Now I am trying to think of jobs with low skills

Jeffrey

I am trying to think of jobs with not a high requirement for training. I don't wish to go back to school as school is a business and I am not investing in that. Some background: for the past 5 years I haven't worked due to recovering from mental illness. I have a masters but its been ten years since I studied and I am not set up for that anymore, and those are scarce/competitive jobs.

I am thinking retail in a nice warm store with nice items. I don't care overly about pay/insurance I know it won't be great, but disability isn't either! I think a barista would be really cool but of course I respond to whats available. I will have to learn some new things, I have done a register but as far as sales I am not very understanding of the selling psychology/instinct. On the other hand I am patient and articulate. No fashion sense so clothes store is out. I am not detail oriented so stocker/display is out. I am not a tough guy really so tough guy jobs are out I'm talking builders/repair/mechanic etc..

Another possibility is government job because you follow procedure and think logically. I think that would be good. Again my focus in looking is to find something I *can* do rather than something that is awesome. Once I have a job and am back in the saddle maybe I will look for a better fit. But I don't want to just go into a job that totally doesn't work for my psychology and skills.

compassionate_warrior

The postal service has a variety of levels of work, from mail sorter to supervisor. You take a federal standardized exam to get a supervisory job, a little like a combination of an SAT and an intelligence test. If your math and algebra skills are half-way decent, you should ace the test, assuming your reading comprehension and analogy-puzzle-doing is at a high level. The question is, is the postal service hiring?

I've noticed there's a fair amount of turnover in cashier jobs everywhere, especially in grocery stores. I'm not sure why cashiers come and go to the extent they do, but you should be able to pick up one of those easily. Some are unionized, some aren't. Usually the natural foods stores aren't. Maybe you could go undercover for us, and tell us what it's like to work at Whole Foods. I've always wondered if it's as good as the company would have us believe.

Jeffrey

Thats good to notice where there is turnover. It might be hard to break in without experience, you know master the world of produce codes. I am quite smart though and if I could gain the managers confidence a little study at home and I would learn those codes. Aside from that its just chit chat with customers and a routine. At the huge mega grocery the cashier job is shrinking because customers are handling 'scan yourself' grocery lanes. But you nailed it on cashier I like a no nonsense straightford job. My last volunteer job we would send out the mailing of letters of a program to new mothers and I would put together the letter and spend like four hours assembling those letters and I could have done eight. I worked a pharmacy job pretty decent, but with my mental problems I don't trust myself to work there and screw up someone's drugs. If a banana gets a wrong price who cares

Dandelion

I second the postal service! I used to work there, as a postwoman and I really liked it. The pay wasn't too bad either, I worked there full time and used to clear about £315 a week after tax, which for me covered all my bills, rent, food and a bit of spends. In the delivery office I worked there was a good variety of people - musicians, people with kids that wanted a job that would enable them to have family time (the early finishes were an advantage for parents), people that were studying, and people like myself that wanted their afternoons and evenings free to pursue hobbies and experience life, rather than get into the hum drum of a 9 - 5. I'm talking about the U.K postal service though, I don't know if you live in the U.K and how other countries postal services are set up. @compassionate_warrior I think they are hiring, but due to the hours you often start work (EARLY!) they try to match you up with a vacancy local to you. @jeffrey if this might be something you are interested in please feel free to ask me questions about it, should you have any.
Bookshops are nice places, and there are still independent ones around. Or a library, although here in the U.K they are closing some of them.
Concierge work perhaps? Museum work doing something like working on the ticket sales desk? Maybe a job in an office environment for a small company doing things like sending emails/answering the phone, that sort of thing. Do you like animals? I don't know if it is a viable option for you to do unpaid work but places like Battersea dog and cats home take on volunteers, and maybe that could lead to paid work with animals later down the line should it interest you. Sometimes Gumtree can be a good place to have a look for a job for ideas, as much as for an actual job. In my recent job searches I've seen people advertising on Gumtree for someone to help an elderly or disabled person for a couple of hours a day with tasks such as making a hot meal for them, or people requesting a dog walker.
Good luck Jeffrey.
Dandelion

Jeffrey

Thanks Dandelion. I am definitely starting with volunteering as I have been out of the job market awhile and via volunteering I can gain momentum I am hoping and confidence (which is priceless).

I am in U.S. and we have an organization called United Way which is a nice charity that helps the needy and they have many openings for volunteers. I have my first 'gig' in a couple of weeks just a day's work, but I am keeping my eye on their website. So that is kind of an access point into volunteering for me.

I think the office setting sounds good. Or library sounds great. All great suggestions I think they meet my criterion for what I am comfortable doing. Newbuddhist is really a great place!

Dakini

I worked for the post office in the sorting area as a holiday job. It was an industrial, factory-type atmosphere. You only had 10 minutes for coffee break (the minimum allowed by law), which meant the women spent all of the break standing in line. If anything went wrong, like you picked up a bug from all the mail handing, or from someone else working there, you weren't allowed to go home sick unless the resident doctor agreed that you were sick.

I wouldn't recommend the sorting room, but I agree, Dandelion, that there was an interesting mix of people there. But there's nothing like a federal pension, Jeffrey! They're the best! And you're right, volunteering can provide a good "in". Even if you only pick up a half-time job, I imagine that would be a big help. Let us know how you do.

compassionate_warrior

At the huge mega grocery the cashier job is shrinking because customers are handling 'scan yourself' grocery lanes.

I hate those do-it-yourself check-out features. The organic food grocery stores don't have them, only the huge mega-stores.

MindGate

I thought the US postal service was on the brink of "going out of business" and was closing a lot of post offices; thus, less jobs.

Mountains

Your comment about education is a little cynical. Yes, education is a business, but so is everything else. If no one participated in education for that reason, we'd all be pretty damn ignorant. You can talk yourself out of anything you want to talk yourself out of, and justify it seven ways from Sunday. But don't lump all education into one category. There are plenty of state schools out there (in the US) that are not out to make a profit. Education is expensive, but it doesn't have to be for profit.

Jeffrey

Mountains I just said school is a business which it is. You might be in the market for their product, but I am looking for low skill jobs because I am mentally ill and thus the investment into school is foolish. I already have a master's degree and if I was more resilient mentally I'd use that degree.

Anyhow the topic of the thread is to find low skill jobs. Not to discuss school.

Tosh

A postman is hard work; at least in the UK it is; you're constantly on the move. You have to be fit to be a postie. And what's your climate like? It's a cold and wet job here in the Winter.

I'm a self employed window cleaner, (I use a van mounted water fed pole system with lightweight carbon fibre poles; no ladders), but I'm not sure I could handle being a postman.

If you're articulate and have a good telephone manner, why not look for some type of call centre occupation? It'll be warm and a hopefully comfortable working environment!

Tosh

Error in posting!

compassionate_warrior

@Jeffrey You said you've worked in a pharmacy. Did that involve any cash register work? If so, you have experience that would help you get a foot in the door as a cashier in another setting.

Jeffrey could well qualify to be a postal supervisor of some sort. But that may be more stress or pressure than he wants right now. The postal service has a wide variety of jobs, not just delivering mail.

Office staff at United Way or other non-profits sounds good, too. Receptionist in office, clinic, gym, etc. could work, too. I used to go to a YMCA gym, and they had occasional turnover behind the receptionist/registrar's desk. Very mellow atmosphere.

DaltheJigsaw

Look into http://www.workinretail.com/
And: http://www.allretailjobs.com/

DaltheJigsaw

The postal service has a variety of levels of work, from mail sorter to supervisor. You take a federal standardized exam to get a supervisory job, a little like a combination of an SAT and an intelligence test. If your math and algebra skills are half-way decent, you should ace the test, assuming your reading comprehension and analogy-puzzle-doing is at a high level. The question is, is the postal service hiring?

I've noticed there's a fair amount of turnover in cashier jobs everywhere, especially in grocery stores. I'm not sure why cashiers come and go to the extent they do, but you should be able to pick up one of those easily. Some are unionized, some aren't. Usually the natural foods stores aren't. Maybe you could go undercover for us, and tell us what it's like to work at Whole Foods. I've always wondered if it's as good as the company would have us believe.

In America, I believe they are laying off thousands of if not hundreds of thousands of postal workers.

DaltheJigsaw

http://news.sky.com/home/business/article/16098848
http://www.kansascity.com/2011/11/14/3266671/laid-off-workers-head-back-for.html

How about Fedex or UPS?

DaltheJigsaw

A postman is hard work; at least in the UK it is; you're constantly on the move. You have to be fit to be a postie. And what's your climate like? It's a cold and wet job here in the Winter.

I'm a self employed window cleaner, (I use a van mounted water fed pole system with lightweight carbon fibre poles; no ladders), but I'm not sure I could handle being a postman.

If you're articulate and have a good telephone manner, why not look for some type of call centre occupation? It'll be warm and a hopefully comfortable working environment!

Interesting! How long have you owned and operated your business? Do you enjoy it? What do you like and not like?
Hope you don't mind! I was thinking of staring my own business as on wheels car cleaner or buffer.

Jeffrey

A cash register is really not hard to work. I have forgotten since my last job, but I think it is easy to learn because there are so many repetitions. The hard things to learn are like when its taught to you once or twice and then you need to remember the task 2 weeks from then without the task ever coming up for a repetition.

So far I applied to a holiday store for the Season's rush. That doesn't sound promising with the postal workers layed off. I am not fit enough to be a postman outdoors.

person

The post office does hire seasonal workers for the holiday rush to sort all the mail. I've done it a couple times. Its mentally easy work but you're busy on you're feet all day. It only lasts for a month so maybe that would be good to get your feet under you.

Dakini

Jeffrey, I think your holiday store job is a good idea to test the waters and get back in the swing of cashier work. It'll give you something to put on your resume for when you apply for a more steady job, if you choose to be a cashier. None of the grocery stores in my town have those automatic check-outs, and Whole Foods and other health food chains never use them. UPS is good, if you don't mind heavy lifting and driving.

The thing about the "Christmas casual" sorting jobs at the post office, aside from what I've already said above, is that the USPS has almost complete control over your life. If they say they need you for overtime, you have to stay and do and hour or two or three of overtime. You're not allowed to go home sick unless the doc on site says you can, and it's very easy to pick up a bug around all that mail and the close quarters on the sorting line. The pay used to be high for those Christmas temp workers, but it's much lower now. But if you stay healthy and don't mind overtime, it can be kind of fun.

Good luck, let us know what you pick.

Tosh

Interesting! How long have you owned and operated your business? Do you enjoy it? What do you like and not like?
Hope you don't mind! I was thinking of staring my own business as on wheels car cleaner or buffer.

10 years now. There's two good things about being a window cleaner; I only take on repeat business; and I've plenty of it; so I don't have to go chasing work. I have verbal terms and conditions prior to agreeing to do the first clean (the toughest one).

Secondly, it's an industry in a state of change. Health and safety (in the UK) is big, and there's a fairly recent development called a van-mounted water fed pole, pure water, cleaning system.

Basically, you use long poles (upto 60 feet - that's a six story building), with a brush on the end, and you pump purified water up the pole to a brush head and clean the windows with it.

It's very fast, far quicker than using ladders; one-man with a pole system can do the work of 2 to 4 window cleaners using ladders; which means more money for your time. £30 to £50 an hour of actual working is usual; more if the account has been priced well.

I would advise you to find a forum on any business you plan to start in, and do your research first. Forums are good because you can ask questions and read about what the guys in that business moan about.

Also, if you're outside of the UK and not many people are using a pole system to clean windows with, you could make a killing; you could clean say a large office block in a fraction of the time it takes window cleaners with ladders; so you could charge much less, yet still make a decent turnover - far more than you would per hour using ladders. There's a lot less 'skill' involved too; it's easier to use a pole system, than it is to get to grips with a squeegy.

And again, if your outside of the UK and water fed pole window cleaning isn't big where you live, there's an option to start up as a supplier?

But I do realise that in some countries, the culture of window cleaning isn't the same as it is in the UK.

Hope that's been some help!

Oh, have a look on youtube; there's lots of cleaning stuff there:

Stuff like this:

DaltheJigsaw

Interesting! How long have you owned and operated your business? Do you enjoy it? What do you like and not like?
Hope you don't mind! I was thinking of staring my own business as on wheels car cleaner or buffer.

10 years now. There's two good things about being a window cleaner; I only take on repeat business; and I've plenty of it; so I don't have to go chasing work. I have verbal terms and conditions prior to agreeing to do the first clean (the toughest one).

Secondly, it's an industry in a state of change. Health and safety (in the UK) is big, and there's a fairly recent development called a van-mounted water fed pole, pure water, cleaning system.

Basically, you use long poles (upto 60 feet - that's a six story building), with a brush on the end, and you pump purified water up the pole to a brush head and clean the windows with it.

It's very fast, far quicker than using ladders; one-man with a pole system can do the work of 2 to 4 window cleaners using ladders; which means more money for your time. £30 to £50 an hour of actual working is usual; more if the account has been priced well.

I would advise you to find a forum on any business you plan to start in, and do your research first. Forums are good because you can ask questions and read about what the guys in that business moan about.

Also, if you're outside of the UK and not many people are using a pole system to clean windows with, you could make a killing; you could clean say a large office block in a fraction of the time it takes window cleaners with ladders; so you could charge much less, yet still make a decent turnover - far more than you would per hour using ladders. There's a lot less 'skill' involved too; it's easier to use a pole system, than it is to get to grips with a squeegy.

And again, if your outside of the UK and water fed pole window cleaning isn't big where you live, there's an option to start up as a supplier?

But I do realise that in some countries, the culture of window cleaning isn't the same as it is in the UK.

Hope that's been some help!

Oh, have a look on youtube; there's lots of cleaning stuff there:

Stuff like this:

Wow! Thank you so much! That was real nice of you. This definitely looks like a good part time business and full-time if you care to expand. I live in USA,California, San Jose. I think there is definitely a lot of room for growth!