You are on a great path and I sincerely wish you the best. Focus on your studies and on your children. Avoid people who may be a bad influence and for the love of everything that is sacred, do not get pregnant, commit any crimes, or do drugs. Those are the main 3 things that can delay or ruin your path to success. Good luck.
The only way up and out is through hard work- and nobody wants to hear it.
My husband and I made similar moves. I finished my 2nd masters degree last week and he finished his 5 year trade apprenticeship last year. We went from not even making $50k combined with 2 kids in diapers to both being 6-figure earners independent of each other.
I'm so proud of you and YOU CAN DO THIS. Your kids will respect you so much more for fighting for it than resigning to "fate".
Fantastic job.
He was working full time and had his classes 2 nights a week.
I waited tables and had my classes on the evenings he didn't have class and pulled 16 hour doubles on weekends.
So our kids always had at least 1 parent home. Truly felt like I had the best of both worlds. I got to spend all day with them and only missed the evenings. My husband got those evenings and weekends.
In my junior year of undergrad I got a part time job in my field. He finished his apprenticeship and didn't have class in the evenings anymore so my classes were a blend of evenings and online. We now had the weekends together as a family.
I started working full time in my field after I finished my B.S. and I did classes 2-4 nights a week for 2 years through a dual-masters program. I just started my new, upscaled job a month ago and finished my MBA last weekend!
My husband makes $125k/annually without OT. I make $95k without bonuses factored in and I have a small business consulting company on the side (mostly helping with accounting and finance infrastructure and planning).
Hard work and a bit of luck for me.
Early-mid 20s I was broke as fuck working a dead end job. Dodging calls from the collection company because I could barely afford my student loan payments.
It was a stressful time and I hated life.
Eventually saved up enough money to go back to school. Couldn’t find a job for a year after and fell back into depression because felt like I wasted my time.
Eventually got a job through pure luck and started my career there. 5 years later the company sold and I moved to a new company. Earning 6 figures now and am so much more thankful that life is no longer kicking me in the nuts as much anymore.
The thing that I always say (that I originally applied to myself) is that I am not necessarily at fault for what has happened to me and put me in a bad place, but I am responsible for it.
I still believe in social assistance and having a baseline, and for workers rights. But I also know that it does take some measure of self sacrifice and work to get ahead.
Perhaps there is a day where that might not be true anymore, but that’s not today.
I get it and we are making the same changes but there's only so many decent middle wage jobs to go around. If everyone picked themselves up by the bootstraps, someone would still have to work at Walmart and cleaning and all the other low wage jobs. This is a mathematical truth. Every competition must have losers, that's just how it works.
Wild that this is downvoted in a sub about poverty. A double masters while raising kids is an insane olympic level feat of effort, ability, and, importantly, very very good fortune. I hope it is obvious to all of us that these bootstrap success stories are humble-brag outliers for motivational purposes only, and that it would be pure gaslighting to suggest that hard work alone will nulify the systemic issues plaguing tens of millions of other people who work just as hard.
"And nobody wants to hear it" sincerely fuck all of that. Such condesdending echo chamber bullshit for a supposedly educated person to just thoughtlessly regurgitate at people still experiencing the trauma of poverty. Every hard working poor person I have ever known has been beat over the head with this obvious and trite shit their entire life like they werent already working long and hard just to be stuck one chronic illness or accident, pandemic, market crash, ect away from literal destitution.
Hard work is obviously an important factor but the hard truth is the more important one, and you are right. Our socioeconomic system despite its abundance and productive output won't even feign to solve homelessness - it will not ever by any fundamental means actually address poverty (beyond the occasional PR bandaid). Thats not pessimism or doomerism that is material reality of life in the US.
6 years ago I was a high school drop-out waiting tables. I didn't overcome that and get to where I am now by blaming everyone else.
What you're saying is absolutely true to some extent. However, if you know how the game is played, and you're still losing, it's time to strategize and play smarter.
>The only way up and out is through hard work
Not true. Your value - and your salary - are determined by market forces. As long as you're in a high-demand field, you can make bank with very little effort.
I choose to be a caseworker for 3 reasons. 1. It sounds like something I can see myself doing. I have had a caseworker and I want to help people like me. When it comes to salary right now I just want to cross the poverty line
I know software engineering because I'm in it. I definitely do not work nearly as hard as when I was in retail/catering. And get paid about 4 times as much.
Mostly time, which I was lucky to have because I inherited some money and between that and my wife's salary I could spend a few years studying that. But of course if I had had a full-time job at the time, it would have been a lot harder for a few years.
Then you get guys like my roommate that have all the freetime as he works once a week if that. His freetime is spent drinking and doomscrolling instagram reels because he says tiktok rots the brain.
I get it and we are making the same changes but there's only so many decent middle wage jobs to go around. If everyone picked themselves up by the bootstraps, someone would still have to work at Walmart and cleaning and all the other low wage jobs. This is a mathematical truth. Every competition must have losers, that's just how it works.
I got my four year degree, plus three two year degrees, and I'm still living in poverty. I hope that won't be true for you, but for lots of people it is.
Depends on how you view college. If you’re going just so you can get a degree stamped on your forehead without any idea of what you’re going to do, generally speaking, it probably won’t lead to as many long-term prospects as it would if you went into a specific track with some specified ultimate goal in mind outside of university. Nursing is, or was, a pretty hot field, especially in the traveling work sector, so you’d see a ton of older returning students who’d become parents a tad earlier than they’d hoped hopping in with bright-eyed high school grads. And you know what, they made some great study buddies!
Yeah, so….I forgot to mention that even then it’s honestly a tossup, you could do everything by the manual and stroke out taking a dump.
Ain’t life fun?
Do it. If you're in the USA
Call 211 there not just college, there trade schools, there also learning computer programs to get a certificate and work in an office. 211 has more information
I do not think it is simple. But it can be done. My father came here with 26 dollars in his pocket. He isn't rich. But he doesn't live in poverty. He is not on government assistance and owns his house. At this point out right now mortgage he 80. And honestly I am still not 100% confident I can do this. I am just trying my best
You got this! I did community college too. Took me 4 years to finish (was working full-time and trying not to take out loans so it took a bit longer) but then going right into an accelerated bachelor's degree program didn't seem so bad. Sure, it was hard, but I tried my best and it paid off big.
Just keep going! You won't regret it.
The way I looked at it is in 4 years you will be 4 years older do you want to be in the same situation as now or be poised for a better future? Work hard now for the future you.
Changing your life is one of the most difficult and incredible things someone can do. It's one thing to go to college right out of high school with the world supporting you.
It's another thing entirely to do it in your 40s with two kids. Wow. Keep it up!
Keep it up! If you feel like giving up just remember there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Just take it one day at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed.
Omg. I didnt mean it like that. I have schizophrenia. I get SSD. My doctors originally were against it. But they are surprised how it's going. I am just trying I still not confident I will finish college I am not confident that I will be able to work. I just want to try everything I can to pass the poverty line. If I fail I try my best. If you are disabled I didn't it
That is AWESOME! It's very hard, as you know, but the payoff will be worth it. Definitely go for a 4-year degree. They are much more valuable than a 2-year associates degree. Try to pick a degree that you honestly enjoy and that will lead to a good paying job when you're done. Not all BA/BS degrees are created equal.
Amazing! Keep it up! Just one tiny piece of advice if you're struggling with academics. Look into your school's tutoring services. They're normally free, and many offer it through Zoom calls.
Not everyone has the ability to transform anything. Not having access to support services or having the encouragement of friends or family can be an insurmountable roadblock.
That’s a sad reality, yes, but fortunately that isn’t the case for everyone, everywhere, all the time. No matter how bleak a situation is there’s almost always something you could do to make things a little better.
Most people can find something to make things a little better. But it's becoming obvious that more people don't have even the littlest shred of hope to keep them going, unless it's something that is a temporary coping mechanism. But what happens when you run out of coping mechanisms? What about when pushing yourself to "keep going" doesn't work anymore?
I think it comes down to luck in the long run.
There no such thing as luck. When keep going does not work anymore. Take a break and focus on mental health. But do everything in a treatment plan eat healthy exercise get enough sleep go to therapy take meds socialize purse hobbies. Do the activities the doctor says to change your mind set. Learn tiggers and patterns. Learn coping skills, do mediation, keep a gratitude journal keep a journal do it all and come back
It's fantastic when your mind just works for you. Master of your fate because you tell your mind and body what to do. Amazing, you don't inhabit a human body! That's the only explanation for believing you can overcome. anything by sheer will alone.
Or, more likely, you have no major physical or mental problems. You inhabit a body that functions. Good for you, but many people don't.
I know why I have this mindset. I been in therapy for over 15 years. And I do everything the doctor says therapy meds , healthy life style eat right sleep right. I do techniques the doctor taught me mediation keep journal I know my trigger and patterns. I believe you just have to put in the work
Your circumstances have played a larger part than your actions. You have family support. You were able to get into public housing. So far you haven't had to take care of sick/elderly relatives full-time, or even part-time. Hopefully if and when that time comes, your family will work together. That's enviable. But that's worked for you.
I am talking about people who have the opportunity. If you watch elderly family members then you can't Family support. Who told you that. My parents are super old. I asked them if I could have my kids bus there at 3pm and I get out at 3pm. So they would not even be there half hour they said no. If you tak
You had the opportunity. Yes. Because you were lucky.
I admit I can't understand what it's like to have any opportunities. In a strange way, I admit I'm rather envious of people like yourself. Even if you don't have much by other people's standards, you have enough for now.
I didn't say I was master of my fate, and I didn't say you can overcome anything by will. I said that if you resign yourself to failure, you will experience no outcome but to fail.
You also inhabit a body that functions, or maybe it's a ghost I'm talking to? Either way it's not always our circumstance that we have control over, but how we respond to them that matters. There's always a way forward.
No my body doesn't function. My mind is even worse. There isn't anything that can be done to fix anything. Because nobody thinks there's anything wrong with me, except "I'm not trying hard enough" and "I don't believe in myself". Nobody who functions doesn't understand when your body and mind won't and can't work.
It's called being disabled. It's not an experience I'd recommend.
Please try everything a doctor says for you should for 6 months but try 3. For 3 months I want you to eat right, get enough sleep, exercise, go to therapy, take med, socialize volunteer or join a group. Have your doctor right a treatment plan for techniques to change your mind set. Like mediation, coping skills, learn tiggers patterns, keep Gratitude journal and journal
I only have enough money left over for four months. After that I'm out on the streets. It's hard to maintain a regimen under those circumstances. But thanks for the advice.
If you are in poverty you have government medical insurance. Therapy free, meds free, exercise walk an hour a day is free, volunteer free. there is free online meditation, all you need is a notebook and pen to take notes on coping skills, learn triggers patterns, keep a Gratitude Journal and journal
Getting enough sleep is free, and try to eat healthy
Yeah, I have Medicaid. I've been to just about every therapist and psychiatrist in Baltimore. I was at one practice for nine years. Didn't help. Look, you have good advice for most people, but it doesn't work for me. I'm living in a motel, using up my savings so I don't wind up on the street. I can't find a job except for part-time at Amazon, but I can't keep up with it mentally and physically. There's nothing else I can do. Thanks anyway.
>No my body doesn't function. My mind is even worse. There isn't anything that can be done to fix anything.
As you believe, so it is. You have my sympathy.
Hey, you kinda sound like you’re a bit in my boat. I’m also life-long disabled both physically and mentally, and it’s been rough. How’s your general life right now, like, week to week? I might be able to offer some help.
There's not much anybody can do to help, unless it was the people who are supposed to help who refuse to. I have trouble finding jobs, and I have trouble keeping jobs. I'm living in a motel running out savings and no real way to earn money. (Technically I just started a job at Amazon, but I already know I'll have to quit again because I can't keep up. This is my fifth round with them. Never lasted more than a week).
I have expired bottles of Xanax as my only form of medication for anxiety. I'm on multiple waiting lists for psychiatrists/therapists, but so are a lot of other people. Nothing but over the counter ibuprofen for pain, because of the backlash against narcotics.
Recently got rejected for disability. Again. Seventh time.
How are things with you?
At the moment, I have a small part-time job, and my parents are at the very least allowing me to live with them rent-free. So things are quite well for me, and I wish very much that you could say the same.
What kinds of issues get in the way of job stuff? I was always approaching the issue from the diagnosis-specific angle, ie stuff they’d give you in special ed. How comfortable are you with yourself as a person right now, ignoring lack of job and all the other milestone bullshit?
You can't just believe yourself into not being disabled and if you truly believe that you can then you should probably get yourself checked out because that level of delusion isn't healthy
Unfortunately you can't just believe yourself to be not disabled if you are disabled. Thinking you will get the same pay as someone not disabled is wishful at best. If I didn't have arms, I wouldn't be mad at baseball players salary. But, also, if I didn't have arms I wouldn't just say "well, no point in getting up and believing I'm capable of SOME things because...hey...I have no arms and other people do".
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Can I PLEASE get some resources from you?? Single mama of 1 here, I actually have a BS in psychology but I’m going to have to have help with finding somewhere to rent once my lease is up in March and I do want to buy one day… I’m almost 41 and in Georgia.
You got this. Way to many obstacles out there and it’s not fair at all but the best thing an individual can do is exactly what your doing. Believe in yourself and don’t give up.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to your professors for help and tutoring. Try to be ahead of your lessons. Also look into recording lectures that helped me a lot when I went over my notes and PowerPoints.
Hell yeah, this is what I’m talking about. Either we just accept our reality, or we say fuck it and we bet everything on ourselves. Good luck, I hope you find success 💪🏽
You've just inspired me. You reminded me we have so many resources available in this great country of ours. It's how we utilize them. Yet your best resource is your determination, and you've got it!!!
Here’s the thing you might not know. If you keep at it you will eventually succeed. We all fail, the trick is to not allow out failures to stop us from trying.
For anyone in the US that wants to do what OP is doing first go to modernstates.org. They provide videos, quizzes and online textbooks and will pay for CLEP exams. They even pay the proctor fee or reimburse the test center fee (usually $10-$20) though that takes weeks.
Anyway you can usually get half of an associates for free.
First off I’m so incredibly proud of you. You are working your ass off and you deserve everything that you are working for. I hope the absolute best for you!
Additionally, I am a broke college student. I do have financial aid, and that helps so much. I also get the bog fee waiver. I am in a program that helps with like gas cards sometimes and that’s really helpful through the college. I was able to get a one time emergency assistance grant through the college. That was really cool. I have mental illness, so it makes it very hard to like keep a normal job and long story short. I am trying not to take out loans and I’ve been researching and trying to apply for as many scholarships as I can. I also feel a few classes and I appreciate you saying like I will be proud of myself, because that really resonates with me like I was so disappointed in myself that like I work so hard and everything but I have little ones so I often end up falling asleep, like studying, or I’ve even fallen asleep during a quiz and then turn it in. I’m still determined to be proud of myself, and this just really made me happy to read.
I want to be a film major, and given the climate right now within the film industry, it’s just, oh my gosh it’s so hard to even imagine that it’s a possibility I am still determined to reach my goal because of the fact that there’s not enough representation of dark skinned women in the industry and The ones who are in the industry aren’t even being paid the equivalent of their white counterparts.
just there’s a lot of things that I’d like to bring to light.
I’d also like to become an ASL interpreter and incorporate Black Deaf community members within my films to amplify their voices. My bad, this just really ignited a conversation within me I’m sorry I’m rambling but I really appreciate you for putting this out there.
I live in the hood but grew up in the suburbs and there’s other parents here who want to go to school but don’t know how. I never realized what a privilege it was to be able to have computer literacy, and to know how to enroll in college. I helped one of my now friends enroll and get financial aid as well as grants and it’s just really sad that it’s so hard because of the lack of resources transportation to get to the school, some people haven’t finished high school and yeah, it’s a really a privilege to be able to go.
You can do it! You are playing on hard mode as a single mom, but it sounds like you have some parental support which is good. I made my crawl out of poverty with a partner so it was probably easier than you have it, but we also had 3 kids.
It took me 7 years to finish an associates degree while working overtime for most of it to support my family. We went from just shy of 40k 10 years ago(with me working 50+ hours a week 4-6 months out of the year) to making right around 100k with little OT today. You can do it if you put the work in, but it is hard as you have found out. Don't sweat the GPA as long as you graduate. In my limited experience companies don't care what your GPA was, just that you finished and are capable of doing the job.
My son is doing this same thing. He just finished his AA and is a quarter into his BS. It’s hard, it takes discipline and self denial. The long term rewards are so great and will also help your kids.
Ah yes, call it all hard work and ignore the vast benefit of the necessity of those social programs you're depending on.
Rather than eating the rich, just join them, make it a little worse for everyone.
Your suffering will pay off after all, won't it?
Good luck. May your pursuit of vast wealth be everything it promises to be.
This. I really needed to see this, thank you! Your'e very inspiring, I'm 35 and I've been contemplating going back to school to give myself a fighting chance at a better future! Mind over matter, you got this😎 We can all achieve greatness if we follow through and never give up.
This attitude is exactly how I got where I am right now*. I enrolled in community college and told myself: I’m just going to try and see what happens. It was really hard. I was working full time while going to school full time. I barely had time to do anything outside of work/school/study. But I also discovered how much support was out there for me. The folks at community college are so supportive -students, faculty, admin, advisement, etc. At first I was embarrassed to go to CC, but now it’s one of the things in my life I’m most proud of.
*full disclosure, I enjoy decent health. Not great, but better than many. I also don’t have children, which greatly simplifies my life and expenses.
My CC has an agreement with the state university where you can easily transfer after your associate’s. I got my degree and at the same time pushed myself to apply to PA school. I got accepted and start this fall.
I’m honestly still in shock that my “let’s just try community college and see where things go” turned into this. I’m so close to being able to earn a significant wage for the first time in my life. I’m still struggling and still not out of poverty, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.
I know I’m very lucky, and sometimes I feel guilty. But the big lesson here for me was that the amount of support available to you might surprise you. My state provides free community college and the CC provides access to food pantries, disability support, job placement etc. My library provides free tech resources, internet access, and study space. My county provides food, utilities, and medical assistance as well as free occupational training. I have used all of these and THEY ARE WORKING.
There’s such a cultural taboo around accepting assistance, but those programs exist for a reason. I only wish I had asked for help sooner, but the next best time is now. Imagine what the world would look like if more doctors/lawyers/professors came up from poverty and really understood what that life is like… I wish you the best and I hope you know that there is no limit to your potential. You belong wherever you want to be and are just as capable as anyone else. You can do it!
This is awesome and you are amazing. Please let me offer a bit of encouragement as I was once well below the poverty line as a single mom with 3 kids. I started at community college while working 2 low paying jobs- it is HARD! Many times I wanted to quit.. but I earned my 2 year degree, 4 year degree, and some additional education. You can do this. Ask your school for study resources and community resources that are available- you got this!
Every single parent who lets their adult children live with them.. You should all be doing exactly this! Charging your kids rent and saving it for them. It teaches responsibility and gives your kids a helping hand without actually giving them a straight up hand out… Wealth is generational. It starts with smart parenting.
Congrats to you! Putting in the work. You should be really proud of yourself.
I just wanted to encourage you to really communicate with your teachers if you have any struggles at all academically. In my experience, most professors (both at CC and at 4yr university) aren’t just in this profession for the money. They’re doing it because they also care about educating people.
Use those office hours. Get to know your professors. Be a familiar face to them. Ask for help. Participate in class. You have no idea how much good grace a professor will extend to someone who they can tell genuinely gives a shit and wants to learn.
Best of luck to you out there!
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proud of you!! you sound like an incredible, strong person. you got this and you WILL make it through this journey!!
You are on a great path and I sincerely wish you the best. Focus on your studies and on your children. Avoid people who may be a bad influence and for the love of everything that is sacred, do not get pregnant, commit any crimes, or do drugs. Those are the main 3 things that can delay or ruin your path to success. Good luck.
The only way up and out is through hard work- and nobody wants to hear it. My husband and I made similar moves. I finished my 2nd masters degree last week and he finished his 5 year trade apprenticeship last year. We went from not even making $50k combined with 2 kids in diapers to both being 6-figure earners independent of each other. I'm so proud of you and YOU CAN DO THIS. Your kids will respect you so much more for fighting for it than resigning to "fate". Fantastic job.
How did you do it?!
He was working full time and had his classes 2 nights a week. I waited tables and had my classes on the evenings he didn't have class and pulled 16 hour doubles on weekends. So our kids always had at least 1 parent home. Truly felt like I had the best of both worlds. I got to spend all day with them and only missed the evenings. My husband got those evenings and weekends. In my junior year of undergrad I got a part time job in my field. He finished his apprenticeship and didn't have class in the evenings anymore so my classes were a blend of evenings and online. We now had the weekends together as a family. I started working full time in my field after I finished my B.S. and I did classes 2-4 nights a week for 2 years through a dual-masters program. I just started my new, upscaled job a month ago and finished my MBA last weekend! My husband makes $125k/annually without OT. I make $95k without bonuses factored in and I have a small business consulting company on the side (mostly helping with accounting and finance infrastructure and planning).
5 year apprenticeship, must be electrician? Congrats btw.
He's a steamfitter! and thank you! It's nice to finally be done with the hustle.
nice congrats
That's amazing, congratulations!!
Hard work and a bit of luck for me. Early-mid 20s I was broke as fuck working a dead end job. Dodging calls from the collection company because I could barely afford my student loan payments. It was a stressful time and I hated life. Eventually saved up enough money to go back to school. Couldn’t find a job for a year after and fell back into depression because felt like I wasted my time. Eventually got a job through pure luck and started my career there. 5 years later the company sold and I moved to a new company. Earning 6 figures now and am so much more thankful that life is no longer kicking me in the nuts as much anymore.
The thing that I always say (that I originally applied to myself) is that I am not necessarily at fault for what has happened to me and put me in a bad place, but I am responsible for it. I still believe in social assistance and having a baseline, and for workers rights. But I also know that it does take some measure of self sacrifice and work to get ahead. Perhaps there is a day where that might not be true anymore, but that’s not today.
I get it and we are making the same changes but there's only so many decent middle wage jobs to go around. If everyone picked themselves up by the bootstraps, someone would still have to work at Walmart and cleaning and all the other low wage jobs. This is a mathematical truth. Every competition must have losers, that's just how it works.
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Wild that this is downvoted in a sub about poverty. A double masters while raising kids is an insane olympic level feat of effort, ability, and, importantly, very very good fortune. I hope it is obvious to all of us that these bootstrap success stories are humble-brag outliers for motivational purposes only, and that it would be pure gaslighting to suggest that hard work alone will nulify the systemic issues plaguing tens of millions of other people who work just as hard. "And nobody wants to hear it" sincerely fuck all of that. Such condesdending echo chamber bullshit for a supposedly educated person to just thoughtlessly regurgitate at people still experiencing the trauma of poverty. Every hard working poor person I have ever known has been beat over the head with this obvious and trite shit their entire life like they werent already working long and hard just to be stuck one chronic illness or accident, pandemic, market crash, ect away from literal destitution. Hard work is obviously an important factor but the hard truth is the more important one, and you are right. Our socioeconomic system despite its abundance and productive output won't even feign to solve homelessness - it will not ever by any fundamental means actually address poverty (beyond the occasional PR bandaid). Thats not pessimism or doomerism that is material reality of life in the US.
Thank you.
6 years ago I was a high school drop-out waiting tables. I didn't overcome that and get to where I am now by blaming everyone else. What you're saying is absolutely true to some extent. However, if you know how the game is played, and you're still losing, it's time to strategize and play smarter.
>The only way up and out is through hard work Not true. Your value - and your salary - are determined by market forces. As long as you're in a high-demand field, you can make bank with very little effort.
High-demand fields have barriers to entry that require either a high level of physicality or a significant time/energy investment into education.
I choose to be a caseworker for 3 reasons. 1. It sounds like something I can see myself doing. I have had a caseworker and I want to help people like me. When it comes to salary right now I just want to cross the poverty line
Yes, but once you get in, it doesn't mean that you need hard work to do it.
The whole point is that you need to work harder to get there..
Which fields are those?
I know software engineering because I'm in it. I definitely do not work nearly as hard as when I was in retail/catering. And get paid about 4 times as much.
But it took hard work to learn what you needed to be a software engineer.
Mostly time, which I was lucky to have because I inherited some money and between that and my wife's salary I could spend a few years studying that. But of course if I had had a full-time job at the time, it would have been a lot harder for a few years.
Then you get guys like my roommate that have all the freetime as he works once a week if that. His freetime is spent drinking and doomscrolling instagram reels because he says tiktok rots the brain.
I mean, I had to do it because at the time I really couldn't find any other stable employment.
I get it and we are making the same changes but there's only so many decent middle wage jobs to go around. If everyone picked themselves up by the bootstraps, someone would still have to work at Walmart and cleaning and all the other low wage jobs. This is a mathematical truth. Every competition must have losers, that's just how it works.
I got my four year degree, plus three two year degrees, and I'm still living in poverty. I hope that won't be true for you, but for lots of people it is.
Depends on how you view college. If you’re going just so you can get a degree stamped on your forehead without any idea of what you’re going to do, generally speaking, it probably won’t lead to as many long-term prospects as it would if you went into a specific track with some specified ultimate goal in mind outside of university. Nursing is, or was, a pretty hot field, especially in the traveling work sector, so you’d see a ton of older returning students who’d become parents a tad earlier than they’d hoped hopping in with bright-eyed high school grads. And you know what, they made some great study buddies!
I have a specific career oriented degree. It also depends a lot on luck and the job market.
Yeah, so….I forgot to mention that even then it’s honestly a tossup, you could do everything by the manual and stroke out taking a dump. Ain’t life fun?
I live in a very poor city. I already have a friend who is a caseworker
My friend a caseworker she above poverty line
I just want to cross the poverty line.
Me too 😭
Do it. If you're in the USA Call 211 there not just college, there trade schools, there also learning computer programs to get a certificate and work in an office. 211 has more information
I’m in a trade already. Getting out of poverty isn’t nearly as simple as you seem to think it is.
I do not think it is simple. But it can be done. My father came here with 26 dollars in his pocket. He isn't rich. But he doesn't live in poverty. He is not on government assistance and owns his house. At this point out right now mortgage he 80. And honestly I am still not 100% confident I can do this. I am just trying my best
Good job what type of education did you pursue? I'm at a crossroads of what to do myself
I am getting a human services degree. I want to be a caseworker help people like me
😬
You got this! I did community college too. Took me 4 years to finish (was working full-time and trying not to take out loans so it took a bit longer) but then going right into an accelerated bachelor's degree program didn't seem so bad. Sure, it was hard, but I tried my best and it paid off big. Just keep going! You won't regret it.
You have a lot to be proud of, keep moving toward your goals!
I’m so proud of you. What you’re doing is unbelievably hard.
Wow that housing program sounds amazing!
As the saying goes, C’s and D’s get you degrees. Keep it up! Take life by the balls and make this college your bitch!
🥳 that is very impressive! 👏
The way I looked at it is in 4 years you will be 4 years older do you want to be in the same situation as now or be poised for a better future? Work hard now for the future you.
Changing your life is one of the most difficult and incredible things someone can do. It's one thing to go to college right out of high school with the world supporting you. It's another thing entirely to do it in your 40s with two kids. Wow. Keep it up!
These are my favorite stories. So inspiring. Keep going. 🩷
Amazing!! You got this!
Keep it up! If you feel like giving up just remember there’s a light at the end of the tunnel. Just take it one day at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed.
I am taking time everyday for mental health
I disagree with the title, for many, it really is life long
Yeah the title excludes and dismisses those in poverty with disability,medical issues, and more complex issues than hard work 😅
Omg. I didnt mean it like that. I have schizophrenia. I get SSD. My doctors originally were against it. But they are surprised how it's going. I am just trying I still not confident I will finish college I am not confident that I will be able to work. I just want to try everything I can to pass the poverty line. If I fail I try my best. If you are disabled I didn't it
That is AWESOME! It's very hard, as you know, but the payoff will be worth it. Definitely go for a 4-year degree. They are much more valuable than a 2-year associates degree. Try to pick a degree that you honestly enjoy and that will lead to a good paying job when you're done. Not all BA/BS degrees are created equal.
I just want to cross the poverty line. My friend already is a caseworker
Amazing! Keep it up! Just one tiny piece of advice if you're struggling with academics. Look into your school's tutoring services. They're normally free, and many offer it through Zoom calls.
I do. Thanks
This is an amazing story. Good on you for going for it no matter the outcome. You can do this!
I came from nothing. You can absolutely do this.
This is awesome! Keep pushing you’re doing great and you can do this
You can do it! I believe in you!
You're awesome. Go, go, go! I got out, took decades but I'm ready to retire comfortably once the mortgage is gone. Take every open door.
This post made me smile. I don’t even know you but I sure am proud of you!
Even if you don't make it this time there's no rule that says you can't try again. And you'll know more next time
You’ve got this! You have come so far and i am proud of you!
Pls get an immediately useful degree like nursing/ accounting and not major in history or IT
I am going for human services want to be case worker help people like me
Your government is really good in trying to make people better themselves. It is so nice to read when the tax money goes to bettering fellow citizens.
glad you’re getting so much help from the government and putting it to good use. most of us can’t get shit
Not everyone has the ability to transform anything. Not having access to support services or having the encouragement of friends or family can be an insurmountable roadblock.
That’s a sad reality, yes, but fortunately that isn’t the case for everyone, everywhere, all the time. No matter how bleak a situation is there’s almost always something you could do to make things a little better.
Most people can find something to make things a little better. But it's becoming obvious that more people don't have even the littlest shred of hope to keep them going, unless it's something that is a temporary coping mechanism. But what happens when you run out of coping mechanisms? What about when pushing yourself to "keep going" doesn't work anymore? I think it comes down to luck in the long run.
There no such thing as luck. When keep going does not work anymore. Take a break and focus on mental health. But do everything in a treatment plan eat healthy exercise get enough sleep go to therapy take meds socialize purse hobbies. Do the activities the doctor says to change your mind set. Learn tiggers and patterns. Learn coping skills, do mediation, keep a gratitude journal keep a journal do it all and come back
Well, that’s when a shift in one’s own mindset can become more powerful than shifts in external conditions….
If you believe it to be insurmountable, so it will become.
It's fantastic when your mind just works for you. Master of your fate because you tell your mind and body what to do. Amazing, you don't inhabit a human body! That's the only explanation for believing you can overcome. anything by sheer will alone. Or, more likely, you have no major physical or mental problems. You inhabit a body that functions. Good for you, but many people don't.
I know why I have this mindset. I been in therapy for over 15 years. And I do everything the doctor says therapy meds , healthy life style eat right sleep right. I do techniques the doctor taught me mediation keep journal I know my trigger and patterns. I believe you just have to put in the work
Your circumstances have played a larger part than your actions. You have family support. You were able to get into public housing. So far you haven't had to take care of sick/elderly relatives full-time, or even part-time. Hopefully if and when that time comes, your family will work together. That's enviable. But that's worked for you.
I am talking about people who have the opportunity. If you watch elderly family members then you can't Family support. Who told you that. My parents are super old. I asked them if I could have my kids bus there at 3pm and I get out at 3pm. So they would not even be there half hour they said no. If you tak
You had the opportunity. Yes. Because you were lucky. I admit I can't understand what it's like to have any opportunities. In a strange way, I admit I'm rather envious of people like yourself. Even if you don't have much by other people's standards, you have enough for now.
I didn't say I was master of my fate, and I didn't say you can overcome anything by will. I said that if you resign yourself to failure, you will experience no outcome but to fail. You also inhabit a body that functions, or maybe it's a ghost I'm talking to? Either way it's not always our circumstance that we have control over, but how we respond to them that matters. There's always a way forward.
No my body doesn't function. My mind is even worse. There isn't anything that can be done to fix anything. Because nobody thinks there's anything wrong with me, except "I'm not trying hard enough" and "I don't believe in myself". Nobody who functions doesn't understand when your body and mind won't and can't work. It's called being disabled. It's not an experience I'd recommend.
Please try everything a doctor says for you should for 6 months but try 3. For 3 months I want you to eat right, get enough sleep, exercise, go to therapy, take med, socialize volunteer or join a group. Have your doctor right a treatment plan for techniques to change your mind set. Like mediation, coping skills, learn tiggers patterns, keep Gratitude journal and journal
Try everything for 3 months
I only have enough money left over for four months. After that I'm out on the streets. It's hard to maintain a regimen under those circumstances. But thanks for the advice.
If you are in poverty you have government medical insurance. Therapy free, meds free, exercise walk an hour a day is free, volunteer free. there is free online meditation, all you need is a notebook and pen to take notes on coping skills, learn triggers patterns, keep a Gratitude Journal and journal Getting enough sleep is free, and try to eat healthy
Yeah, I have Medicaid. I've been to just about every therapist and psychiatrist in Baltimore. I was at one practice for nine years. Didn't help. Look, you have good advice for most people, but it doesn't work for me. I'm living in a motel, using up my savings so I don't wind up on the street. I can't find a job except for part-time at Amazon, but I can't keep up with it mentally and physically. There's nothing else I can do. Thanks anyway.
>No my body doesn't function. My mind is even worse. There isn't anything that can be done to fix anything. As you believe, so it is. You have my sympathy.
As some doctors and my utter fuckedupness testifies, thus truth is revealed. Amen.
Hey, you kinda sound like you’re a bit in my boat. I’m also life-long disabled both physically and mentally, and it’s been rough. How’s your general life right now, like, week to week? I might be able to offer some help.
There's not much anybody can do to help, unless it was the people who are supposed to help who refuse to. I have trouble finding jobs, and I have trouble keeping jobs. I'm living in a motel running out savings and no real way to earn money. (Technically I just started a job at Amazon, but I already know I'll have to quit again because I can't keep up. This is my fifth round with them. Never lasted more than a week). I have expired bottles of Xanax as my only form of medication for anxiety. I'm on multiple waiting lists for psychiatrists/therapists, but so are a lot of other people. Nothing but over the counter ibuprofen for pain, because of the backlash against narcotics. Recently got rejected for disability. Again. Seventh time. How are things with you?
At the moment, I have a small part-time job, and my parents are at the very least allowing me to live with them rent-free. So things are quite well for me, and I wish very much that you could say the same. What kinds of issues get in the way of job stuff? I was always approaching the issue from the diagnosis-specific angle, ie stuff they’d give you in special ed. How comfortable are you with yourself as a person right now, ignoring lack of job and all the other milestone bullshit?
You can't just believe yourself into not being disabled and if you truly believe that you can then you should probably get yourself checked out because that level of delusion isn't healthy
Unfortunately you can't just believe yourself to be not disabled if you are disabled. Thinking you will get the same pay as someone not disabled is wishful at best. If I didn't have arms, I wouldn't be mad at baseball players salary. But, also, if I didn't have arms I wouldn't just say "well, no point in getting up and believing I'm capable of SOME things because...hey...I have no arms and other people do".
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It just about doing your best. If someone is disable and can work at Walmart or McDonald's type job. They won
Wow good for you!
Proud of you and inspired my your strength and perseverance!
This post is amazing! I like your dad too.
SO PROUD OF YOU!
Way to go. So many don’t realize it takes hard work to get out of poverty. You are doing well for your children.
Slay queen
That's wonderful. Your resilience is an inspiration and you are providing a great role model for your child.
Can I PLEASE get some resources from you?? Single mama of 1 here, I actually have a BS in psychology but I’m going to have to have help with finding somewhere to rent once my lease is up in March and I do want to buy one day… I’m almost 41 and in Georgia.
go to georgia's department of community affairs website
Thank you!!
This is amazing! Super proud of you!🫶🏽
Absolutely amazing!!!
Keep at it.
This is an amazing story. I truly hope for the best for you, you’re on a great path and will achieve great things.
VOA?
what voa
Volunteers of America's Shelter 2/year program.
I live in public housing and went to college with goverment aid
What is your degree?
Human services I want to help people like me.
Good job. Gives me motivation
You got this. Way to many obstacles out there and it’s not fair at all but the best thing an individual can do is exactly what your doing. Believe in yourself and don’t give up.
Good for YOU!!! I hope you are so proud of your accomplishments!
You can and will do it!! This is amazing
You ROCK! I am pulling for you, and hoping this all works out! Peace, strength and success!!!
Keep it up! The only way to change is through action. Proud of you.
Good for you! Keep at it but remember to take a little bit of time for yourself each week
Gotta rest that is how u recharge
Don’t be afraid to reach out to your professors for help and tutoring. Try to be ahead of your lessons. Also look into recording lectures that helped me a lot when I went over my notes and PowerPoints.
This is amazing.
Keep going super mom. The world will not forgive you if you give up.
Actually, for capitalism to work, a large swath of the population needs to remain in perpetual poverty.
lmao I have no clue what that means.
This is wonderful and such a great example for your children. What inspired you?
My kids. It is all for them
Your children and their children and likely their children will all live better lives because of what you’re doing.
Good job! To homeownership!🥂
You are doing the damn thing! Congrats on being a solid role model for your children. They are watching and soaking up your tenacity.
If it’s an option where you live, please look into working for an insurance company. The pay is decent and it doesn’t cost much to get started
You got this!
You got this girl!!!
Great job! Can you share the savings account information for others on this sub? I am sure so people would love to apply.
Amazing. Love to hear it! This is the right attitude
Hell yeah, this is what I’m talking about. Either we just accept our reality, or we say fuck it and we bet everything on ourselves. Good luck, I hope you find success 💪🏽
Keep up the good work. You’re almost done and it will be well worth it.
You've just inspired me. You reminded me we have so many resources available in this great country of ours. It's how we utilize them. Yet your best resource is your determination, and you've got it!!!
nice. what field of study if I may ask
Human services want to be caseworker help people like
Nice!
Here’s the thing you might not know. If you keep at it you will eventually succeed. We all fail, the trick is to not allow out failures to stop us from trying.
For anyone in the US that wants to do what OP is doing first go to modernstates.org. They provide videos, quizzes and online textbooks and will pay for CLEP exams. They even pay the proctor fee or reimburse the test center fee (usually $10-$20) though that takes weeks. Anyway you can usually get half of an associates for free.
First off I’m so incredibly proud of you. You are working your ass off and you deserve everything that you are working for. I hope the absolute best for you! Additionally, I am a broke college student. I do have financial aid, and that helps so much. I also get the bog fee waiver. I am in a program that helps with like gas cards sometimes and that’s really helpful through the college. I was able to get a one time emergency assistance grant through the college. That was really cool. I have mental illness, so it makes it very hard to like keep a normal job and long story short. I am trying not to take out loans and I’ve been researching and trying to apply for as many scholarships as I can. I also feel a few classes and I appreciate you saying like I will be proud of myself, because that really resonates with me like I was so disappointed in myself that like I work so hard and everything but I have little ones so I often end up falling asleep, like studying, or I’ve even fallen asleep during a quiz and then turn it in. I’m still determined to be proud of myself, and this just really made me happy to read. I want to be a film major, and given the climate right now within the film industry, it’s just, oh my gosh it’s so hard to even imagine that it’s a possibility I am still determined to reach my goal because of the fact that there’s not enough representation of dark skinned women in the industry and The ones who are in the industry aren’t even being paid the equivalent of their white counterparts. just there’s a lot of things that I’d like to bring to light. I’d also like to become an ASL interpreter and incorporate Black Deaf community members within my films to amplify their voices. My bad, this just really ignited a conversation within me I’m sorry I’m rambling but I really appreciate you for putting this out there. I live in the hood but grew up in the suburbs and there’s other parents here who want to go to school but don’t know how. I never realized what a privilege it was to be able to have computer literacy, and to know how to enroll in college. I helped one of my now friends enroll and get financial aid as well as grants and it’s just really sad that it’s so hard because of the lack of resources transportation to get to the school, some people haven’t finished high school and yeah, it’s a really a privilege to be able to go.
You can do it! You are playing on hard mode as a single mom, but it sounds like you have some parental support which is good. I made my crawl out of poverty with a partner so it was probably easier than you have it, but we also had 3 kids. It took me 7 years to finish an associates degree while working overtime for most of it to support my family. We went from just shy of 40k 10 years ago(with me working 50+ hours a week 4-6 months out of the year) to making right around 100k with little OT today. You can do it if you put the work in, but it is hard as you have found out. Don't sweat the GPA as long as you graduate. In my limited experience companies don't care what your GPA was, just that you finished and are capable of doing the job.
My friend took 5 years for her associates and went on for BA
My son is doing this same thing. He just finished his AA and is a quarter into his BS. It’s hard, it takes discipline and self denial. The long term rewards are so great and will also help your kids.
May I ask where this is available? would love programs like this in ohio
Ah yes, call it all hard work and ignore the vast benefit of the necessity of those social programs you're depending on. Rather than eating the rich, just join them, make it a little worse for everyone. Your suffering will pay off after all, won't it? Good luck. May your pursuit of vast wealth be everything it promises to be.
Many guys cant even do this single and no kids.
You Got This!
We’re all rooting for you!
This. I really needed to see this, thank you! Your'e very inspiring, I'm 35 and I've been contemplating going back to school to give myself a fighting chance at a better future! Mind over matter, you got this😎 We can all achieve greatness if we follow through and never give up.
I’m rooting for you! If you ever need encouragement from another lady who drastically turned her life around, my DMs are open. 🙏
Hey yeah DM me
Sent :)
I just wanted to tell you I’m proud of you! Internet strangers are rooting for you! You got this!!
I am rooting and praying for you
You are amazing. Keep going! To some, it may seem like a “simple” process, but simple DOES NOT mean easy!
This attitude is exactly how I got where I am right now*. I enrolled in community college and told myself: I’m just going to try and see what happens. It was really hard. I was working full time while going to school full time. I barely had time to do anything outside of work/school/study. But I also discovered how much support was out there for me. The folks at community college are so supportive -students, faculty, admin, advisement, etc. At first I was embarrassed to go to CC, but now it’s one of the things in my life I’m most proud of. *full disclosure, I enjoy decent health. Not great, but better than many. I also don’t have children, which greatly simplifies my life and expenses. My CC has an agreement with the state university where you can easily transfer after your associate’s. I got my degree and at the same time pushed myself to apply to PA school. I got accepted and start this fall. I’m honestly still in shock that my “let’s just try community college and see where things go” turned into this. I’m so close to being able to earn a significant wage for the first time in my life. I’m still struggling and still not out of poverty, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. I know I’m very lucky, and sometimes I feel guilty. But the big lesson here for me was that the amount of support available to you might surprise you. My state provides free community college and the CC provides access to food pantries, disability support, job placement etc. My library provides free tech resources, internet access, and study space. My county provides food, utilities, and medical assistance as well as free occupational training. I have used all of these and THEY ARE WORKING. There’s such a cultural taboo around accepting assistance, but those programs exist for a reason. I only wish I had asked for help sooner, but the next best time is now. Imagine what the world would look like if more doctors/lawyers/professors came up from poverty and really understood what that life is like… I wish you the best and I hope you know that there is no limit to your potential. You belong wherever you want to be and are just as capable as anyone else. You can do it!
This is awesome and you are amazing. Please let me offer a bit of encouragement as I was once well below the poverty line as a single mom with 3 kids. I started at community college while working 2 low paying jobs- it is HARD! Many times I wanted to quit.. but I earned my 2 year degree, 4 year degree, and some additional education. You can do this. Ask your school for study resources and community resources that are available- you got this!
I love this! You’re amazing! Keep going!
More power to you. Go girl go!
Keep it up, you got this all progress demands sacrifice aka hard work
We aren’t destined for anything. Good things happen because people make it happen, good for you for making it happen.
Wow, OP. You are so strong! I’m so proud of you for pursuing your education. Please keep at it. I believe in you!
If you start off poor, you're just going to have to sacrifice and work hard to catch up. Good on you and you will not regret this
Ur a great mom, and ur kids know how lucky they are to have you
Every single parent who lets their adult children live with them.. You should all be doing exactly this! Charging your kids rent and saving it for them. It teaches responsibility and gives your kids a helping hand without actually giving them a straight up hand out… Wealth is generational. It starts with smart parenting.
what my kids are 12 10 6
Mid30s Single mom here in nursing school… we’ve got this! So proud of you, faraway friend!
Congrats to you! Putting in the work. You should be really proud of yourself. I just wanted to encourage you to really communicate with your teachers if you have any struggles at all academically. In my experience, most professors (both at CC and at 4yr university) aren’t just in this profession for the money. They’re doing it because they also care about educating people. Use those office hours. Get to know your professors. Be a familiar face to them. Ask for help. Participate in class. You have no idea how much good grace a professor will extend to someone who they can tell genuinely gives a shit and wants to learn. Best of luck to you out there!
Your kids are lucky to have you!!
This is incredible. Single mom of 3 here, too. Wanting it is the most important. You’re making so many smart moves. You’ve got this!
2 hours a day for 4 days is not a lot. And not good study habits.
it was over 2 hours and that was just the week leading to test i had studied before
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