Orlando, pros/cons?

[FluffyPumpkin78]

Hey, Pastry chef here. Or at least was until I had my son.

Just to let you know, the restaurant business is very hard, physically demanding, and doesn't really pay that much.

I used to work at a destination casino/resort in Lake Tahoe. I loved it. I really really did, but the biz can totally burn you out. You usually work funky hours. Pastry people usually work mornings...early mornings. Like 4 or 5 am. Then chefs de cuisine, their sous's and other line cooks work really late hours. They usually start at 1 or 2 pm and usually stay until the restaurant closes, maybe 12 or 1 am, again depending on where you are at. I left the biz, because it just wasn't conducive to family life. My dh is a restaurant manager, has been with the same company for 12 years and works 50 to 55 hours a week. And this is actually pretty good. His company will be opening a new restaurant in the spring, and openings come with 16 hour days for the first 3 months.

My son is now 3, so I have started work pt at a bakery. However I am just a cake decorator, as I did not want to take on any management roles. However dh and I have been getting real serious about starting a catering business. So hopefully this will happen in the next 5 years or so.

If you really do want to pursue the culinary field, I would go to the top school in the country, the Culinary Institute of America http://www.ciachef.edu/ It is located in upstate New York and is beautiful. The best of the best have graduated from this school. I would also recommend that you work in a full-service restaurant for 6 months or so to see if you are really cut out for restaurant work. Many go in thinking they will have their own show on Food Network, or something and don't really realize how hard it really is. Also (and I am assuming you are female) there is the whole mentality of it being a *boy's club*. You probably will be sexually harassed, and have to put up with crude talk, endless innuendo, and all other kinds of fun stuff. Admittedly this happens more often in regular kitchens, but their is still an element of this in pastry shops. Especially with old school French and German chefs.

I would suggest that you read Anthony Bourdain's "Kitchen Confidential". It is an excellent and eye opening read about what really happens back of the house. Egullet.org is an excellent culinary arts forum where many professional and celebrity chefs hang out and post.

So know you may be asking, "Why would anyone work in those conditions"? The simple answer is because we love it, and it is our passion. I experience an unexplainable joy when making, decorating and serving something. Most of the time I actually enjoy and love working the long hours, because I get to play all day. Of course, it isn't like that everyday, but mostly it is.

 

[Cool-Beans]

You know, if working for Disney is a dream of yours, why not do it?!

So few people ever go after their dreams, much less live them out. And you've got one that is absolutely do-able.

Even if it ends up being a mistake and wastes a year of your life, you are young. That is the time to make your mistakes...and you can afford to lose a year.

On the flip side, people often take "a year" off after high school, planning to go to college later...and then life gets in the way and they never get around to it. So, food for thought there.

Have you thought about doing college and just working at WDW in the summer? Disney has lots of employees that aren't in college programs! I see young folks, older folks, even retirees!! I just talked to a woman who worked for Universal and now works for Disney. She used to waitress.

I can't tell you what to do with your life - that's something you have to decide, of course. But I'd urge you to consider doing this while you're young. The older you get, the harder it gets to do something silly like move to Florida and work for Disney just because you want to.

 

[PlutoLuvr]

Just wanted to pipe in about FL cities.

South Florida doesn't necessarily get "all the hurricanes." They get a few, as does the Orlando area, the SW coast, the NW coast (they actually have gotten A LOT the past few years ... I think they're still recovering from Ivan), as well as the NE coast. No matter where you live in the South, you'll deal with 'canes, either with the storms themselves or being in a city where a lot of folks continually evacuate to.

Living in FL for 35 years, I'll take a 'cane over any other natural disaster. You get notice of these storms. It's not like tornados or earthquakes. You can prepare your home or leave. And we don't have to deal with snow

Anyway, if you're thinking about the realtor business, anywhere in FL is fantastic for that, but NE Florida in particular is booming and has decades' worth of growth ahead of us. We're in the process of building cities here (waterfront!) where only a couple years ago, these were vacant lands. Nocatee is a new city being built right now, in between Jacksonville and St. Augustine. I'm not talking about a new development; a new city!

NE Florida also doesn't have that "concrete jungle" feel as so many other parts of FL does. We have trees here, marsh, maritime hammock. The powers that be in government take great care to keep ordinances in check to protect the trees, too.

As for your career/education choices, it's purely up to you. You've got to follow your heart and intuition on that one. Don't always assume that a four-year college degree will equal success and opportunity. That didn't happen for DH and I. He opted for the four-year college; I opted for the trade school to learn court reporting. That was 15 years ago. Every year of our working lives, I've made double, sometimes triple what he's made. I've had my own reporting business for 10 years with no business degree. He also found out he despises the "professional" world. He can't handle working in a cubicle. Last March, he finally went out and got a construction job (foreman) because he got so sick and tired of wondering when he was going to get laid off due to downsizing from the corporate world.

Lastly, living in a tourist town can be tough. Personalities of the locals can be a bit abrasive. And I'm guilty of this myself. I lived in Fort Lauderdale for 18 years. It wasn't until we all moved (12 of us total, my family & DH's family) that we realized how rude and indifferent we'd become. Orlando was actually named the "angriest city" this year by Men's Health. Three other FL cities were in the top 10, as well. Here's the link to the Orlando Sentinal, which has the link to all 50 cities.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_popculture_blog/2006/08/were_1.html

Good luck with your important decisions!

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

So few people ever go after their dreams, much less live them out. And you've got one that is absolutely do-able.

Even if it ends up being a mistake and wastes a year of your life, you are young. That is the time to make your mistakes...and you can afford to lose a year.

VERY TRUE!!!!!

 

[GeorgeG]

I'm not sure if they still have it, but WDW used to have their own culinary school where you could work as an apprentice in the restaurants while you learned as well as going to school. I doubt it would be just for pastry chefs, though, but they might.

In any case, you still have plenty of time for research. At this point, you might even change your mind several times before deciding for sure what you want.

I might get flamed for suggesting this, but one way to help decide where you want to go in life is to join the military. I don't know about real estate, but there is always a need for barbers and chefs, and they will train you in both. If you're concerned about the war situation, the Navy might be the branch to look at. They have a lot more trades you can learn and they give you a place to live and feed you.

 

[ducklite]

Bottom line, you can't live in this area (Greater Orlando) making $7 an hour, even if you are sharing an apartment with two roommates. By the time you get done paying rent ($800-1000 or more for an increasingly difficult to find 3BR) and utilities (another $200-600 per month, depending on if you've got cable and/or phone and/or Internet connection and how sparingly you heat/AC) you've got give or take $450 a month left. You still need to eat, pay for a car as well as maintain and insure it (basic liability for a 19 year old will run you $200/month and a car is really pretty much a must around here. Even if you have a paid for car, insurance, gas and maintenance is going to run you $300 a month. That leaves you with $150 or so left. You still need to eat, pay any medical bills, put clothes on your back, pay your cell bill, etc. In other words, you can *maybe* survive, but that's not "living."

And I wouldn't count on your roommates picking up your share of the bills while you go to college. Of course I didn't mention tuition and books and fees in that budget.

Stay home and get a degree or certificate in something, THEN make a move. Real Estate is STAGNANT in this area right now, my neighbor is a Realtor and he hasn't sold a house in two months. Realtors work on commission only. If you do'nt sell, you make no money. He's retired, and for him it's a diversion. He likes that he can set his own hours. It's not something that you can count on to pay the bills. It's a great second job. It's harder to get a RE license in FL than most other states. Have a career that pays the bills, then get your license on the side and use it as supplemental income.

Anne

 

[kdm31091]

Hey, Pastry chef here. Or at least was until I had my son.

Just to let you know, the restaurant business is very hard, physically demanding, and doesn't really pay that much.

I used to work at a destination casino/resort in Lake Tahoe. I loved it. I really really did, but the biz can totally burn you out. You usually work funky hours. Pastry people usually work mornings...early mornings. Like 4 or 5 am. Then chefs de cuisine, their sous's and other line cooks work really late hours. They usually start at 1 or 2 pm and usually stay until the restaurant closes, maybe 12 or 1 am, again depending on where you are at. I left the biz, because it just wasn't conducive to family life. My dh is a restaurant manager, has been with the same company for 12 years and works 50 to 55 hours a week. And this is actually pretty good. His company will be opening a new restaurant in the spring, and openings come with 16 hour days for the first 3 months.

My son is now 3, so I have started work pt at a bakery. However I am just a cake decorator, as I did not want to take on any management roles. However dh and I have been getting real serious about starting a catering business. So hopefully this will happen in the next 5 years or so.

If you really do want to pursue the culinary field, I would go to the top school in the country, the Culinary Institute of America http://www.ciachef.edu/ It is located in upstate New York and is beautiful. The best of the best have graduated from this school. I would also recommend that you work in a full-service restaurant for 6 months or so to see if you are really cut out for restaurant work. Many go in thinking they will have their own show on Food Network, or something and don't really realize how hard it really is. Also (and I am assuming you are female) there is the whole mentality of it being a *boy's club*. You probably will be sexually harassed, and have to put up with crude talk, endless innuendo, and all other kinds of fun stuff. Admittedly this happens more often in regular kitchens, but their is still an element of this in pastry shops. Especially with old school French and German chefs.

I would suggest that you read Anthony Bourdain's "Kitchen Confidential". It is an excellent and eye opening read about what really happens back of the house. Egullet.org is an excellent culinary arts forum where many professional and celebrity chefs hang out and post.

So know you may be asking, "Why would anyone work in those conditions"? The simple answer is because we love it, and it is our passion. I experience an unexplainable joy when making, decorating and serving something. Most of the time I actually enjoy and love working the long hours, because I get to play all day. Of course, it isn't like that everyday, but mostly it is.

I'm a boy (yes, gay, my sig. other is a guy), but you did give some nice insights anyway. Maybe I'll reconsider that. I love to bake - but maybe it should just be a hobby?

Okay, nobody can live on $7 an hour in Florida - that makes sense. Then again I wouldn't want to live on $7 an hour here either. $7 doesn't cut it. My sister didnt do college (she had the whole "year off" thing planned, but then she just never did it), she's 21, and she was a waitress for a few years. She lived decently, but her then-boyfriend was paying most of the bills and bought the furniture etc etc. She probably couldn't have survived alone at the time. Anyways, she's now at Verizon Wireless working her way up and making a LOT more money - I think it's $13 an hour right now, which of course is not huge but it's much much more.

Anyways, my guess is that in Orlando I would want to make in the neighborhood of about $10 an hour before I moved. A fourth career - a boring one - I've considered is perhaps a medical secretary. They only make like $25-30k, but it's a steady job. Of course it's a mostly female thing, but there's nothing that says a male can't do it. Any comments on that idea?

Barbers and pastry chefs don't seem to make much money and I dunno if I could live on that. A secretary doesn't make all that much more, but it's still more. On the plus side, it tends to be a 9 to 5 job, leaving me time for (working or visiting) Disney Surely Disney needs secretaries, or hotel desk people similar to secretaries, or something. (I'm aware they're not really called secretaries anymore, but whatever)

By the way, I cannot be in the military. I have a shunt, which I don't really like explaining, but hopefully you know what it is. It goes from my head to my stomach. It's not visible or anything, but the point is, I absolutely can't be smacked on the head in the wrong spot. As such I'm exempt from gym and sports - which I'm thrilled over - and yes, exempt from the military too.

 

[Minnesota!]

Just for my own curiosity - what do the Res Center Reps and Hotel Check In people get an hour at WDW? Always been a pipe dream of mine - but not until the kids are out of school (only 18 years, LOL!)..

 

[MyGoofy26]

I'll 3rd (or is it 4th of 5th at this point? LOL) the college program. It does have its high and low points. . . low point basically being people who think it's a semester to play in the parks rather than a job they have to go to every day so they go home early because they're miserable.

Go to community college at home for a semester and apply and interview and you can head down as early as your 2nd semester. Honestly, I think it's one of the most "doable" ways to relocate when you're that young. You get half a year to try the city and the work out with no long term commitments if you find it's not for you. Relocating on your own may be VERY expensive. You can easily spend thousands before ever setting foot in the state of Florida. You'll need to find roommates, sign leases (figure about a $1000 deposit), travel costs to move and any furniture and supplies you need to live on your own. If you do the college program, you have a fully furnished apartment with all utilities covered. The only thing you have to pay for is long distance phone. I don't know what the going rate is right now, but I paid $75 a week when I did it for a 2 bedroom. If you don't have a lot of debt or bills going in, you can easily live on what Disney pays for that semester. If you like it and want to stay, you'll find a LOT of other CPers that feel the same way and you can hook up and apartment hunt with them. If you realize that $7 an hour isn't going to cut it and the place it too expensive with limited opportunities you can head home at the end of your program and figure out what you want to do next.

 

[ducklite]

I'm a boy (yes, gay, my sig. other is a guy), but you did give some nice insights anyway. Maybe I'll reconsider that. I love to bake - but maybe it should just be a hobby?

Okay, nobody can live on $7 an hour in Florida - that makes sense. Then again I wouldn't want to live on $7 an hour here either. $7 doesn't cut it. My sister didnt do college (she had the whole "year off" thing planned, but then she just never did it), she's 21, and she was a waitress for a few years. She lived decently, but her then-boyfriend was paying most of the bills and bought the furniture etc etc. She probably couldn't have survived alone at the time. Anyways, she's now at Verizon Wireless working her way up and making a LOT more money - I think it's $13 an hour right now, which of course is not huge but it's much much more.

Anyways, my guess is that in Orlando I would want to make in the neighborhood of about $10 an hour before I moved. A fourth career - a boring one - I've considered is perhaps a medical secretary. They only make like $25-30k, but it's a steady job. Of course it's a mostly female thing, but there's nothing that says a male can't do it. Any comments on that idea?

Barbers and pastry chefs don't seem to make much money and I dunno if I could live on that. A secretary doesn't make all that much more, but it's still more. On the plus side, it tends to be a 9 to 5 job, leaving me time for (working or visiting) Disney Surely Disney needs secretaries, or hotel desk people similar to secretaries, or something. (I'm aware they're not really called secretaries anymore, but whatever)

It's EXTREMELY competitive to get an administrative position at WDW, and most hired for those positions have associates or bachelors degrees in business administration or the like. They also do'nt pay $25-30K a year around here at entry level even with a degree, you're dreaming if you think they do. You'd be lucky to make more than $22K a year to start--with a degree or experience--in a clerical/admin type job.

"Hotel desk people" make the same wages as the ride ops--about $7 per hour.

Anne

 

[kdm31091]

Woah. Why do all the careers I like pay crap? I'm worried I'm going to have to choose something I hate just to make anything more then 22k!

 

[Minnesota!]

Thanks Anne - I figured as much. They pay much better (relatively speaking) around here (around 10 - 11/hr). Hopefully I will win the lottery and get a job doing something I love - not just something that pays the bills I am in a job now that I don't love, but hey - it pays great. SIGH...

 

[kdm31091]

Well, I did leave out yet another career possibility. Computer support specialists. I know the pay is not amazing, but in Delaware the average is $50k. I doubt that's a starting pay. But I'm sure I'd get $25k to start, at LEAST. I think they only need a 2 year degree, and probably have a schedule. Anyone know if I'm off the mark with the computer support specialist thing?

 

[ducklite]

Well, computer support specialist is pretty vague. With a degree or certificate you could posibly start in the $25K range, depending on what you are specifically trained for.

Most computer jobs require 2-5 years of experience and because there are so many over qualified I/T people out of work, it can be a hard field to break into.

They have a set schedule, but it's not unusual to have to work overtime--often not paid--including nights and weekends when something goes wrong or you are on a project with a tight timeline.

Anne

 

[MyGoofy26]

It's EXTREMELY competitive to get an administrative position at WDW, and most hired for those positions have associates or bachelors degrees in business administration or the like. They also do'nt pay $25-30K a year around here at entry level even with a degree, you're dreaming if you think they do. You'd be lucky to make more than $22K a year to start--with a degree or experience--in a clerical/admin type job.

Yep - It's almost impossible to get into anything administrative without being currently employed at Disney and knowing someone who knows someone. I've applied for a few administrative positions "just because" (I've gone back and forth about moving back - but I always decide against it because of all the cons listed here) and even though I have two degrees, a lot of experience, and was at one time a cast member I haven't heard a peep after applying even though I'm technically way overqualified for those positions.

Honestly, if you want to do ANYTHING at Disney besides the very entry level (attractions host, merchandise host, front desk, quick service, etc) you have to already be a cast member and have a few connections - some managers who will vouch for you and make some calls. The best way to go about it is either College Program Advanced Internships (which are very competitive as well) or get a "real" job outside of Disney and just do something basic part time to get your foot in the door and access to job postings before they hit the public. It's SO competitive just from being on the inside that once a few squeak out into the public it's insanely competitive and you have to have a pretty impressive background to stand out and have a chance.

 

[kdm31091]

Well, computer support specialist is pretty vague. With a degree or certificate you could posibly start in the $25K range, depending on what you are specifically trained for.

Most computer jobs require 2-5 years of experience and because there are so many over qualified I/T people out of work, it can be a hard field to break into.

They have a set schedule, but it's not unusual to have to work overtime--often not paid--including nights and weekends when something goes wrong or you are on a project with a tight timeline.

Anne

I've read on many sites that there "will be plenty of computer support specialist openings for the next decade". I understand it may be hard, and don't take this the wrong way, but I don't understand exactly what you DO recommend. I feel like every idea I have I keep getting slammed with lots of bad points. EVERY job has bad points - I know that already - so you can spare me those details. How about some GOOD news? Remember, no disrespect meant.

Doesn't a college help you find a job?

 

[MyGoofy26]

Doesn't a college help you find a job?

More like help you with leads. And you still have to do most of the work. Colleges have career services departments where companies will give them a list of positions they're hiring for so they can recruit students, but you have to remember that it's not like an employment agency where you go in, tell them what you want, and they find something to place you in that fits with your skills and the employer's requirements. These companies give them the job descriptions and information to pass along to the students, but remember that they're most likely offering that same list to multiple colleges so it may get very competitive - especially if it's a company hiring for a position here and there rather than a whole bunch of open positions.

 

[kdm31091]

I guess I should go to an employment agency then when the time comes. Maybe they'd be a better help.

Despite many cons being thrown at me I'm not giving up on Florida. It would be just as hard as find a job here, plus it's BORING in Delaware. At least in Florida, I'd be in the setting I like much better. I've been there many times and I loved it.

 

[Traveliz]

It sounds like you have a few ideas of the sorts of jobs/careers that interest you and also an amount of money you would like to start with...

I would recommend you do the career testing at your local community college -- it is probably free and it will show you some options and maybe some you haven't considered yet.

You are getting alot of good advice ...on one hand I would say stay at home, get a degree....yet on the other hand when you are young is a great time to take a chance....when you are settled down its harder to take a chance.

Best luck with your decisions.

Liz

 

[luvsmickeymouse]

You know, if working for Disney is a dream of yours, why not do it?!

So few people ever go after their dreams, much less live them out. And you've got one that is absolutely do-able.

Even if it ends up being a mistake and wastes a year of your life, you are young. That is the time to make your mistakes...and you can afford to lose a year.

On the flip side, people often take "a year" off after high school, planning to go to college later...and then life gets in the way and they never get around to it. So, food for thought there.

Have you thought about doing college and just working at WDW in the summer? Disney has lots of employees that aren't in college programs! I see young folks, older folks, even retirees!! I just talked to a woman who worked for Universal and now works for Disney. She used to waitress.

I can't tell you what to do with your life - that's something you have to decide, of course. But I'd urge you to consider doing this while you're young. The older you get, the harder it gets to do something silly like move to Florida and work for Disney just because you want to.

Boy this is true. It doesn't have to be Orlando, you could move just outside of the Disney area. It still isn't far to go to work at Disney. Go for your dreams, this may be the only chance you get to try something. As you get older things seem to get in the way of our dreams. Its happened to me.