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3471On a recent post in the r/povertyfinance subreddit, one locksmith’s story hit home for thousands of readers.
The post, titled “Learning a TRADE changed my perspective about $$,” explains how picking up locksmithing turned the author’s life around financially.
“People get locked out all the freaking time,” he wrote. “Literally. Locked out of the office, the car, the home, the safe, the mailbox… it’s nonstop.”
And for someone with the skills to fix those problems, the work just keeps coming.
From Craigslist to Career
He didn’t start off in a great position. He got into locksmithing out of desperation. “I was broke, desperately looking for a job on Craigslist and found an ad hiring to become a locksmith,” he said.
He ended up working for a shady operation: a 24/7 scammy locksmith company with no markings, no business cards and a boss whose phone rang nonstop.
Still, that job gave him the skills and confidence to eventually branch out on his own.
“When I learned a trade that people needed every hour of every day, I realized that my simple skills are enough to never have to worry about money,” he wrote.
“Nowadays I never worry about food, no more EBT. I make too much for that now. But it’s all because of the locksmith trade.”
A Trade That Pays
Locksmithing isn’t glamorous, but it’s essential. The user says he built a client base just by being dependable and doing good work.
“A lot of people have me saved as ‘the locksmith’ in their phone. I’ve slowly built a decent group of customers.”
He now runs a mobile 24/7 locksmith business and even trains his younger brother, who’s made thousands from the trade. He’s turned down jobs that could have paid him $10,000 in a week, but only because he didn’t yet have the skills to complete them. He’s since taken classes to make sure that doesn’t happen again.
Tools, Not Degrees
Many commenters chimed in with their own experiences. One mechanic wrote, “Never go poor, never run out of work, never not needed, and never job cutbacks.”
Another shared, “I’m in a different trade, but I just finished up a 6-week job that earned me about $43K. A lot of people refuse to acknowledge it, but the trades are a viable way out of poverty.”
The original poster agrees. “Locksmithing is like an RPG game,” he said.
“You can focus on automotive and get a cheap car key programmer like a KM100 and start programming push-to-start cars tomorrow by spending $450 on Amazon.”
He also emphasized how marketing helped him grow. Living in Orlando, a big city with lots of competition, he leaned on skills in graphic design, web design and SEO to stand out.
Eventually, he was getting so many calls that he could refer high-value jobs to other locksmiths and get easier jobs in return.
Not Always Comfortable, But Always Needed
While some viewers compare locksmithing to lock-picking YouTube videos, he says it’s a very different reality.
“LPL [LockPickingLawyer] gets to pick locks inside in the nice A/C on a bench vise. I have to pick locks upside down, in the Florida heat, the rain, the cold. When dogs are pushing on the door, when cops are watching me, when there’s an intense domestic violence [situation]. We are not the same lol.”
Still, he’s grateful for the opportunities the trade has opened up.
He even reassures women who are interested in the field. When one asked if it’s a safe job for someone small, he replied, “Yea, for sure. I posted a link to a podcast I did with the owner of the Texas Locksmith Association. She’s a badass.”
A Network of Problems to Solve
To him, the biggest shift wasn’t just learning a trade, but understanding capitalism.
“I eventually figured out the basic master key to this bullsh*t capitalism… if I can solve problems for people, I can make a lot of money.”
And as one commenter put it, “The key to making money in a free society is figuring out how you can help people solve problems they can’t solve themselves.”
That’s the thread running through every story in the post: whether it’s locksmithing, plumbing, construction or welding, the trades aren’t just jobs.
They’re lifelines. And for the people doing them, they can result in financial freedom, no degree required.
“As long as I keep my skills sharp and keep learning, I’ll be fine,” he wrote.
“I make enough money and get enough jobs to pay my little brother to unlock cars and homes and rekey locks. He’s made thousands of dollars as a locksmith.”
In an economy where uncertainty feels like the only constant, having a trade means having options. For him, that’s made all the difference.
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