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Message Subject: career related to muskie | |||
muskyboy |
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My Dad was a teacher so he could have summers off to fish. I still think fisheries biologist is best and then work right here in the great state of IL to get more muskies stocked! | |||
Pointerpride102 |
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Posts: 16632 Location: The desert | I agree with what has all been said here. If I wanted to fish a ton I'd be looking at teaching Math or something like that. But I enjoy working with fish and working to preserve the resource. I could care less about money, I've accepted the fact that I am going to be poor, but if I get to be outside just about every day and work in the water all the time I'll be happy. I'll fish when I can. I've worked the union trade jobs and I cant stand it, I'd much rather do what I know I love doing....I think that is what you need to consider F4....Do you want a job you are going to hate showing up at every day? Or do you want a job that you dont mind going to and actually enjoy? | ||
Slamr |
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Posts: 7049 Location: Northwest Chicago Burbs | Muskie board moderator (aka, livin the dream, just electronically) | ||
The Tax Man |
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25 % for taxes ??? What State is that, I want to move ! As a self-emoloyed person, you will be paying self employment tax and the other half of the SS contribution paid by your current employer, 50% would be more realisitic. Expect that to rise when Madame Hillary is annointed President by all you blue staters out there. | |||
Vince Weirick |
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Posts: 1060 Location: Palm Coast, FL | Also...in order to guide 250 full days, you would have to fish more than one area/state (i.e. closed seasons, warm water temps, ice). I guide part time and love doing it. It is a passion for me to not only catch them myself, but to also see the faces of the people catching their first one, personal best, father/son outings, etc. Guiding is not for everyone. I have had many people tell me there is no way the would have the patience to take someone out and fix their backlashes all day. | ||
Jomusky |
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Posts: 1185 Location: Wishin I Was Fishin' | I have come to the conclusion that I wouldn't want the pressure of success being a Musky Guide. I like to fish for fun...that is why I don't do any big $$ tourneys anymore too. I would do the school teacher or firefighter thing if I had to do it all over. Actually I would go into the Coast Guard for the first few years out of high school with emphasis on firefighting, travel a bit and have a blast on the water...then I would become a firefighter in the civilian world. Have a family with a wife that loves musky fishing and fish my butt off. Hey it's my dream. | ||
GOTONE |
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Posts: 476 Location: WI | I used to think mortgage brokers could fish anytime they wanted too, and wondered if they ever worked! | ||
sorenson |
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Posts: 1764 Location: Ogden, Ut | Being a biologist is all well and good, but as some have mentioned, you won't get rich. Big deal. It's still a great job. The downsides of being a biologist have nothing to do with money. First, the jobs are highly competitive and you really have to be at the top of your game to land a good one. Second, unless you have a job lined up that is specifically muskie-related, the likelihood of getting to do much with muskies (on a nation-wide basis) is pretty remote. Unless you can swing a pet project or two... . Third, you should either have, or develop a skin thicker than an old leather boot because pretty much everyone who has ever purchased a fishing license will have a 'better idea'; and they're not at all shy about letting you know that you really don't know much about anything. Most biologists that I know have all but quit fishing and/or hunting. Much of the fun has gone out of it for them. My guess is that there's other things involved than just a career choice, but the fact remains that when you keep getting berated by a user group that you deal with, the easy way out is to distance yourself from them. You can't do that on a professional basis, so you tend to do it on a personal and recreational basis. The upsides about being a biologist include reasonably good benefits, freedom of scheduling, more vacation time than you can use, and lots of cool uniform items that can be traded for muskie baits! LOL It's fun and rewarding most of the time, but if I were to choose a vocation based upon it's relationship to my desired recreational activity (i.e., fisheries biologist and muskie fishing), I think I'd choose something else. S. | ||
BALDY |
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Posts: 2378 | You can come make Weagles for me. You can live in my garage for free (it's heated), I'll pay you $2 an hour, and you can go fishing as much as you want as long as you get baits done when I tell you to. Sound good? Didn't think so. | ||
RiverMan |
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Posts: 1504 Location: Oregon | Although there are some biologists that actually practice "fish biology", nearly all that I know and work with spend nearly all of their time at the computer or attending meetings. When I was going to college I can clearly remember saying to fellow students "the money doesn't matter", "I just want to be happy". How naive of me! It's hard to be happy if you aren't making good money! I do make a decent living now but again I spent 7 years in college and have been doing this for 20 years. I spend literally 90+ percent of my time sitting at a computer writing various reports, securing additional cost share funding, or attending meetings. The days of walking along the lake or sampling along a stream still happen for some bios but most field work is completed by technicians and entry level biologists that also make "entry level salaries". Maybe this is for you but be aware that you are likely in for a minimum of 5 years of seasonal work after 5 years of college. If you want to get into research you will need a master's degree which means an additional 3 years of school. If you pencil it out, you will find that it's very difficult to justify all the additional education for the pay one receives. One more thing to think about......it sounds as if you are interested in working with musky. As a fisheries bio, you have to go where the jobs are at and many of the jobs involve salmon. Many rivers in the west have populations of salmon listed under the Endangered Species Act. The ESA brings with it tons of funding and lots of jobs. At least 1/3rd of the guys I work with here in Oregon are from the midwest. Jed V. Edited by RiverMan 10/31/2007 8:00 PM | ||
JRedig |
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Location: Twin Cities | As someone who has taken several passions/interests and tried to make careers out of them, go get a well paying job/degree and do something that interests you enough to want to do it, but not something you truly enjoy doing. I always end up submersing myself to the point of disgust with the pursuit. Turning what I loved to do into a job took ALLLLLLLLLLLLLL the fun out of it, eventually. Currently i'm in progress of a degree and something that will allow me to afford what i'd like to do some of the time. I don't need to win the lottery (hahaha yeah right of course I do!!), but a nice new triton or ranger every few years sure would be nice! | ||
husky_jerk |
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Posts: 305 Location: Illinois | As someone who hires and evaluates teachers, I would like to point out one thing; People who join the teaching ranks for summers off generally don't make very good teachers. Listen, I'm not saying it is rocket science, but the right attitude can make all the difference. Who makes the best teachers? It's the people who leave the private sector to pursue a career in teaching. Don't become a teacher unless you enjoy all kids, even the difficult. Also, be prepared to deal with parents who will fight you on every issue. The days of "the teacher is always right" are long gone. Many times, no matter what the evidence or situation, parents will advocate for their children at any cost. In other words, it takes a certain attitude to do your job well, and unless you have that attitude going in, you won't stay around long. If it's something that truly interests you, let me know if I can help, and I would be happy to do so. Edited by husky_jerk 11/1/2007 5:11 AM | ||
tomyv |
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Posts: 1310 Location: Washington, PA | Sales. | ||
Grunt Lures |
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Posts: 786 Location: Minnesota | Don't make lures! This was my worst year for getting out as my weekends were full making Grunts. Also don't have kids! LOL Well, when they get a little older it may help increase my time on the water but not when they are 2 and 3... I think young, single, rich muskie guide would be the "job" for me to help get me on the water more | ||
stephendawg |
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Posts: 1023 Location: Lafayette, IN | I gave up self-employment for the factory life. Great benefits, 27 days off plus paid vacations and because I remained blue collar I don't have a growing "in basket" on the days I take off. Does factory life fulfill me? Not a chance. But taking care of my family and having time off with them when I want is "Priceless!" Oh, and I get to fish about as much as I want. It all boils down to priorities. Steve (Dawg) Edited by stephendawg 11/1/2007 6:32 AM | ||
jonnysled |
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Posts: 13688 Location: minocqua, wi. | just get a talent, then a great job with flexibility, then a blackberry ... your office has now just become wherever you are at the time and there's no reason it shouldn't be on the boat. make sure to treat your responsibilities with the appropriate priorities and then you start living life. the talent piece is the tough part ... become good or trained or experienced at something that is both needed and something that is unique ... with all of this said, your first thing to do is go to school, study hard and do well. the rest of it comes later in life after you've paid your dues ... | ||
musky-skunk |
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Posts: 785 | Get a teaching job, or move to a "musky town" with some good lakes and find a job thats over at 3-4:00 p.m. and fish five nights a week, and weekends! That or be a REALLY good musky fisherman with some money to get you started. | ||
Professional Edge |
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Posts: 401 | Would it be possible to make it as a rod builder full time? Maybe. Others have. But I never will. It would take the fun out of building sticks. Depending on the next sale to feed your family adds a bunch of pressure. I have intentions of doing more full time rod building but it will be when I can retire. I have been blessed with a growing business but with that comes added stress which can take the fun out of it. I learned that this year when I was put behind the 8 ball not having product during my normal build time (winter). This meant I did more summer building then I have ever done before, which took fishing time away. Two years ago I did not build a stick from June to September. I might be back to that in 08. I would take the advice from a guy like Doug J. He has seen a bunch of people come and go in the business. Agrimm you are living the dream. | ||
Larry Ramsell |
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Posts: 1291 Location: Hayward, Wisconsin | Another thing to consider in Jeff's "250 day OTW"...for those days to be "booked guiding days" is nearly impossible, even for the best in the business. It takes years to get well established. And unless you are flexible and able to move, what do you do when your established clientele decides to move on to the next "hot bite" such as has happened to my guide business. Unless you move to that "hot bite" (as some have done), you loose. I have lost about 80% of my old clients/guide business in the past 5 years! I'm too old to keep moving around chasing the "Holy Grail", but it is certainly something for those contemplating the guide business to think about and consider. Thank goodness I don't have a wife to support and get a stipend from SS. And another thing. Guiding is WORK! Having to "go" when you don't feel good or the weather is bad, or... can really take the FUN out of it! Take it from someone who has "been there". | ||
MuskyStalker |
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Posts: 317 | I looked into going to UWSP for the fisheries dept. great school, but I ran away crying when I saw starting wages around 18,000/yr...if you were lucky. hats off to those who do it. | ||
Pointerpride102 |
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Posts: 16632 Location: The desert | MuskyStalker - 11/1/2007 12:00 PM I looked into going to UWSP for the fisheries dept. great school, but I ran away crying when I saw starting wages around 18,000/yr...if you were lucky. hats off to those who do it. HAHA! Pretty low isnt it! I've found a new passion for Raman noodles and have developed some pretty nice recipes to use with them. I never expect to live in a big house, drive a decked out truck or run the fanciest boats. I expect to have many bills, strugle to pay them, and not enough money to buy the latest and greatest baits, rods and reels. But I cant see myself doing anything else...Construction (couple of trades), been there done that, gained a nice vocabulary though. Farming, been there done that, never again. Other random jobs that were no fun. To me money isnt everything. I cant take it with me when I die, so why store up more than I can spend.....I'd rather spend more than I have, then die. | ||
esox50 |
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Posts: 2024 | Fish4, I've had to wrestle with this thing called "career choice" for a while now. I'm going to PM you with my thoughts instead of ramble on here. | ||
ghitierman |
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Posts: 284 | Forget a job that is related to Musky fishing, and get a job that allows you to work while musky fishing. There are a lot of commission sales positions that allow a flexible spending account for pursuing sales. For example sales professionals in the pharmaceuticals field are alloted a certain amount of money for entertaining doctors in order to persuade them into buying their drugs. However this particular event is on the downfall as the FDA tremendously frowns on this sort of special treatment. I used to know a guy that either fished or golfed every day of the summer and wrote it all off as work expenses. He also put all of those expenses that he was compensated for on his Cabella's VISA and in turn bought new tackle every year with the points he earned. Thus my pursued major in Marketing and Sales. | ||
ghitierman |
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Posts: 284 | Hey Muskyboy when did Illinois become a "great state" I didn't even know it was a good state or at that an ok state. Illinois sucks, GO PACK | ||
Dave N |
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Posts: 178 | If your singular passion is musky fishing, and you think that will never change, then becoming a fishery biologist may not be the best route to maximizing your time on the water for musky. Here's why. Good fishery scientists are extremely curious by nature. They seek to understand the complex relationships among ALL the species they manage, not just one high-profile predator. Spending the time needed to PERFECT one's musky fishing knowledge and skills would take time away from other pursuits, such as analyzing and reporting your own multi-species data, critically reading the published reports of others, seeking to influence policy, and fishing for other species that are JUST as interesting as muskellunge to a real fishery ecologist. There are only a handful of professional fishery biologists in North America who spend the bulk of their time thinking about and working with muskellunge exclusively. Folks like me spend an enjoyable percentage of their time thinking about and working with muskellunge. But we're just as likely to be evaluating movement and harvest mortality of lake sturgeon; or estimating walleye density so we can set harvest restrictions consistent with our goals; or buying land to preserve critical habitat; or commenting on proposed developments in order to minimize their potentially negative impact on aquatic habitat. If we do our jobs well, we share our knowledge (written plans, reports, and news releases) and spend time meeting with people of all persuasions -- listening carefully and trying to establish and achieve fishery management goals that are in the overall best interest. That balancing act is not for the faint of heart, because there will always be people you cannot please. Done well, it's not a 40-hour-per-week job. You have to really care about your profession to work through the public criticism and the inevitable frustration with bureaucracy. The Missouri Department of Conservation has a large plaque hanging over the entrance to the Fisheries Division offices in their Jefferson City headquarters. It reads, "Quality Fishing -- Our Mission, Our Passion." (I received a $50 gift certificate to Gander Mountain for coining that phrase, which will buy you 3 musky lures and a beer!) Bottom line: If you're not passionate about fishery science with all its diverse aspects and challenges, then choose a different careeer that you CAN be passionate about, and one that may afford you a bit more time to fish for muskies. As many have already mentioned, money cannot be a major motivator. You can make a comfortable, secure living if you rise in the ranks and have an income-producing spouse; but you'll not likely have the toys or the time that some others have for the singular pursuit of muskellunge. Dave Neuswanger Fisheries Team Leader, Upper Chippewa Basin Wisconsin DNR, Hayward | ||
tfootstalker |
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Posts: 299 Location: Nowheresville, MN | SELL SCREWS!!!!!!!! Seriously. You will make more than 18,000 a year and there is one HUGE factor coming now and for at least 5 more years...BABY BOOMERS. DNR's (all states) will be overturning in employees in a very large proportion. MN will overturn 40% of the fishery division alone. That said, forget it and go make money. | ||
ghoti |
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Posts: 1278 Location: Stevens Point, Wi. | Many years ago, I met an intertesting gentleman camped on an island in Canada. He was a professional bowler! Spent his winters on the tour, and his summers fishing in Canada. While fishing a reservoir in Arizona in early February a while back, I spent an evening having dinner in a motorhome of a gentleman who owned a construction business. He spent about 7 months of the year working 7 days a week. The 5 months during winter he spent traveling the southern US, living in his home on wheels and fishing. There are multiple ways to attain your dream. It all depends on your priorities. | ||
DEMolishedyou2 |
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Posts: 434 Location: Omaha, Nebraska | If you really want to serve the baby boomers than open a retirement home. There will always be elderly people to fill them and you make great money. Once you get it going after ten years, you will hardly have to do any work, and you will have people there doing the work. It is one of the best businesses that you can open and won’t fail. | ||
muskyboy |
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IL is a great state, but it is all relative I was born in WI, go Pack | |||
Andy |
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Making musky lures and working at a bait shop! woot! | |||
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