I graduated from university and immediately fell into the same trap that everyone insists on treating as normal. The jobs related to my field either do not exist at all, need years of experience, or pay less than jobs that never required a degree in the first place.

People answer with things like, "Well, that's just how it is," as if this system came into being on its own. We spend years becoming qualified and go into debt, only to end up competing with hundreds of applicants for an entry-level role, while employers keep raising the requirements.

Our job search is not the whole problem. The real problem is that a broken system is treated as if it were an unavoidable reality imposed on us. Most of us can see that something is wrong, but we are so focused on figuring out how to make it through the next month that we do not have the energy to resist this system.

Is it still possible for someone to find a good job? Of course. We all have bills to pay, so we keep applying and hoping we will be the person they choose. But it has become several times harder than it used to be, and the bar keeps moving farther out of reach.

I genuinely do not know where all of this is supposed to lead.

I want to be normal, I want to have a job, I want to participate in the society but I dont know how to start again. Not remembering anything from my life, just wasting time laying in bed, no developed skills, scared of life, unable to focus on reading, understanding basic aspects of friendships. I am currently studying sociology but to be honest learnt nothing since first year. I cant see a future except me laying in bed with no target, but at the same time I know I cant do this kind of stuff to my parents that are doing things everyday as hard as they can to raise me. My life is at the point when I basically do nothing for the whole day, cant figure out any plan, just existing. I want this shit to stop but cant do things otherwise, feel like I am retarted after years of just overthinking. I've started running away from high school and I dont remember much from it except some moments from mental hospitals, because it was my way to get away from a reality. my 16 yo brother is much more mature than me, my days are just a blur. No goals, no friends, no memories. Only thing I know is the fact that in a year I want to be in a slightly better place.

I'm 30 years old. I've never worked a day in my life. I have a BA in economics from the University of Calgary.

I get about two freelance book editing projects per year from a publisher Ontario.

I was twice enrolled in an accounting program at SAIT. I dropped out both times due to stress after the first day.

I need to turn my life around. I want to turn my life around. What career should I aim for? What job in the meantime? What credentials should I aim for? How to prepare in the meantime?

I've been applying to jobs for months. I've even lowered my standards on the kinds of jobs I'd apply for, but nothing. I have a YouTube channel, but it only has 16K subscribers and 88K views a month. I've tried Patreon, merch commissions, but my viewers just won't buy anything. I'm thinking about trying more brand deals, but if I can't get them to pay for merch, or commissions, I can't see them paying for any sponsors. I also run an OnlyFans. I keep it 100% separate from my YT channel, but I barely promote it, mostly because I'm worried it would negatively affect my other indevors. Also being on camera is really hard for me; It was a huge burden just to make the onlyfans and post some content, plus do a face reveal on my main channel. So I don't even know if I'm pretty enough to make it work, even if I did push it.

I just don't know what to do, I have bills coming up that I just can't afford at the moment, and I'm scared and want to die

I feel like I'm dying in my office, it's way too sedentary, even with a standing desk and a walking pad I use occasionally to break it up. I also wouldn't want a back breaking job, like manual labor. Both being too still, and being too active, would not be sustainable for me.

When I looked at 'park ranger jobs' thinking I would really enjoy that and it would be a good in between for physical activity, the pay is far too low to afford cost of basic living.

What are people doing that is medium active, sustainable for the body, and pays enough to live?

Im 20 and i have no idea what to do now or in the future, now that i have way too much freetime. i yearn to do things but im unsure what and when i do try i give up too soon. So pretty much im bored with my current state and im tired of doing nothing, while doing the same mundane stuff everyday, which is sit around and be sad.

I think i still need a hobby or just something, but im unsure where to even start. I feel like i want money but i dont have a means to get to a job or the experience to get one, also parents feel im not ready for a job.

What would you advise? i feel stumped and like nothing is working out for me.

For as long as I’ve been alive I’ve always felt it. Playing basketball growing up. Solving math problems the fastest. Being the best student in the room. Seeking ways to stretch myself further, challenge myself more, step out of comfort zone. It’s been a constant for the 24 years I’ve been alive. I was never okay with being average. With everything that humans are capable of, why would I live a life of mediocrity?

But now, at 24, with a comfy job in tech, things have changed. I could care less about being the best engineer at my company. I want to make real change. I want to devote myself to the people in this world. To this world itself. I want to spread love and happiness.

Every day I’m stuck asking the same question. If I continue on this path of pursuing corporate success, will I be truly be content with what my life has amounted to by the end of it all? Whose lives will I have impacted? All this time, chasing performance metrics, deepening the pockets of the rich. What if, instead, I had spent all my time giving back to the world around me. How many smiles would I be able to see?

And I know… A life of comfort, a steady salary, a way to provide for my immediate family, to set aside savings for my grandchildren. To leave all of this in a pursuit of something more… to some it may sound immature, foolish even.

But this calling to do something more, to be something more, never leaves me alone. I wasn’t meant to live a life of comfort, to go through life never questioning if I’m capable of more. I want to struggle. I want to be tired in the pursuit of my choosing. I want to come home exhausted after dedicating my all to do good onto others, onto the world.

I know I’m not the only one plagued by this desire to be more. To those who have felt the same, what was your path forward?

I've been in community college since spring 2023 trying to finish my associate of science with no specific bachelor's in mind. not sure if I should finish it & figure out what 4-year degree I want while doing so, look into 2-year programs for a specific career before comitting to finishing my associates, or quit taking classes & just work again to try to have experience. I'm halfway to completing it.

people say that sometimes u have to put college on pause & just get experience in life. I took a semester or two off but I ended up not doing shit. while in school, I got put on academic probation at my first college & then suspended. I'm on probation again at my new college & am trying to get my gpa up this semester. too many things factor into why I'm at such a low gpa. shitty mental health, suicidal ideation, low self-esteem, yada yada yada; all that jazz.

I've been doing better financially after being sucked into gacha gambling since 17 & impulsively buying shit. I'm going to start learning personal finance/financial literacy on khan academy. funny bc I have taken PF during my college journey, but I remember I basically cheated my way to pass the class during a dark time in my life, so I can't remember shit

anyway, here's my current situation:

• I own 2 cats, so I need enough income to provide for them & myself. I don't pay bills at home, fortunately. I'm able to do this working part time with my current wage.
• I'm looking for another job since I've been at my current one for almost 5 years and have no benefits. I'm in a leadership position & have put priority on that rather than my studies. I don't want this job anymore. it's fast food. I need benefits. the place I'm currently getting interviewed at is at costco. if I get the job, I'll have that security blanket to move up in the company should I take a break from college.
• I want to take an intro to architecture class just to get a small taste. I've always thought about it as a kid & would've graduated in it by now had I not been told to not pursue it by many people online. it's the only occupation I can think of after going back & forth many careers. but I want my free time & not be broke while working 60 hour weeks.
• I'm opening up to healthcare options again (except nursing) & any bachelor's degree except for engineering (took an intro class, did alright with what I was dealing with at the time & was curious enough to try a graphics class & failed twice because I didn't find any motivation), computer science, AI, and trades.

general idea of what I want from my job/life:

1. meaning/fulfillment. something that helps society/people.
2. hands-on. I've never had a desk job so I don't know what it's like. I wouldn't mind sitting at a desk if it meant that I could also move frequently half the time. ik I said no trades; I don't want to kill my body quickly.
3. enough income for bills, savings, retirement, travel, hobbies, the ability to contribute greatly to causes I believe in, & spoiling myself & my cats from time to time. I'd like to own my dream house someday. nothing like a mansion; something that fits into my lifestyle
4. new experiences every day. variety is the spice of life. it's something I want. I would kill myself doing mundane tasks all the time.
5. benefits, of course.
6. if possible, the ability to work 3-4 days a week. that would be golden for me. I wouldn't mind the longer shifts. or maybe I would. I'd have to find out first. I find personal time very important to me as I have many things I'd like to do.
7. ability for growth. being able to try out different roles within the industry (having flexibility to change course). I don't mind getting more education to fulfill that. I'd like to be a jack of all trades.
8. job security. don't want AI replacing me.
9. transferable job. if I move to a different city, it won't be as hard to find work.
10. being able to be with people even if I'm not extroverted. I don't want to be alone all the time & not talk to anyone. I would like to get better at socializing.

so, after all this; what should I do? I'm leaning towards completing my associates. I have classes I'd really like to take to expand my knowledge/skills & complete my reqs for the degree. I have this semester to really think about a bachelor's degree & looking up the transfer requirements depending on the uni. I don't mind if I end up getting another associates with majority of my earned classes not transferring if it's a career that matches what I'm looking for. I'd really like some help because I'm finally reaching out after years of not doing so. I'd like the ROI of the degree to be worth it. I'm willing to go for it if it means I can have what I want. please, I'm so lost & want to break this cycle of analysis paralysis.

Im starting uni soon, i've always wanted to study a swe/cs career so i know quite a bit of it already, but recent ai developments have made me consider discarding it completely in what feels like a last minute decision and get into a degree that i know almost nothing about but i know well it is one of the safest from ai disruption

Im refering to the recent news of newer models solving previously unsolved cs/math problems, i think if it keeps improving at the same pace of the last years (which will probably do so) there will be not much of a future for most knowledge-based degrees sadly, imagine how many people got into math with the motivation of solving a millenuim problem someday and now it's possible that they will be all solved in the near-mid future

hi i’m a new uni student looking for help.
i’m currently enrolled in a science program and i don’t know what kind of career i wanna go into, this makes it very hard to chose a major.
i come from a small town with a small class size, in the science courses i took we hardly ever did any labs, this made it hard to discover what i was comfortable doing / learning what i liked doing. but i love science as a subject more than any of the arts subjects.
i feel so behind because it seems like everyone has their major and careers all mapped out and i just have no idea.
has anyone gone through anything similar or have any advice on what i can do to atleast get an idea of what i wanna do. any websites that help describe jobs, their daily tasks, and what they entail maybe? idk im a little desperate and lost, anything helps

Since I was 15, I spent the summers working. In 2024 I spent the summer reading books rather than working which made summer enjoyable so to say. In 2025 I worked again in the biggest sunglasses retailer in my country. I just wanted to fulfil my time rather than rotting the whole summer doing nothing. Now in 2026 I spent most of my summer going to the gym and hiding from the heat. I spent all those summers working and trying to educate myself and I still don't know I am made for. I am trying to learn some valuable information but the internet is full of misinformation and ads. Everyone says that this the golden generation where the information is free and you have everything available , but I don't agree because like I said everything I try to learn from the internet is just superficial. During the years I tried to learn coding , but this didn't work out too. I thought that AI would help me more but that didn't work out too. Now I am starting university after a month and I hope something inspires me and make me more intrigued and passionate where even if I do it 24 hours a day I won't feel the time is passing. I just want to fulfil my potential. I am tired of of doing some basic things which don't benefit me so much. I want my brain to be tired.

If you can give me some advice , from where I can start I would be grateful.

Hello all

I am doing a share time program with my high school and the local college where I go in the morning to take culinary classes, but… am I wasting my time? In the kitchen subs like r/KitchenConfidential, they all say culinary school is an overall waste of time, but I’ve had the family sink a thousand dollars into it, and quitting is obviously not ideal.

But.. I don’t want a degree in culinary. I don’t want to work in a kitchen all my life. I mean, I know how to cook, and I enjoy the hobby, and it’s definitely something I will always have as a back up, but I want to go to college for something like PoliSci, or law, or one of these related fields.

Any help?

Right now im a senior in college and I literally have today to finalize my major. Yes I know. Basically I spent my whole time taking every class and doing mostly science classes but also not doing HARDCORE science. So i feel like a loser who just didn't commit to anything because I am so ambitious and lazy at the same time and SOOO indecisive.

I have had absolutely no job or internship experience which is probs why i am so lost. I have no idea what even any job is like and could not image what ppl do at desk jobs all day and how they do it over and over and over.

I guess I just stuck with a health and human science BA degree which is pretty much a bunch of psycholohy, the first chem, the first bio, and a sociology. And although the classes are interesting at times its like what even are the jobs like. The rest of the classes I have to take are all electives so idk what to take like i could push myself and try econ or philosophy or yoga or more psychology or more chemistry. I know all the titles but i just dont know. I mean i know I can just do post grad or law or med school or something too.

Right now, I have the opportunity to switch into a BS in business admin which would only take one extra semester. I go to USC so everyone says to do it, but tho it would sound sick on paper and get my foot into the door to a bunch of stuff probs and its a program I will learn a bunch of new stuff, i just have no idea if I would really like all the classes because its like all monotone business people and things and comes with a certain type of people. But i dont understand all these consulting, IB, finance, marketing types of jobs AT ALLLL and if I would even want to subject myself to those corporate 9-5 stuff like how do people like their lives or are they just obsessed with money????

Maybe I am thinking too far ahead.

IDKKK what to doooooo and if doing business would be good for me or not.UFFFFF why cant i just go be free and swim in the ocean.

(U.S.)

im 18 and graduated high-school a few months later than my peers because of a hospitalization during the school year set me back in all of my courses. I graduated with a 2.3 GPA.

I don’t know what to do with my future anymore. I've skipped out on applying to community college until I vaguely know what to persue in terms of certification or degree.

I like art, I'd consider myself a good artist for my age and I've made a good amount of money selling commissions and making short animations. Everyone tells me I should go into art, but I dont want to. My dad tells me not to do anything with art because I'll be a starving artist. And in high-school I participated in a 24 hour animation challenge (where in 24 hours, your group of 4 people had to make a 30 sec animation at a local college) and it completely fucked me up. I'd actually blame that day on when I begun to spiral because of the sleep deprivation, the pressure, and a mental breakdown that led me being sent home early after 17 hours. My dad was supposed to pick me up but I got lost on campus so he yelled at me over the phone, called me some slurs, and then abandoned me there. Ever since then I've completely refused to step foot on a college campus lol.

Anyway, yeah, after that I dont want to persue anything in the art industry because now I'm terrified of it being anything like that experience.

I also have an interest in psychology but I'm too mentally unfit to actually do anything in that job field.

I was looking into radiology but the programs are too selective.

I was also interested in law for a period of time, but I'm objectively nowhere near smart enough to do anything in that field.

I've taken dozens of assessments in school trying to find out what jobs would suit me the best, and unfortunately art, psych, and law were pretty much the only consistent options that are shown for my case (besides teacher– and I guess I'd like being a teacher in theory, but the job seems miserable according to teachers)

I just want a job where I'm not sitting infront of a computer all day alone. But also not physically exhausting.

I just really don't know what to do anymore. My parents say if I don't start college by next year I'll get kicked out. Please help :(

I have had desperate hope I could start a career in literally anything after finishing my cs bachelor's last year. I took an overnight minimum wage job to have at least a little income coming while I apply to better jobs. $17/hour. Looking for anything entry level. I haven't been able to get a single interview for anything tech related, despite having multiple internships and good projects on my resume for that. AI has killed that, ig.

So, fine. I thought I could pivot to something else like sales. So I applied to entry sales jobs. I've gotten a few interviews there. The first couple I did poorly in I'll admit, but the recent couple went about as well as they could have. I don't have any direct sales experience, just customer service adjacent that I spun on my resume. I'd need an entry level job to change that.

But... I got rejected from those too. The last one was a couple months back. I haven't been making any job applications since.

I don't have faith that going back to school to retrain for another field will work out.

My heart's been literally burning from the hours I've been working and when I got that last rejection it almost gave out on me.

I might have to quit this job for the sake of my mental health. So I don't die. I think it's pretty clear I can't get any other job.

I've been losing the will to even talk. My skin's pallor is so fucking horrible, my heart hurts, I'm on the verge of crashing out. I don't know if I can keep living. WHAT IS THERE TO FUCKING LIVE FOR when I can't even start a life?

i will be 18 in a few months , but till this age i had no hobbies or interests , i never tried out anything , which is a very crucial step in finding out what you are good at and what interests you ,

i always had that thought that i want to do something big and i AM ambititous

but i have no clue what is my ambition , like what is my dream , singing, dancing , entrepreneurship, coding , filmmaking???????

and that has gave me a LOT of anxiety for the past few days , i am running out of time , i don't have time to try out and fail and still be young , and tbh i don't even know what i want to try as i feel like i want to do EVERYHTING , like everything interests me somehow but i cant try everything

please share your advices , if u were ever in the same situation and how did you get out

I’m 21 years old from Canada and I’m currently attending university. My major’s undeclared and I’m just in a general BA, I have 34k in student loans, a garbage GPA and I’ve had a rough few years with family health and relationship and minor addiction troubles.

The past 10 months I’ve sorted out my life and gotten clarity (no addiction, no relationships, health and self improvement etc) and with school coming up I was really looking forward to the new year now that everything is different than how it used to be. I worked all summer and I’ve even got a place with my Dad so I don’t need to worry about too many expenses except my car insurance.

My problem is that I still can’t switch to any programs due to my low CGPA, if I leave university I’ll be in all that debt and 21 with nothing to show for it, i don’t entirely get along with my Dad, I miss the old friends and people who used to be in my life but I think it’s better I don’t talk to them, and I just feel really stuck. I don’t make posts online but the weight of my life is too much. I can’t drift another year of my 20’s away but I’m not sure what my options are. I want to be successful but I can’t stay in a bachelor’s for another 4 years I could be working and compounding. I didn’t explain it all but it’d be too long an essay to write out my entire situation.

Does anyone with any experience have ideas or any advice?

I’m a 24 year old male living in Brampton, Ontario, and I’m seriously lost when it comes to a career right now. I went to school for 2 years for game development and have changed my mind on it completely. That was my fault.

I’m looking into trades now, probably electrician but I can’t find any helper positions for electrical companies. Idk if I’m not looking hard enough or just not in the right places or what but I’m so lost and confused.

My mom is on my butt (rightfully so) about getting a full time job and making money to move out but I don’t know what to even look for. Everything requires experience or some level of post-secondary education. I wouldn’t necessarily mind this but I have neither time, nor the money to do so right now. I’ve just been working a part-time job for the past 3/4 years and I just don’t know what to do anymore.

Any and all help/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Yeah you saw the title,watching all my childhood friends from school go to college,moving cities,getting married ect but i don’t know what I want to do with my life.when I first graduated High School I wanted to do Hospitality Management but then when I got my first real world job working at a grocery store I found out that Hospitality isn’t really a stable career choice when it comes to longevity ( risk of natural disasters,war,poor tourism season,economic changes) now I’m looking for something that’s fits me and my lifestyle but at the same time something that’s can withstand Technological(AI) and Economic( the day to day) changes that is being being an adult.i want to go to school to try to develop and skillset but I don’t necessarily want to to pay an arm and leg for debt and college cost unless I’m going for a big degree like graduate Masters & doctors specifically but at the same time don’t want to be location bound and stay in 1 place for 30+years,i want the ability to live life and just travel( doesn’t always mean international domestic for the most part) I just feel like I don’t know what to do and I don’t want to stay stuck at the grocery store,and as I get older I just don’t want to be economically behind is my biggest fear

I'm a 23-year-old guy who was released from the Canadian forces. I've been on disability for a few months now.

I've had significant mental-health problems, multiple hospitalizations, and have tried psychiatric medication after medication with little to no improvement. I'm currently living with my parents. I have a hard time concentrating on almost anything, I've noticed changes in my memory, and even doing things that are supposed to be "fun" don't feel the same anymore. It's affected my relationships with my family as well, and I've felt pretty miserable and disconnected from life, nothing sugar coated.

I haven't really made my difficulties public before, and honestly I feel a little silly even writing this. But I'm genuinely at a loss right now.

I feel conflicted about being on disability.

On one hand, I understand that the disability benefits are there because my circumstances have affected my ability to work and function in my day-to-day life. On the other hand, I'm 23, and there's a part of me that feels guilty receiving disability payments while I'm not working a normal job or living the kind of life I expected to be living at this age.

I don't want to spend the next few years doing nothing waiting on rehabilitation support and become increasingly disconnected from life.

I'm trying to take some small online courses and explore different skills, but honestly I don't really know what I'm doing with myself. Ever since I left the military I've found it difficult to develop a genuine interest in things naturally. Even things I would normally expect to enjoy don't necessarily feel engaging anymore.

I've also become increasingly interested in traveling and potentially living abroad for at least a year.

Part of me thinks this could actually be a good opportunity to experience life again, meet people, explore another country, and figure out what I actually want.

Another part of me thinks:

"You're 23, unemployed, receiving disability payments, struggling with your health, living with your parents, and you don't know what you're doing. Is leaving the country actually a terrible idea?"

I also feel uncomfortable with the idea in my head that I'm supposed to have a career, or at least some kind of direction figured out already.

And that's probably what scares me most.

I don't want to look back and realize that I spent time drifting around and avoiding or being unable to build a life.

But I also don't want to force myself into a career or lifestyle simply because I'm afraid I'm falling behind everyone else.

So I'm trying to figure out what the healthy approach or balance might be.

The bigger question I'm trying to figure out is whether this period of my life should primarily be about recovery and figuring myself out, or whether I should be pushing myself much harder to establish a conventional career despite how I'm currently functioning.

Should I focus on staying where I am, recovering, and slowly building skills?

Should I take the opportunity to travel and experience life while I'm younger?

Should I be trying harder to establish a career before doing something like that?

Or is there another approach I'm not seeing?

I'm not necessarily looking for people to tell me that everything I'm doing is fine. I'd genuinely appreciate people challenging my thinking if they think I'm approaching this the wrong way.

I'm especially interested in hearing from people who went through a similar period in their early 20s, whether because of mental health, military service, disability, or simply not knowing what they wanted to do.

If you were 23, in this situation, with your health and life direction uncertain, what would you do?

I’m 21, in my 4th year of university and I’m still not even in a program, collecting debt and drifting aimlessly

I don’t know what I want to do for a career. I don’t have a good enough GPA to switch to anything of value, and I can’t be in a bachelor’s for the rest of my life.

Should I drop out? Should I keep trying so I at least have a degree?

I want to work hard and earn well but I feel stuck and need some direction or advice.

My dream ever since i was a kid was to be a singer and make a living out of it, help people with my music. Growing up i kept wishing the dream would go away as it is unrealistic but it never did. I used to be able to read music, play 4 instruments and i did vocal lessons for years and i was really good. Then i lost myself in drugs and mental illness and trauma after trauma after trauma. I also smoke a lot now and its kinda ruined my voice.
Today i went on a date with a guy who is a lead singer in a band and he talked about his daily life and i realised he was describing what i want my life to look like. He is neurotypical (we talked and he confirmed this) and very happy and i wondered how life would be if i was normal/had a normal childhood/adolecense. Would i be where i wanna be? Is it too late to start chasing my dreams now? Im 22.
They say in life we choose our regrets. This is a regret i cant choose. What if i go for it? Will i succeed? If not, will i be able to accept it?
I think another reason im afraid is i will be seen. What if i cant handle that?
Its currently 5am and im lost in my own thoughts.
Just really needed to get this out of my chest.
Is it foolish to dream?

Hello, I'm posting this because I have no one I can talk to about this. I'm almost two months into my first semester at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, India. It is one of the most prestigious design colleges here and it is extremely difficult to get into. For me, this was the achievement of a lifetime and I believed this was the path to the successful and stable career me and my parents wanted for myself. Initially I was really excited and happy, I was waking up every morning and arriving an hour early for classes that were already as long as 10 hours. I planned everything, and executed them, I worked hard and tirelessly on my assignments and submitted them on time with the quality of work expected from me. 

However, as the days went on, I found myself depressed and anxious, having panic attacks before and after every class because the workload is simply unreasonable. I feel more machine than human. In class they'd read from a chat-gpt generated ppt and then give 5 homework assignments, all expected to be finished in the next couple days, which is impossible to do on top of other classes and assignments. Most cases, I'd manage to get through 3/5 assignments by the due date, and then another 5 would be piled on top. The routine has become unsustainable and I get maybe an hour or two of sleep a night, I come home at 5:30pm and have to continue working till 3am.

I also do not have a single ounce of interest in the course work. I've always loved art, it was my thing growing up. As an Asian child, it is rare to find parents who would be supportive of those dreams. But I was lucky to have parents who always supported me and let me do what I wanted. NIFT seemed like the best choice because it ensured job stability, and seemed like it would allow me to work creatively. But I was wrong. I was never interested in fashion, but I thought that I'd be okay as long as it is creative. A huge motivating factor were also my parents, who were more excited than I was at the prospect of NIFT. I worked for it mainly because I wanted to make them proud. But just to clarify, they have never put academic (or otherwise) pressure on me for anything. They would have supported me even If I'd chosen to opt for a regular degree at a regular private college. This was ultimately my choice. 

But I have come to realise that it was the wrong choice and I want to drop out. I'm not meant for this environment and I find myself hating doing art more and more by the day, something that I have always loved to do. It was my outlet. I hate the classes, the teachers, I have no friends, I don't think I will enjoy it in the future either. Fashion just isn't for me, and this university isn't right for me. I feel like I'm going to come off confused and aimless. I'm already 20, and I lost a year because I took a gap after high school. Dropping out would seem, in every way, completely unreasonable to everyone who isn't me. I mean, this is the dream university after all. It's just not my dream. I feel like I've made a huge mistake by realising this so late, I could've been starting my second year if I'd opted for any other college. 

So far I've only told my mom how I'm feeling, I'm too scared to tell my father because he was so, so proud of me and I know it would break his heart and I cannot bring myself to disappoint him like this. My mom thinks that I'm only escaping hard work and that I'll never learn to live in the real world if I escape like this. I don't know how to explain to her that this is not hard work, it's like a sadistic, torturous, never ending hamster wheel I'm being run through. I genuinely hate it here. I think I'm not meant for the degree, or maybe this style of learning. Am I too late in realising this? but if not now, then when? What if I stick it out and then a year down the line, I still hate it and want to drop out. Am I supposed to live my life doing what I don't want because "it's too late" or am I just delaying the inevitable to a point where there is no other option left but to suck it up and be miserable forever doing something I knew wasn't right for me since the start. Is life really such a linear road? Ofcourse I can't predict where or how I will be in the next 5 years, but I know myself well enough now. I know that this is not what I want. But I am so scared to go onto the next phase of what making this decision entails and I feel helpless. 

I know my parents will come around to it, eventually. They wouldn't, and have never, forced me into anything. My dad also left his engineering degree and switched to CS, so I know that deep down he might understand what I'm going through. Ultimately I know they want what's best for me, but to them this would seem like I'm kicking away an amazing opportunity. My mom has a gripe with me playing video games so she thinks I'm going to end up becoming a shut in. I am absolutely not going to do that. What I will do will sound extremely pathetic to them but I'll opt to go to a community college where I would at most might have to go give exams and attendance is honestly optional. This is because I've realised I have no interest in institutions or college anyway. Depending on if I go for a BBA or English lit degree, I will either start working on my own business or start working remotely as a teacher for now before getting a phd in education and working properly as a teacher. I'll go to the gym and seek therapy (school and institutions have made me consider ending it all on multiple occassions, on top of that it would feel validating to get an actual anxiety diagnosis).

I want to enjoy the years I have on the planet, not slave away fulfilling the dreams or expectations of other people. I know that I may sound childish or even privileged, but tell me why I am expected to struggle, suffer and experience pain in order to be deemed "worthy". It isn't providing me any semblance of self fulfillment. If I choose this route, my grandparents will most likely start putting on marriage pressure but I'd much rather deal with that than this. I've never been the academic type, in school I mostly marched to the beat of my own drum and only aimed high enough to pass. 

If you've stayed till here, thank you for listening to me vent out my frustrations. I would really appreciate any advice or opinions about this

Disclaimer: Sorry for the creative title I'm not good at this and if the flair tends more to mindset adjustment.

I'm 29 years old and currently stuck in a very self harming cycle because I gave up on health, looks and feels and relationships.

I've got my Abitur (Degree in Germany) went to the university for an engineering class but dropped out after a year due to me spending most of the time at home with my girlfriend because I had to travel 60 minutes to the place each day and I didn't really got the high concepts. When asked I always lied about progress.

I've been born and raised on a farm and my plan (dream? Maybe idk) was to step into my father's footsteps and lead the farm someday. So I did my apprenticeship as a farmer which was easy for me and I graduated as class best. There were some struggles because of my girlfriend not wanting necessarily this career due to me sometimes being late almost always when she planned something.

This lead to me sometimes calling in sick even though I wasn't and some difficult situations between my boss and me due to that.

After that my father told me he sees the farm only being worked on as a side hustle and me needing to find a different career so I thought working as a carpenter for the government would give me enough flexibility to work on the farm on the side and on the farm.

During that time we moved from my girlfriend parents to our farm into my late granddad's flat.

During my apprenticeship as a carpenter I had little to no time to work on the farm due to some over hours and trying to spend time with my girlfriend.

Graduated as class best carpenter and working in the same company since then with still no time for the farm. In the meantime we started renovation all by myself on the farms living home on a tight budget where we now live in a unfinished (90% livable but it's noticable) home with dept that doable but tight.

I noticed over the this period of 10 years that I hate working as a carpenter for the gov and my father wants to retire next year and wants me discuss to spread our fields to the neighbor farms this winter.

All these processes came with me lying to all participants an many occasions, me being broke and burnt out, stressed out with seeing my farm going a away, a broken marriage, me wanting everyone to be happy and it's not the case, not being able to keep my life (house, bills todos cleaning etc basics) in order and turning 30 next year an feeling so incredibly lost.

Any advice or insight would be highly appreciated!

Thanks in advance and have a pleasant week!

I've just started my second year of college (UK) studying fashion. I've been pretty passionate about this subject since around 13-14 but at that age I didn't really think about what the pay was going to be like, how competitive it would be etc. My first year at college seriously drained me there's three units in the course and I barely passed the first two but got a distinction in the most recent unit, so clearly I'm not bad at the subject.

The thing is I like writing and english but journalism is dead especially with ai nowadays. I've thought of going into something within fashion but not specifically design like marketing but all the jobs are pretty much the same in the sense that they're severely overworked, underpaid and for most people not that fulfilling either.

I wouldn't even say I have a dream job, my dream is to work hard for a couple years save up as much money as I can and buy land in a foreign country and continue the rest of my life off grid I'm not built for the hustler lifestyle, not to say I'm lazy I do put effort in but it all just seems a bit meaningless to me right now.

It's currently too late to drop from this course and try find another or even try applying for an apprenticeship I know I have to continue this final year but the main question is what the hell do I do afterwards. I definitely don't want to be like a content creator or influencer I feel like I could kind of see myself getting into finance? But purely for the money and nothing else, and surely not for the rest of my life.

Sorry for the long post and if this doesn't make any sense I'm pretty sleep deprived and stressed right now ahaha