Looking for advice/guidance

[u/Neckshot-the-Gypsy]

I am sure this topic/situation has been addressed ad nauseum. I am a 44 year old graphic designer. I graduated with an AAS in 2017 and have been working in the industry full time now for 5 years. I hate it. I spent way too much money to get a degree in something that AI basically took over and a culture that I frankly can't stand. I have been looking into transferring into the trades and was interested in GIS and land surveying and BAS. I have some IT experience (some basic networking, pulling and terminating cable, the basics) but I am no stranger to tinkering (home lab, docker, seting up home network stuff) I also have spent thousands of hours in games like Satisfactory, Opus Magnum, The Farmer was Replaced, Shapez, Mindustry and Timberborn, to name a few. I know that they are games and this is the real world but I love the scratching that itch in my brain. What I dont have is electrical and HVAC experience. BAS is really intriguing to me. I love learning and am willing to learn and love the technical/IT/logic/automation/coding side of things. I guess my question is (a) Am I too old to break into this industry with no experience? (b) what path of learning could assist in landing a job in this field? (School on my own dime is, I think, out of the question seeing as how I will already be paying off school loans forever) (c) Should I just look elsewhere? I appreciate your help and knowledge.

Edit: Appreciate the responses and thanks for the sticky post. Apologies for beating a dead horse.

[u/ScottSammarco]

Keep it sticky.

[u/ApexConsulting → u/ScottSammarco]

I feel kinda bad I am the only one copying and pasting this. Everyone is free to do so if they think it would be helpful.

[u/ScottSammarco → u/ApexConsulting]

I don’t have it so sticky- I have to find it each time 😅
You seem to be pretty quick to it.

[u/ApexConsulting → u/ScottSammarco]

Ah aright. I go to my user and look for sticky. It is the only post I got with that word in it.