Some of us keep doing the same job day after day for years. We know it’s nothing fancy, but we’re good at it, and the checks don’t hurt, but it feels like we should be doing something else. Would you quit everything and risk it for the biscuit? Or would you play it safe and give it a few more years? Either way, this is not about us, mortals, as more than enough celebrities have already changed the course of their lives, making us all jealous of their fame.
Here are some of the most famous people who decided to change their careers drastically!
1. Harrison Ford
Before becoming an action icon and starring in Star Wars, Harrison Ford worked as a carpenter. Can you believe this? If it weren’t for George Lucas, Ford would be making chairs. Amazing chairs, no doubt, but still just furniture.
2. Sean Connery
The famous James Bond actor had an interesting job before donning the suit — he was a coffin polisher. Besides that, after leaving school at the age of 15, Sean served in the navy and was a bricklayer, bodyguard, and chauffeur.
3. Ozzy Osbourne
The rock star who calls himself the prince of darkness worked in a slaughterhouse early in his career. Being another school drop-out, Ozzy worked as a plumber’s assistant, locksmith, auto mechanic, painter — you name it.
4. Alain Delon
The famous French actor Alain Delon is a certified butcher. His stepfather ran a butcher’s shop, and that’s where Alain learned to beat the meat and cut beautiful pork chops.
5. Ray Kroc
Ray Kroc worked most of his life as a traveling salesman and realtor, moonlighting as a pianist. At 50, he meets the McDonald brothers in their small restaurant, where they cooked their food very quickly. Kroc buys the rights to open similar establishments with the name McDonald’s, and at 52, opens his first restaurant. I bet the first thing said was, “I’m buyin’ it!”
6. Ken Jeong
What if I told you that Senior Chang, aka Dr. Ken, aka Ken Jeong, used to work in a hospital as a real-life MD? After seven years of healing people, he switched to making them laugh and eventually became an actor.
7. Vera Wang
Vera was a figure skater and journalist before entering the fashion business at the age of 40. And look at her today! She is now one of the top womenswear designers in the world.
8. Arnold Schwarzenegger
If we’re talking career changes, Arnie is a real champ. When he was 30, Arnold went from a bodybuilding world champion to a successful actor, and at 56 became the governor of California.
9. Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron used to think that she would end up as a ballerina. She even attended a ballet school in New York, but a knee injury forced her to reevaluate her career choices and lean towards acting.
10. George Clooney
Before becoming the most handsome actor in the world, Clooney changed many jobs. He was a handyman at a construction site, an insurance agent, and a women’s shoe salesman, just like Al Bundy!
