The Forums › Forums › The Workplace › Struggling › Broke, no education, stuck, what the heck should I do? › Reply To: Broke, no education, stuck, what the heck should I do?
What did work for me when at the age of Sixteen on my b/d actually I was tossed from High school for not completing assignments in most subjects Unless I was kept in detention noneof my work was ever finished at home. Work was not impossible to get then and I was able to turn my third job, you guessed it in Retail into a permanent position. Desperately wanting a car I bought a shiny new red cool wheels using my older sisters credit and letting her drive it whenever. Trouble was car gas and oh yeah Room n board at home took the lions share of my income My dad was very pro education hard one rule Go to school or pay board. He was not remotely concerned whether I worked or not. The only way to get out of paying up was to weasel my way back into school.
But I wanted money and unlike my older Brothers I had no plans to do school all day and work from 430 to midnight. My oldest brother had solved the problem by Joining the navy and taking engineering on their dime. And I did ta similar but trades training in Accounting and Inventory. It worked Except I still needed that HS Certificate.
I was lucky enough to almost get it ( still missing one credit) but most importantly I gained the confidence and self discipline to negotiate some but not all of our bumpy spots. Like you I just could not finish much, at home and still can’t. I was also lucky that the armed forces gave me a trade that I parlayed into a career. I found out I was very good at a couple of things and used those to establish my career initially in finance and then into consulting. There I had the freedom to be measured by results not the time I arrived every morning ( no I never solved that one) I am still useless at working from home so I stay in the office and work late and have a leisurely drive home. On one occasion my employer decided that everyone had to do all their own clerical and filing, detail work that I am horrendous at and quite vocal at sharing my thoughts on. The AF training made me capable of doing it but my instincts as I was not yet diagnosed told me to find a new job. Luckily although I didn’t know it I was held in high regard within the Company and Interviewed for 4 different positions. I kept worrying about the lack of A degree as everyone who worked there had one. I Applied for a job with another Competitor, Deciding in the end to stay with my employer in a new eastern city and with with an assistant. I returned to home a year later and accepted a position with a new employer and within 6 years became a Vice President of one of the worlds largest Actuarial,Consulting Human Resource and Insurance Brokerages . 10 years later ?.. Founded a Partnership then my own and organized the backup skills I so desperately needed.
One. my assistant ( who really ran me ) was responsible for getting me to meetings on time with all necessary notes and tools, and for maintaining a highly organized system for our office.
Two. All detail work was his and or her responsibility.
My skills were in creative client solutions, auditing, editing, networking, new business and report writing, standard setting and ironically maintaining Education Standards.
The skills and education and confidence I gained in the AF but mostly the self discipline and Knowledge of those limited skills were the most helpful. It was decades before I accepted that the absence of a degree in an industry where everyone of consequence was a BComm Honors,
CA, or Actuary was not limiting. A mid six figure salary for this HS Dropout and Late as in really late age 70 ADD diagnosis is not the end of the Career world .
In fact it has financed my three divorces but is of no help in Retirement. New adaptive skills desperately needed or I will be kicked out of the three choral groups I sing with. Not to mention House cleaning and Over committing are huge problems for me Rising at a decent time of the day …don’t ask. The one problem though I have never solved is going out the door without attempting one more chore or taking all that time finding my shoes my wallet my cell and most of all my Keys and then running back for my music… I still here echoes of (if only he would ….) I am just starting concerta Wish me luck.