Why do people become teachers? Is it because the work is fulfilling? You know…shaping young minds, helping to strengthen the foundation of the future. Yeah, that’s the standard, almost scripted answer you’re likely to get if you ask a teacher. But they’re not fooling anyone. We all know that’s not the “real” reason. We all know the real reason is simply…the time off.

Look back. If I stopped to think about it when I was younger, I would have thought a bit differently about my future. When I was busy enjoying a few weeks off throughout the year, a bunch of half-days, countless three-day weekends and…oh yeah….TWO AND A HALF MONTHS OFF IN THE SUMMER!!…I would have become a teacher. All I ever thought about was how great my school schedule was, never stopping to think that my teachers schedule almost mirrors mine! Rather than busting my hump all week throughout the entire year with some time off here and there, I too could be sleeping late in the summer, golfing on a Wednesday morning in July and fishing on a Thursday afternoon in August. Now that’s the life.

But it seems I’ve found another line of work which allows for a fair amount of time off also – a job in the golf industry. Due to my knowledge of the golf industry being almost non-existent off the course, I never considered what, exactly, many employees in the industry do during the off-season (in the northern half of the country anyway).

Now that my wife has been working in the industry for the past several months, I’ve become somewhat clued in. When the winter begins to rear its head, golfers stop golfing. So there’s no need for so many employees. My wife found that out when the total number of employees in her office dropped to three (luckily, she is included in that group). Everyone else? Seasonal lay-off. When do they come back? April. Ladies and gentlemen….that is a five month vacation!

I know what some of you are saying, and you’re right. It’s a bit of a vacation, but what do you do for money? It can’t be that great if you’re broke for half the year! Well, like the teacher job, that’s something you have to plan for. Sure, unemployment covers 60% of your paycheck, but a 40% pay cut for five months is something to be concerned about. But if you’re prepared for it, then hey, how can you beat it?! Maybe you have a little something lined up to help supplement the loss, such as a little part time gig, under the table possibly (not that I condone that of course…). Or maybe you’ve rationed your money well enough throughout the season that you can just enjoy the time off without having to worry about searching for any temporary employment.

My point is, if this is handled right, then this could be a dream job. Say you’re an employee at the golf course. Maybe you make a decent salary and you stash away a good portion of your money in order to prepare for your winter lay-off. You spend your spring, summer and half of your autumn at a golf course! You lose your job in the late fall but still make 60% of your paycheck! So what do you do with all that time off? Take golf trips! In January, go down south (because who the hell wants to travel to Florida in the summer anyway) and play some of the courses down there! Maybe in February you head to the southwest. Because once again.., who wants to go to Vegas in the middle of the summer? That phrase “but it’s a dry heat” only goes so far. Been there in July, yeah it’s cheaper that time of year, but there’s a reason for that. It’s 100 degrees in the middle of the night! But if you’re winter schedule is pretty wide open? That’s the time to go!

What I’m saying is, if I knew then what I knew now (yeah, how many times have we all said that to ourselves). I’m sure it has its downsides, but if you’re lucky enough to have a relatively well-paid position in the industry, this can’t be all that bad. I don’t know about you, but no matter what the weather is like or what time of year it is, it sure beats sitting behind my desk all day.

I mentioned once before that I would encourage my kids to take up golf for the purpose of a college education. However, I may also add to that reasoning my thoughts mentioned above. Something tells me that if I mention all of the potential time off, it will ring louder in my kids ears then if I was to take the education route. Although, encouraging them to become teachers is not a bad alternative.

Swing ’til you’re happy!