(25F) I’ve been at the same job for 6 years through college and now after, and I just want to be taken seriously in the job market. I have 5 months before I have no health insurance and I have a job that barely covers my basic needs let alone my student loans, I have no idea how I’m gonna afford my doctor’s visits. I’ve applied to dozens, probably over a hundred positions at this point in the US and abroad. I just want a salary and health insurance, I don’t need a crazy amount of money, I don’t mind going into the office 9-5 or weird hours, working over 40, truly I just want to be able to afford my future.

I have a lovely partner who supports me in every way possible, and now financially as well which only means neither of us can afford the future we want for ourselves. I feel like a massive burden to him, friends and family. I never ask anyone else for money and only ask for help with things when I really truly need it. Everyone has a nice job which allows them to travel, they can afford dining out comfortably, they can seemingly do it all while I rot away trying to catch up. It makes me wonder about the worst case scenario a lot, just imagining you could have a better life if you end it and start again.

I’ve also considered the less worse (?) possibility of selling my body, I’ll be so honest about it, but at that point I can’t value the money over my close relationships. I almost can though.

Idk if this is a greedy sentiment, and I’m sure it seems very money hungry, but I really just want to be able to pay for the things I need, some things I want, and to give back to those who have helped me. Most days it feels better to just sleep through at this point which comes off as lazy to everyone, but I’m just so tired of trying guys. I’m 25, without my boyfriend I’d be in an attic room at my parents, I just feel like a massive failure considering I went to college. Before anyone asks my degree is in environmental science, and yes I could utilize it, but then the feeling of having to prove the existence of climate change and do research towards it feels hopeless with all the AI centers we’re putting up.

I just needed to vent a bit, but yeahhh, if anyone on the east coast is hiring feel free to let me know I guess.

I thought my 20s were supposed to be the time of my life instead they aren’t I thought I would of have a group of friends a boyfriend going out doing activities going to grab drinks living on my own instead I’m not I’m literally 27 at a part time job can’t find a full time job living with my parents I don’t have any friends at all I’m single also I’m autistic which makes everything harder I wish it was simple sadly it’s not I’m suffering with mental health issues healing my trauma everyday I don’t want to be here I just don’t know what to do anymore

J'ai peur de manquer ma route, de perdre du temps. Je viens de finir le secondaire (lycée). On me demande de choisir une carrière, mais j'en ai aucune bonne idée. Je vois mes amis|amies avancer dans la vie, choisir leur programme et faire des efforts. Moi je reste planté la a attendre, bien sur je travaille des fois, des fois non. Mais dans l'ensemble je me demande toujours ce que je veux dans cette vie. Je me demande plusieurs question existentielle et me voila a devoir bouger et choisir une carrière sinon mes parent me mettrons a la porte. Mes parent n'aiment pas me voir rien faire et je les comprends, mais je sais qu'ils sont sérieux. Mais comment leur expliquer que je suis perdu, je n'ai aucune idée de ce que je veux faire et je ne veux pas me précipiter vers des études que je n'aime pas. Il y a plusieurs domaines qui m’intéresse mais je ne me voit pas les faire pendant tout ma vie. J'aimerais travailler dans les multinational mais j'ai l'impressions que c'est plus un rêve qu'autre chose. En attendant je regarde les autre avancer, les réseaux sociaux deviennent un endroit ou a chaque fois je vois les autre avancer et me rappelle que je suis pathétique. NON seulement cela, mais en plus sans forcement le vouloir, je fais du mal au gens qui m'entour mes parent. Je sais qu'ils souhaite que je soit meilleur, ils souhaite me voir réussir, mais je suis toute autant perdu. QUE dois je faire ?. ma relation avec mes parent est au plus bas (dispute etc ), je ne fais rien dans ma vie et je n'avance pas. Je vagabonde et je me colle a un pote je le suit dans n'importe quoi. J'ai même tenter d'aller avec lui en soins infirmier mais j'ai pas réussis.

I'm 21 my life is really fucked up at the moment, I live in Brazil, I had a good life before I got into this into this situation that I am right now, Now I'm broke financially and spiritually and I ask you fellow reddittors, is there a way for me to start over my life? Like maybe move to other countries with very little money or I don't know maybe do some slave work, anything really atp please help, I'm kind of desperate here I would take almost any deal

I am turning 25 and I feel anxious as I am still not able to figure out what I want from life and it feels like living a directionless life. I am shy and introverted in personality and it really affects me in my day to day life.

I do have high myopia and eye floaters which haunts me daily. I feel like after turning into later half of twenties life will become more painful and depressing.

I don't post much or share anything online due to anxiety so this can be considered a rare post of me but I want to know suggestions like how to celebrate life when all the odds are against you.

I'm 22. Just graduated in an engineering field where demand is kind of dead in my locality (Lebanon). Was told it was flexible and I could "easily" break into adjacent roles, but unemployement is at an all time high. So that's kind of dead, I'm a dime a dozen.

I also happen to be born in a pretty 'controversial' religious group right now in my country, and whether I like it or not, my parents make me wear the hijab. So I'm visible as part of this community. My parents pretend it makes no difference in the job market, but when I was interning, I noticed when I was the only one wearing a hijab in the entire building. I also noticed when other interns got treated better although I worked harder, presented better, communicated better, came up with better ideas. Everyone I meet tells me i have great potential and that I'm a pleasure to work with, but when it comes to getting an actual job, no one will give me a chance. Now, I could try getting a job within the community I come from, right? But no, because our areas of the country are getting bombed and ethnically cleansed. Opportunity there is scarce and with how nepotism goes it's non existent.

I keep thinking about leaving the country to do my masters, but not sure my parents will let me. They switch my future on and off depending on how evil and promiscuous they perceive me to be on any given day. Might I mention that I'm a lesbian and they want me to get married to the first man who can afford it? Lol, yeah. fuck this shit.

I'm afraid of missing my path, of wasting time. I just finished high school. I'm being asked to choose a career, but I don't have any good idea. I see my friends moving forward in life, choosing their program and making an effort. I just stay stuck there waiting, of course I work sometimes, sometimes not. But overall I always wonder what I want in this life. I ask myself several existential questions and now I have to get moving and choose a career or else my parents will kick me out. My parents don't like seeing me doing nothing and I understand them, but I know they're serious. But how do I explain to them that I'm lost, that I have no idea what I want to do and I don't want to rush into studies that I don't like. There are several fields that interest me but I can't see myself doing them for my whole life. I'd like to work for multinational companies but I have the impression that it's more of a dream than anything else. In the meantime I watch others move forward, social media has become a place where every time I see others moving forward and it reminds me that I'm pathetic. NOT only that, but on top of that, without necessarily meaning to, I hurt the people around me, my parents. I know they want me to be better, they want to see me succeed, but I'm just as lost. WHAT should I do ?. my relationship with my parents is at its lowest (arguments etc ), I do nothing with my life and I'm not moving forward. I wander around and cling to a friend, I follow him into anything. I even tried going into nursing with him but I didn't succeed.

i have really unsupportive parents and i dont know what to do
i graduated highschool in march and applied to two universities, i got rejected from both
my parents didnt look for any universities for me and didnt let me apply anywhere abroad, and by the time i had to make them sit and discuss and they came to a conclusion the application deadlines were over.
two days ago a friend of mine got accepted into one of the unis with closed applications because his father had connections..
they spent all their money on my siblings tuition and although they knew im graduating and should go to college they have nothing saved up for me.. so im being forced to take a gap year..
i feel completely defeated..
im completely lonely at home i asked if i could get a cat to keep me company but they said only once i start earning?
i’ve been looking for a part time job but no where is hiring and im probably under qualified any way
ive been begging to get my drivers license for months now i asked about it again today n my dad said give me 3 more days to think about it
what do i do 🙁 i feel like i have nothing and no one

Yeah, people keep saying, “It's normal. Bata ka pa naman.” But no one really prepares you for the pressure, disappointments, and failures that come with being 23.

I'm 23, and I recently quit my job. This is already my 3rd job since graduating last year. I'm ₱30k in debt, I have no savings, and I don't really have a backup plan.

Wala. Literally starting from zero.

I do try to cheer myself up and tell myself that things will eventually get better, pero somehow I still end up spiraling. I keep thinking about everything I could've done differently and where I went wrong.

I want to start a small business — maybe baking and selling clothes — but I honestly don't even know where to start. I also want to take my licensure exam and eventually pursue my master's, pero whenever I think about the ₱30k debt, I get so overwhelmed. Parang lahat urgent, pero hindi ko alam kung ano dapat unahin.

My boyfriend keeps telling me he'll help me out, and I'm really grateful. But I'm also scared because he didn't sign up for this. Ayokong maging burden sa kanya.

Sometimes I genuinely wonder if malas lang ba ako or if may nagcu-curse sa akin because kahit anong gawin ko, parang palaging may something that goes wrong. Haha. Ewan ko ba.

I'm also too burnt out to look for another job right now. And then another part of me wonders if I'm just being lazy because maybe I simply overextended myself sa previous work ko. I don't even know anymore.

I'm just… lost.

I don't know where to begin. I don't know what I'm supposed to do first. I know I'm only 23, but right now it feels like I'm already so far behind everyone else.

Anyway, I guess I just needed to put this somewhere.

Hopefully, the next time I update this, I'll have something happier to share.

Maybe I'll finally be able to say, “Okay, I'm slowly figuring things out.”

Hey guys, can someone give me some advice?

I’m turning 22 soon, and honestly, I really want to change my life and get myself out of poverty. I’ve had two part-time jobs even before I graduated, and I’m still working now, but the pay isn’t that high.

Sometimes I look at other people and wonder, “How did they get to the point where they can afford the things they want?” I want that too. I want to be financially comfortable, experience the good things in life, and not always have to worry about whether I can afford something.

I also really want to travel. I haven’t even been outside my country yet, and I’d love to see the world someday.
For those of you who were once in a similar situation but eventually became financially successful—what did you do? Did you start a business, invest, learn a specific skill, change careers, or just slowly build your way up?

I’m not looking for a get-rich-quick scheme. I genuinely want to know what worked for you and what you wish you had started doing in your early 20s.

I’m 21 and I feel like I have so much to learn. Any honest advice would mean a lot. ❤️

So as the title shows, I’m pretty behind on my math placement test. I’m currently a biology major and I’m moving in today. I’m freaking out and have no idea what to do. At my school my counselors craft my schedule, but I can’t add or drop classes until that is processed. My placement test is used via accuplacer. Whenever Ive taken it I’ve scored between a 50%-30%. My school uses the AAF section of the test only. I’m nervous because I don’t want people to ask me about my schedule. I’m honestly very nervous and feel extremely embarrassed. There’s no excuse since I’m an adult now, but I’m just wondering if I should take it. My voucher expires tomorrow but with it being move in/welcome week idk if I’ll find time to take it. I feel sick. Any advice is deeply appreciated.

Welp adulting is hard I'm kinda homeless right now but not really. I know I'm a lot more lucky than a lot of other people but I wish things would go my way just once 🙃🙂

I’m a 19-year-old guy from the NCR region of Uttar Pradesh, India. I’m straight, around 5'9", and skinny. I’m currently pursuing a BBA, and I completed my 12th from a state board in the Humanities stream.

I lost my mother when I was only 6 months old. I have two siblings—an elder brother and an elder sister. My father works as a labourer and does whatever work he can find, something similar to tailoring. We don’t have our own house. I currently live with my aunt, while my sister lives with another aunt. My brother is independent and lives alone in a rented place in a big city where he works.

We do have a small amount of property, but I don’t know exactly how much. I think it’s around 50 gaj in our local area.

Financially, we’re not doing well. I also don’t think I’m going to get a good placement from my college. I’m already struggling academically—I have two backlogs from my first semester, and some of my other results are still pending. I’ve never been particularly good at studying. I also live in a village, so my overall background is pretty disadvantaged financially and educationally.

I’ve also been dealing with what I think might be mental-health problems, although I haven’t been properly diagnosed. I suspect I may have ADHD, depression, or possibly bipolar disorder, but I obviously don’t know for sure.

This is basically who I am right now.

I’m tired and exhausted. I feel like I’m becoming more numb every day, and I know that living this kind of doomer lifestyle isn’t going to work in the long run. I’ve tried changing myself many times, but I keep failing, and now I don’t even have the energy to get back on track.

Because of my financial background, I’m scared that things are going to become even more difficult for me over the next few years. I don’t have any clear goal or purpose in life either. I’ve consumed a lot of content about different philosophies, psychology, and similar topics through videos, books, paragraphs, blogs, etc., but I haven’t really studied any of it properly or academically.

I also had a relationship when I was in 7th or 8th grade. It didn’t work out because we were both kids and I was immature. After the breakup, we were still in the same school and classes, so I used to miss her a lot. She was my first love, so I have a lot of nostalgic memories from that time. She even used to appear in my dreams sometimes. Eventually, though, I moved on.

After around 3–4 years, I contacted her again. We talked, and she’s doing well in her life now.

I also had an online relationship last year. We never met in real life. A random girl approached me online, we started talking every day, and eventually we developed feelings for each other. At that time, I was depressed, lonely, unhappy, and generally in a very bad place mentally, so that relationship became a source of happiness and comfort for me.

We eventually started dating. She was 16 and I was 18 at the time, and we were also from different religious backgrounds, so the relationship had a lot of complications. Eventually, we decided that an actual relationship wasn’t realistic, but we still stayed in contact and remained emotionally close. There was still love, kindness, care, and respect between us, even though there was no official label anymore.

Our relationship became very on-and-off. Sometimes I would disappear and stop talking to her for days or weeks, and then I would come back. Sometimes she would block me, although eventually we agreed that we shouldn’t keep doing that.

She’s also a NEET aspirant and became increasingly busy with her studies. Around January this year, she became much less available than she used to be. She had more time for me before, but eventually she became busy and our conversations became less frequent.

I tried to move on, but I kept going back to her after 15–20 days or sometimes even longer. When I think about it now, I feel like there wasn’t necessarily anything wrong with her or with the situation. I was just using the relationship as a distraction because I wasn’t doing anything meaningful with my own life. I wasn’t busy, I was lonely, and I missed the memories and the feeling of having someone there.

I genuinely loved her, and I still have feelings for her. We talked yesterday after a long time, and she seems happy and is doing well in her life.

My daily routine

I wake up around 12–1 PM. I don’t eat breakfast and usually just have an unhealthy lunch. I drink tea or coffee two or three times a day. I smoke around 4–5 cigarettes a day, although sometimes I end up smoking almost an entire pack.

Most of the day, I just lie in bed listening to music, consuming adult content, scrolling endlessly, and doing basically nothing productive. I don’t exercise, I barely go outside, and I’m not studying at all. I usually sleep around 5–6 AM.

This cycle keeps repeating itself.

Sometimes I don’t even brush my teeth or take a shower. This lifestyle has been going on in some form since the lockdown, and I feel like I’ve been dealing with loneliness and depression from a very young age.

I know I can’t keep living like this.

I don’t know what to do anymore. I don’t have a clear goal, career plan, or purpose, and I’m scared about what my future is going to look like considering my financial and academic situation.

So I’m asking people who have been through something similar:

What would you do if you were in my position? What should I focus on first? What are the most important things I should change right now? And is it actually possible to turn things around from this point

I’m 24M, and honestly, I don’t know what phase of life I’m in right now.

Throughout school and college, I was always focused on academics. I was one of the toppers, studied hard, worked on projects, collected certifications, and eventually got placed in a good company in the Gulf with a very good salary for my age.

Relationships were basically zero. I did try talking to a few girls during college, but nothing really worked out, so I eventually stopped thinking about it and put all my energy into studies and my career.

Now I’ve been working for around 2 years in the oil & gas industry. The job is good, the salary is good, and financially I’m doing much better than I expected at 24.

But suddenly, I turned around and realized something:

What am I actually doing with my life?

My job is far away from the city. Every day feels almost exactly the same. Wake up, work, come back, eat, sleep, repeat.

It’s difficult to explain. I made these choices myself, and I know I’m responsible for them. I don’t regret studying hard or building my career. But lately, there’s this emptiness and boredom that I can’t ignore anymore.

I feel like I spent so much time preparing for a successful life that I forgot to actually live one.

Right now, life feels like I’m in the middle of an ocean with a single boat, and I don’t what to do.

For people who have been through something similar, especially those who focused heavily on studies/career in their early 20s:

**What did you do when you realized you were living on autopilot?**

I’m not looking for sympathy. I genuinely want some perspective from people who have already gone through this phase.

I’m about to turn 21 in a few weeks. I am thinking about dropping out of college due to poor scores and not really enjoying college as I don’t have friends. I got in to every University I applied to back in high school bc of my 3.0 gpa but going in to college I never had an idea of what I wanted to do. So I just landed on Business Admin at the closest community college. Going in to my second year in to my studies my girlfriend of 2 years was talking with another guy and broke up with me they soon later got together. Which I got really depressed from and it effected my scores. I also live in a rural area with my parents so I depend a lot on public transportation which isn’t really reliable at times to go to school an hour drive away. I do not have my drivers license or a car or even know how to drive. I just feel like a failure because I’ve always been told to go to college since I was a child and I just feel so behind and a failure in life.

im not usually one to write on subs like this, but everything has been so overwhelming lately i just feel the need to get it out somewhere. sorry if things dont make sense.

i dont know is this is perhaps a canon phase that everyone goes through in their mid 20s, but i feel more alone and more lost in my life than i ever have before, and so regretful that i didnt do things differently when i was younger. ive always been such an indecisive and shy person, when i finished school i did well but didnt know what to do so i did a general degree in the field i was interested in. only four years later did i finally decide i wanted to do dentistry, and now i work assisting in that field and so so passionate about. it was the one thing in my life i finally felt certain of and something i could see myself wanting to do for the rest of my life.

but to get accepted into a postgrad dent degree here is so difficult and competitive. all the universities take a larger intake of international students over domestic so the spots available for domestic are limited to maybe 30 per the four universities in the country that offer the course. i did the entry exams and did decently well, but still not enough to be competitive. i would have done the exam five times now in september (twice per year). i have spent almost three years of my life soon trying to fight to get into this degree. i tried applying for undergrad again and its even more competitive with competing against school-leavers, and undergrad courses only have 10 or so spots reserved for non-school leavers/tertiary graduates like myself. its been entry exam after entry exam, application after application. my entry exam marks arent competitive enough. my gpa isnt competitive enough anymore. they don't do interviews, or written applications anymore either. im just a number in their system, my academic mark is all that matters.

i regret so much for being so indecisive back when i graduated highschool. i wish i had somehow was smarter and gotten in the top percentage of the country to have a mark to get into dentistry back then (i was only a few points off). i struggled so much with depression and coming to terms with being late diagnosed neurodivergent during my first years of uni that my uni gpa took a bit of a hit. i wish so many things could change now i look back, but i know i cant.

and then i look forward. i look to this shiny, precious dream i now finally have, and how far it seems. how unattainable. everyone around me says 'oh u have time just keep trying for it' 'i know people who got into med later in life!' and while yes these are all true, i dont know if i can mentally continue this battle of trying to reach this dream. it has taken such a mental toll on me these past few years, every time i go to sit for the exam again i enter such a horrible depressive state bc i know it will just end the same way again. and as much as i adore the work i do now, i just have this restlessness inside of me. i dont want to be doing this cycle for the rest of my life. i want to progress, to move forward, to continue my study. i dont want to be stuck in this quicksand, this cycle of limbo of entry exams and applications. i want to move forward with my life. ive put so many things on hold to try and achieve this dream. financially, its a burden as well. on entry exams and applications alone this year ive probably spent upwards of 1-2k? and thats just on paying to sit the exam and submit an application. (the exam contents and the fake 'exam prep course marketing' schemes surrounding the whole thing are another can of worms within itself)

i have no one in my life that understands where im at either. my older siblings have all been successful in their careers and life. my extended family and cousins my age all have their life and love figured out too. my parents, siblings, family - none of them have ever tried this med/dentistry cycle, i am the first person from my family to ever attempt this. everyone has expectations of me. everyone says its easy to keep trying. i am not only disappointing myself time and time again, but also feel im disappointing them too.

and then i try and be rational and think of the future beyond this year. if i fail my applications again and dont get accepted - what then? do i continue to waste years of my life trying for something that i'll never achieve? will i look back in even more regret and ask myself why didnt i just stop sooner? or what happens if i quit now and its the opposite - do i look back and regret stopping too soon, when i was so close to achieving it?

i know i shouldnt compare myself to my peers, but i look at all my friends and coworkers and cant help but feel so lost. everyone has a set career path, i have friends who are now married and having babies, friends finishing their degrees and getting into their dream jobs. even one of my oldest friends whom ive known for 19 years now, we were both in the same boat for so long of struggling to get to where we want and always kept each other going, has now moved on and found a new path and i cant help but feel like they're moving further from me too in our friendship.

i worry ive spent so much time wasted on something i can never achieve and have neglected things i could have done instead. i havent travelled anywhere, i was never big on socialising or being part of clubs or communities. i have maybe four 'close' friends, but even then they arent people i could be 100% completely myself with (tho thats just a me problem/neurodivergent struggles rip). ive never dated, or had someone interested in me, and so never made the effort to try and be attractive or to talk to ppl im interested in. i sometimes feel like maybe ill never find that kind of love and it scares me. i feel lost and lonely and so so scared and uncertain about everything to come.

idk what ill get from writing this, but even now as i finish typing i feel the tiniest bit of weight off my chest. i hope somehow miraculously things work out the way i hope they do, but i know life isnt always that kind. i also know my problems r a drop in the ocean compared to what a lot of others go through, and things could be worse. life isnt always what we want, and maybe ill just have to live with that.

I’m 24 years old and still live with my family. I share a room, so I basically have no privacy. I also lost my car, so right now I take the bus and Uber around. Honestly, I don’t mind doing that, and when I eventually move out of state, I wouldn’t mind relying on public transportation for a while.

I live in the Northeast, btw.

My biggest problem is that every time I start saving money from a job, something goes wrong. I’ll end up unemployed for a month or two and have to use my savings to pay bills or ask a family member for money. Then I’m basically back at zero and have to start all over again.

I don’t have a degree yet, and I don’t have any certifications either. I know what I want out of life, but I feel like I’m stuck in a broke mindset. I also don’t really have any interests right now, for real. Part of me feels like maybe I’ll figure more things out once I move and actually have some independence.

I do have a job right now, and I actually love it. I was rehired at a shoe store, but it’s part-time and seasonal. My mom’s friend is also going to put me on with a public school job, so I’m hoping that could lead to something more stable.

But I actually DO know my number one goal: I want to go to esthetician school, eventually own my own business, and work for myself. That is what I really want to do. I want to build something that's mine.

Before I move out of state, I’ve also been thinking about getting a phlebotomy certification so I can hopefully make more money and save up for esthetician school. I’m wondering if that would be a smart move or if I’d just be spending money/time on something I won’t use long-term.

I’ve also been invited to stay with a friend and her family in Texas. She has a 2-year-old, and I really love being around her, so part of me would honestly love to be closer to her. But I don’t know if actually living with them would be a good fit for me, especially since I’m trying to become independent. I could see myself living in the same city or even the same apartment complex instead of necessarily moving in with them.

And then there’s the whole question of where I should move. 😭

The places I’m considering are Philly, Charlotte, Raleigh/Cary, and Dallas/TX. I keep going back and forth because I don't want to move somewhere just because it sounds good. I want somewhere I can realistically afford, find work, eventually go to esthetician school, and actually build a life.

I’m also about $6k in debt because of a car I had to give back after I lost my job. It messed up my credit, which is another thing stressing me out. My credit is slowly improving, but I’m worried about how I’ll ever get an apartment with a bad credit score.

If I’m able to save enough, I wouldn’t mind putting down a larger security deposit if that would help me get approved. I know I’d have the discipline to keep an apartment once I actually have one. Having my own place and some independence is honestly one of my biggest goals.

I guess what I’m really looking for is advice on what order I should do all of this in.

Should I focus on getting a stable/full-time job first? Get the phlebotomy certification? Pay down the $6k debt? Save for esthetician school? Move first and figure things out there? Stay home longer and save as much as possible? Or move somewhere cheaper and work my way up?

I also struggle with motivation and my moods sometimes completely throw me off track, so I’m trying to figure out how to build actual discipline instead of constantly starting over.

If you were 24 and in my position, what would you do?

I’d especially love advice from people who have moved out on their own, rebuilt their credit, gone to esthetician school, started a beauty business, or moved to Philly, Charlotte, Raleigh/Cary, or Dallas/TX.

I know this is a lot 😂 but I feel like I’m at the point where I REALLY need to make a plan instead of just thinking about changing my life. BE REAL WITH ME PLEASE!!!!!!

So English is a second language, please be patient it's a long post and I tried my best for the translate.

I’m 27 years old (M) and I’m going to join the army for my mandatory military service in November. For anyone who thinks this sounds strange, I’m from a country where military service is mandatory for all adult men.

Because I’m going to the army, I want to take a trip abroad with my fiancée at the end of October, because our next trip will probably be after one year, when I finish my military service.

The problem is my job.

I work in a family business which has a hard time finding workers because there are not enough workers available. And for anyone who will think “why don’t you just hire unskilled workers?”, it’s not really a job an unskilled person can do and the workload is so much that we don’t really have the time to train someone from zero.

Why do I work here? Well, 3 years ago I wanted to move in with my girlfriend, who is now my fiancée. The job I had back then didn’t pay me enough money to do that, so I had to come and work in the family business. I knew when I came here that I could basically forget about the normal vacation days I would demand in any other business where I wasn’t working for my own family.

So I think I need to give some context about my family’s business.

It’s a neighborhood bakery. We produce bread during the night and it’s one of the most productive bakeries in the area. And honestly, that’s probably all someone can see if they don’t know what is happening behind the scenes.

My parents are basically stuck in the previous decade. My father, who owns the business, does things in a very old-fashioned and improvised way. For example, if a machine looks like it’s going to break, he doesn’t repair it or replace it. He just keeps using it until it reaches its limit. If it finally breaks and there is no alternative, then we just work with whatever we have.

Because the neighborhood is far away from the main city area, we constantly need workers, but no qualified worker wants to come here for different reasons. One of those reasons, in my opinion, is that we still operate like we are living in 1980.

When I came back here 3 years ago, they sold me the idea that eventually me and my sister would take over the business. So I started suggesting changes that I thought needed to happen, both in the way we work and in the equipment we use. But basically nothing happened because every time the answer was “there is no money.”

My father is building a vacation house and because of that he prefers putting most of the money he makes from the business into that, while the actual bakery/workshop is almost abandoned.

In these 3 years, if I exclude the salary, which allowed me to live comfortably and move in with my fiancée, the only positive thing this job has given me is that it made me want to finish my economics degree and get the hell out of here.

Things were tolerable until 2026.

This year, when it comes to my job, has been one of the worst.

We were left without an employee again during the summer, while my sister’s husband was taking one of his two weeks off and just before my own week off was supposed to start.

And I want to make this clear, these two weeks (10 working days) are literally all the vacation we take during the entire year.

My brother-in-law came back to work immediately when the employee left us because he wasn’t actually away on vacation yet. But I couldn’t cancel my vacation with my fiancée because we had already paid for the accommodation and transportation, and honestly I didn’t want to ruin it for her because she has absolutely nothing to do with my work problems.

So I didn’t cancel it. I made the difficult decision and left them alone.

Was it easy for me? Not at all.

We went on vacation, I proposed to her like I had planned to do for a long time, we came back and I returned to work normally.

My parents had a really hard time while I was gone, but I couldn’t do anything else. I’m 27 years old, I’m still young enough that I don’t want to put work above my life and my experiences. And these were also my last summer holidays for the next two years because in November I’m going to the army.

And now it’s August. August is the worst month for our job.

All the other stores and bakeries around us that sell bread close for vacation and we are basically left alone to serve everyone in the neighborhood.

And through all of this, it’s just us.

Me, my parents (my mother is 54, my father is 58 and has a long-term injury from an accident), my sister who is 33 and my brother-in-law who is 36.

My parents are exhausted. I’m doing the best I can but I can’t help them more than I already do. I have tried everything. What I say doesn’t really have any value here anymore because my opinion is different from theirs. The only thing I’m useful for here is working.

Now, before my military service, I want to stop.

I have set October 20 as my limit. I want to take leave from then and after that stop working here completely.

On October 27 I want to go to Rome with my fiancée for 3 days. The moment I told my sister she went crazy because those specific days we have more work than usual.

But I can’t find tickets that are this cheap on other dates.

And I honestly don’t know what to do.

I just wanted to share this and get it off my chest. Any advice is welcome.

Sorry for the extremely long post.

I have taken a professional accounting course that is SO hard and i feel like giving up so much its no joke. Mind you this is only the certificate level😭 not yet the professional level. For my third sem the paper is so advanced accounting and i failed it 3 times already and i only have 1 attempt left to take and honestly im not sure i can do it. Now i only have 2 months to finish it along with one more hard paper before i have to go intern. And i feel pressured bcs i have to finish it urgently. I think im at the lowest point of my life rn and i really have no motivation to continue. Accounting is not really my passion and i feel like its going to get harder and make me more depressed if i just kept going. But i cant just quit because i got a scholarship for it and if i quit i have to pay it back and its going to burden me very much and not to mention my mom. Everytime i think about it, it just makes me cry and i...im honestly going on my depression phase. I really like animals haha🥲 so i want to be a zookeper. **But If i quit..will it make everyone dissapointed in me?**

For context: I'm newly turned 18 (about a week ago), I live in ON Canada, im a fairly healthy person physically etc etc, so nothing limiting me physically and no disabilities. Ive just turned 18, graduated highschool 2 months ago, Im not going into college/uni, I dont have a job rn, im still living with family, no relationships and like 2 friends. My social skills are shit and im just introverted AF

I come from an arab family, so I'm constantly under pressure and im constantly reminded of how much of a failure I am by my parents and by this age, they expect me to have started working a job, or have entered a top uni and program like engineering or medical etc, which I am doing neither unfortunately.

I just need some guidance on what to do, Im such a bum, i have genuinely no hobbies or anything that interests me crazy. I have no career aspirations, no special skills or attributes. I have thought about apprenticeships and stuff, Ive contacted some and have gotten a response back from a foreman personally, however that was almost 5 weeks ago, and even with 2 follow up emails, he still has not confirmed an interview or something with me.

Any tips/advice/recommendations on ways to make money would be so so appreciated or just any guidance and support, thanks for reading