"After 17 years as a director of an IT company in London, I realised that 1, I hated London and 2, I hated IT, so when I got made redundant late last year I decided to make a Life changing decision. One of my passions is Bushcraft, which ironically since becoming a sharpener I have little time to practice it these days, but I always had a great sense of pleasure sharpening my bushcraft knives to razors edge. I've always told my children from early age that if you can make a career out of something you enjoy doing, you’ll never work a day in your life. So I decided to stop preaching and start practising. After a month or two of strategizing and due diligence within the sharpening sector around my area I decided to make an investment into setting up my sharpening business. After scouring the Internet for courses on sharpening it was clear from my research and the reviews that there was only one place I should go; and that was the sharpening service's sharpening school, led by Robin Bailey. The two day course was a holistic approach to sharpening offering wide access to the various areas of the craft while focusing on the core tools including scissors knives clipper blades and garden tools. The course was a superb balance of theory and practical exposure. Robin has a natural talent of teaching in a manner that everyone can understand. Not only do you walk away from the course with a superb knowledge of sharpening across the various areas, but you also have very informative and detailed curriculum that you can reference any time you feel you have forgotten something. Robin is also more than happy to take calls and answer questions even after the course has been completed. You will be part of a small community that practice the craft within the UK, everyone helps everyone and you will never be alone should any questions queries or concerns arise. Getting down to the nitty-gritty I completed Robins course in mid-February and four months later with hard work I am earning a respectable wage. Remember this is just four months after the course. If you are asking me if you feel the course is worth the money, my answer in hindsight would be it's worth double, and then some. The skills and knowledge you walk away with are yours for life and will build the foundation for a very successful business. The only barrier you will face will be your own attitude to success. One year later Paul Richards wrote again: I can't believe it's been over a year since I left the London rat race and I.T. Sharpening has been weirdest and best decision of my life. I still scare myself how reckless the risk take was, which was totally unlike me. I thought about the idea with little research, bought the van, went on Robin's course, had the van wrapped, bought the full kit from Robin and got stuck in after some practice. Since then I have sharpened thousands of garden tools, knives, scissors, equine & grooming blades and industrial equipment and learn something new every single day without fail. I get to start when I want and finish when I want. I get to drive around in the beautiful Kent countryside and meet hundreds of wonderful people. I get to work within different sectors at different seasons which delivers an interesting diversity of work. The work is plentiful and rewarding, if you want to go and get it. I get out what I put in and that's a great feeling. Have a great day everyone and be thankful. I can't think of a better career in the world!"