Jobs AI Cannot Do: Why I Clean Windows by Hand

I have cleaned windows by hand since 1999, and I also use AI every day. So when people ask me about AI proof jobs, I am not guessing from the outside, and I am not scared of it. I do not know the statistics. I can only tell you what I see on the job.

What a machine could never do on my jobs

I have customers in their late 80s and into their 90s. We have a great old time chatting about anything. One elderly customer has lived a whole life in a house that has been in the family for over 120 years. Here I am cleaning the windows and hearing where the sandpit used to be in the back garden, and how this house was once a playground.

A robot might be able to do the cleaning. But I think my customers appreciate that connection equally, if not more than the clean windows.

Why a real home is hard for a robot

Then there is the work itself. To reach a window, I might have to move a vase and some family heirlooms off the windowsill. I might have to pull a silk curtain away from the glass, one that has been tied back in a certain way with certain cords or bands. I think robots will struggle with that for a long time.

I walk through bathrooms, bedrooms, lounges, dining rooms, kitchens, hallways and upstairs. Every house is different, from the architect's design to the way you get around inside. Outside there are trees, and there are certain things a customer does not want touched.

Yes, all of that could be stored in a robot's memory. But trees grow. Shrubs move. Furniture moves. I do not know how that will be worked out. In the foreseeable future, I think a hand-working technician like me, a window cleaner, is in a safe career.

Where I do use AI, and what it changed

I am not against AI. I use it in both my businesses, and they are two different businesses with two different types of customer.

• My online training. The business side is about 95% built with AI. The film shoots, the photo shoots and the text describing each step are all me. I am dyslexic, and AI has helped me with my grammar and spelling. It has also helped with the structure of the course, to keep the trainee moving forward. It works as my graphic designer, my content helper, my text writer and my translator.
• My service business in Vienna. It is more and more helpful with responding to emails, making bookings in calendars, and writing blog posts so people can find me.

AI handles the desk work. It does not clean the windows.

What I tell a friend who is worried about their office job

If you are worried about your office job because of AI, I would say become a window cleaner. It is a skill you can learn quite quickly, and it is a skill you can keep for life. There are dirty windows everywhere, all around the world.

Here is what I would do, because it is exactly how I did it:

1. Start learning window cleaning.
2. Ask a window cleaning company if you can do some part-time or voluntary work, and build up your skills.
3. Ask all the contacts in your phone.
4. Ask them to ask their neighbours, and get the word of mouth going.

Before you know it, you can start a business like mine. That is how I started, and now it is 27 years later.

Why a hand skill is safer than a desk skill right now

In one sentence: there is more of a need for hand workers than desk skills right now, because AI is taking so much of the mundane, monotonous work that AI agents can now do.

Here is what that looks like for me. My work is steady, consistent and booked in advance. I give my customers the chance to get an appointment with me a year ahead, and my 2027 is more or less 90% booked already. There seems to be a shortage of hand-skilled workers, because many people want to automate or outsource. So I want to subcontract the overflow to other window cleaners who have taken my training.

Where to start

If working with your hands sounds better than worrying at a desk, read my story and what this job has given me. Then start free with the Manifesto. You will understand why glass streaks, and which 5 tools you need, for $35 to $60.

Related guides

• Best jobs for introverts: why quiet people do well in a trade
• A job for introverts, no degree needed
• How much do window cleaners make?
• How to start a window cleaning business

Frequently Asked Questions

What jobs can AI not do?

I can only speak for my own trade. AI cannot replace the human connection with a customer in their own home. I also think robots will struggle for a long time with moving family heirlooms, pulling back a curtain and working around a house that keeps changing.

Could a robot clean windows?

By the way technology is moving, robots will be able to clean some roofs and some special windows. Inside a real home is much harder, because trees grow, shrubs move and furniture moves.

Is window cleaning an AI proof job?

In the foreseeable future, I think it is a safe career. I do not know the statistics. I know my work is steady, consistent and booked in advance, and my 2027 is more or less 90% booked already.

Do you use AI in your window cleaning business?

Yes, in both my businesses. In my online training it helps with grammar, spelling, course structure, design and translation. In my Vienna service business it helps with emails, bookings and blog posts. The cleaning, the film shoots and the photo shoots are all me.

What should I do if I am worried about my office job?

Start learning a hand skill. For window cleaning, ask a company if you can do part-time or voluntary work, build up your skills, then ask all the contacts in your phone and their neighbours. That is exactly how I started.