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Thread: Before I was a Lawnie.....

  1. #1
    Member BLUEVBOY's Avatar
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    Default Before I was a Lawnie.....

    O.k boys and girls ; I know most of you didn't grow up with the dream of being a Lawnie ! What sorts of jobs did you do before making the switch ? I was a Chef for 15 years . Trained at the Windsor Hotel Melbourne . Had my own catering business for 4 years and worked in Hotels , Restaurants and Golf Clubs in Vic ,N.S.W. and W.A. Been mowing for 8 years now .
    BLUEBOY

  2. #2
    Member Mowjoe's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    21 years in the Army, 2 years working for a boss in a pallet and packaging company, 1 year with Jims Mowing and the last 7.5 as an independent.

    The best thing I have ever done is become a member of Indi. Lots of great info and it's nice to know that I am not the only one in the mowing business.
    Darrel Foster
    Hastings Valley Mowing

  3. #3
    Senior Member mowjoman's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    I worked in the mining industry...
    Alumina refining to be exact. Had me living in Mandurah, Gladstone and Gove for a stint each. Started from bottom and ended up the last 6 or 7 years in a control room pushing buttons...My wife and kids came to an open day once and they all agreed I looked like Homer Simpson.
    Nothing like being a lawnie to shed those extra kilos ay.

  4. #4
    lifestyle
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    Been mowing for coin on and off since i was 16. Only stopped in between for family reasons and a 12 Horticulture Certificate.

    Spent 12 months working as a Personal carer in Queensland (Physically & Intellectually disabled).

    Remember the movie "Field of Dreams" with Kevin Costner... Well any time i wasn't mowing i could almost hear the corn... I mean grass calling out... "Cut me"...

  5. #5
    Senior Member simo's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    Been a lawnie since I was 10 mowing my grans house,and never have stopped, have always done between 1-90 But have done several part time jobs at the same time , Iam an adict

  6. #6
    lifestyle
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    What the heck is a 12 Horticulture Certificate ?

    I think "months" should go in there somewhere...

  7. #7
    Senior Member just john's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    First job out of school was with State Rail, became a train driver in 1980.Soon after bought a small lawnmowing run(sorry Dean) became a fulltime lawnie around 1989 till about 2000.Always wanted a milk run since i was young ,so I got that out of my system 2000-2006 still mowing a few old regulars ,Have increased my lawns over the past few years but main income at present comes from Commercial Cleaning.So at present I clean in the morning and sneak out in the afternoon to mow a few

  8. #8
    Senior Member Bluey's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    First job was working on a sheep and cattle station. Then did 6 yrs in the Navy and then became a fisheries officer in Qld until 2000 then ran a Compliance team for a Council in Adelaide and now a lawnie.

    Best thing I did was to get away from the stress and bull****. I actually enjoy going to work now and enjoy talking to my clients. Beats pushing a pen. Lost weight and got heaps happier.
    Cheers

    Bluey
    Adelaide Home & Garden Solutions
    http://www.ahgs.com.au


    "Success occurs when no one is looking, failure occurs when everyone is watching."

  9. #9
    Senior Member m287j's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    After leaving school i joined the financial services industry (superannuation, investments etc). Worked my way up to basically the top of the corporate ladder at the young age of 35. My last job was a General Manager role with over 300 staff. Got sick of all the tossers and all those that are up themselves.

    Gave it all up to become a gardener, go figure. The lifestyle in this industry is so much better.

  10. #10
    GazzaP
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    I haven't left yet (notice has been given though )....
    But I work for the TV company that makes Big Brother (in the UK)
    Before that I have done all sorts, engineering, courier, carpenter/builder......

  11. #11
    Member geejay's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    after school airforce ,ac tech helicopters 4 yrs,oe: 6mnths,england/europe,study: mkt at night,opened indoor plant buz 4 yrs,sold,study:hort 1-3,opened nurseries,2 retail,1 wholesale,sold retails:study lscp design,opened lscp co nz 6 yrs,sold,lscp buz melbourne,1yrs, au,doing lscp general gardening/ maintenance,design and build.
    geejay

  12. #12
    Senior Member tree beard's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    MMMm

    Big breathe...well! Been in the Raaf, bailed to become a mechanic needed more money so became a security guard, and well greed made me do it...real estate agent, worked for the big brands then had three of my own, bailed every couple of years and worked as a foreman in a tree lopping/mowing co for a while each stint to get rid of the stress, bought a post office...that was fun sent me broke, went back to real estate..wife said it made me less of a person , retrained to network systems engineer but decided that I liked managing bottle shops more, embraced life made the tree change (ran away fron Sydney)became the DHA portfolio manager, got retrenced, bought a cafe spent a year in court, went back to real estate to pay the solicitors..realised that was not part of the change and here I am again but life has been too exciting so I think I might stay. I actually get to play with my 10 month old daughter

    Ok do I win anything now?
    To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it.

    Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance.

  13. #13
    Senior Member holdenhead's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    Hi all,

    I was a chef for 15 years but always had lawns to mow here and there. The first stint was when I finished my apprenticship My then girlfriend now wife and I started a lawn mowing business. The problem was I lived in the northern suburbs and she lived in the eastern suburbs, We put flyers in both areas we'll share bettween the 2 areas. It got too much really quickly coz she didn't drive and she keeped putting off getting her licence and I was running around like a mad man mowing in too different areas almost an hour away from each other. I knocked the partner thing on the head after a couple of weeks and keeped the one's closer to home.

    I never sold my runs tho as there were only ever 30-40 customers and just when I needed to get rid of them I would here of someone wanting to start a round so I just handed them over and got some more. One lot I gave to a guy who was a customer and I caught up with him a while ago and he still has some of the lawns I originally gave him from nearly 10 years ago.

    This business I have now is the first time I have really set things up properly and made a good go of it. It was really just to kill time and make a bit of extra $$ before. The best job I ever had!!

    Cheers Rick

  14. #14
    Translawner administrator's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    I cant Remember to many beers and good times what thread am i on .

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  15. #15
    Member of Forum Stripes's Avatar
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    Default Re: Before I was a Lawnie.....

    I left school in year 11 to do a fulltime hort course at TAFE which included all 1st year trade. Worked at a wholesale nursery mainly Roses and Indoor plants for a year, then off to do a gardening apprenticeship. Once I finished TAFE which was a year early I did the irrigation course, got my license and started my own business doing gardening and Irrigation. A few years later sprinklers were banned so back to just doing gardening. Had enough of hedging and gardening so concentrated on cylinder mowing. Now that sprinklers can be used again its back to irrigation. In Spring I will be selling the remaining 15 or so lawns and the few gardening jobs I have left.

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