I tried posting this thread on GlockTalk and just got a bunch of moronic mall ninja responses, I’m hoping to do better here.
Over the next couple years I will be taking quite a lot of firearms training, pistol, carbine, and long range rifle. I will be taking these classes locally (the local guy is a PHENOMENAL instructor) and also a bunch of Gunsite classes. I would like to find a career where I can use these skills. So my question is;
Aside from LE or military, what careers are out there for a person with extensive firearm training and skills? I know that training is not a match for experience but throw me a bone here please. Thanks everyone!
If you’re fishing for people telling you that you’ll be prepared to hang out your own shingle as an instructor, I doubt you’ll find that. With two wars going on and lots of guys returning looking to stay out of “regular jobs” the instructor market is, and will be for quite a while, flush with guys that can say “been there, done that” which carries a lot of weight in the training world. Personally, I think that the ability to communicate concepts is just as important but that prior experience will always be a limiting factor. Teaching the CCW course to the local mouth-breathers? Yeah, but that’s a tough living. Getting out there and making a real living doing classes all over the country? You better have a resume that goes beyond a list of training schools. Especially the “local guy”, no matter how phenomenal.
In terms of industry, on the manufacturing side, from what I’ve seen most companies don’t much care if you can shoot or not. Ruger or S&W aren’t going to be impressed with 5 visits to Gunsite on your resume.
Personally I would never want my livelihood to depend on the firearms industry. I’m happy playing as I do, writing the occasional article and learning what I can from others. I worked firearm retail sales for 3 years off and on, and I actually shot more and enjoyed guns more on the “off” periods than the “on”. I’ve known guys that owned a range and hadn’t fired a shot in months.
LE and military careers are still the best doorways into the business. Even then it’s a tough business and those positions are often jobs like “regional sales rep” that has you driving all over hill and dale, stopping in at every mom-and-pop gun shop in the middle of nowhere. No idea how old you are or where you are in life, but I think you have things backwards picking up the skills and THEN deciding what to do with them. Typically people go to school to become an xyz, or they go just for the learning, not go to school and then try to find a way to use what they’ve learned.
Yeah dude, not to burst your bubble, but having a career in the firearms industry without military or law enforcement is pretty tough. Rob covered most of what I would say, but emphasize that it’s almost NEVER too late to sign up.
The gunsmithing school is a good idea, but I’m curious how much weight just the school would carry.
The only other thing I would say is be careful what you wish for…
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[li]Using an avatar that includes the Confederate flag is not going to endear you to the firearms industry, which is constantly striving to deal with EEOC compliance. The “ninja with a Desert Eagle” doesn’t help, either. Folks may think I’m overreacting but gun companies can be extremely wary of how their image is portrayed on the internet.
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[li]Very few jobs in the firearms industry are based on shooting skill, and the majority of those are focused on competition shooting (trap, skeet, & clays being the largest segment).
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[li]Being one of the best guys at your local club or winning the top gun trophy at Gunsite 250 isn’t even going to be a blip on anyone’s radar screen. There are guys who win dozens of state/regional/national titles year after year but can’t break into the industry.
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[li]If you want to consider teaching, your first step should be talking to that local phenomenal instructor. Get him to mentor you and perhaps do some teaching under his supervision. If he does group classes, he might let you assist by acting as a safety officer on the line or even teaching some class segments. I’d also highly recommend getting certified as an instructor by an organization such as the NRA. While I may not agree with a lot of the NRA’s doctrine, the pedagogy aspect is a real eye opener to a lot of folks who think “knowing how to shoot” = “knowing how to teach.”
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lol considering the “years of experience” from the previous responders here, i’ll take a chance and see if i can add something viable.
you will have to fill a niche that is needed; and that “need” may not even be recognized yet. so do some homework, and make connections.
look at the local LE agencies in your area and talk with their Chief’s, Sheriff’s and RO’s. See if you can get them to ID the strong and weak points in their trainings; is there an area that they would like to see some additional training? They might not have the budget or facilities to set up the training, and this would be a way to get your foot in the door.
learn where to find granting sources, and how to write grants. this will help you and departments you will work with. Case in point…for years the local departments have been looking at building a facility that would allow live fire in a “building” situation, but hadn’t really developed anything concrete. I was looking at the federal grants that were released and seen where another department received a big chunk of money, to develop just such a facility. That department had identified their needs, and had everything ready to go, and when that money became available they were in a position to jump.
push hard to expand your networking with other professionals in the field, so that when someone asks you a question that you don’t have an answer for, you can tell them: “I don’t have the answer, but i know someone who does, and i’ll will have that info for you tomorrow”. Related to networking with other professionals, also get on good footings with local landowners/farmers. One such farmer in our area has an old abandoned gravel pit…perfect for shooting. He gave permission to set up several shooting scenarios (be very aware of liability aspects).
As Rob_S pointed out, there is a huge pool of highly experienced people, with extensive weapon handling knowledge; very difficult to compete with that. But specific training opportunities, tailored for the needs of individual LE departments…not easy to compile, but the opportunities are there.
I’m not fishing for anything other than information. I just have no idea whats out there. I’ve had several people try and bring me into LE but I have the feeling that putting up with peoples BS all day would get old very quickly.
As far as my livelihood I have a very professional industry resume and have worked for several prestigious companies, my livelihood is never a problem. I am looking for over the next few years of trying to get into something different, hence my original question.
No matter what I will be taking these classes as they are always a great way to burn some powder, I was just curious if there was a way to put them to use outside of personal protection. Thanks for your response.
As far as my avatar how I present myself in my off time varies greatly from how I present myself when with a company. To address the Confederate flag, my family has deep roots in Texas so it’s a heritage thing. Please don’t take the misconception that most people do. Now as far as my “ninja” avatar, well, it was the only decent avatar I could find at the time and it’s stuck with me.
Thank you for the advice regarding the local instructor. I do greatly enjoy teaching people however that wasn’t even on my thoughts as potential areas. I do know very well that just because you’re good at something doesn’t mean you will be good at instructing or managing other people in doing it. I wish sales companies would learn that lesson.
I am the type of person who values experience over most “schooling” and so I can especially see that in the firearms arena. No matter how much shooting and force on force training someone has the real experience in a resume sense would seem to prevail.
Once again thank you, I appreciate your encouraging post.
As someone that has attended TONS of shooting schools (and been the top shooter in some of them), I will tell you that all of that is 100% worthless to anyone, but you and your loved ones.
Want to get into the gun industry? Become a good machinist or armorer and then get a job with a company like S&W, Colt, etc.
As Todd said, get your NRA certs (if interested in being an instructor) and then do training for FREE to get your skills up and see if you even like it.
If you believe that working in LE would be difficult because of having to put up with stupid people, then just wait till you meet some of the characters in training schools!:rolleyes:
You are welcome. Never give up on your dream or let anyone tell you something different.
Do be realistic though and have a plan on how to get from point A to B.
Some other suggestions would be to get a job at a gun shop. You will see a lot of strange guns that are broken in ways you never thought possible and get to work on your people skills.
Next think about becoming a reserve police officer. This will give you LE background, but you can always walk away from it if you hate it. You are also giving back to you community (as you work for free).
Welcome to 2009. That is no longer something you can delineate and separate. One is completely inter-related with the other. When companies are using things like facebook profiles to research prospective candidates, the world has changed and your online persona and how you represent yourself is directly related to your professional reputation.
Not to mention the entire plot of the movie from which he took his screen name is based on the idea that virtual and actual reality get mixed up and the characters cannot delineate between the two worlds.
