ticket To Work program, so maybe I might have a chance at some public sector employment through that. As a last resort, I will try joining the army.

you're right: i should think about the future a bit more.

I don’t think enlisting in the army is something you should do. But I think a lot of jobs you mention are very reasonable. Do you have a case manager in
disability services in your state? If not, you qualify for free vocational services in your state, any state. They should help you select appropriate vocational options and guide you in the process

Adult Career and Continuing Education Services | NYS Education Department

ACCES-VR will definitely help.


the army might not accept me, even due to my eyesight and mental illness, but it's employment and a way to give back to my government. there might be available army jobs away from the battlefield. And if I do end up fighting, well I did everything that I could, to not be in that situation. I know men like me who've served in the army.

I emailed someone at ACCES-VR, to see if he could help me with some employment.


i've been reviewing statistics in my area. auto repair seems more and more promising. But starting a self-employment would take time, especially since I'd have to learn about the auto repair trade. It will take time to actually start making money in that business, more than a month. I can't bare the thought of living with mom while self-employed but not paying full rent. I might be able to endure if I plan the self-employment and set financial goals towards paying full rent, but she'll harass me a lot.

I can probably apply for Temporary Assistance, an unearned income from my state. But I'm not sure if I'd qualify for it. I'll look into it, I guess.

Not that many people are in the army, where I live. Out of the 67,000 people, only 24 are in the armed forces. Maybe the local people enlist and die quick or they are not accepted. Being in the armed forces requires a lot of moving I think, so they could just be migrating around the country. Then again, this statistic is from the 2000 Census, before the war.

it's not called Temporary Assistance, but rather Cash Assistance. I guess I can apply for it, if my SSI discontinues.

So I'm going to try the Ticket To Work program to get some work, which would also postpone my medical review. If I still don't have work by the time my Ticket To Work expires, then I will submit forms for SSI. If I don't have work by the time my SSI discontinues, then I will try for Cash Assistance. If I don't have work by the time CA discontinues, then I will try to join the army.

I've already found many ways to find work or to earn money, but my living situation has restricted those methods. For instance, I was thinking of renting out my room, but my mom wouldn't want that. Maybe there's a way that I can still rent out my room, like through Airbnb, without her explicitly knowing. But the business would still be heavily dependent on her: she can simply tell me to not have friends by her house and then my business would immediately shut down.

I wanted to work in the Refuse and recyclable material collecting business, but mom threatened to evict me from the house if I worked there.

I wanted to work in the Protective services industry, but my eyesight makes me a poor candidate.

I wanted to work in the Transportation industry, but I can't afford a car, especially with my bad credit. Maybe I can lease or rent a car though, which would be more expensive. Then add the expense of buying fuel for the car. It would be a risky business that I'd have to think about more.

I'm currently interested in auto repair though, as it's related to my earlier aspirations to work in the Transportation industry. auto repair is near incidental to that industry.

I wanted to work in childcare, like being a babysitter, but nobody seems to hire a male caregiver where I live.

I wanted to try being a private tutor again, but the people here are quite intelligent already. A lot of them are at my education level or higher, where every person (with an education level exceeding mine) could be a potential competitor. I'd have to think more about it.

The last time I went to ACCES-VR, they said I should try college again. I can probably at least finish getting my associate's degree. But I have ~$4000 college debt to pay.

I might try private tutoring again. I might focus on tutoring children and people who need high school equivalent education, because I feel that high school education is required for most private and public sector jobs, and so both government and private businesses have an influence on the demand for high school education. Also, a high school education is a good foundation towards getting a college education, so I'd be indirectly providing some service to college education seekers. But I will directly target people who are in the final grades of high school and people seeking GEDs.


men like me have become teachers and professors, though they also had college degrees where I have not. I have more than a year of past experience as a tutor.

I still haven't got any email response from the ACCES-VR person. I will call the office next week. I will call a state office today for an interview to see if I can keep some food benefit. Losing my food benefit wouldn't be too bad, as I can get food from food pantries, banks, and soup kitchens.


I feel the demand for tutoring is very seasonal, unlike auto-repair. There are some occupations that are all-year though, like refuse and recyclable material collecting.

Maybe I can't do multiple occupations simultaneously, but a different occupation for a certain month. Like I can focus on tutoring during May to June and auto-repair during the fall and winter. In-between the different occupations, I can take time to transition into the upcoming respective work like reviewing specific advertisement and trade skills. If, during these transitions, I don't have money to maintain my needs, I can probably get some government financial assistance during the transition.

i'm going to try to get some work within my zip code area from some employer. there's about 600 businesses in my area. I wouldn't be surprised if they don't have work for me, even if I offered a very very low wage deal, but at least i went out and tried to find work as any other honest person would.

I wanted to do self-employment work but that requires skill, time, and resources that I might be able to preserve by simply finding some employer first. If I can't find any work from local employers, then I guess I'll have no choice but to try some self-employment.

the ACCES-VR dude still hasn't returned my email yet. I guess he's busy.


I'm happy i don't have any spouse or kids that'd affect my finances. in fact, if i can't find work by the end of this month, i can just go to a homeless shelter and hopefully find work through that community. It's not safe for me to live with my mom without an income because of my mental illness, i feel.

yesterday, i had a cool idea of going around my neighborhood and offering my services for a very very low wage. I live with my mom and I don't have a kid or spouse, so I don't need to get paid much. And getting work can be very competitive because of the large population, few businesses, and etc.


I was even thinking of offering my services for as low as 2$ per hour. But I learned that it's illegal for an employer to hire me under the minimum wage of 13.50$ per hour. So I got very very frustrated.

I did some reading into the matter. Apparently, work can be a lot more complex and cautious than I thought. In fact, some labor laws are for the worker's sake and welfare.

I also discovered that I can still work at a rate lower than the minimum wage, but it might not be wise in some instances. I can be an independent contractor and probably work for as low as I want, but could get myself conned.


However, if I become an independent contractor and offer a contract above a certain amount of money, I can legally sue the party in the contract if he cons me.

If I don't want to be an independent contractor, I can still work lower than the minimum wage by identifying as a tipped worker. I haven't done much reading into it, but I think the idea is that the tips excuse the lower wage pay. The only issue is that people would have to give me tip, which I doubt would happen unless maybe I give some of their tips to a local popular charity.


But the bottom line is that I can work for lower than the minimum wage, and that's really encouraging. I don't have to directly compete with other workers who have kids or loved ones needing support.

the local Vocational Rehabilitation center, which I had tried to apply my ticket to, is no longer part of the Ticket To Work program. I will have to apply my ticket to a local Employment Network instead.

I'm going to be an independent contractor, just for the ability to offer services at a low rate and attract employers. I'm offering my services to employers because I don't have the resources, time, or money to target consumers.

Maybe instead of approaching employers as an independent contractor, I can approach them as a job seeker. But I'm not sure if they'd hire me, and interviews take time. Instead, I can probably do some job training and become an independent contractor who offers services to businesses. And maybe I can specialize in more than one service.

I might try to be an independent contractor in the protective services industry, like a security guard. If I might be put in the army, I might as well just be a security guard. at least I'll die in my homeland.