Railroad Conductor

You ride the rails managing freight or passenger trains that weigh tens of thousands of tons and take a mile to stop. You'll work irregular schedules, get called at 2 AM to deadhead across three states, and develop an encyclopedic knowledge of signal systems and track rules. The romance of trains dies fast when you're sitting on a siding for 6 hours waiting for a priority train to pass.

What you'll actually do

• 01Ride in the cab and manage train operations over routes that span hundreds of miles
• 02Inspect train cars and connections before departure because uncoupled cars are a bad surprise
• 03Communicate with dispatchers and manage track authority over radio systems from the 1980s
• 04Switch cars in rail yards at 4 AM in weather that makes you question all your life choices
• 05Get called to work with 2 hours' notice because the schedule is whatever the railroad says it is
• 06Study and memorize operating rules thick enough to stop a door — the test is no joke