I had a friend with a scrawny little brother. He was a really little guy, and he didn't' have much going for him, meaning that if he hung around he'd end up getting in trouble, and no business was eager to take him on. That's when he became an oil rig worker. Note that I'm not saying that all oil rig workers are troubled men without much going for them, but this was his story. He came back after his first job and he had forty pounds of more muscle on him. His attitude was completely different as well.
They straightened him up out there. On top of all of that, the guy had enough money to feel like a real contributing member of society. Making good money and putting in a hard day's work can change even the most rotten of scoundrels. Within the oil sector, people working on the rigs make close to $100,000. Geologists make a little bit more than that but they also had to go to attend higher education.