Fox's Journey: And Onto the Sunlight!

[Astra]

Room situation: I would recommend getting a rommmate over Airbnb. There is little money to be earned from a shared room on Airbnb, best earningsare still for full rooms or even appartments, where you can give a more "hotel"-like experience. Plus with Airbnb you have the hassle of cleaning, changing and washing the sheets, checking in new guests etc. I've done hosted couchsurfing for years, and while fun, sleeping with a stranger in the room almost every night was a constant, low-level stress for me. I think a stable roommate is worth more in terms of stable rent and reliability (and maybe even a friendship?). I would put the word out on Craigslist and the like, but also students sites and on your local campus etc. Nevertheless, you can get an estimate on Aibnb on what you might earn (just type in your specs and area).

Braces: ooh, prepare for some pain! I feel you brother! I was in a very similar sitation (opportunity to fix as a kid was passed, I had to do it on my own when grown up). As an adult, it hurts both your jaws and your wallet a lot more!

Parents: consider that they might have not had any education on financial matters other than to spend/consume short-sighetly. This is what marketing and society has told us for the last 200 years, and in schools we learn other useless stuff rather than how to manage money smartly. Perhaps we would be the same if we grew up without the internet opening new perspectives? I notice many people (perhaps your parents too?) rely on others to tell them whats best (the morgage broker, the state, the insurance company, their boss, sales people), when instead these rarely have your best interests in mind. It's hard to break out of this passivity after so long.

[jacob]

Ehh.. have you thought about tutoring on the side? There are websites where it functions as a chat.

[7Wannabe5]

I wouldn't necessarily assign the fact that your parents didn't pay for your braces to financial mismanagement. I was willing to have my son's front upper misalignment of teeth fixed, but I ixnayed the recommendation for his jaw to be broken to fix slight overbite. He was a bit of a late-bloomer, so as he grew into manhood, his lower jaw naturally extended to the extent that he would now probably resemble Dudley Do-Right if he had also had the surgery.

I also refused to do anything about the fact that my daughter has a little gap between her two tiny front teeth, because I predicted it would just end up making her look cute like Lauren Hutton, and I was right about that too. I am not opposed to aesthetic procedures on basic principle, and in fact have had a couple myself (botox, filler, chin lift), but you have to remember that dentists are business people too.

[TopHatFox]

I get that line of argument usually, but this is more of a my teeth wear because my bite puts them in a position to do so type of thing

[TopHatFox]

Feeling pretty depressed today. It's like I wake up fine/good, go to work, and come out the other end depressed. Thinking of quitting the 50-hour/week recruiting job this weekend. Held out for a month, so this is probably a good time to call it.

Job searching here I come...

[daylen]

All aboard the jobless train!

[James_0011]

Why are you quitting before you find a new job?

[daylen]

@James_0011 Have you seen his savings? I say take the month off for spiritual enlightenment, but I am the last person anyone should take career advice from.

[TopHatFox]

Because I feel unsustainably awful every day at the office c:

Looks like the only counseling jobs I can get with a bachelor's are $11/hr. (US) Poverty here I come!

[OTCW]

Because I feel unsustainably awful every day at the office c:

Looks like the only counseling jobs I can get with a bachelor's are $11/hr. (US) Poverty here I come!

$11/hr is about $23,000 a year based on a 40 hour week. Don't look at it like poverty, look at how much more that is than what you can live on. Especially if that is what you want to do. Good luck with everything!

[Kriegsspiel]

And to think, you might hate counseling too! Life is a bitch.

[TopHatFox]

Yeah / :

[RFS]

Because I feel unsustainably awful every day at the office c:

Looks like the only counseling jobs I can get with a bachelor's are $11/hr. (US) Poverty here I come!

$11/hr is about $23,000 a year based on a 40 hour week. Don't look at it like poverty, look at how much more that is than what you can live on. Especially if that is what you want to do. Good luck with everything!

^^ Great point, OTCW. From an objective perspective, it doesn't seem like you're in completely dire straits. It sounds like you just need to find work that doesn't grate against your soul & personality for several hours a day.

I wouldn't write off working as a teacher. It's a collaborative environment, your colleague's personalities will be similar to yours, there's tons of time off, and it CHANGES. I used to work in sales, and the repetition drove me crazy. You don't need to be extroverted to succeed, too. If you learn how to control your classroom and communicate with difficult kids, it's smooth sailing. Several states allow people who don't have teaching degrees to simultaneously work + get a teaching license. You could try signing up as a substitute to get a feel for it.

Also, I would suggest completing the Self Authoring Program by Jordan Peterson. This thing lowered my existential despair to almost 0.

[BRUTE]

what if counseling sucks too? what if TopHatFox will never find his dream job? what if this is as good as it gets?

[OTCW]

I will say, if you are feeling depressed, don't give up on counseling, and see a medical professional. Good luck.

[classical_Liberal]

...

[James_0011]

@classic liberal 10/10 post

[wood]

I hate to be one to tell you this, but in all due respect: Man the f.. up!

You keep quitting, complaining, asking and worrying. It's good to be humble and seek knowledge. You seem like a very pleasant and smart guy. But like classical_Liberal said, you must realize that you are extremely privileged in the bigger scheme of things. When I read quotes like "US poverty here I come!" complaining about $11/hr in a western country and feeling "unsustainably awful every day at the office", let me remind you that there are people who just woke up this morning with no money to feed themselves and their kids, no job and no future prospects. No opportunity. Have you ever seen poverty first hand? Do you realize how lucky you are? It sounds like you don't. Of course, realizing how lucky you are won't solve the problems you have at hand. You take action and responsibility which is good. Now man up and tough it out for a while. There will be suffering no matter which way. I think you already know this.

[slowtraveler]

I still wonder why you haven't gotten in your van and started travelling around in national parks.

http://www.andybaird.com/travels/skylarking/

This guy did it with a relatively high wr and small ss.

You could also. Or find your own way.

Also $11/hr is pretty good in the grand scheme of things. If you stick to a job for a while, you'll get competent (assuming you try), build respect in the work environment, and begin to enjoy it more as you'll also slowly have more autonomy and room to suggest improvements/changes. This takes years, not months. All you need is 200k. Also, check out the Saver's Credit, maybe you qualify at the low income. Along with maybe some other cool benefits.

https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/pl ... ers-credit

Where's the fun THF? We're all here because we seek FI, all of us here are here because we aspire for freedom from work, are finance nerds, frugal af compared to the average person in our cohort.

Do something you can stick to. Constantly quitting sucks emotionally. Way too much time spent searching and with lifestyle friction from the constant transition. No momentum built.

That's why I say, go live in the parks for a while like you dreamed of. It'll lighten your heart. It may lead to some serendipity. It'll open you up to more possibilities than you're currently seeing.

[Gilberto de Piento]

Feeling pretty depressed today. It's like I wake up fine/good, go to work, and come out the other end depressed.

Depression can be a sign that there is a problem that needs to be solved and you need to make changes to your life, for example, leaving a job you hate. Depression can also be a chemical imbalance or mindset problem, meaning that no change is going to make you feel better until you get the underlying mental issues out of the way. Only you can really know what the problem is.

Have you thought about why you are depressed after work? Is there something particular that happens during the day that you don't like? Do you need a snack and some exercise when you get home (seriously)? Are you thinking deep existential negative thoughts all day long? It can be difficult getting used to sitting in a chair doing the same thing for ten hours a day, five days a week, if you are used to more self-directed variety.

I take the point of people saying you need to stick with something longer but having been a person who stuck with things far too long I say now is the time in your life when you should be making changes until you figure out what you like or at least don't hate. It gets harder to switch later.