Pulling the Trigger!

BugSmasher · October 14th, 2007, 13:39

Well, here goes. I've been lingering on this board for a long time, weighing the decision to fly commercially, airplane fanatic since the age of five, as are many of us. I am at the solo cross country phase of my PPL right now, but with my work schedule it has been difficult to fly more than once a week.

So, this Friday I turned in my two weeks notice, put my apartment up for re-rental, secured storage, and dealt with 401K issues. I'm leaving an otherwise perfectly good job as a corporate paralegal in Chicago to teach English in Korea (South), to save up money for my IFR-MEI training. I was going to try to take out a loan, and get going right away, but luckily found alternative viewpoints on JC before attempting it.

I will have about 5 weeks to finish my PPL before I leave, but it'll be far easier to do that as I wont be working. It may take a year and a half to save up the 35K I'd like to put away, but I'll be hitting the books, DVD- ROMS, and my old friend FS9 in my downtime.

Hopefully, I can come back to the U.S. soon and fly debt-free. The law firm would like to have me return in a part-time role, possibly as a telecommuter - which will be handy money as a poor CFI and later for when on reserve or on a long overnight.

It's a rush when you finally pull the trigger and begin to set the plan in motion, a welcome departure from the "comfort zone."

Thanks in part to JC, I have realistic expectations for the future, and know that it wont be easy or necessarily lucrative. I spent the last four years as a paralegal, less and less enthusiastic about pursuing law further each year, without even considering the cost of law school loans. I was accepted to a couple of so-so law schools right about the time I started taking PPL lessons. Law lost when I soloed.

I'm nowhere near where I want to be, but I've chosen to be patient and save up. Even though Ill miss the "regional hiring boom," the decision is to fly in general whether that be CFI, pipeline, 135, 91 - there are MANY interesting options out there. I want to thank the fine folks on JC whose knowledge and humor have helped with this decision.

skidz · October 14th, 2007, 15:02

Good luck

SteveC · October 14th, 2007, 16:41

I love your plan!

turbojet28 · October 14th, 2007, 20:52

Definately a cool sounding plan. Going abroad intrigues me. Good luck!

Firebird2XC · October 14th, 2007, 21:11

Good luck.

.... stay away from the soju. ; )

Quote:

Originally Posted by BugSmasher

Well, here goes. I've been lingering on this board for a long time, weighing the decision to fly commercially, airplane fanatic since the age of five, as are many of us. I am at the solo cross country phase of my PPL right now, but with my work schedule it has been difficult to fly more than once a week.

So, this Friday I turned in my two weeks notice, put my apartment up for re-rental, secured storage, and dealt with 401K issues. I'm leaving an otherwise perfectly good job as a corporate paralegal in Chicago to teach English in Korea (South), to save up money for my IFR-MEI training. I was going to try to take out a loan, and get going right away, but luckily found alternative viewpoints on JC before attempting it.

I will have about 5 weeks to finish my PPL before I leave, but it'll be far easier to do that as I wont be working. It may take a year and a half to save up the 35K I'd like to put away, but I'll be hitting the books, DVD- ROMS, and my old friend FS9 in my downtime.

Hopefully, I can come back to the U.S. soon and fly debt-free. The law firm would like to have me return in a part-time role, possibly as a telecommuter - which will be handy money as a poor CFI and later for when on reserve or on a long overnight.

It's a rush when you finally pull the trigger and begin to set the plan in motion, a welcome departure from the "comfort zone."

Thanks in part to JC, I have realistic expectations for the future, and know that it wont be easy or necessarily lucrative. I spent the last four years as a paralegal, less and less enthusiastic about pursuing law further each year, without even considering the cost of law school loans. I was accepted to a couple of so-so law schools right about the time I started taking PPL lessons. Law lost when I soloed.

I'm nowhere near where I want to be, but I've chosen to be patient and save up. Even though Ill miss the "regional hiring boom," the decision is to fly in general whether that be CFI, pipeline, 135, 91 - there are MANY interesting options out there. I want to thank the fine folks on JC whose knowledge and humor have helped with this decision.

Customx · October 15th, 2007, 01:40

What area are you going to be living in? If you ever need any help or have questions about teaching or Korea in general let me know and I'll try to help. Good luck~

clumpinglitter · October 15th, 2007, 11:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by BugSmasher

So, this Friday I turned in my two weeks notice, put my apartment up for re-rental, secured storage, and dealt with 401K issues. I'm leaving an otherwise perfectly good job as a corporate paralegal in Chicago to teach English in Korea (South), to save up money for my IFR-MEI training. I was going to try to take out a loan, and get going right away, but luckily found alternative viewpoints on JC before attempting it.

Wow. Congratulations, and best of luck. It sounds like you're in a pretty good position, especially if you can continue doing legal work remotely to supplement income later.

-Christine

FlyChicaga · October 16th, 2007, 02:36

Wow, this sounds awesome. I wish you the best of luck!

In the next five weeks you are still in Chicago, we will need to take you out for some drinks to send you away Chitown proper!

Doug Taylor · October 16th, 2007, 02:42

Kick some butt, brotha!

Brian29 · October 16th, 2007, 14:41

I have a really close friend who has been teaching Engilsh and what not in S. Korea for the last two years. Let me know before you head out there and I can give you his contact info. I am sure he would show you around and take you to some good bars.

WindyCityPilot · October 16th, 2007, 15:52

Best of luck! FlyChicaga and I will make sure you don't remember your going away party.

Seriously though...we'll set something up in the next month and give you a little going away bash.

Mad props to you for taking that first step!

BugSmasher · January 17th, 2008, 02:54

Well, it's been a month or two away from the good 'ol U.S. here in Ulsan, Korea so I though I'd provide an update for those who might be considering saving up for their flight training by teaching out here...

So far, so good. The amount of dough I'm saving for flight training while teaching English here is as I expected - and may end up being even more. The low dollar doesnt hurt, either. The job itself is a working vacation compared to my old gig in Chicago. I dont even leave my apartment until 2 pm, and get home at 7 pm, m-f, no Tuesday or Thursday classes attm. As mentioned earlier, it is relatively easy to get by on $300-400/mo here without too much sacrifice because my rent and utilities are paid for by my school.

Teaching little kids can be challenging - but if you get your "Major Payne" on for the first few weeks, kids tend to shape up.

I miss my family, friends, and FLYING. But Korea is similar enough to the US to mitigate homesickness, somewhat. After the first month or so, the culture shock went away and I am happy to say that I can now order Domino's in Korean. A major milestone. Also, the other foriegn English teachers here (approx. 400), form a close knit community and we have our own bars and play in sports leagues together. Now and then I forget that I'm not in the U.S.

When I get back to the United States in 10 months, I plan to finish my Inst, Multi, and CMEL with my brother (Stratapilot) in Dallas, TX, where the culture shock could be much worse than Korea.

If anyone has any questions, please PM me or CustomX (who has been doing this longer than I have and who is a great source of info) .

WindyCityPilot · January 17th, 2008, 09:59

Great to hear things are working out as planned!!

mooneyguy · January 18th, 2008, 10:34

Sounds kinda cool what you are doing! I'm curious what is the pay like?

Nihon_Ni · January 18th, 2008, 18:36

What an adventure you must be having! I think you'll look back on this years from now and be glad you made this choice.

Cruise · January 18th, 2008, 21:05

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nihon_Ni

What an adventure you must be having! I think you'll look back on this years from now and be glad you made this choice.

Despite any hardship you might be enduring at the moment. This will, most likely, become one of your most treasured memories in the future. Kudos to you for setting your plan in motion. Good luck in the future and keep us posted!!!!

Customx · January 19th, 2008, 03:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by mooneyguy

Sounds kinda cool what you are doing! I'm curious what is the pay like?

For someone without any teaching experience you should expect to earn about 2.2-2.3 million won, which is roughly $2400/month. If you finish a one year contract you will receive a severance bonus equal to one month of your salary, plus you'll get another $1000 as part of your pension, and a free plane ticket back home. Your rent is paid for by your employer and the tax rate is only 3.5%.

If you teach privately outside of your normal working hours you can easily make over $4,000/month and save about $3,000 of that.

BugSmasher · May 25th, 2008, 14:45

Haven't posted in a while. But the six month update is: 12K more in the bank.

Not too bad. There were a few unexpected expenses I had to take care of back in the States, but I'm on track to save 25K for flight training within one year as per my goal. With 25K and the 65 hours I've logged, I shoud be be able to get my Commercial rating, overcoming that 200-hour hurdle. From there, I can do paralegal work again to pay for my CFI while I'm timebuilding.

For what its worth, I would have been making more than double what I am here back in Chicago, but I'd be spending four times as much on rent, utilities, commuting, and fun. In Korea, my rent and bills are taken care of, and I spend about $400/month. Good times.

Now, if we could only get the price of oil to go down so I could be more optimistic.

The school recently promoted me to Head teacher, so I'll see a 30% boost in income from that. Overall, the target is being met, and will be exceeded.

As Cruise and Nihon Ni mentioned, this has been a very fun and rewarding time in my life. Last night, I was at an ex-pat bar with my close friends (American, Brits, Aussies, Canucks) and about 250 other westerners raging my butt off to a Korean punk bank and some quality Ibiza house courtesy of a British DJ. Spent $30 between 11pm and 6 am. Can't do that in Chi-town, folks.

Hell, if the industry still stinks by late this year, I may even spend another year here and come back to the 'states with over 60K saved.

With everything else being so unpredicatble at the moment, it is comforting to remember that saving is the same as earning, and that soon enough I'll take to the sky again with less to worry about on the ground.

808av8 · May 26th, 2008, 14:03

Head teacher at 6 months???? They must be hurting down there in Ulsan. It took me three years to make that position in Gangnam, Seoul. Just FYI, there are a few flight schools in Korea- not sure of any close to you. But with the KTX and bus system, it's so damn easy to get around there.

BugSmasher · May 27th, 2008, 11:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by 808av8

Head teacher at 6 months???? They must be hurting down there in Ulsan. It took me three years to make that position in Gangnam, Seoul. Just FYI, there are a few flight schools in Korea- not sure of any close to you. But with the KTX and bus system, it's so damn easy to get around there.

Its a newer school, thats the reason why the promtion happened so fast. It means way more work, too, but I'd rather take the role as a challenge and see what happens.

I've investigated a few flight schools here, there are opportunities to fly around Seoul/Incheon, but unfortunately the rates are through the roof compared with most places in the States. One wanted KRW 200,000/hr for a non-IFR 172. Thats over $210.00 at today's rates. If you know of others that are cheaper, please let me know. There is another guy on JC in Korea looking for schools as well, and I'd pass along any info.

Customx · May 27th, 2008, 22:33

That's great to see how much you've been able to save. If you're ambitious and do a decent job of teaching then saving $2-3,000 a month shouldn't be a problem for anyone that comes over here and teaches. Make sure to reward yourself with a vacation in Thailand, Japan, Philippines, Cambodia, or somewhere else in SE Asia.

As I've previously mentioned, the only downside to working over here is the inability to get started flying without paying exorbitant prices.

WindyCityPilot · May 29th, 2008, 17:33

Awesome job Luca! Speaking of it being expensive in Chicago.....I'd like to forget how much money I spend this past Sunday night at Trinity Bar....lots of fun bars down near Diversey and Halstead but damn.....the wallet takes a hit!!

Keep on saving the cash!!

FlyChicaga · May 29th, 2008, 18:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by WindyCityPilot

Awesome job Luca! Speaking of it being expensive in Chicago.....I'd like to forget how much money I spend this past Sunday night at Trinity Bar....lots of fun bars down near Diversey and Halstead but damn.....the wallet takes a hit!!

Keep on saving the cash!!

Waaaaaambulance! :-D Dude, it's an investment! Ha!

Good to hear things are going well Luka! I wish I was able to save that kind of scratch! Any idea if you'll make a visit stateside anytime soon?

BugSmasher · May 29th, 2008, 23:17

Waaaaaaambulance. I've gotta use that one.

Halstead and Diversey - you're tearing at my heartstrings, man.

If only we could have as much fun at the bar drinking Sprite with foggles on.

WindyCityPilot · June 2nd, 2008, 12:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by FlyChicaga

Waaaaaambulance! :-D Dude, it's an investment! Ha!

Good to hear things are going well Luka! I wish I was able to save that kind of scratch! Any idea if you'll make a visit stateside anytime soon?

An investment! That's funny.....probably one of those investments I shouldn't be making.

But hey you only live once right!?!?

Luka be sure to let Chicaga and I know if you are going to be back for a visit anytime!

October 14th, 2007, 13:39	#1
BugSmasher Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: RKPU Posts: 83	Pulling the Trigger! Well, here goes. I've been lingering on this board for a long time, weighing the decision to fly commercially, airplane fanatic since the age of five, as are many of us. I am at the solo cross country phase of my PPL right now, but with my work schedule it has been difficult to fly more than once a week. So, this Friday I turned in my two weeks notice, put my apartment up for re-rental, secured storage, and dealt with 401K issues. I'm leaving an otherwise perfectly good job as a corporate paralegal in Chicago to teach English in Korea (South), to save up money for my IFR-MEI training. I was going to try to take out a loan, and get going right away, but luckily found alternative viewpoints on JC before attempting it. I will have about 5 weeks to finish my PPL before I leave, but it'll be far easier to do that as I wont be working. It may take a year and a half to save up the 35K I'd like to put away, but I'll be hitting the books, DVD- ROMS, and my old friend FS9 in my downtime. Hopefully, I can come back to the U.S. soon and fly debt-free. The law firm would like to have me return in a part-time role, possibly as a telecommuter - which will be handy money as a poor CFI and later for when on reserve or on a long overnight. It's a rush when you finally pull the trigger and begin to set the plan in motion, a welcome departure from the "comfort zone." Thanks in part to JC, I have realistic expectations for the future, and know that it wont be easy or necessarily lucrative. I spent the last four years as a paralegal, less and less enthusiastic about pursuing law further each year, without even considering the cost of law school loans. I was accepted to a couple of so-so law schools right about the time I started taking PPL lessons. Law lost when I soloed. I'm nowhere near where I want to be, but I've chosen to be patient and save up. Even though Ill miss the "regional hiring boom," the decision is to fly in general whether that be CFI, pipeline, 135, 91 - there are MANY interesting options out there. I want to thank the fine folks on JC whose knowledge and humor have helped with this decision. __________________ There is no reason to fly through a thunderstorm in peacetime. — Sign at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, 1970

October 14th, 2007, 15:02	#2
skidz Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Trollbane Posts: 1,464	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Good luck __________________ Private pilot, instrument Embry-Riddle Alumnus USN Active http://forums.jetcareers.com/changin...nfessions.html

October 14th, 2007, 16:41	#3
SteveC Moderator Join Date: May 2003 Location: GRR Posts: 8,349	Re: Pulling the Trigger! I love your plan! __________________ . Life is painful. Suffering is optional.

October 14th, 2007, 20:52	#4
turbojet28 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Michigan Posts: 450	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Definately a cool sounding plan. Going abroad intrigues me. Good luck!

October 15th, 2007, 01:40	#6
Customx Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Seoul Posts: 107	Re: Pulling the Trigger! What area are you going to be living in? If you ever need any help or have questions about teaching or Korea in general let me know and I'll try to help. Good luck~

October 16th, 2007, 02:36	#8
FlyChicaga Old Skool Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 4,747	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Wow, this sounds awesome. I wish you the best of luck! In the next five weeks you are still in Chicago, we will need to take you out for some drinks to send you away Chitown proper! __________________ Tough times do not last. Tough people do.

October 16th, 2007, 02:42	#9
Doug Taylor Agent Smith Join Date: Dec 1969 Location: KSDL Posts: 39,738 Blog Entries: 1	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Kick some butt, brotha! __________________ Doug Taylor http://76school.flyblog.com (old!) http://30west.flyblog.com (updated 11/28)

October 16th, 2007, 14:41	#10
Brian29 Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Colorado Posts: 62	Re: Pulling the Trigger! I have a really close friend who has been teaching Engilsh and what not in S. Korea for the last two years. Let me know before you head out there and I can give you his contact info. I am sure he would show you around and take you to some good bars.

October 16th, 2007, 15:52	#11
WindyCityPilot Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 748	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Best of luck! FlyChicaga and I will make sure you don't remember your going away party. Seriously though...we'll set something up in the next month and give you a little going away bash. Mad props to you for taking that first step!

January 17th, 2008, 02:54	#12
BugSmasher Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: RKPU Posts: 83	Re: Pulling the Trigger!(Update) Well, it's been a month or two away from the good 'ol U.S. here in Ulsan, Korea so I though I'd provide an update for those who might be considering saving up for their flight training by teaching out here... So far, so good. The amount of dough I'm saving for flight training while teaching English here is as I expected - and may end up being even more. The low dollar doesnt hurt, either. The job itself is a working vacation compared to my old gig in Chicago. I dont even leave my apartment until 2 pm, and get home at 7 pm, m-f, no Tuesday or Thursday classes attm. As mentioned earlier, it is relatively easy to get by on $300-400/mo here without too much sacrifice because my rent and utilities are paid for by my school. Teaching little kids can be challenging - but if you get your "Major Payne" on for the first few weeks, kids tend to shape up. I miss my family, friends, and FLYING. But Korea is similar enough to the US to mitigate homesickness, somewhat. After the first month or so, the culture shock went away and I am happy to say that I can now order Domino's in Korean. A major milestone. Also, the other foriegn English teachers here (approx. 400), form a close knit community and we have our own bars and play in sports leagues together. Now and then I forget that I'm not in the U.S. When I get back to the United States in 10 months, I plan to finish my Inst, Multi, and CMEL with my brother (Stratapilot) in Dallas, TX, where the culture shock could be much worse than Korea. If anyone has any questions, please PM me or CustomX (who has been doing this longer than I have and who is a great source of info) . __________________ There is no reason to fly through a thunderstorm in peacetime. — Sign at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, 1970

January 17th, 2008, 09:59	#13
WindyCityPilot Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 748	Re: Pulling the Trigger!(Update) Great to hear things are working out as planned!!

January 18th, 2008, 10:34	#14
mooneyguy Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: San Antonio TX Posts: 506	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Sounds kinda cool what you are doing! I'm curious what is the pay like? __________________ FLY SAFE <>< Tim CMEL CSEL CFI CFII http://desiretofly.blogspot.com/

January 18th, 2008, 18:36	#15
Nihon_Ni Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Okinawa, Japan Posts: 218	Re: Pulling the Trigger! What an adventure you must be having! I think you'll look back on this years from now and be glad you made this choice.

May 25th, 2008, 14:45	#18
BugSmasher Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: RKPU Posts: 83	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Haven't posted in a while. But the six month update is: 12K more in the bank. Not too bad. There were a few unexpected expenses I had to take care of back in the States, but I'm on track to save 25K for flight training within one year as per my goal. With 25K and the 65 hours I've logged, I shoud be be able to get my Commercial rating, overcoming that 200-hour hurdle. From there, I can do paralegal work again to pay for my CFI while I'm timebuilding. For what its worth, I would have been making more than double what I am here back in Chicago, but I'd be spending four times as much on rent, utilities, commuting, and fun. In Korea, my rent and bills are taken care of, and I spend about $400/month. Good times. Now, if we could only get the price of oil to go down so I could be more optimistic. The school recently promoted me to Head teacher, so I'll see a 30% boost in income from that. Overall, the target is being met, and will be exceeded. As Cruise and Nihon Ni mentioned, this has been a very fun and rewarding time in my life. Last night, I was at an ex-pat bar with my close friends (American, Brits, Aussies, Canucks) and about 250 other westerners raging my butt off to a Korean punk bank and some quality Ibiza house courtesy of a British DJ. Spent $30 between 11pm and 6 am. Can't do that in Chi-town, folks. Hell, if the industry still stinks by late this year, I may even spend another year here and come back to the 'states with over 60K saved. With everything else being so unpredicatble at the moment, it is comforting to remember that saving is the same as earning, and that soon enough I'll take to the sky again with less to worry about on the ground. __________________ There is no reason to fly through a thunderstorm in peacetime. — Sign at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, 1970

May 26th, 2008, 14:03	#19
808av8 Newbie Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Honolulu Hawaii Posts: 7	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Head teacher at 6 months???? They must be hurting down there in Ulsan. It took me three years to make that position in Gangnam, Seoul. Just FYI, there are a few flight schools in Korea- not sure of any close to you. But with the KTX and bus system, it's so damn easy to get around there.

May 27th, 2008, 22:33	#21
Customx Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Seoul Posts: 107	Re: Pulling the Trigger! That's great to see how much you've been able to save. If you're ambitious and do a decent job of teaching then saving $2-3,000 a month shouldn't be a problem for anyone that comes over here and teaches. Make sure to reward yourself with a vacation in Thailand, Japan, Philippines, Cambodia, or somewhere else in SE Asia. As I've previously mentioned, the only downside to working over here is the inability to get started flying without paying exorbitant prices.

May 29th, 2008, 17:33	#22
WindyCityPilot Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 748	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Awesome job Luca! Speaking of it being expensive in Chicago.....I'd like to forget how much money I spend this past Sunday night at Trinity Bar....lots of fun bars down near Diversey and Halstead but damn.....the wallet takes a hit!! Keep on saving the cash!!

May 29th, 2008, 23:17	#24
BugSmasher Junior Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: RKPU Posts: 83	Re: Pulling the Trigger! Waaaaaaambulance. I've gotta use that one. Halstead and Diversey - you're tearing at my heartstrings, man. If only we could have as much fun at the bar drinking Sprite with foggles on. __________________ There is no reason to fly through a thunderstorm in peacetime. — Sign at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ, 1970

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