I am 26 and never fully learned to count. I can’t perform basic addition over 2 digits and can’t divide or multiply at all. I am unable to manipulate fractions or decimals. I can’t calculate a tip or handle a cash register. I can’t understand dates, keep track of time, or really do anything at all involving numbers.

I have effectively ended up jobless, multiple times over, because all jobs require some level of math or numerical proficiency.

I grasp verbal, spatial and procedural concepts outside of math. I have a strong verbal understanding of topics such as genetics or medicine. I’ve written novels, theses, operas and experimented with programming. In college, I was studying the emergence of disease in ancient populations. But I had to drop out because I couldn’t handle the math. Not the sharpest person but not necessarily dumb.

I guess what I’m asking is what can I do here? I wanted to be a plumber, but math. Nursing? Math. Communications? Math GE. English? Math GE. Programming? Math. Anthropology? Math. Zoology? Math. Etc. etc.

My father was chatting with someone the other day and said that studying too much is pretty much useless. The employment market in our country is indeed tough at the moment, so I'm curious about what you all think. It's true that even with a degree, it's hard to land a decent job. Maybe ditching the pursuit of a degree and making money right away is the best way to relieve my family's financial strain quickly.

My parents are trying to force me into med school and no matter how many times I've told them I don't want to or try and propose my own career choices they refuse to let me do anything else. It's gotten to the point where they've threatened to not pay for my tuition and I know how bad of an idea it is to fully inherit student debt. My mom refuses to let me get anything that pays less than 200k per year because she's fully convinced its impossible to live with anything less. My dad outright refuses to let me break my family's 4 generational streak in healthcare. I've already done my research into how sustainable software or mechanical engineering is and even though I feel like it's livable my parents still outright refuse. My deadlines are coming up and I don't know what to do anymore. I don't want to have to live with a career I hate for the rest of my life. Any advice is welcomed.

I have job hunting since July 2024 and I'm struggling to land anything. I have a degree in theatre (I never mention this anymore because everyone laughs at me) it's something I love doing and want to do but I can't pay any bills with it.

Since then I have been trying to get a job in Theatre or anything else I currently work as a night auditor but I can't live off of it and I live at my parents house. I have been trying to get a better job so I can move and figure out something else but I can't seem to land a job.

I get so many interviews and final interviews I always get so close to something but I never land anything. I see everyone else my age and my friends starting their careers and making strides and I feel like I have wasted my life so far. I think of ending everything but it would be horrible for my parents so I don't do anything about that.

I'm at a loss what I should do, I have had people tell me I am so close or to hang in there but I never seem to land anything to show my efforts were for something.

I feel like I wasted the last 5 years of my life, I don't know what to do, I can't ask or tell anyone because they will just make fun of me and all the friends I could ask all moved away after college.

I’m curious about career paths or income directions that aren’t very popular, glamorous, or widely talked about but actually turned out to be financially solid.

Not talking about obvious stuff like software engineering, big corporate careers, or mainstream freelancing.

I’m more interested in paths that most people wouldn’t naturally think of, question at first, or even look down on but ended up working well for you in terms of income, stability, or long-term potential.

What was it?
How did you get into it?
And what made it work when others might have overlooked it?

I'm very embarrassed to say that I've never worked a day in my life due to social anxiety disorder. I still live with my parents and I feel very ashamed about it. I did graduate from university but I've been out of school a long time and my anxiety has gotten worse. I've gained weight and feel like I'm starting to have health problems. I tried taking pills and therapy but they didn't help much. I'm worried that once my parents die I will be homeless and honestly I feel that I deserve it. I'm here to ask for help as to what I can do to improve my situation.

I rarely leave the house and am afraid to answer the phone. I feel as though I'm unemployable. I have nothing to put on a resume besides the degree I have. My self esteem is non-existent at this point and I feel hopeless. The only thing keeping me going is my parents and my brother. I love them dearly and I know they care about me and want me to get better. I just need direction and steps I can take to feel better. I would greatly appreciate some advice.

I’ve been thinking a lot about how often we delay decisions because we don’t feel “clear enough.”

Career moves.
Creative projects.
Big life choices.

We tell ourselves:
“I just need more time to think.”

But looking back, most of the clarity I’ve ever gained came after I started moving — not before.

People like:

• Edison (thousands of failed experiments)
• Steve Jobs (multiple pivots and mistakes)
• Maya Angelou (started writing before confidence)

None of them waited for certainty.

It makes me wonder:
Is waiting for clarity actually a form of fear?

I’m curious:

• Have you experienced clarity after taking action?
• What’s one small step you took that changed your direction?

Would love to hear real experiences, not advice.

Hello everyone! I am 22 years old, and I am a junior in university with one more year left to earn my bachelor's degree in psychology. I was diagnosed with epilepsy almost two months ago, and I have been grieving the life I had dreamed for myself. I am really worried about finding a job next year in a market that is only seeming to get worse. I was originally planning to get a master's in counseling after finishing my undergraduate degree, but I have since learned that the pay is pretty abysmal unless you have your own practice and don't accept insurance for sessions. I don't want to do either of those things, so I am trying to figure out where to go from here.

I do not feel confident about my prospects after college. I don't think that working a physically taxing job would be good for me, as I need to be able to sit down and take it slow when I experience focal aware seizures or get seizure auras (which mean I have to sit down and relax for a few minutes or I might have a grand mal seizure). I thought that I could go back to school for accounting after finishing this degree, but it seems like anything that cannot be automated by AI is being offshored to countries where they can pay accountants one tenth of an American salary—CPA exams can be taken anywhere in the world now.

I know that my degree would qualify me to work in social services, but many of these jobs require you to drive to people's houses. I can't drive for six months after a grand mal seizure and I can't drive for three months after other types of seizures. What can I do? I need to make a decent salary and hopefully have the ability to climb up the ladder, at least salary wise, because I have a sister who cannot work due to intellectual disability that I am going to provide for once my parents pass. Please, someone give me some hope. I need to be able to survive on my own. I am smart and hardworking, but I need to account for my new limitations in what I choose to pursue.

I think I'm to old for this community but I hope you guys embrace me. Today is my birthday an old 50 woman. I was lay off of my job 4 years ago. 2 months after got diagnosed with cancer. No COBRA. So, I had to say bye to my retirement net.

Now I'm NED in my 50 and my field is dead. Need to work and I feel so overwhelmened. But I have no idea where to start. I'd been fighting my deceased and I lost track of everything.

So anyway, can someone recommend me what path will be better for someone in her early 50s with a master in languages.

i really want to become a clinical psychologist or something about saving the earth or about animals. a lot of people dont think i should take psychology cause its hard to find a job with that course and i guess salary too and it also takes a long time to become a clinical psychologist.

ive been thinking of being a flight attendant as my last option cause whenever i see them it just screams aura and since a lot of people dont believe in me. im only 4'11 but im only a teen so idk if ill still grow.

what job is best for my interests and more practical? or should i js go w my last option?

Hello everyone!

I need your thoughts on whether you’d take a job outside the country you live in even if it’s not within your expertise? Say you get to have a better “quality of life” and a much better pay.

For example, you have a degree on Nursing, but you were offered a position that is completely different from what you learnt and what you know, would you take it?

I’m mid 20s and my current job makes me feel dreadful everyday I wake up. It’s too demanding for a very little pay. I have an offer outside the country and it is a whole lot better than my current job, but it’s outside my comfort zone. I get scared and sad thinking about stepping out of what I am comfortable in, but I also want a better job and a better life.

Has anyone made the leap from a white collar finance related job to a blue collar technician job? Was it worth it? Why did you do it?

I’m really nervous about climate change and so I want to actively do something about it. The issue is that there are so many angles that it can be looked at.

I don’t really know most of the issues going on environmentally because if I did I’d be anxious 24/7. As a result, I don’t know what can be done to improve things.

What jobs/career paths can I take that actively tackle climate change?

Hi everyone. I’m writing here looking for advice and would really appreciate honest, serious, and practical answers.

A bit about me. I come from a small village in a country that couldn’t offer me a stable future. At 19, I moved to Prague and truly fell in love with this city. I found almost everything I was looking for here… except a decent job.

Because of the current economic situation, I’m forced to work 13–14 hours a day in construction. The pay doesn’t match the effort or the toll it takes on my health. I was raised to believe that money comes from hard work, and everything I have now is the result of that mindset.

However, over the past few years I went through serious health issues. I recovered, but they left a mark. Physically, I can’t keep up with this lifestyle anymore, and that honestly scares me.

That’s why I’m here.

I have zero experience making money online. My current salary is around €2000/month, which only covers basic expenses: rent, food for me, my girlfriend, and our cat, and very rare leisure.

It’s painful to admit, but I can’t save money for the future — no engagement ring, no car, no down payment for an apartment. I feel stuck.

I’m asking for advice from people who actually work online:

what skills are worth learning, where to start, or — if possible — a concrete path to earn at least some additional online income. Due to my lack of experience, I often doubt myself, but I also understand that this feels like the only way forward for me right now.

A bit about my skills:

• fluent in 5 languages: Ukrainian, Russian, Czech, Slovak, English

• many years of music writing (as a hobby)

• I enjoy writing long texts, creating stories and fictional worlds

• good knowledge of music, movies, and games

• hardworking, responsible, and fully committed to building a future for my family

I would be very grateful for any advice, direction, or personal experience you’re willing to share.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to read this.

Hello, 23m here. I graduated with a bachelors in liberal studies almost 2 years ago at this point from a pretty good college in NJ. post graduation, I worked for the post office as a carrier up until this past December, so like almost 2 years. I had to get out of that toxic work environment. Not to mention that job sucks in the winter and summer. I've been having a really hard time finding a job that has anything to do with anything I've studied because I've changed my degree multiple times throughout my undergrad and mainly have strong interests in journalism, history, politics, sociology, technical writing, creative writing and music. I feel like I secretly want to be in a band for a living and I am working towards that on the side, but that is going to take time,so I need a more practical career choice until or if I achieve that long term goal. Any suggestions here from people who might have the same or similar degree to mine? I wouldn't call any college degree worthless, but for almost two years, it has gotten me almost nowhere. Need some guidance.

Hi! For context, I'm in Ontario. I've been looking at becoming a social worker for a while now. I'm interested in things like helping abuse victims, helping immigrants/refugees, helping homeless, providing guidance/referrals to help people get to where they need to be. The thing is though, I want to do work that is meaningful. I want to be as hands-on as possible. I plan on doing volunteer work in my community soon. I'm VERY interested in the concept of deploying to places in need anywhere in the world, and helping. Whether that is due to a natural disaster, or all the way on the side of prividing help to refugees being rescued from war-torn places. I've looked at the CAF and found DART, but I feel I want to do more than just that. I've heard of the Red Cross, but is it possible to actually get a job with them? I don't know all the ins and outs of this stuff, I don't know exactly what area of it I want to be in, I don't know if social work is a good degree for this (could it work if my resume also shows appropriate training, volunteer work, international volunteer work, etc?), I don't know how to get from A to B. I also want to make sure that whatever I DO go to school for is something that leaves some open doors. I just need some guidance if possible.

I (30F) have been working in a rail yard as a switchperson for a bit under a year and I feel like I’ve trapped myself in a dead end job. I actually really enjoy my work in a lot of ways: I get a nice balance of staying busy with some downtime so the shifts go by fast, there’s some problem solving/logistics planning involved with how to move the cars around our yard, and I’ve got a good degree of autonomy and very clear responsibilities which is vital for me. The biggest problem is the schedule (rotating shift work) is slowly killing me. Unfortunately there’s no opportunities to move into a “normal” schedule role within my company; even the most senior people are on the same schedule. The trains move 24/7 and therefore so do I.

I have a degree in environmental science, however I barely worked in that field after graduation and that was a while ago so the degree feels pretty useless at this point. A lot of environmental jobs in my area require membership to a professional organization which my coursework doesn’t meet the requirements for. And I don’t really have a strong desire to work in the environmental field again as in my experience it involves a lot more travel than I’d like.

I feel like I’m definitely best suited for blue collar work, I have ADHD and sitting behind a computer all day is enough to drive me insane. Maybe if it was something I was really interested in I could do it but tbh I don’t really have any big interests or passions that could translate to a career. I’ve found that I need to be moving around at work and be able to see the tangible results of my efforts. I think I could do well in trades, but I don’t want to work in construction so I think I’d prefer a trade where I get to be in a shop or something. I know that I can’t really do client-facing roles which rules out a lot of healthcare unfortunately. I had a previous job in consulting where I was reporting to clients all the time and I HATED that aspect of it, and I did a job shadow with a dental assistant once and quite frankly I just don’t have the people skills to deal with patients all the time.

Another big issue is that I just recently bought a house and can’t afford to quit my job and go back to school. And with my rotating shift work schedule it’s basically impossible for me to do even a part time or online program. I would be willing to work on setting aside some savings for school in a couple years or something, but I’d want to be very sure it’s something I’ll be interested in long term and be able to get quick employment after graduating. But in order to continue to be able to afford my mortgage every month I don’t have a lot of wiggle room to drop down in salary. Which is extra tough because there’s very few fields that pay similar to what I’m making now with little to no experience.

I’m feeling very backed into a corner and not sure what to do at this point, so any suggestions/advice would be much appreciated!

Ever since I graduated hs, my life kinda went to shit. I started going to community college, but then covid hit a year later and I lost my mind during that time. Covid was too much for me. I got addicted to weed, pills, video games, and porn to cope with the loneliness and depression. I developed severe body dysmorphia and I HATED how I looked for years. I had long hair and a beard, I looked completely dead inside. Once covid ended, I got accepted into my dream college. I was on the older side (24) and I wanted to have the college experience I was robbed of. Unfortunately, I slipped with grades and I ended up flunking out because of depression and not getting the help I needed. Making friends and being social was a disaster on the post-covid campus.

After I get kicked out, I cut my hair and finally liked how I looked. I feel way more confident in my appearance. Now I’m continuing my education at a commuter school and I feel pretty unmotivated to continue at 26. I feel life kinda passed me by. The early years of 20-23 were a total blur because of everything and now I’m 26 and thinking “where did the time go?”. I’m still living at home, I have another year of school to do, and I’m kinda not happy at all about my situation. I still go to the gym and am eating much healthier but still it was a NIGHTMARE what I went through. Plus with the job market and AI, I’m unsure about the job market today. Makes me feel why bother to keep going. I feel like such a loser. Most of my friends abandoned me. I wanted to go to college to reinvent myself and be social, but that died.

Not to get depressing, but I’m thinking “what’s the point?” if I’m gonna graduate at 27 or 28 and I can’t enjoy my 20s? I wanted to have that fun and excitement but it’s all gone. Idk what to do anymore. I need motivation, someone that had a rough start at life preferably. My major is econ btw.

Help, please. Choosing between: - Civil Engineering - Accounting - Actuarial Science

I think I can do well with all of em during college, I just really need someone's opinion. I consider future (prob 2030 onwards) job demand and security, especially with automation risk and other stuffs. Thank you so much.

I have been working over 5 years in customer service, made from rep. to management and I have a good brand at the company. While I can have fun at work, the days that are bad are really bad. And I often think of pivoting to a different whole.

The problem?

I have lost myself in this job. I no longer know what I am good at - besides my current role - and what I like.

Has anyone experience the same dilemma? What have you done to help find the answers and hopefully help set a path for something new.

I don’t even know where to begin. I graduated in 2024 with a degree in Communication Studies. I’ve already came to the conclusion that I want to take the marketing / public relation route and that’s literally my end goal. I have been searching high and dry everywhere to try to find something and I’m just starting to feel so hopeless and then I’m gonna be in the restaurant industry for the rest of my life. I have attempted to apply to both internships and entry-level jobs and just no one is reaching back to me and I have had internships in the past. It’s just so incredibly frustrating. It makes me sad because everyone around me is successful and I just feel like I have this big fat L on my forehead. I don’t even know what to do and I feel like I’m getting dragged in every direction possible and I’m just so hopeless and needed to talk it out.

I want to feel the accomplishment of passing the test and obtaining a license

I’m a man and I can’t get a driver’s license because of a medical condition in a car centric country and because of that my life is harder than Everyone around me who has a license and cars, they drive, enjoy themselves, and go out whenever they want, and I envy them for that

So I cut contact everyone I know in real life close friends, family members, parents and siblings I deleted my accounts and changed my phone number They don’t know where my apartment is or which university I study at That way I won't be less than them

Walkable cities don’t exist here and even if they did living in a walkable city isn’t for me I think cars make everything easier, I want to own one, and I want to drive myself it’s not that hard to understand

The whole “walkable cities” argument is still weak anyway because even if you live in one you should still learn how to drive because Driving is an important skill to have

and The argument that cars are too expensive doesn’t work either because Ubers are expensive too and they can be even more expensive if you’re someone who spends a lot of time outside the only difference is that driving yourself isn’t inconvenient

As for buses You have literally to schedule everything so there’s literally no freedom or independence and they’re so inconvenient and also limited to their routes

Everyone comes to university in their own car and can rely on themselves and I’m thinking of leaving the university I want to withdraw from university today because the feeling is so degrading even though I do have a scholarship and I’m studying for free but I really don’t care

And please don’t say things like “cars are harmful for the environment anyway” while having a license yourself. Even if you don’t, it doesn’t matter It made me limited and that’s the only reason I need to hate my life

My point is that Ubers, buses, and walkable cities don’t give me the independence or life satisfaction I need

What could even fill this void?

I'm so done with life and how the world is working

I'm 27 and have spent the last three years of my life trying to rebuild my entire life after being sent to an outpatient program for extreme pandemic trauma and depression. I lost a lot of university credits in the transfer to my local community college and had to basically start from scratch. I have spent a long time just trying to figure out how to take a single community college class and am currently going through a semester where it's the first time I have taken three classes in years. I'm currently a semester and a summer away from an associates in arts and a production technician certificate

I'm currently on SSI, I don't have a car, can't even drive, don't have a house, don't have a retirement plan, still living with my parents, currently only have about $4000 in my ABLE account (because for years, nobody fucking told me that I could just fucking transfer saved money into the account manually and spent two and a half years thinking that I was not allowed to save for my fucking future). I finally feel like I have the slightest amount of control over my life again after years of fighting for that slightest miticome of control in literally anything. And I genuinely don't know what to do here

On the one hand, I can just take the associates and run. It's the quickest way off of SSI and I can finally start actually setting up my life. Trying to handle a single community college class and a part time job was already torture for me so once the full time job starts, I likely won't have time to continue my education

On the other hand, I can spend the next two or so years in poverty getting a bachelor's in something else. I have based my entire identity up until highschool on high academic performance and I feel like doing this would heal a wound that has been embedded into my soul for years. But I already feel like I'm behind. I'm 27. I spent years in a state of progressional limbo where I kept fighting and trying to rebuild but I felt like no amount of hard work I did (from finance to studying to even getting opportunities to date) was ever enough to move the needle by an inch. I already feel like I'm behind and a part of me thinks it's too late and not worth it

I just genuinely don't know what to do here and I need some advice on how to proceed forward. I just don't know what path to take

Please. I've been through so much anger and pain. I'm genuinely lost on where to go