A Career in Plumbing: Anna Pearson's Story
Hi, my name is Anna, also known as the Plumbing Princess, and I am a plumbing apprentice in commercial new construction.
I want to show the world that all sorts of different people from all sorts of different walks of life work in trades. All I'm doing is documenting my journey, but I didn't expect to make such an impact the way that I have. Genuinely, I want people to join the trades. I want it to be a growing industry again.
Why Plumbing?
I don't like sitting at a desk all day. Working 40 hours of my life every week stuck in a cubicle is my actual nightmare. I like recreational activities and staying active.
I got into plumbing by telling my dad I was struggling. I went through a divorce and was working in veterinary medicine, and even though I loved it, it wasn't paying me enough to support myself. I called on my dad, who is both my best friend and a mentor. He's a master plumber and business owner, and he told me, "Well, think about this realistically. You've tried college, selling insurance, and retail. You tried all sorts of things and nothing's ever really stuck. Why don't you try a trade?"
I researched it for a few days and saw nothing but good things, so I decided to take the plunge. All of my friends were very surprised. Maybe they were thinking this was a last resort or that I didn't think it through. They saw it as something gross and questioned why I would want to be a plumber. Now that they see me doing it and killing it, they're super supportive.
What I love most about plumbing is that it's not the norm. It's not the route of going to college, getting a white-collar job, and working nine to five. It's an adventure. Every day I learn something new. You don't get to say that about a lot of other industries or fields of work.
Anna's Key to Success
Outside of plumbing, I enjoy getting out and about. I love hiking, like where we are now at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area in Las Vegas, Nevada. It's one of my favorite hiking spots right now. Other than hiking, I love camping, finding new places to eat, and meeting new people.
I also make it a priority to hit the gym two to three times a week to stay active, healthy, and strong. When you are in a trade and on your feet all day, it's very tiring. You've been out in the heat and the sun, so you need to be healthy. Working in trades, you can't live on a fast food diet, with little sleep, and relying on caffeine instead of water because you're going to burn your body out very fast.
Reaching New Heights
In the future, I want to become a journeyman. It's a four-year program. Four years seems like a long time, but when you're out there in the field it's not. With plumbing or any trade, you're paid to learn. When I was in college, I was broke, starving, and very stressed. Now I get to have my full-time job and college all in one. Everything that I'm learning, I'm going to be using, and I'm getting paid to do it.
For people that are a little lost or those like myself, that schooling was never their strong suit- hands down, you should go into a trade. You're not going to regret it and will always have a job. You'll learn new things, be able to pay your bills, support your family, buy a home if you haven't already, and create a legacy. That's really what plumbing and the trades in general do for people.
My name is Anna and I'm a plumber.
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