The 6 Figure Welder Formula
By Garrett Strong www.weldguru.com
©2017 Weldguru.com
Hi, my name is Garrett Strong (owner of weldguru.com). In the following pages I’m going to reveal to you how anyone can go from welding school to making six figures in under 24 months. Imagine for a second if you could bring home $100,000 or more per year as a welder? Imagine being able to finally afford that nice home you deserve, being the envy of your friends with that new car, going on regular vacations every year, and still having a bank account that’s bursting at the seams with cash. Most people would call bullshit on this, but I want to prove to you that many smart welding students who have foregone the traditional 4 year degree are absolutely bringing in this kind of money, and how you can too. In a recent article from The Wall Street Journal, titled “The $140,000-a-Year Welding Job”, they detailed how a 24 year old from Houston, TX named Justin Friend skipped the 4 year university, and is now making more money than he ever imagined.
Styleweekly.com reported on this article, and the incredible opportunity awaiting those smart people who go into the welding trade.
Young Welder Makes $140,000 a Year How important is having a four-year college degree, really? That’s a great question if one looks at yesterday's The Wall Street Journal, which features a story from Houston about how Justin Friend decided not to go to college and became trained as a welder instead. The kicker: He’s only 24 and makes about $140,000 a year.
©2017 Weldguru.com
As college debt soars and white-collar job prospects dim for young Houstonians, maybe considering occupational training and a blue collar job may not be such a bad idea. It is what the administration of Gov. Terry McAuliffe is emphasizing as he pushes strategies to wean Virginia’s economy off of its dependence on defense and information technology jobs. There will be jobs in IT-intensive places like Capital One, a huge local employer, but the newer opportunities are actually in advanced manufacturing. One is Rolls Royce, which has a modern factory in Prince George County that makes highperformance jet-engine blades. The British company needs highly skilled blue collar employees and is working with J. Sargeant Reynolds and John Tyler community colleges to train them. Another big employer of high-tech manufacturing workers will be Shandong Tanlin, a Chinese paper mill firm that plans a $2 billion factory on the James River just east of Richmond in Chesterfield County. This largest single Chinese investment in the entire country will employ 2,000 people. The plant is so advanced it won’t use wood for pulp but will recycle waste such as corn husks and stalks. McAuliffe plans to make jobs training a big part of his agenda for the 2015 General Assembly that convenes Jan. 14. Last summer, he issued an executive order calling for 50,000 credentialed jobs in science and technology by 2018. “In order to remain globally competitive," he says, "it is critical that Virginia’s workers have the tools they need to succeed in a 21st-century economy." A lot of them won’t require a four-year degree. And some may pay close to what the 24-yearold Texan makes. It’s enough for him to buy a $53,000 Ford F-250 and invest in mutual funds, according to the Journal.
Here’s what some experts are saying about this current jawdropping opportunity in the welding industry "With many current welders reaching retirement age, the law of supply and demand is taking over, driving up wages and filling up training programs. The graduates of the WorkNet Pinellas program start at $60,000 after a 16-week training course. With overtime and a little seasoning, they can be making well over $100,000 in short order," Axelrod said.” -Vicki Bell Contributor, thefabricator.com “During my career as an industrial welder, I have learned that pipe positions are the highest wages. A welders’ income depends on his or her-self, if you want to ©2017 Weldguru.com
make $150,000 yearly it’s there. I prefer to work eight months out of the year and kick back for the rest. I brought in over 70,000 last year. To become a successful welder learn everything there is to learn in this field. There is a high demand for T.I.G welders these days if I think this process is the best craft to learn. I don’t take jobs paying under 25.00 hourly plus P.D. There is no welding process I can’t perform while meeting quality standards.” -Brad Houltzhouser Guest Post, Indeed.com
“I weld for a living, and have for 33 years. The last job I had as a pipe welder foreman paid $35 an hour. A rig welder that welds downhill can easily get $42 an hour with his rig.” -Noel Clark Guest Post, Indeed.com “Gotta get your foot in the door somehow though. I’ve worked for less than $25 an hour, but really, anything less makes me feel like it ain’t worth it. Oh, and if you can learn to TIG a root bead and hot pass in a tube, and run a 7018 filler and cap worth a crap, then there are a LOT of jobs out there that pay from 30 to 50 dollars an hour.” -Seth from Shreveport, LA Guest Post, Indeed.com
These WeldingWeb.com Members Share Their Salary Experiences According to these weldingweb.com members (a forum for beginner and veteran welders), making 6 figures welding is quickly doable once you get a bit of experience under your belt.
©2017 Weldguru.com
“There are quite a few opportunities to gross $100k per year welding in Alberta and Saskatchewan. You will need your IP Journeyman. A "B" pressure ticket would be a good idea, you're not likely to weld pipe without it. I will do better than that this year and I go home every night and most weekends. Structural welding and fabrication, rarely pipe. I haven't welded in BC so I don't know what the opportunities are like there.” -Dr. Strangepork WeldingWeb Apprentice “I work for a hydro generating station. I have various pressure tickets on different alloys that I must maintain every year. I make roughly $120,000 a year +/depending on maintenance schedules and how much time I take off. I work 8 days on then I’m off for 6 days, so when I take a shift off, I have over 3 weeks off in a row and the same works for OT. If I stay in for a shift I work 24 days in a row, and all the time I spend here on my "off shift" is double time. I took 4 shifts off last year. So basically I worked less than half a year and made $120,000“ -Pressure Welder WeldingWeb Foreman While making $100,000/year or more is definitely possible, this isn’t for the get rich quick opportunity seekers. Let’s get something on the table. If you’re someone who wants to make easy money without doing work then forget about this. This just isn’t for you and you might as well stop reading now. Nothing in life that’s worth it comes easy. It does require you to commit some time learning your trade. If you don’t mind using a bit of elbow grease to get paid what you deserve, and you consider yourself someone who can commit to a new career, then this is just for you. If you’re someone who only dreams of success but won’t get off your butt to achieve it then seriously, just stop reading this. The rest of this report is for those of you who are ready to:
©2017 Weldguru.com
Take action Find a good welding school Graduate in 9-15 months Walk away with certs designed to pay you good, consistent money for years to come.
Not All Welding Certifications Are Created Equal So, what is the formula for making 6 figures welding? It’s a really simple secret, but a lot of welding students get this wrong. Knowing this nugget of truth will allow you to run circles around your peers, and make way more money than they do. Here’s the secret… When looking into welding schools and certification, you want to make sure you get certified in the one area that is proven to pay six figures – pipe welding This is the secret to moving ahead fast in your welding career and making the most money. Walking away with a plate certification might land you in a shop making $14/hour. You won’t make good money this way. Stick with the 6G cert. Yes, it takes longer to acquire this because your skill level needs to be there, but you can walk out of a welding school with that 6G cert in your hand in just 12 to 18 months. Compare that to your “genius” liberal arts major spending 4 years at university, only to graduate and work for Starbucks for $14/hr. The 6G certificate is the most sought after certification by employers. It also happens to pay really good money. Being certified in 6G means you have successfully proven you can weld in all the other welding positions. So, you really have only 2 options:
Option 1: Get your certification in structural plate. Remember, this one will limit your income potential significantly. Option 2: Get your 6G certification
You’ll notice in the comments from other welders above that they are all talking about pipe welding being the secret to making good money. Learn to 6G pipe weld and you’ll write your own ticket.
How To Go From Welding School To 6 Figures In Under 24 Months Like landing most jobs that pay a lot of money, it pays to know people. Landing that 6 figure welding job will be a lot easier once you get your foot in the door, and build trust with your supervisors. These guys want someone they can rely on. Building trust ©2017 Weldguru.com
among your employer, and becoming a reliable figure that they would happily refer to others is how you accomplish this. You might see some postings for welding jobs that pay $100K, but many of those employers won’t give you a chance until you have at least 24 months of solid career experience. Your game plan for your first 24 months should be to just shut up and do your job. Your supervisors don’t want any lip service from you. They just want results. The first 2 years of your career are the most important for building relationships. Remember this though. It’s not about being the greatest welder in the world. That will only get you so far. Whether that’s fair or not doesn’t matter. The truth is that relationships will carry you a lot further. So, here are the steps to follow to reach your goal of $100K as fast as possible:
Step 1: Take action, don’t make excuses Step 2: Find a good welding school Step 3: Get your 6G certification Step 4: Get your foot in the door with a good company Step 5: Shut up and do your job Step 6: Focus on getting in good with decision makers and supervisors
Use this welding school locator to find a local welding school near you. Find a local welding school near you Regards, Garrett Strong Weldguru.com P.S. I hope you found this report to be a valuable insight into your future welding career.
A Quick Word About Other 6 Figure Trades Welding is not the only trade where you can quickly work your way to 6 figures. Not by a long shot. With many of these trades, positions are going unfilled due to a lack of qualified employees. Decades of pushing students to attend a 4 year college, and neglecting the trades that make our world go round, has forced many high school guidance counselors to change their focus. The result of this “neglect for trade schools” is high demand for these trades with high pay to go along with it.
©2017 Weldguru.com
Here are some trade careers earning anywhere from $75 to $150 per hour:
CDL truck drivers Electricians HVAC technicians Plumbers Construction supervisors And many more
In an article from Darwinsmoney.com titled “My Electrician Makes More Than A Doctor”, they reveal some shocking details…
My Electrician Makes More Than A Doctor “Of our individual electricians in the area, 3 of them got high marks, so we had all 3 out to give us quotes on the various jobs we were interested in. Interestingly, as though they were all reading each others minds, they all quoted at roughly the same (seemingly expensive!) prices. When I backed out my assumed costs of lighting, wiring and other materials, I pegged their hourly rates at about $150/hour. That’s a damn good rate! With most doctors making $150,000-$250,000/year (not to mention they tend to work a heck of a lot more than 40 hours a week and start off with 6 figures in med school debt), I’ve come to the conclusion that electricians make more than doctors. Anyway, in all, he spread the work across 2 days, probably spent $500 on lights, fans and materials and the rest is pure profit to him since his insurance, his van, etc. are all fixed costs spread across the entire year. The only potential flaw in my assessment is that there’s no guarantee that he works 40 hours per week at these rates, but it took him a while to get out to us and he had to leave our house at 5 to get to another job, which tells me he’s not hurting for work. I can’t complain too much. The work he did was top notch, he was very personable, and frankly, I’d mangle half the jobs he did which would be ugly to look at or more expensive to fix. But for the anti-degree crowd, add this one to the list of jobs where you can do quite well without the burden of massive college debt and no job to show for it. Coincidentally, as I was about to hit publish on this article, 60 Minutes just aired a segment on the famous entrepreneur Peter Thiel who was paying kids not to go to college. I still think for a good portion of Americans, college is the right choice, but for these local electricians, the certification and trade schooling seems to have suited them quite well for the investment!” If you’re interested in attending a welding school, that’s great, but if you’re interested in learning a different trade then right now is the best time in recent history to get started. There is a lot of money to be made in any of the trades right now. Find a local trade school near you
©2017 Weldguru.com
©2017 Weldguru.com
Hi, my name is Garrett Strong (owner of weldguru.com). In the following pages I’m going to reveal to you how anyone can go from welding school to making six figures in under 24 months. Imagine for a second if you could bring home $100,000 or more per year as a welder? Imagine being able to finally afford that nice home you deserve, being the envy of your friends with that new car, going on regular vacations every year, and still having a bank account that’s bursting at the seams with cash. Most people would call bullshit on this, but I want to prove to you that many smart welding students who have foregone the traditional 4 year degree are absolutely bringing in this kind of money, and how you can too. In a recent article from The Wall Street Journal, titled “The $140,000-a-Year Welding Job”, they detailed how a 24 year old from Houston, TX named Justin Friend skipped the 4 year university, and is now making more money than he ever imagined.
Styleweekly.com reported on this article, and the incredible opportunity awaiting those smart people who go into the welding trade.
Young Welder Makes $140,000 a Year How important is having a four-year college degree, really? That’s a great question if one looks at yesterday's The Wall Street Journal, which features a story from Houston about how Justin Friend decided not to go to college and became trained as a welder instead. The kicker: He’s only 24 and makes about $140,000 a year.
©2017 Weldguru.com
As college debt soars and white-collar job prospects dim for young Houstonians, maybe considering occupational training and a blue collar job may not be such a bad idea. It is what the administration of Gov. Terry McAuliffe is emphasizing as he pushes strategies to wean Virginia’s economy off of its dependence on defense and information technology jobs. There will be jobs in IT-intensive places like Capital One, a huge local employer, but the newer opportunities are actually in advanced manufacturing. One is Rolls Royce, which has a modern factory in Prince George County that makes highperformance jet-engine blades. The British company needs highly skilled blue collar employees and is working with J. Sargeant Reynolds and John Tyler community colleges to train them. Another big employer of high-tech manufacturing workers will be Shandong Tanlin, a Chinese paper mill firm that plans a $2 billion factory on the James River just east of Richmond in Chesterfield County. This largest single Chinese investment in the entire country will employ 2,000 people. The plant is so advanced it won’t use wood for pulp but will recycle waste such as corn husks and stalks. McAuliffe plans to make jobs training a big part of his agenda for the 2015 General Assembly that convenes Jan. 14. Last summer, he issued an executive order calling for 50,000 credentialed jobs in science and technology by 2018. “In order to remain globally competitive," he says, "it is critical that Virginia’s workers have the tools they need to succeed in a 21st-century economy." A lot of them won’t require a four-year degree. And some may pay close to what the 24-yearold Texan makes. It’s enough for him to buy a $53,000 Ford F-250 and invest in mutual funds, according to the Journal.
Here’s what some experts are saying about this current jawdropping opportunity in the welding industry "With many current welders reaching retirement age, the law of supply and demand is taking over, driving up wages and filling up training programs. The graduates of the WorkNet Pinellas program start at $60,000 after a 16-week training course. With overtime and a little seasoning, they can be making well over $100,000 in short order," Axelrod said.” -Vicki Bell Contributor, thefabricator.com “During my career as an industrial welder, I have learned that pipe positions are the highest wages. A welders’ income depends on his or her-self, if you want to ©2017 Weldguru.com
make $150,000 yearly it’s there. I prefer to work eight months out of the year and kick back for the rest. I brought in over 70,000 last year. To become a successful welder learn everything there is to learn in this field. There is a high demand for T.I.G welders these days if I think this process is the best craft to learn. I don’t take jobs paying under 25.00 hourly plus P.D. There is no welding process I can’t perform while meeting quality standards.” -Brad Houltzhouser Guest Post, Indeed.com
“I weld for a living, and have for 33 years. The last job I had as a pipe welder foreman paid $35 an hour. A rig welder that welds downhill can easily get $42 an hour with his rig.” -Noel Clark Guest Post, Indeed.com “Gotta get your foot in the door somehow though. I’ve worked for less than $25 an hour, but really, anything less makes me feel like it ain’t worth it. Oh, and if you can learn to TIG a root bead and hot pass in a tube, and run a 7018 filler and cap worth a crap, then there are a LOT of jobs out there that pay from 30 to 50 dollars an hour.” -Seth from Shreveport, LA Guest Post, Indeed.com
These WeldingWeb.com Members Share Their Salary Experiences According to these weldingweb.com members (a forum for beginner and veteran welders), making 6 figures welding is quickly doable once you get a bit of experience under your belt.
©2017 Weldguru.com
“There are quite a few opportunities to gross $100k per year welding in Alberta and Saskatchewan. You will need your IP Journeyman. A "B" pressure ticket would be a good idea, you're not likely to weld pipe without it. I will do better than that this year and I go home every night and most weekends. Structural welding and fabrication, rarely pipe. I haven't welded in BC so I don't know what the opportunities are like there.” -Dr. Strangepork WeldingWeb Apprentice “I work for a hydro generating station. I have various pressure tickets on different alloys that I must maintain every year. I make roughly $120,000 a year +/depending on maintenance schedules and how much time I take off. I work 8 days on then I’m off for 6 days, so when I take a shift off, I have over 3 weeks off in a row and the same works for OT. If I stay in for a shift I work 24 days in a row, and all the time I spend here on my "off shift" is double time. I took 4 shifts off last year. So basically I worked less than half a year and made $120,000“ -Pressure Welder WeldingWeb Foreman While making $100,000/year or more is definitely possible, this isn’t for the get rich quick opportunity seekers. Let’s get something on the table. If you’re someone who wants to make easy money without doing work then forget about this. This just isn’t for you and you might as well stop reading now. Nothing in life that’s worth it comes easy. It does require you to commit some time learning your trade. If you don’t mind using a bit of elbow grease to get paid what you deserve, and you consider yourself someone who can commit to a new career, then this is just for you. If you’re someone who only dreams of success but won’t get off your butt to achieve it then seriously, just stop reading this. The rest of this report is for those of you who are ready to:
©2017 Weldguru.com
Take action Find a good welding school Graduate in 9-15 months Walk away with certs designed to pay you good, consistent money for years to come.
Not All Welding Certifications Are Created Equal So, what is the formula for making 6 figures welding? It’s a really simple secret, but a lot of welding students get this wrong. Knowing this nugget of truth will allow you to run circles around your peers, and make way more money than they do. Here’s the secret… When looking into welding schools and certification, you want to make sure you get certified in the one area that is proven to pay six figures – pipe welding This is the secret to moving ahead fast in your welding career and making the most money. Walking away with a plate certification might land you in a shop making $14/hour. You won’t make good money this way. Stick with the 6G cert. Yes, it takes longer to acquire this because your skill level needs to be there, but you can walk out of a welding school with that 6G cert in your hand in just 12 to 18 months. Compare that to your “genius” liberal arts major spending 4 years at university, only to graduate and work for Starbucks for $14/hr. The 6G certificate is the most sought after certification by employers. It also happens to pay really good money. Being certified in 6G means you have successfully proven you can weld in all the other welding positions. So, you really have only 2 options:
Option 1: Get your certification in structural plate. Remember, this one will limit your income potential significantly. Option 2: Get your 6G certification
You’ll notice in the comments from other welders above that they are all talking about pipe welding being the secret to making good money. Learn to 6G pipe weld and you’ll write your own ticket.
How To Go From Welding School To 6 Figures In Under 24 Months Like landing most jobs that pay a lot of money, it pays to know people. Landing that 6 figure welding job will be a lot easier once you get your foot in the door, and build trust with your supervisors. These guys want someone they can rely on. Building trust ©2017 Weldguru.com
among your employer, and becoming a reliable figure that they would happily refer to others is how you accomplish this. You might see some postings for welding jobs that pay $100K, but many of those employers won’t give you a chance until you have at least 24 months of solid career experience. Your game plan for your first 24 months should be to just shut up and do your job. Your supervisors don’t want any lip service from you. They just want results. The first 2 years of your career are the most important for building relationships. Remember this though. It’s not about being the greatest welder in the world. That will only get you so far. Whether that’s fair or not doesn’t matter. The truth is that relationships will carry you a lot further. So, here are the steps to follow to reach your goal of $100K as fast as possible:
Step 1: Take action, don’t make excuses Step 2: Find a good welding school Step 3: Get your 6G certification Step 4: Get your foot in the door with a good company Step 5: Shut up and do your job Step 6: Focus on getting in good with decision makers and supervisors
Use this welding school locator to find a local welding school near you. Find a local welding school near you Regards, Garrett Strong Weldguru.com P.S. I hope you found this report to be a valuable insight into your future welding career.
A Quick Word About Other 6 Figure Trades Welding is not the only trade where you can quickly work your way to 6 figures. Not by a long shot. With many of these trades, positions are going unfilled due to a lack of qualified employees. Decades of pushing students to attend a 4 year college, and neglecting the trades that make our world go round, has forced many high school guidance counselors to change their focus. The result of this “neglect for trade schools” is high demand for these trades with high pay to go along with it.
©2017 Weldguru.com
Here are some trade careers earning anywhere from $75 to $150 per hour:
CDL truck drivers Electricians HVAC technicians Plumbers Construction supervisors And many more
In an article from Darwinsmoney.com titled “My Electrician Makes More Than A Doctor”, they reveal some shocking details…
My Electrician Makes More Than A Doctor “Of our individual electricians in the area, 3 of them got high marks, so we had all 3 out to give us quotes on the various jobs we were interested in. Interestingly, as though they were all reading each others minds, they all quoted at roughly the same (seemingly expensive!) prices. When I backed out my assumed costs of lighting, wiring and other materials, I pegged their hourly rates at about $150/hour. That’s a damn good rate! With most doctors making $150,000-$250,000/year (not to mention they tend to work a heck of a lot more than 40 hours a week and start off with 6 figures in med school debt), I’ve come to the conclusion that electricians make more than doctors. Anyway, in all, he spread the work across 2 days, probably spent $500 on lights, fans and materials and the rest is pure profit to him since his insurance, his van, etc. are all fixed costs spread across the entire year. The only potential flaw in my assessment is that there’s no guarantee that he works 40 hours per week at these rates, but it took him a while to get out to us and he had to leave our house at 5 to get to another job, which tells me he’s not hurting for work. I can’t complain too much. The work he did was top notch, he was very personable, and frankly, I’d mangle half the jobs he did which would be ugly to look at or more expensive to fix. But for the anti-degree crowd, add this one to the list of jobs where you can do quite well without the burden of massive college debt and no job to show for it. Coincidentally, as I was about to hit publish on this article, 60 Minutes just aired a segment on the famous entrepreneur Peter Thiel who was paying kids not to go to college. I still think for a good portion of Americans, college is the right choice, but for these local electricians, the certification and trade schooling seems to have suited them quite well for the investment!” If you’re interested in attending a welding school, that’s great, but if you’re interested in learning a different trade then right now is the best time in recent history to get started. There is a lot of money to be made in any of the trades right now. Find a local trade school near you
©2017 Weldguru.com
