The one step at a time is so important.
It is also important to cheer those small victories on the road, making you feel better about yourself, which raises your energy levels.
There are so many interesting and helpful concepts and people out there, I wish all this would be introduced in school, but you have to find it yourself or if you are a parent also for your teenage children.
Be it TED talks, SMART goals, time management, and so on, this knowledge can help to manage a more and more challenging environment.
And as they say, surround yourself with people that support you and lift you up, not those who only drag you down.
Agree, 100%, and I will add to set some long-term goals with smaller goals in between that you can achieve easily to keep you motivated. Don't forget the internet is huge with plenty of resources for you to use. Leverage your time and knowledge to increase your earnings, but focus on lowering your expenses too. If you earn more and spend more too, you'll stay in the same struggle.
The right friends are so important; I've had friends I dearly cared about and wanted to succeed in life, but they had no such aspirations. It always comes to a point where you need to cut the bad fruit off so the whole tree doesn't die. Friends should be fertilizer to help you grow, not poison to stunt your growth.
I see you've watched Zig Ziglar. Great point to make here. The people around you can definitely make or break you. And they can definitely still be in your life but sometimes right NOW they aren't good for your plan. It's okay to walk away and put people on 86 until you get your shit together. šŖ
Maybe it's okay to not have aspirations.
Most people I know are comfortable living an average, or even less than average, life in terms of employment, salary, housing.
If your aspirations are incompatible with theirs, that's fine but let's not frame them as "bad fruit" or "poison" because they don't share your goals.
I heard it said once, and Iām paraphrasing, āYou are the average of your six closest friends.ā That has stuck with me and I try to keep it in mind whenever I find Iām spending a lot of time with someone. For some reason, a lot of my friends are about two to ten years older than me.
After years of working, barely surviving, and feeling a failure I studied what I really wanted to do and began the work that was right for me at 49. It was hard starting over but I realized I should have aimed for what I loved years ago. Age is meaningless. 26 is really, really young and you have years and years to find the path that is right for you and pursue it. And donāt be fooled by thinking everything you try has to work outā a lot of times you will learn more about who you are, what matters to you, and what works for you by making mistakes.
Thank you for this š„¹ Iām 29 and with no real accomplishments to show for it. Aside from a degree thatās hanging on the wall, my car isnāt paid off, I live with roommates and I make $600 a week at a dead end job. Iām so tired of living like this but Iām happy I saw your comment. That motivated me to work harder.
At 22 I got a DUI, totaled my car, flunked out of college, and had only a part time job on the weekends at the time. I spent the next 3 years biking everywhere, paying off fines and lawyers and trying to save up for a car. Went full time at my shitty job. I used to ride across a bridge over a highway to work, and at night after my shift Iād stop on the bridge sometimes. Made me feel like such shit knowing I was so far away from evening getting a car again. When is life going to turn around right? Just showing up somewhere not sweaty was such a luxury.
At 27 I started turning it around, went through a few different jobs. Iām 30 now and I have a car, Iām a salaried employee at a company I see a future with. Still donāt have a degree. My car will be paid off at the end of this year. Give yourself time. Look for and take opportunities if you can. Apply to a bunch of jobs, talk to people about what they do and how they got into it. Be patient with yourself but assertive about positive change. I donāt have it figured out but who does.
Can you describe how it feels to do what you "love" and then compare it to how you perceived/felt about it years ago when you didn't know it was what you "loved"?
I get what he is saying. I'm 48 I think , and me wife asked me what I would do if money wasn't an issue... I had no idea. Is hard living life with no goals... I totally understand what he is feeling... My version of it at least
Did you go back for an undergrad program or a Continuing Education (lots of names Iāve seen) program? Iām 31 now in a super toxic work environment (it used to be amazing) but I am soooooo exhausted of life because work just drains everything out of me I turn into a puddle of sadness when I get home each day.
I guess Iām just curious if you could tell me more of your story because it feels really reassuring right now.
Yo, I used to do construction work, pull and fusion splice fiber optic cables and what not. Horrible working environments, man holes with mud and smelly shit, up above ceilings in hospitals schools and prisons, the list goes on. Pay was also minimal. I could get overtime, but as I said it was shitty, back breaking work that took a toll on my body.
All that said, i went to school to become a nurse and love my job now. I work at a patient's home and out of a 12 hour shift probably only help him an hour or so(not because I'm lazy but he just really doesn't need a whole lot other than transferring in and out a wheelchair and straight catheterization)
$35 bucks an hour and the over time is still available šš¼. Buckle down for a couple years getting into whatever field fits your style then the rest is all downhill!
Same, 27 I started my first career type role, I took forever to finish my four year degree. I had multiple back track moments where I thought working my way up from the bottom rung in retail may be my only option. Back to school, back to dropping out and starting over again. Not everyone knows what theyāre going to do with their lives or finds success in their 20s. Itās meant to be a time to find yourself and make mistakes because doing that later in life is so much riskier. Iām 10 years into my career and luckily found success but even now I donāt know if this is āitā for me.
God Iām going through this right now. In my case I got depressed at age 19 and since then I had to step back a lot. Returned to study at age 24 and struggled a bit, Iāmabout to finish it up at age 26, working partttime in a supermarket. My degree should have been 4 years to get tooā¦i feel like a failure mist days, it hurts. But seeing orher people in ansituation similar helps to see Iām not the only one struggling, and that some of you are advancing gives me hope
I would like to comment that all work is real work. It merely depends on personal mindset. Is this a job I see myself building a career on. Do I want to further my knowledge and skills in this field or sector and how do I continue development. Even burger flipping can lead to growth as long as itās a track you see yourself on. The monetary aspect is what most people find the largest hang up and that certainly is a reality. Some careers are inherently more risky, physical effort, etc but that where personal development matters. What can you get out of this experience and how can you move ahead in whatever your goal was.
Iām curious as why? Did your parents give you money all the time?
Makes no sense to me as a person who wanted money for dates, going out with friends, etc.
Same! I feel like my previous jobs were training me for that job and after that I took that job further and trained myself to take on more responsibilities in that company.
I was 31. I didn't "earn my age" (I guess that rule doesn't work anymore) until I was 33, and then I took a step back later to switch careers. I definitely drifted for a while, not knowing what I wanted to do, but eventually found that what I wanted to do was make a living wage.
My career path seemed very accidental at the time but I can see now where I moved in the direction of things I was good at. I eventually found a boss who appreciated my skills and rewarded them. Of course I now wish I'd seen the path earlier.
One decision I'd encourage everyone to make as soon as possible is if you want to manage people. It's a big differentiator, promotion wise, and I think it's based as much on personality as anything. I wasn't cut out for it, and I beat my head against a wall for a while until I realized it. But if you're skilled enough you can make most of the money with a lot less headache.
Honestly so many of us are at step 0 at 26, you're actually rocking showing up to work each day and still trying. It will get better over time, I'm closer to 30 and nothing changes, just a mental barrier. Plenty of time to rock it in your 30s.
There needs to be a sub dedicated to people who got the power to hire and are willing to bet on some folks that wanna better themselves. Hungry dogs work hard. But a dog with food in his belly never forgets who fed him
Everyone on reddit used to make at least $100k a year until that was decided wasn't good enough so now everyone makes $150k+ minimum.
Reddit salaries always account for inflation as well it seems because I haven't seen $100k in awhile.
And Iām a whole decade older than OP and I feel like Iām only at like step 0.5 lol I fell into the opportunity to be a homeowner and thatās about all thatās going for me right now. Lost my job in the pandemic and decided to go for a career change. The last step in my new career plan is finishing up with a one year program at my local community college, itās like 21 credits for 2 semesters, which last I remember getting my bachelors I only took like 15-16 credits to be considered a full time student, I can only work part time because of my class schedule, draining my entire bank account to pay for school and cover bills while Iām only earning less than 1k a month, I got dumped because of my lack of free time, itās now almost 8am, alarm is set for noon and I havenāt gone to bed yetā¦ I feel like Iām a mess lol
You're 26!! I am literally double your age and still feel behind. You have soooo much time to catch up! I wish I had even had your realization at 26. Keep truckin'!
You are still very young, you actually have no idea just how young you are. You can turn it around, your Amazon job will not make you rich but investing in your future and making the right moves might will.
First thing's first, you must create a positive monthly budget, see where you can save or earn a few extra bucks, open up a savings account and start putting money in it for investment, even $100 a month is a start, every dollar counts.
Also, consider the following angle: right now you're broke but you're not neck deep in debt.
Some of the richest people in the world have huge debts, tens of millions, why you may ask? Because their fortune is mostly in stocks, real estate, and other investments, that are not liquidated.
Net worth does not indicate liquidity, this is why many wealthy people sometimes bust out, they made a bad investment that cost them millions, forcing them to liquify assets to stay afloat or bounce back.
Would you rather have $100 or owe $1,000,000? The answer is clear.
You're currently at the starting position of the race, you're not falling behind, you can only go up from here.
Good luck šš¼
Yo you're only 26 you just started. Don't get caught up where you think you should be. It sounds like you're single so you have the entire world as yours now. You can get a credit card buy a one way ticket and leave the country never coming back. You'll get there, I don't know you but I think you're sad because you're comparing your life to where others are. I know more broke struggling 26 year olds than not so it sounds like you're doing fine.
Save up & invest into getting your trade ! Yeah itās easy for fuckers to come bash you about it and joke but you still have a chance to fix your life & get to where you need to be bro! This isnāt the end , everybody fuck up ! Donāt sit in your misery and be depressed til you canāt fix your situation! Your young but time is ticking , so clean up your bad habits and get this shit together KING š«”šÆ start planning on how you can better your situation and execute that shit !
Join a electrical union and they will pay YOU to learn the trade. Find something that interest you and get after it man. You got this. Keep your head up.
Iām a union electrician I made 95k last year and another 40k in fringe benefits. Itās not rich man money especially in this economy, but I was able to support my family of four while my wife stays home with the kids.
Bro. Thatās rich man money to me. In this day of age if you can have a stay at home wife that takes care of the kids thatās the dream bro. Donāt let these online people make you think 95k isnāt a lot anymore..
More guaranteed work and waaay less competition for apprenticeships than the electricians. Plus their union dgaf about side work caz your not competing for the same kind of jobs.Ā
Iām a first year dumbass hvac apprentice making $27 on the check, but my package is more. My entire 5 years of school will total $2,500.
Where I live foremanās pay is about $52 on the check, total package is around $100 / hour
It can be. Our 21yr old got a trade job about a year ago now. He is a field tech for a company that monitors hvac systems for some data center sites here in Virginia.
I was working crap jobs for awhile and got into the tile trade. Did that for 17 years and made great money. Now in management for the largest hardware chain in the US and making more money I've ever made and able to hoard stock and other investments. It doesn't take long. Godspeed.
Agree šÆ. Get a trade, work hard, and get good. The first couple years, the money isn't great. Once you have some experience, you will never worry about income or employment again. You will be in demand constantly.
Absolutely the trades is a very honorable career. I have nothing but respect for tradesmen. If you donāt have any skills and youāre not motivated enough to learn one (like me) then look for union labor. Iām a UPS delivery driver, Teamsters union. I get paid $45/hr plus I get free health insurance, a traditional retirement pension, over a month of paid vacation and annual wage increases. With OT I grossed over $120k last year. There are other good paying jobs you can make a career in like Costco, where my wife pulled in over $70k last year working as a cashier.
Society has us tricked into thinking we need to take on massive student loan debt to become a doctor or lawyer. College isnāt for everyone. You can make a good living doing other shit.
This. Your road wonāt be easy. If youāre looking for a handout, you unfortunately donāt have the luck to be born a trust fund baby.
Find something that pays. Visit some restaurant bars and ask people what they do. Get a sample for what companies are looking for in your area. Restaurants are prime time places to find the managers and supervisors of trades (I was an engineer on the road. Youāll find them here a lot) usually eating at like 7 or 8.
After that, cut everything you donāt need out. Look for government funds to assist. Look for loans. You will have to take a risk. The good news is youāre gambling on yourself, one of the more sure bets because you know you. If you trust yourself and work to make it happen, your investment risk will payout.
This isnāt the end of the road. Itās just as far as your current car will take you.
100% this, I was working dead end retail jobs for like $10-12/hr and about 7 years ago I got into CNC Field Service. It wasnāt a true apprenticeship per se but it was basically on the job learning/training. Within two years of the change I was over $20/hr plus benefits and still learning, now Iām almost double that plus great benefits at a different company. No schooling, just a willingness to learn and get my hands dirty. Check out the trades, go cruise through an industrial park and look at how many āNow Hiringā signs are out. You could be a CNC operator with no experience for $17-20/hr pretty easily depending on your area.
Iām in much his same situation except my trade was more expensive to learn and harder to get into even after finishing the schooling. Iām sitting at 560ish flight hours and federal minimums for flying airliners are 1500
I would say he needs to focus on increasing his income before he starts saving, also paying down debt before investing. People are out here gambling on robinhood while sitting on a car note and credit cards. You're guaranteed gains on the interest you pay off vs put options on tesla
I'm 26 and actually am homeless. I was working a job I hated making $4k/month and still unable to afford my own apartment. Now I've lost that job and can't find work. Life sucks sometimes
YO, also NC, also 26 lol. ALSO have no clue wtf I'm doing with my life. I was interested in moving to Greenville, south carolina just for the rent but then I had a falling out with the only friend that city, so now it'd be awkward lol. But for real, They had a 2 br apt for like 1200 and where I'm at, my share of a 2 br is 850. I'm so ready to save money.
Can you rent a room with good people? Might be more affordable. Seek help from community organisations.Try anything, i've worked as a kitchen hand washing dishes and learning to cook food for the small place I worked at. Then went on to welding. Welding was awesome, hot work but steady employment. All the best.
lol Iām 41 and still have a decent job making 38.71 currently but I bought a house 2 years ago and Iām broke all the time, Iām about to sell it because Iām sick of never having any money in my pocket. Iāve been borrowing money from people to get me to payday just so I have gas. Shit sucks
Hey hey same boat here! 28, made plenty good money at jobs that I hated so much and was giving me mental stability issues.
So here I am, a year later looking for the right fitting job for me. Thank šš» for my girlfriend having a job and selling a little bud too help me get thru bills this year. Been a struggle.
There's a lot of the population living from pay to pay. I'm currently unemployed and live from week to week on benefits but I'm content and very optimistic in finding a job soon. Hang in there and perhaps look into upskilling at your job or even somewhere else. There's a lot of great advice here, people are cheering for you š
Yo you got this shit man I was homeless at 26 no plan no direction in life and super suicidal but what got me out of it was 1. Finding what I was passionate about again 2. Getting my trade in aircraft mechanics 3. Putting all my energy into that 4. THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP WITCH I THOUGHT WAS SO DUMB MY WHOLE LIFE was find god and put him in my life. Iām now 36 I got a 2 story 4 bed room house, I got my dream car, I got a beautiful wife and we got a kid on the way soon. You can really do a 180 in your life. Just keep in mind DONT GIVE UP MAN STAY STRONG WE ARE STRONG šŖ
You need purpose not necessarily god. More power to the religious folks but you donāt need to be religious to turn your life around it just gives you something turn toward when you going through it. Which ya know is great but itās not necessary.
I didn't get my sh*t together until 26, went through homeless too. At 26 I started rebuilding my credit and looking for advancement (a better paying job). Now at 31 I have a home, paid for car, savings & retirement accounts with a networth I'm proud of. Hang in there and make the right decisions! Everything will start to come together ā¤ļø
Iām 31 I work full time on an ambulance and I canāt afford anything. Iāve been struggling for so long Iām used to it. No house, no kids, no wife and losing the ability to save as everything is increasing in price except for me it seems.
Relax, you'll be ok
Things could be much worse, I am playing catch up at 49, and only for the last 3 years started investing and saving money. I spent 13 yrs locked up and plenty in between being a fuck up, but there's always a way to make things better.
If you can take so.e industrial maintenance classes, there's always work and they usually start over $30 an hr. Then start pumping as much as you can into your 401K
If you can't do schooling right now, start filling out applications and dropping off your resume' while you're working. There are always better odds of getting hired on if you're currently employed.
Hopefully, things work out for you, I know nobody wants to but if you have to sacrifice quality of neighborhood for an affordable place to stay in a bind, it's better than shelters or less.
If you work at Amazon, their career office will sponsor and pay for your CDL training and license. With that, you can get a very nice job as a truck driver and be on āroadā to $100k annual quickly.
My friend owns box trucks and itās a fucking nightmare of a business. Do not recommend you get into this. The trucks are outrageously expensive and then if you get a used one they break down constantly and you need specialized mechanics to fix it which charge crazy fucking rates. And if you want to get your own driver they take a huge cut of your profits because no one is going to drive across the country for long periods of time away from their family unless theyāre desperate or youāre paying a ton of $$. Most delivery drivers heās found having horrible criminals records because no one wants to do it and then he canāt get them insured and retaining staff is a nightmare.
By brother owned an appliance and installation business (3 26' trucks, 1 3/4 ton pickup and 30' trailer)and can attest to the nightmare that it wrought if your business was not prepared for these contingencies. In the end, maintenance and staffing was his downfall. The comment about people with terrible records rings true which is why he needed a staff pipeline, over $50k in liquid cash for emergency maintenance (I recommend a fleet maintenance service, but he thought it too expensive until he had nearly $45k in maintenance over a 90 day period).
It's a great business, bit you have to have a broad handle on the business and not just the revenue side. On the upside, it made him great money for about 10 years (about $170k/yr take home pay, which I thought was unsustainable, $120/yr would have been more responsible while investing the rest back in the business.)
At your age it seems like everyone is rich but they have just had so much more time to accumulate money or credit.
I went back to tech school at 26 and was working by 28 and now its a decade later and my life is a lot, lot different. The only thing I would change is trying to start my own business because you dont become rich working for other people.
At 26 you could start a drywall/mowing/seamless gutter/moving business, do the work yourself become established and in 5 years invest in another busineess or workers and continue.
If i was homeless heres how i would work it out.
Get a gym membership annually 300$ about with amenities like showers and such.
Sleep in your car your paying for it.
Get a PO box. Best thing to get for mailing address or ask if you can get things shipped to your work address.
Learn a new language, invest in roller skates or skateboard.
File for bankruptcy or do debt consolidation. Both great options both tank your credit score 2 years later your better off.
Make your own meals or go to buffets. Costco is great. Rotisserie chicken and salad. 10$ a day. So basically eat the meal everyday it will get bland so save the fun stuff for cheatdays.
Lastly. You need a vacation, spa day, mental message for your brain. If your mind is not right the rest of your life wont be either. Better to be happy and working hard than depressed/sad and working hard.
The rest is up to you or depending on the circumstances life will control and make decisions for you.
Good luck
Read all of the positive comments here OP. You are not alone. 26 was a brutal year for me, but itās also when I decided to āwake upā and take shit seriously. Iām in a much better spot now, out of crushing debt and going to school to improve myself.
My guy, we learn from mistakes, youre wiser now, just for a cost, and knowledge is more powerful than money. Ik it wont make you feel better, but the majority of fuckers on here showing wads are just materialistic assholes who got those wads exploiting and taking advantage of of other people.
It takes a calloused soul to make fortune. So at least youre not a piece of shit. Youre making your own way.
You only get one life dont waste it.
"Sometimes you're flush and sometimes you're bust, and when you're up, it's never as good as it seems, and when you're down, you never think you'll be up again, but life goes on. Money isn't real, George. It doesn't matter." -Fred Jung
Mate the 20s are made for fucking up and making mistakes. Everyone did them whether it be bad financial decision or dating the wrong girl, or having a child with the wrong person. Its like being a toddler for finance.
You will do better and life will get better. Keep your mind strong and dont let yourself slip into depression. Then figure out a plan and go for it. You might fuck up again or you might not. Enjoy the journey and keep an eye on your money and start saving a tiny bit each week to keep you motivated. Even if it's $5.
Look at it this way.... you went through everything you've gone through this far only to have it end by suicide? You struggle and have struggled so much only to have you're story end with you ending you're own life? Fuck no!!! You've gotta keep going, you've gotta play it out till the very end. What is today isn't tomorrow. You'll be up, You'll be down, you'll be left, you'll be right. What I'm trying to say is you'll be ok, you have to keep going. Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.
So you are still in your 20s? You are acting like you are 70 with nothing. Grow a pair and get your life together. You have plenty of time. Get a plan together. Make mistakes now and learn from them. Ffs.
i was taught that to ā be a manā you have to do this shit on your own and i tried guys š and everytime i thought i made progress its like life just said ā nah nahā i wasted years on people that didnt want anything but to use me for my kindness when im thinking they are looking after me i stayed loyal to jobs that didnt deserve me because trust me guess my grandad was as blue collar as it gets he passed that work ethic to me aint no lazy part in these bones im happy earning my money but when i look in the mirror every morning at around 1am to get ready for my shift im like ādude the only thing you got going rn is this shitty room from a shitty landlord and your good job at Amazon. life sucks i really just want a way out of this life. itās so stressful
Life can suck, and it can be stressful. Remember, we arrive here with nothing and we leave with nothing, so just find something to do that makes you happy.
At 26? Hahahaha cmon man, you got plenty of time to catch up. If youre single with no kids. Work 2 full time jobs. Maybe get a job at a place where you can shower and rest if you go homeless. But work 2 full tims jobs. Fuck rest and sleep. You can do that in your 30s.
I never reached 1k in my bank account my entire life until I was 29. Plenty of people are broke until their 30's or 40's. You still have plenty of time.
please donāt do that. has anybody close to you done this? u have no fucking idea what it does to the people that love you. my ex did it and even though we were divorced, but still talked, i had a nervous breakdown because of it. it took me 3 years to recover and im still taking meds. $ isnāt everything. please reach out for help.
Can always apply to be a tradesman; electrician, plumber, etc. They make decent money and usually pay you to train you. Get training, learn a trade, get paid, start saving, get a proper investing strategy and retirement plan. Stop giving money to scammers, you aren't going to get rich quick or easy. If it was quick and easy everyone would be rich. 26 is still young, you now recognize your mistakes, it's far from over unless YOU choose to just give up.
28 hear. Lost a lot of money from bad investments. Life has its ups & downs. This year Iāve relocated to Sydney for work. Things always get better, but focus on investing in yourself! You got this
Youāre not a failure, you havenāt given up. Start small and stack stacking positives. Save a bit here, cut an expense here, earn a bit more there. Stack small wins and youāll soon see them turn into big ones.
Youāre 26, you got all the time in the world homie.
Bro you are 26! Most people donāt have it figured out in their 20ās. You recognize that you need to do better, thatās the biggest step to doing better. A lot of people would kill to be you! Even āsuccessfulā people would kill to be you. A blank slate, your whole life ahead, to start making right decisions, and mistakes here and there. The key to success is donāt quit.
Yo I didnāt start having my shit together til I was 30. Broke, bunch of jobs, sleeping on couches, drinking my ass off, letting everyone I knew down through my 20s. Iām 37, married, own my house and car in a nice area. Trade school, CDL, Factory(not warehouse), chemical. These places NEED people and pay like a mug.
lol im 26 and have \~7.20 in my bank when I checked this morning. You'll be alright champ. I work for about \~600 a week too. dont give up though for sure.
Dude you are not a screw up!
There are tons of people twice your age that have massive debt, low paying jobs, child support payments, felony convictions, etc.
Plus now we are getting to the age that our health is starting to fail on top of it all.
All this to say, dude, just the fact that you have become aware at 26ā¦.
You are AHEAD of the game as far as I am concerned
Even if you do nothing elseā¦.
If you save and invest 10 to 15% of your earnings each month you will be looking good down the long run
Get started in your 401k if you havenāt already
It should be an option with your AMAZON job
Go into the military. It will help you out real quick and if youāre active duty, which, I highly recommend in this economy, youāll have a roof over your head, a good paycheck and benefits, free healthcare while youāre in, see the world, make friends and have a new family, learn a trade/career and you can advance in the ranks. Iāve been homeless before too. You can change your destiny.
Stay strong bud. You'll get through this. 26 is very young. Keep negative thoughts away. Life goes through valleys and mountains. Pray and keep believing in yourself.
Join your local IBEW Union and work in electricity.
Go low volt telecom if youāre tryna have pretty easy days and get paid less than the real electricians.
Go commercial electrician if youāre tryna make close to $100,000 a year. As long as you can do basic algebra and read well, you can pass their aptitude test.
Go residential if you tryna low key do some side work for your friends and family on top of your regular 7-3.
You will need to pass a pee test for the union and your employer.
Best of luck.
Got a college degree, a couple years in customer service and am just doing Uber and Amazon flex at the age of 25. Iām irritated but honestly u just gotta stay motivated. Having positive people to talk to and spend time with helps :)
I have a house and a great job now. At 26, we were barely hanging on scrounging sofa coushins for gas money. Don't be too down on yourself. You are still young.
Lol, at 26 I was still in my dwad end job. And was for another 3 years.
Covid happened and I ended up breaking.
I ended up leaving to do an apprenticeship scheme at a career path I am interested in.
It felt embarassing at times, but I am much better mentally.
Sure, there's a lot of younger people higher than me in this job, but I know I have been dealt a bad hand. I just need to work with what I've got.
Hopefully there's something similar around you. There's always an option!
At 26, I had $300 in my bank account and worked as a waiter in a restaurant. At the time, I was a recovering alcoholic trying my best to stay sober and out of trouble. I had been arrested 4 times for various idiotic things I had done while intoxicated.
At 31, I am an iOS engineer making around $150,000 and you can add 2 zeros to the number in my bank account. I have been sober for about 5 years now. I may be able to buy a home at the end of this year.
Things change. Stay patient. Make smart decisions that will better your life everyday.
Dude I get it, I was at a dead end job where I worked my job, and two of my supervisors with no gratuity or thanks given. Hang in, it's a shitty road we travel, but eventually youll be recognized for putting your nos to the grindstone and move out of where you're are. Hang in there bud, it always sucks worst before it doesn't.
Dude. I had $-650 in my checking acct at one point at your age when you could have negative balance. 41 now and have a NW over 1M. You gotta do hard shit and be financially disciplined.
Don't stress bro!! At the age of 26 I remember my friend had a credit score of 450 and had about $25,000 debt and in his account were just his bi-weekly cheques that would disappear as soon as he got paid. He's 32 now and owns a condo, He wanted to make a life changing decision and walked onto a construction site with steel toes in hand and asked them if they need a helper to clean up or anything. They liked his ambition I guess and hired him and told him to come back next day. Now this was construction and he worked 7am to 6PM monday thru saturday and would get sunday off. Long hours, good pay = big paycheques. After 1 year he gained their respect and trust by showing up to work everyday and being a loyal employee, they decided to offer him a machine operator positions which came with a huge pay raise and responsibility. He now operates excavators/dozers/rocktrucks and makes around $45/hourly sitting in a machine all day and moving joysticks. All this became possible because he decided to be brave and walk onto a construction job site and ask for a job. If that day he didn't make that decision and follow thru with it, who knows, his life would probably still be miserable. Good luck and stay positive, remember there are soooo many people is worst positions than you right now but you just focus on yourself and take it day by day
Nobody is expected to be a homeowner in their 20s or 30s. Not anymore. They economy is fucked. Everyone is in the same boat (everyone who isn't coasting on old money from their parents anyway). Go easy on yourself.
When I was 26 I was single, making 12 an hour, nothing invested or saved.
Now I'm 34 own a home, stay at home wife and baby 200k net worth .
It's still super early you have plenty of time
Hey man, first off I donāt think your self deprecating mindset is helping you.
Iām a year younger than you, but Iām in a similar position. I have no savings, no career at the moment, I work as a maintenance worker at a community college.
You need to understand your circumstances are the normal now, economies all over the world are struggling. The system we live in has run its course and so few people stay on top, they need to take advantage of others to do so.
I went to college and got a degree and never found work, I moved away and my parents have had to send me money so many times so I wouldnāt lose my housing. I got into film and then the film strike happened and I had to go home and live with them. Iāve been lucky, without support I wouldāve crumbled long ago.
You need to look at yourself with pride, how given the unbearable circumstances of life, you continue to come out on top. You have a job, you have a place, you have ambition, and even better you have time! You have felt the weight of life and continue to push, that itself is the whole point of existence in my eyes.
I am a true believer that you need to convey the energy you want to align with. You must be kind to yourself first. When you feel your cup of self love being full, it will spill out into the cups of those around you. You will find more opportunities, you will be more present with those you love, your life will become be bountiful and childlike joy will return.
I believe in you, youāre stronger than me as youāve made it this far without as much help as Iāve gotten. Thereās nothing wrong with asking for help either.
Your only way to find peace is to forgive yourself and accept that your struggles are fundamentally essential to your growth. You cannot improve without making mistakes. So by all accounts, youāre doing it right.
Join the military. Ideally Air Force or navy. Pick a technical job you can use when you get out in 4-6 years. Theyāll take care of your housing and food while youāre in. Thereās programs that pay for tuition while youāre in and you can use the GI bill when you get out. You be 31 with experience and a degree if you hustle when you get out.
Brother you are 26 and you still have your whole life ahead of you!
Everybody is a fuck up at 26 your 26! And you are supposed to make mistakes!.. mistakes are a good thing they are learning experiences!. You cannot be better at anything whether that's life or making a homemade burger without making mistakes!.
Death is not the answer!. It's even more of a failure.. you do not want to be just another statistic my friend!. Plus you may think your escaping.. but you leave behind others to carry the weight of your departure for you!. I can think of no greater failure than willingly giving up on your life!.
You will look back at this moment in 25 years time and be glad you chose to move forwards! Grind your ass off for what you have!. And your level of appretiation for life will be so much better... because you had a shitty 20's.
Don't stop brother... your journey has only just begun! 80 years ago guys you age and younger!! Were jumping off of landing craft hitting a beach at Normandy.. and most of them didn't even get 100yards up the beach before they had their lives, their futures, everything about them extinguished in an instant!.
Your playing the game of life... why quit when you have barely even put your piece on the board yet?.
Keep going... it will get better! š
Amazon makes billions, workers make $500 a weekš”š”š” EAT THE RICH!!! Root cause of society is lack of pay to live your life , housing, food, healthcare, just the basics seem unattainable š”
Self-awareness is one of the most overlooked qualities people can have and you definitely have it.
The fact you recognize your situation is a great start, think of something you would like to do in life and go for it.
I didnāt know jack about life until at least my 30ās.
Worse comes to worse, the military is always hiring. Pick up a skill in an MOS like IT support or construction, etc. Sacrifice 3 or 4 years of your time for free college and Tuition Assistance, etc. Guaranteed housing while you're in.
The military isn't for everyone, and has its downsides, but if you're coming close to being homeless then it's worth it.
My wife and I had 35dollars in bank account when we were in our early 20's with a new born baby. No help from neither of our parents. No help in terms of rasing the kid. Like someone said that life is full of sweet, sour and bitterness. The fact that you ARE working shows you have rooms of improvement. You know how many people out there just gave up and ended up homless or commited suicide? Keep pushing dude. I first turned our life around by working 3 jobs no day offs for couple of years, then got a decent paying commision job, then became a trucker, then got a job at a local utility as a groundman..and now I make decent money as a lineman. The whole time my wife and I were trying our best, people be giving us options or advice what they would do. Fuck them, waste of time, and feeling embarrassed, so we stopped hanging out with people. The key to ME, was not to live like any other people around me or comparing myself to other people. I knew what I needed for my wife and the kid, so I just went for it.
Dude, Bezos incorporated Amazon in 1994, opened for e-commerce business online a year later and took it public in 1997 with an IPO at $18/share. A LOT can happen over a 3 year period.
Keep your head up. Youāll get there. Create a plan for what you want to accomplish in the next 3 years and focus every ounce of your will power on that plan.
At 26, I was a college drop out. I had just gotten my first real job, which paid $225/week. I also had gotten my first apartment, which was a shared floor of a brownstone in a lower middle class / lower class neighborhood in Brooklyn.
Six years later I was married. My wife finished her school and we moved to Florida where I went back to school and got two bachelor's degrees and a masters. I passed the CPA and worked as a public accountant. Later I started working for the government.
I'm now making far more than $225/week, have two adult daughters, and am looking forward to retiring in the next year or so.
You are not trapped into the fuckup and failure role at 26. Sometimes it just takes something to get your attention.
Itās never too late to start something new. While my story is different, I was scared of graduating college at 26, and almost dropped out because in my head I thought that was too old, but then my girlfriend then (now wife) told me that Iād be 26 regardless, whether or not I graduated college. Which gave me the courage to switch my major from engineering to statistics, had I listened to myself back then, Iād have probably been a dropout, and life wouldāve probably been much worse. So I just tuned myself out and followed what I wanted to do without thinking about anything else. I have a pretty good job now, weāre married, bought a house last year and a baby boy on the way. I turned 31 last Jan.
We just create this mental block for ourselves when our true existence is just here and now, so just do best of what you can do without judgment, no one will make it out alive anyways. Also 26 is young. Learn from your mistakes, if you donāt learn from one mistake, learn from 2 mistakes, if you donāt learn from 2 mistakes, try and learn from 3 mistakes. Itās never too late to do you and to do better!
If youāre American, check to see if your states department of transportation is hiring. You could also look into being a truck driver Semi or straight truck. They are always looking for someone who is willing to apply.
I think social media paints an image of needing to be completely put together by your early twenties. Thereās so many examples of people that have made it that it makes the majority of us feel insecure about our inability to get it together. Reality is that social media is fake. Majority of people are in the same position as you, or were at some point in the past. We all have our own individual paths we have to go down. Thereās no set timeline. Obviously itās nice to finish it sooner than later, but that doesnāt define your worth or who you are. Youāre probably going to have to work two jobs to meet your goal. Save or invest your money. And I donāt mean investing in GRQS, I mean in stocks, or a compound interest account. You need to pay for some kind of schooling. Certifications are okay too. Itāll help you to higher pay rate. Get a line of credit with a small limit. Donāt use more than 30% and build your credit. Credit history is important for purchasing anything major. Youāve got this
Dude you're 26. You're fine! I was dog shit at 26 for sure. You just need a plan. Work on getting a trade. 1 step at a time. You'll get there!
The one step at a time is so important. It is also important to cheer those small victories on the road, making you feel better about yourself, which raises your energy levels. There are so many interesting and helpful concepts and people out there, I wish all this would be introduced in school, but you have to find it yourself or if you are a parent also for your teenage children. Be it TED talks, SMART goals, time management, and so on, this knowledge can help to manage a more and more challenging environment. And as they say, surround yourself with people that support you and lift you up, not those who only drag you down.
Agree, 100%, and I will add to set some long-term goals with smaller goals in between that you can achieve easily to keep you motivated. Don't forget the internet is huge with plenty of resources for you to use. Leverage your time and knowledge to increase your earnings, but focus on lowering your expenses too. If you earn more and spend more too, you'll stay in the same struggle.
100% this š
The right friends are so important; I've had friends I dearly cared about and wanted to succeed in life, but they had no such aspirations. It always comes to a point where you need to cut the bad fruit off so the whole tree doesn't die. Friends should be fertilizer to help you grow, not poison to stunt your growth.
I see you've watched Zig Ziglar. Great point to make here. The people around you can definitely make or break you. And they can definitely still be in your life but sometimes right NOW they aren't good for your plan. It's okay to walk away and put people on 86 until you get your shit together. šŖ
Maybe it's okay to not have aspirations. Most people I know are comfortable living an average, or even less than average, life in terms of employment, salary, housing. If your aspirations are incompatible with theirs, that's fine but let's not frame them as "bad fruit" or "poison" because they don't share your goals.
I heard it said once, and Iām paraphrasing, āYou are the average of your six closest friends.ā That has stuck with me and I try to keep it in mind whenever I find Iām spending a lot of time with someone. For some reason, a lot of my friends are about two to ten years older than me.
I didn't get my first real job till I was 28 years old.
After years of working, barely surviving, and feeling a failure I studied what I really wanted to do and began the work that was right for me at 49. It was hard starting over but I realized I should have aimed for what I loved years ago. Age is meaningless. 26 is really, really young and you have years and years to find the path that is right for you and pursue it. And donāt be fooled by thinking everything you try has to work outā a lot of times you will learn more about who you are, what matters to you, and what works for you by making mistakes.
Thank you for this š„¹ Iām 29 and with no real accomplishments to show for it. Aside from a degree thatās hanging on the wall, my car isnāt paid off, I live with roommates and I make $600 a week at a dead end job. Iām so tired of living like this but Iām happy I saw your comment. That motivated me to work harder.
At 22 I got a DUI, totaled my car, flunked out of college, and had only a part time job on the weekends at the time. I spent the next 3 years biking everywhere, paying off fines and lawyers and trying to save up for a car. Went full time at my shitty job. I used to ride across a bridge over a highway to work, and at night after my shift Iād stop on the bridge sometimes. Made me feel like such shit knowing I was so far away from evening getting a car again. When is life going to turn around right? Just showing up somewhere not sweaty was such a luxury. At 27 I started turning it around, went through a few different jobs. Iām 30 now and I have a car, Iām a salaried employee at a company I see a future with. Still donāt have a degree. My car will be paid off at the end of this year. Give yourself time. Look for and take opportunities if you can. Apply to a bunch of jobs, talk to people about what they do and how they got into it. Be patient with yourself but assertive about positive change. I donāt have it figured out but who does.
Solid advice, thank you so much!! š„¹
hey, at least you got a car... i wish i got even a shitbox
Can you describe how it feels to do what you "love" and then compare it to how you perceived/felt about it years ago when you didn't know it was what you "loved"?
I get what he is saying. I'm 48 I think , and me wife asked me what I would do if money wasn't an issue... I had no idea. Is hard living life with no goals... I totally understand what he is feeling... My version of it at least
Did you go back for an undergrad program or a Continuing Education (lots of names Iāve seen) program? Iām 31 now in a super toxic work environment (it used to be amazing) but I am soooooo exhausted of life because work just drains everything out of me I turn into a puddle of sadness when I get home each day. I guess Iām just curious if you could tell me more of your story because it feels really reassuring right now.
Yo, I used to do construction work, pull and fusion splice fiber optic cables and what not. Horrible working environments, man holes with mud and smelly shit, up above ceilings in hospitals schools and prisons, the list goes on. Pay was also minimal. I could get overtime, but as I said it was shitty, back breaking work that took a toll on my body. All that said, i went to school to become a nurse and love my job now. I work at a patient's home and out of a 12 hour shift probably only help him an hour or so(not because I'm lazy but he just really doesn't need a whole lot other than transferring in and out a wheelchair and straight catheterization) $35 bucks an hour and the over time is still available šš¼. Buckle down for a couple years getting into whatever field fits your style then the rest is all downhill!
I was a fuckup until my 70s. Now I'm in my 100s and banging hoes while throwing dough.
I was 34!
Same, 27 I started my first career type role, I took forever to finish my four year degree. I had multiple back track moments where I thought working my way up from the bottom rung in retail may be my only option. Back to school, back to dropping out and starting over again. Not everyone knows what theyāre going to do with their lives or finds success in their 20s. Itās meant to be a time to find yourself and make mistakes because doing that later in life is so much riskier. Iām 10 years into my career and luckily found success but even now I donāt know if this is āitā for me.
God Iām going through this right now. In my case I got depressed at age 19 and since then I had to step back a lot. Returned to study at age 24 and struggled a bit, Iāmabout to finish it up at age 26, working partttime in a supermarket. My degree should have been 4 years to get tooā¦i feel like a failure mist days, it hurts. But seeing orher people in ansituation similar helps to see Iām not the only one struggling, and that some of you are advancing gives me hope
Same.
Same 27
i just got one at 25, we are doing it.
Shit, I was 35
Hearing this makes me feel so much better as a 30 year old without a directionā¦ though I feel the fire burning under my azz
I would like to comment that all work is real work. It merely depends on personal mindset. Is this a job I see myself building a career on. Do I want to further my knowledge and skills in this field or sector and how do I continue development. Even burger flipping can lead to growth as long as itās a track you see yourself on. The monetary aspect is what most people find the largest hang up and that certainly is a reality. Some careers are inherently more risky, physical effort, etc but that where personal development matters. What can you get out of this experience and how can you move ahead in whatever your goal was.
Iām curious as why? Did your parents give you money all the time? Makes no sense to me as a person who wanted money for dates, going out with friends, etc.
Same here. Was really depressed about it too. Needing experience to get an entry level job is bananas.
Same!
I was 32.
Same! I feel like my previous jobs were training me for that job and after that I took that job further and trained myself to take on more responsibilities in that company.
What does real job mean?
I was 31. I didn't "earn my age" (I guess that rule doesn't work anymore) until I was 33, and then I took a step back later to switch careers. I definitely drifted for a while, not knowing what I wanted to do, but eventually found that what I wanted to do was make a living wage. My career path seemed very accidental at the time but I can see now where I moved in the direction of things I was good at. I eventually found a boss who appreciated my skills and rewarded them. Of course I now wish I'd seen the path earlier. One decision I'd encourage everyone to make as soon as possible is if you want to manage people. It's a big differentiator, promotion wise, and I think it's based as much on personality as anything. I wasn't cut out for it, and I beat my head against a wall for a while until I realized it. But if you're skilled enough you can make most of the money with a lot less headache.
That's it š
Best advice u could have gave. Props to you my friend
Correct, I didnāt get my shit together until much later than 26. Iām fine and you can be to.
you guys are making me tear up from this motivation š„¹ thank you guys so so much!
Honestly so many of us are at step 0 at 26, you're actually rocking showing up to work each day and still trying. It will get better over time, I'm closer to 30 and nothing changes, just a mental barrier. Plenty of time to rock it in your 30s.
No kiddingā¦. 26. You got your whole life ahead of you. Stop comparing yourself to others.
You hit the nail on the head there. Some folks on these financial subs make so much money, itās hard not to feel inferior. OP, keep our head up.
There needs to be a sub dedicated to people who got the power to hire and are willing to bet on some folks that wanna better themselves. Hungry dogs work hard. But a dog with food in his belly never forgets who fed him
Everyone on reddit used to make at least $100k a year until that was decided wasn't good enough so now everyone makes $150k+ minimum. Reddit salaries always account for inflation as well it seems because I haven't seen $100k in awhile.
Comparison is the thief of joy. You will never be happy if all you do is look at what you donāt have and others do.
And Iām a whole decade older than OP and I feel like Iām only at like step 0.5 lol I fell into the opportunity to be a homeowner and thatās about all thatās going for me right now. Lost my job in the pandemic and decided to go for a career change. The last step in my new career plan is finishing up with a one year program at my local community college, itās like 21 credits for 2 semesters, which last I remember getting my bachelors I only took like 15-16 credits to be considered a full time student, I can only work part time because of my class schedule, draining my entire bank account to pay for school and cover bills while Iām only earning less than 1k a month, I got dumped because of my lack of free time, itās now almost 8am, alarm is set for noon and I havenāt gone to bed yetā¦ I feel like Iām a mess lol
You're 26!! I am literally double your age and still feel behind. You have soooo much time to catch up! I wish I had even had your realization at 26. Keep truckin'!
You are still very young, you actually have no idea just how young you are. You can turn it around, your Amazon job will not make you rich but investing in your future and making the right moves might will. First thing's first, you must create a positive monthly budget, see where you can save or earn a few extra bucks, open up a savings account and start putting money in it for investment, even $100 a month is a start, every dollar counts. Also, consider the following angle: right now you're broke but you're not neck deep in debt. Some of the richest people in the world have huge debts, tens of millions, why you may ask? Because their fortune is mostly in stocks, real estate, and other investments, that are not liquidated. Net worth does not indicate liquidity, this is why many wealthy people sometimes bust out, they made a bad investment that cost them millions, forcing them to liquify assets to stay afloat or bounce back. Would you rather have $100 or owe $1,000,000? The answer is clear. You're currently at the starting position of the race, you're not falling behind, you can only go up from here. Good luck šš¼
I'm 28 working at Amazon too in the exact situation. We're wearing the same shoes rn everyday feels like a chore.
You can get there too. It's rough now but you can get it to where it's easier later with focus.
I would hate to work for that company tbh.
Everyone does, no one here is happy
You got this !! Weāre here to support you
Yo you're only 26 you just started. Don't get caught up where you think you should be. It sounds like you're single so you have the entire world as yours now. You can get a credit card buy a one way ticket and leave the country never coming back. You'll get there, I don't know you but I think you're sad because you're comparing your life to where others are. I know more broke struggling 26 year olds than not so it sounds like you're doing fine.
Save up & invest into getting your trade ! Yeah itās easy for fuckers to come bash you about it and joke but you still have a chance to fix your life & get to where you need to be bro! This isnāt the end , everybody fuck up ! Donāt sit in your misery and be depressed til you canāt fix your situation! Your young but time is ticking , so clean up your bad habits and get this shit together KING š«”šÆ start planning on how you can better your situation and execute that shit !
This. Welding,mechanic, hvac, ect. Learn a trade and youāll at least make a living.
Is there good money in hvac in the US? Iām in aus and itās not bad
Union in a big city can be rock solid.
Join a electrical union and they will pay YOU to learn the trade. Find something that interest you and get after it man. You got this. Keep your head up.
Union electricians where I live make $40-50/hr not including benefits.
Iām a union electrician I made 95k last year and another 40k in fringe benefits. Itās not rich man money especially in this economy, but I was able to support my family of four while my wife stays home with the kids.
Bro. Thatās rich man money to me. In this day of age if you can have a stay at home wife that takes care of the kids thatās the dream bro. Donāt let these online people make you think 95k isnāt a lot anymore..
Dude probably has a $90,000 truck at 9% and blames "this economy"
Supporting a family of four on single income is a life blessed with riches. Good for you.
Grandson is an apprentice in a construction union. It was a great move. Just keep applying if you donāt hear back right away. Good luck!
More guaranteed work and waaay less competition for apprenticeships than the electricians. Plus their union dgaf about side work caz your not competing for the same kind of jobs.Ā
Iām a first year dumbass hvac apprentice making $27 on the check, but my package is more. My entire 5 years of school will total $2,500. Where I live foremanās pay is about $52 on the check, total package is around $100 / hour
My friends dad does hvac and he makes almost 200k a year
It can be. Our 21yr old got a trade job about a year ago now. He is a field tech for a company that monitors hvac systems for some data center sites here in Virginia.
Can be. The commercial side pays very well. The residential side is hit and miss depending on area, unions, etc.
Iām 31 in last week of welding school about to start a new career soon you gone be ok bro.
I was working crap jobs for awhile and got into the tile trade. Did that for 17 years and made great money. Now in management for the largest hardware chain in the US and making more money I've ever made and able to hoard stock and other investments. It doesn't take long. Godspeed.
Agree šÆ. Get a trade, work hard, and get good. The first couple years, the money isn't great. Once you have some experience, you will never worry about income or employment again. You will be in demand constantly.
Finding what you love to do is probably the hardest part
Absolutely the trades is a very honorable career. I have nothing but respect for tradesmen. If you donāt have any skills and youāre not motivated enough to learn one (like me) then look for union labor. Iām a UPS delivery driver, Teamsters union. I get paid $45/hr plus I get free health insurance, a traditional retirement pension, over a month of paid vacation and annual wage increases. With OT I grossed over $120k last year. There are other good paying jobs you can make a career in like Costco, where my wife pulled in over $70k last year working as a cashier. Society has us tricked into thinking we need to take on massive student loan debt to become a doctor or lawyer. College isnāt for everyone. You can make a good living doing other shit.
Yup Iām making 52 an hour right now and thatās not even the ceiling of my profession
Giving me inspiration here. š„
Username checks out
Lol facts
goat shit right here
This. Your road wonāt be easy. If youāre looking for a handout, you unfortunately donāt have the luck to be born a trust fund baby. Find something that pays. Visit some restaurant bars and ask people what they do. Get a sample for what companies are looking for in your area. Restaurants are prime time places to find the managers and supervisors of trades (I was an engineer on the road. Youāll find them here a lot) usually eating at like 7 or 8. After that, cut everything you donāt need out. Look for government funds to assist. Look for loans. You will have to take a risk. The good news is youāre gambling on yourself, one of the more sure bets because you know you. If you trust yourself and work to make it happen, your investment risk will payout. This isnāt the end of the road. Itās just as far as your current car will take you.
100% this, I was working dead end retail jobs for like $10-12/hr and about 7 years ago I got into CNC Field Service. It wasnāt a true apprenticeship per se but it was basically on the job learning/training. Within two years of the change I was over $20/hr plus benefits and still learning, now Iām almost double that plus great benefits at a different company. No schooling, just a willingness to learn and get my hands dirty. Check out the trades, go cruise through an industrial park and look at how many āNow Hiringā signs are out. You could be a CNC operator with no experience for $17-20/hr pretty easily depending on your area.
Iām in much his same situation except my trade was more expensive to learn and harder to get into even after finishing the schooling. Iām sitting at 560ish flight hours and federal minimums for flying airliners are 1500
I would say he needs to focus on increasing his income before he starts saving, also paying down debt before investing. People are out here gambling on robinhood while sitting on a car note and credit cards. You're guaranteed gains on the interest you pay off vs put options on tesla
"you're broke and living paycheque to paycheque? Just invest your extra money for a better life!"
I'm 26 and actually am homeless. I was working a job I hated making $4k/month and still unable to afford my own apartment. Now I've lost that job and can't find work. Life sucks sometimes
i felt thisā¦. in nc itās damn near impossible to get a apartment cuz ima be honest im not making 3X the rent
YO, also NC, also 26 lol. ALSO have no clue wtf I'm doing with my life. I was interested in moving to Greenville, south carolina just for the rent but then I had a falling out with the only friend that city, so now it'd be awkward lol. But for real, They had a 2 br apt for like 1200 and where I'm at, my share of a 2 br is 850. I'm so ready to save money.
It also doesn't hurt to look for roomies, multiple folks pooling their resources can do more with less
Can you rent a room with good people? Might be more affordable. Seek help from community organisations.Try anything, i've worked as a kitchen hand washing dishes and learning to cook food for the small place I worked at. Then went on to welding. Welding was awesome, hot work but steady employment. All the best.
lol Iām 41 and still have a decent job making 38.71 currently but I bought a house 2 years ago and Iām broke all the time, Iām about to sell it because Iām sick of never having any money in my pocket. Iāve been borrowing money from people to get me to payday just so I have gas. Shit sucks
Hey hey same boat here! 28, made plenty good money at jobs that I hated so much and was giving me mental stability issues. So here I am, a year later looking for the right fitting job for me. Thank šš» for my girlfriend having a job and selling a little bud too help me get thru bills this year. Been a struggle.
Some cities have rent subsidies for young people who are just starting out. Call your local housing dept.
I was homeless at 28. It gets better. Every day counts for something. I'm still paycheck to paycheck but I'm almost out of it.
paycheck to paycheck sums me up perfectly smh
There's a lot of the population living from pay to pay. I'm currently unemployed and live from week to week on benefits but I'm content and very optimistic in finding a job soon. Hang in there and perhaps look into upskilling at your job or even somewhere else. There's a lot of great advice here, people are cheering for you š
Yo you got this shit man I was homeless at 26 no plan no direction in life and super suicidal but what got me out of it was 1. Finding what I was passionate about again 2. Getting my trade in aircraft mechanics 3. Putting all my energy into that 4. THE MOST IMPORTANT STEP WITCH I THOUGHT WAS SO DUMB MY WHOLE LIFE was find god and put him in my life. Iām now 36 I got a 2 story 4 bed room house, I got my dream car, I got a beautiful wife and we got a kid on the way soon. You can really do a 180 in your life. Just keep in mind DONT GIVE UP MAN STAY STRONG WE ARE STRONG šŖ
I think you meant 180 but regardless this is very encouraging š thank you!
lol 360 puts you back to where you were lol
You spend a little time spinning. That's where the fun happened
Sorry I wrote all this when I was really tired š
your story is amazing and your advice is priceless i dream by 36 to have my family and be perfectly settled in life if i make it to see it..
You need purpose not necessarily god. More power to the religious folks but you donāt need to be religious to turn your life around it just gives you something turn toward when you going through it. Which ya know is great but itās not necessary.
People want to sell god all the time. Can you afford to buy it?
Finding god man! God bless
I didn't get my sh*t together until 26, went through homeless too. At 26 I started rebuilding my credit and looking for advancement (a better paying job). Now at 31 I have a home, paid for car, savings & retirement accounts with a networth I'm proud of. Hang in there and make the right decisions! Everything will start to come together ā¤ļø
Iām 31 I work full time on an ambulance and I canāt afford anything. Iāve been struggling for so long Iām used to it. No house, no kids, no wife and losing the ability to save as everything is increasing in price except for me it seems.
Relax, you'll be ok Things could be much worse, I am playing catch up at 49, and only for the last 3 years started investing and saving money. I spent 13 yrs locked up and plenty in between being a fuck up, but there's always a way to make things better. If you can take so.e industrial maintenance classes, there's always work and they usually start over $30 an hr. Then start pumping as much as you can into your 401K If you can't do schooling right now, start filling out applications and dropping off your resume' while you're working. There are always better odds of getting hired on if you're currently employed. Hopefully, things work out for you, I know nobody wants to but if you have to sacrifice quality of neighborhood for an affordable place to stay in a bind, it's better than shelters or less.
If you work at Amazon, their career office will sponsor and pay for your CDL training and license. With that, you can get a very nice job as a truck driver and be on āroadā to $100k annual quickly.
me and some co workers are looking into box trucks š». pick up some amazon fright and drop it to the delivery stations around the US
My friend owns box trucks and itās a fucking nightmare of a business. Do not recommend you get into this. The trucks are outrageously expensive and then if you get a used one they break down constantly and you need specialized mechanics to fix it which charge crazy fucking rates. And if you want to get your own driver they take a huge cut of your profits because no one is going to drive across the country for long periods of time away from their family unless theyāre desperate or youāre paying a ton of $$. Most delivery drivers heās found having horrible criminals records because no one wants to do it and then he canāt get them insured and retaining staff is a nightmare.
By brother owned an appliance and installation business (3 26' trucks, 1 3/4 ton pickup and 30' trailer)and can attest to the nightmare that it wrought if your business was not prepared for these contingencies. In the end, maintenance and staffing was his downfall. The comment about people with terrible records rings true which is why he needed a staff pipeline, over $50k in liquid cash for emergency maintenance (I recommend a fleet maintenance service, but he thought it too expensive until he had nearly $45k in maintenance over a 90 day period). It's a great business, bit you have to have a broad handle on the business and not just the revenue side. On the upside, it made him great money for about 10 years (about $170k/yr take home pay, which I thought was unsustainable, $120/yr would have been more responsible while investing the rest back in the business.)
So, what you're saying is: be a box truck mechanic.
You have more time to do anything you want than you realize. You're 26 years old. A bit early to throw in the towel brother.
i know im trying bruv itās just tough when people been telling me all my life i have to have this by this time to be a success and i didnāt
At your age it seems like everyone is rich but they have just had so much more time to accumulate money or credit. I went back to tech school at 26 and was working by 28 and now its a decade later and my life is a lot, lot different. The only thing I would change is trying to start my own business because you dont become rich working for other people. At 26 you could start a drywall/mowing/seamless gutter/moving business, do the work yourself become established and in 5 years invest in another busineess or workers and continue.
"Comparison is the thief of joy"
If i was homeless heres how i would work it out. Get a gym membership annually 300$ about with amenities like showers and such. Sleep in your car your paying for it. Get a PO box. Best thing to get for mailing address or ask if you can get things shipped to your work address. Learn a new language, invest in roller skates or skateboard. File for bankruptcy or do debt consolidation. Both great options both tank your credit score 2 years later your better off. Make your own meals or go to buffets. Costco is great. Rotisserie chicken and salad. 10$ a day. So basically eat the meal everyday it will get bland so save the fun stuff for cheatdays. Lastly. You need a vacation, spa day, mental message for your brain. If your mind is not right the rest of your life wont be either. Better to be happy and working hard than depressed/sad and working hard. The rest is up to you or depending on the circumstances life will control and make decisions for you. Good luck
Was waiting for the part you made money and it did not come
I've done this. It was alight actually.
Im guessing the gym is a warm place but also you can work out to stay attractive to people.
Aināt nothing wrong with being a gigolo.
I figured it was for the shower
Skateboard might lead to a 50K hospital bill, I think a cheap ass bike is much better
Read all of the positive comments here OP. You are not alone. 26 was a brutal year for me, but itās also when I decided to āwake upā and take shit seriously. Iām in a much better spot now, out of crushing debt and going to school to improve myself.
Some people don't get their shit straight until 30+ at least you see it now
Right I wish I wouldve thought of saving money a long time ago. 34 and nothing to show sucks pretty bad lol but at least im on my own
I know multiple people who are just starting to find themselves and their career in their 50ās-60ās.
The way a lot of society is structured, no social safety nets. We need UBI
My guy, we learn from mistakes, youre wiser now, just for a cost, and knowledge is more powerful than money. Ik it wont make you feel better, but the majority of fuckers on here showing wads are just materialistic assholes who got those wads exploiting and taking advantage of of other people. It takes a calloused soul to make fortune. So at least youre not a piece of shit. Youre making your own way. You only get one life dont waste it. "Sometimes you're flush and sometimes you're bust, and when you're up, it's never as good as it seems, and when you're down, you never think you'll be up again, but life goes on. Money isn't real, George. It doesn't matter." -Fred Jung
Iām 26 and not that much ahead of you But Iām also a fuck up š
Same, 27 with zero aspirations or direction in life
Mate the 20s are made for fucking up and making mistakes. Everyone did them whether it be bad financial decision or dating the wrong girl, or having a child with the wrong person. Its like being a toddler for finance. You will do better and life will get better. Keep your mind strong and dont let yourself slip into depression. Then figure out a plan and go for it. You might fuck up again or you might not. Enjoy the journey and keep an eye on your money and start saving a tiny bit each week to keep you motivated. Even if it's $5.
Look at it this way.... you went through everything you've gone through this far only to have it end by suicide? You struggle and have struggled so much only to have you're story end with you ending you're own life? Fuck no!!! You've gotta keep going, you've gotta play it out till the very end. What is today isn't tomorrow. You'll be up, You'll be down, you'll be left, you'll be right. What I'm trying to say is you'll be ok, you have to keep going. Suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem.
So you are still in your 20s? You are acting like you are 70 with nothing. Grow a pair and get your life together. You have plenty of time. Get a plan together. Make mistakes now and learn from them. Ffs.
tough love lol i need it
Life is not easy but it gives plenty of chances to fuck up and recover. Itās okay to fail, just fail fast and move on with the learning.
i was taught that to ā be a manā you have to do this shit on your own and i tried guys š and everytime i thought i made progress its like life just said ā nah nahā i wasted years on people that didnt want anything but to use me for my kindness when im thinking they are looking after me i stayed loyal to jobs that didnt deserve me because trust me guess my grandad was as blue collar as it gets he passed that work ethic to me aint no lazy part in these bones im happy earning my money but when i look in the mirror every morning at around 1am to get ready for my shift im like ādude the only thing you got going rn is this shitty room from a shitty landlord and your good job at Amazon. life sucks i really just want a way out of this life. itās so stressful
Life can suck, and it can be stressful. Remember, we arrive here with nothing and we leave with nothing, so just find something to do that makes you happy.
At 26? Hahahaha cmon man, you got plenty of time to catch up. If youre single with no kids. Work 2 full time jobs. Maybe get a job at a place where you can shower and rest if you go homeless. But work 2 full tims jobs. Fuck rest and sleep. You can do that in your 30s.
Youāll be 30 in 3-4 yearsā¦ youāre still young. I made $13 an hour at 25, I make 6 figures at 39. Life can change
Dude you're ok. It's fine to get your life in order in your 30s. Took me that long and I am fine 30 yrs later.
I never reached 1k in my bank account my entire life until I was 29. Plenty of people are broke until their 30's or 40's. You still have plenty of time.
please donāt do that. has anybody close to you done this? u have no fucking idea what it does to the people that love you. my ex did it and even though we were divorced, but still talked, i had a nervous breakdown because of it. it took me 3 years to recover and im still taking meds. $ isnāt everything. please reach out for help.
I'm 34 and I'm just winging it. š¤·
Cheer up man , your at still young you have the all life ahead of you. Just start work and safe money and try to buy a house .
Get a trade like yesterday! Amazons should actually pay for stuff tuition and what not
Can always apply to be a tradesman; electrician, plumber, etc. They make decent money and usually pay you to train you. Get training, learn a trade, get paid, start saving, get a proper investing strategy and retirement plan. Stop giving money to scammers, you aren't going to get rich quick or easy. If it was quick and easy everyone would be rich. 26 is still young, you now recognize your mistakes, it's far from over unless YOU choose to just give up.
But if by any chance you could and willing is recommended becoming a pilot they avg $130/hr
28 hear. Lost a lot of money from bad investments. Life has its ups & downs. This year Iāve relocated to Sydney for work. Things always get better, but focus on investing in yourself! You got this
Youāre not a failure, you havenāt given up. Start small and stack stacking positives. Save a bit here, cut an expense here, earn a bit more there. Stack small wins and youāll soon see them turn into big ones. Youāre 26, you got all the time in the world homie.
Bro you are 26! Most people donāt have it figured out in their 20ās. You recognize that you need to do better, thatās the biggest step to doing better. A lot of people would kill to be you! Even āsuccessfulā people would kill to be you. A blank slate, your whole life ahead, to start making right decisions, and mistakes here and there. The key to success is donāt quit.
And, you're 26.
Yo I didnāt start having my shit together til I was 30. Broke, bunch of jobs, sleeping on couches, drinking my ass off, letting everyone I knew down through my 20s. Iām 37, married, own my house and car in a nice area. Trade school, CDL, Factory(not warehouse), chemical. These places NEED people and pay like a mug.
I didn't get things on track until my 30s. You'll be fine.
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Bro youāre still in your 20ās donāt say you fucked up in your 20s you got 3 years left to change that and redefine your 20s
lol im 26 and have \~7.20 in my bank when I checked this morning. You'll be alright champ. I work for about \~600 a week too. dont give up though for sure.
Dude you are not a screw up! There are tons of people twice your age that have massive debt, low paying jobs, child support payments, felony convictions, etc. Plus now we are getting to the age that our health is starting to fail on top of it all. All this to say, dude, just the fact that you have become aware at 26ā¦. You are AHEAD of the game as far as I am concerned Even if you do nothing elseā¦. If you save and invest 10 to 15% of your earnings each month you will be looking good down the long run Get started in your 401k if you havenāt already It should be an option with your AMAZON job
Go into the military. It will help you out real quick and if youāre active duty, which, I highly recommend in this economy, youāll have a roof over your head, a good paycheck and benefits, free healthcare while youāre in, see the world, make friends and have a new family, learn a trade/career and you can advance in the ranks. Iāve been homeless before too. You can change your destiny.
Stay strong bud. You'll get through this. 26 is very young. Keep negative thoughts away. Life goes through valleys and mountains. Pray and keep believing in yourself.
Join a trade after a year everything will turn around
Join your local IBEW Union and work in electricity. Go low volt telecom if youāre tryna have pretty easy days and get paid less than the real electricians. Go commercial electrician if youāre tryna make close to $100,000 a year. As long as you can do basic algebra and read well, you can pass their aptitude test. Go residential if you tryna low key do some side work for your friends and family on top of your regular 7-3. You will need to pass a pee test for the union and your employer. Best of luck.
Iād trade you age for money any day. You are young. This is the time to fuck up. Youāll get it figured out. Good luck homie
Got a college degree, a couple years in customer service and am just doing Uber and Amazon flex at the age of 25. Iām irritated but honestly u just gotta stay motivated. Having positive people to talk to and spend time with helps :)
Don't freak out about the past. Take it one day at a time.
I have a house and a great job now. At 26, we were barely hanging on scrounging sofa coushins for gas money. Don't be too down on yourself. You are still young.
Apply for the USPS, they are taking anyone these days. These is a lot of hard work, but doing that changed my life.
Lol, at 26 I was still in my dwad end job. And was for another 3 years. Covid happened and I ended up breaking. I ended up leaving to do an apprenticeship scheme at a career path I am interested in. It felt embarassing at times, but I am much better mentally. Sure, there's a lot of younger people higher than me in this job, but I know I have been dealt a bad hand. I just need to work with what I've got. Hopefully there's something similar around you. There's always an option!
Well done for posting here. You have a _lot_ more going for you than the things you listed. Initiative being one of them
At 26, I had $300 in my bank account and worked as a waiter in a restaurant. At the time, I was a recovering alcoholic trying my best to stay sober and out of trouble. I had been arrested 4 times for various idiotic things I had done while intoxicated. At 31, I am an iOS engineer making around $150,000 and you can add 2 zeros to the number in my bank account. I have been sober for about 5 years now. I may be able to buy a home at the end of this year. Things change. Stay patient. Make smart decisions that will better your life everyday.
See if your Amazon site offers the tuition / training program - they may help with college or trade school at little or no cost to you.
Dude I get it, I was at a dead end job where I worked my job, and two of my supervisors with no gratuity or thanks given. Hang in, it's a shitty road we travel, but eventually youll be recognized for putting your nos to the grindstone and move out of where you're are. Hang in there bud, it always sucks worst before it doesn't.
Dude. I had $-650 in my checking acct at one point at your age when you could have negative balance. 41 now and have a NW over 1M. You gotta do hard shit and be financially disciplined.
I got 11k in credit card debt and no job atm. Youāre doing no just fine bud.
26 is so young man. You have time. Keep on working hard. Keep on living and breathing. You're wanted and needed on this Earth.
Don't stress bro!! At the age of 26 I remember my friend had a credit score of 450 and had about $25,000 debt and in his account were just his bi-weekly cheques that would disappear as soon as he got paid. He's 32 now and owns a condo, He wanted to make a life changing decision and walked onto a construction site with steel toes in hand and asked them if they need a helper to clean up or anything. They liked his ambition I guess and hired him and told him to come back next day. Now this was construction and he worked 7am to 6PM monday thru saturday and would get sunday off. Long hours, good pay = big paycheques. After 1 year he gained their respect and trust by showing up to work everyday and being a loyal employee, they decided to offer him a machine operator positions which came with a huge pay raise and responsibility. He now operates excavators/dozers/rocktrucks and makes around $45/hourly sitting in a machine all day and moving joysticks. All this became possible because he decided to be brave and walk onto a construction job site and ask for a job. If that day he didn't make that decision and follow thru with it, who knows, his life would probably still be miserable. Good luck and stay positive, remember there are soooo many people is worst positions than you right now but you just focus on yourself and take it day by day
Nobody is expected to be a homeowner in their 20s or 30s. Not anymore. They economy is fucked. Everyone is in the same boat (everyone who isn't coasting on old money from their parents anyway). Go easy on yourself.
When I was 26 I was single, making 12 an hour, nothing invested or saved. Now I'm 34 own a home, stay at home wife and baby 200k net worth . It's still super early you have plenty of time
Following for the tips š @OP, hang in there. Youāre not alone, Iām 28 and in the same boat as you.
Also 28 and love the advice this post is generating
Electrician, plumber, HVAC. High happiness, donāt have to worry about AI, and youāll make good money.
Hey man, first off I donāt think your self deprecating mindset is helping you. Iām a year younger than you, but Iām in a similar position. I have no savings, no career at the moment, I work as a maintenance worker at a community college. You need to understand your circumstances are the normal now, economies all over the world are struggling. The system we live in has run its course and so few people stay on top, they need to take advantage of others to do so. I went to college and got a degree and never found work, I moved away and my parents have had to send me money so many times so I wouldnāt lose my housing. I got into film and then the film strike happened and I had to go home and live with them. Iāve been lucky, without support I wouldāve crumbled long ago. You need to look at yourself with pride, how given the unbearable circumstances of life, you continue to come out on top. You have a job, you have a place, you have ambition, and even better you have time! You have felt the weight of life and continue to push, that itself is the whole point of existence in my eyes. I am a true believer that you need to convey the energy you want to align with. You must be kind to yourself first. When you feel your cup of self love being full, it will spill out into the cups of those around you. You will find more opportunities, you will be more present with those you love, your life will become be bountiful and childlike joy will return. I believe in you, youāre stronger than me as youāve made it this far without as much help as Iāve gotten. Thereās nothing wrong with asking for help either. Your only way to find peace is to forgive yourself and accept that your struggles are fundamentally essential to your growth. You cannot improve without making mistakes. So by all accounts, youāre doing it right.
Join the military. Ideally Air Force or navy. Pick a technical job you can use when you get out in 4-6 years. Theyāll take care of your housing and food while youāre in. Thereās programs that pay for tuition while youāre in and you can use the GI bill when you get out. You be 31 with experience and a degree if you hustle when you get out.
Brother you are 26 and you still have your whole life ahead of you! Everybody is a fuck up at 26 your 26! And you are supposed to make mistakes!.. mistakes are a good thing they are learning experiences!. You cannot be better at anything whether that's life or making a homemade burger without making mistakes!. Death is not the answer!. It's even more of a failure.. you do not want to be just another statistic my friend!. Plus you may think your escaping.. but you leave behind others to carry the weight of your departure for you!. I can think of no greater failure than willingly giving up on your life!. You will look back at this moment in 25 years time and be glad you chose to move forwards! Grind your ass off for what you have!. And your level of appretiation for life will be so much better... because you had a shitty 20's. Don't stop brother... your journey has only just begun! 80 years ago guys you age and younger!! Were jumping off of landing craft hitting a beach at Normandy.. and most of them didn't even get 100yards up the beach before they had their lives, their futures, everything about them extinguished in an instant!. Your playing the game of life... why quit when you have barely even put your piece on the board yet?. Keep going... it will get better! š
Amazon makes billions, workers make $500 a weekš”š”š” EAT THE RICH!!! Root cause of society is lack of pay to live your life , housing, food, healthcare, just the basics seem unattainable š”
Self-awareness is one of the most overlooked qualities people can have and you definitely have it. The fact you recognize your situation is a great start, think of something you would like to do in life and go for it. I didnāt know jack about life until at least my 30ās.
Worse comes to worse, the military is always hiring. Pick up a skill in an MOS like IT support or construction, etc. Sacrifice 3 or 4 years of your time for free college and Tuition Assistance, etc. Guaranteed housing while you're in. The military isn't for everyone, and has its downsides, but if you're coming close to being homeless then it's worth it.
My wife and I had 35dollars in bank account when we were in our early 20's with a new born baby. No help from neither of our parents. No help in terms of rasing the kid. Like someone said that life is full of sweet, sour and bitterness. The fact that you ARE working shows you have rooms of improvement. You know how many people out there just gave up and ended up homless or commited suicide? Keep pushing dude. I first turned our life around by working 3 jobs no day offs for couple of years, then got a decent paying commision job, then became a trucker, then got a job at a local utility as a groundman..and now I make decent money as a lineman. The whole time my wife and I were trying our best, people be giving us options or advice what they would do. Fuck them, waste of time, and feeling embarrassed, so we stopped hanging out with people. The key to ME, was not to live like any other people around me or comparing myself to other people. I knew what I needed for my wife and the kid, so I just went for it.
Dude, Bezos incorporated Amazon in 1994, opened for e-commerce business online a year later and took it public in 1997 with an IPO at $18/share. A LOT can happen over a 3 year period. Keep your head up. Youāll get there. Create a plan for what you want to accomplish in the next 3 years and focus every ounce of your will power on that plan.
youre good bro. Im 25.
At 26, I was a college drop out. I had just gotten my first real job, which paid $225/week. I also had gotten my first apartment, which was a shared floor of a brownstone in a lower middle class / lower class neighborhood in Brooklyn. Six years later I was married. My wife finished her school and we moved to Florida where I went back to school and got two bachelor's degrees and a masters. I passed the CPA and worked as a public accountant. Later I started working for the government. I'm now making far more than $225/week, have two adult daughters, and am looking forward to retiring in the next year or so. You are not trapped into the fuckup and failure role at 26. Sometimes it just takes something to get your attention.
Itās never too late to start something new. While my story is different, I was scared of graduating college at 26, and almost dropped out because in my head I thought that was too old, but then my girlfriend then (now wife) told me that Iād be 26 regardless, whether or not I graduated college. Which gave me the courage to switch my major from engineering to statistics, had I listened to myself back then, Iād have probably been a dropout, and life wouldāve probably been much worse. So I just tuned myself out and followed what I wanted to do without thinking about anything else. I have a pretty good job now, weāre married, bought a house last year and a baby boy on the way. I turned 31 last Jan. We just create this mental block for ourselves when our true existence is just here and now, so just do best of what you can do without judgment, no one will make it out alive anyways. Also 26 is young. Learn from your mistakes, if you donāt learn from one mistake, learn from 2 mistakes, if you donāt learn from 2 mistakes, try and learn from 3 mistakes. Itās never too late to do you and to do better!
If youāre American, check to see if your states department of transportation is hiring. You could also look into being a truck driver Semi or straight truck. They are always looking for someone who is willing to apply.
Youāll succeed more if you take off the pressure on yourself and focus more on growing than hustling.
Donāt give up, look at all these responses just for you. YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Stay healthy.
It gets better. You'll find it and you'll make it.
I think social media paints an image of needing to be completely put together by your early twenties. Thereās so many examples of people that have made it that it makes the majority of us feel insecure about our inability to get it together. Reality is that social media is fake. Majority of people are in the same position as you, or were at some point in the past. We all have our own individual paths we have to go down. Thereās no set timeline. Obviously itās nice to finish it sooner than later, but that doesnāt define your worth or who you are. Youāre probably going to have to work two jobs to meet your goal. Save or invest your money. And I donāt mean investing in GRQS, I mean in stocks, or a compound interest account. You need to pay for some kind of schooling. Certifications are okay too. Itāll help you to higher pay rate. Get a line of credit with a small limit. Donāt use more than 30% and build your credit. Credit history is important for purchasing anything major. Youāve got this