#Financial advice for beginners

[kc22invesmentsblog]

Demystifying the Bull and Bear: Understanding Market Trends

In the world of finance and investing, terms like “bull market” and “bear market” are frequently thrown around. But what do these terms really mean? Today, we’ll dive into the fascinating world of market trends and gain a clear understanding of these commonly used phrases. Bull Market: Riding the Wave of Optimism When we hear the term “bull market,” it signifies a period of rising stock prices…

[my-crypto-blog]

5 Common Crypto Investment Mistakes and How to Avoid Them.

With its potential for high returns comes equally high risk. New investors often find themselves making critical mistakes that can impact their financial health. We'll explore five common mistakes.

Investing in cryptocurrency can be both thrilling and daunting. With its potential for high returns comes equally high risk. New investors often find themselves making critical mistakes that can impact their financial health. Here, we’ll explore five common errors and provide in-depth guidance on how to avoid them. 1. Lack of Research and Due Diligence Mistake: Jumping into investments without…

[lifestepx]

LifeStepX Created Online Course Guidance Tailored to You

Choosing the right course can be overwhelming. LifeStepX helps you cut through the noise by recommending accredited Online Course Guidance with your goals, background, and learning style. Whether you're reskilling or advancing your career, we guide you toward options that truly make a difference.

[realestateinvesting001]

How to Build Wealth from Scratch: Practical Steps for Beginners & Young Professionals

Building wealth from scratch may seem daunting, but with the right steps and mindset, anyone can create a solid financial foundation. Whether you’re a young professional just starting your career or someone looking to get their finances on track, these practical tips will guide you on the path to financial success. 🌟 Step 1: Know Where You’re Starting 📊 Before you can build wealth, you need to…

[withtroy]

"The Path to Wealth Starts Here."

[randyorton66]

Warren Buffett- You Only Need To Know These 7 Rules!

Are you looking for the key to success? Look no further than Warren Buffett the world’s most successful investor. In this video, we will explore the 7 rules of Warren Buffett’s that you need to know. Let's watch the entire video and learn about these rules in detail.

👉 Subscribe to my channel to stay tuned: https://bit.ly/4aXYMxD

From understanding the price versus intrinsic value to holding on for the long haul, Buffett's wisdom spans fundamental principles that have stood the test of time in the ever-changing landscape of finance and business. Learn how to seize great opportunities, stick to what you know, invest based on facts rather than emotions, and prioritize the integrity and talent of managers.

Join us on this journey through Buffett's philosophy and discover how his principles can guide you toward a more secure and fulfilling financial future. If you're ready to take control of your financial destiny and unlock the secrets of success, this video is very helpful for you.

Have thoughts, questions, or your own Buffett-inspired success stories? Drop a comment below and let's continue the conversation. Remember, smart financial decisions today lead to a more secure and fulfilling tomorrow.

[mymoneyepisodes]

Avoid This Hidden But Very Costly Investment Mistake (Financial Advice For 20s)

0:00 Introduction 0:07 Financial instability. 0:23 Limited flexibility. 0:42 High debt burden: 0:56 Maintenance costs. 1:14 Missing investment opportunities. 1:38 Market volatility. 1:55 Summary and Conclusion

Buying a dream home in your 20s might not always be the best financial decision to make. Avoid This Costly Investment Trap (Financial Advice For 20s) due to these reasons: Financial instability. In your 20s, you might not have stable income or job security. Committing to a large mortgage for your dream home can be financially burdensome if your income isn't steady or expected to increase significantly in the near future. Limited flexibility. Your 20s are often a time of change. You might be exploring career opportunities, considering further education, or even contemplating moving to a different city or country. Owning a home can tie you down and limit your flexibility to embrace these changes. High debt burden: Taking on a substantial mortgage at a young age can result in significant debt. This might restrict your ability to invest in other opportunities, such as starting a business or furthering your education. Maintenance costs. Homeownership comes with various expenses beyond the mortgage. These may include property taxes, maintenance, repairs, and insurance. These costs can be unexpected and can strain your finances, especially if you're unprepared for them. Missing investment opportunities. Instead of sinking money into a property at an early age, you could consider investing in more liquid and diversified assets like stocks, bonds, or starting a business. These investments might yield higher returns in the long term compared to real estate, especially considering the opportunity cost of tying up a significant portion of your savings in a property. Market volatility. Real estate markets can fluctuate. Buying a dream home in your 20s might expose you to the risk of property value depreciation if the market changes unfavorably. This situation could leave you financially underwater. Ultimately, the decision to buy a home in your 20s should be based on careful consideration of your financial situation, long-term goals, and personal circumstances. It's essential to weigh the pros and cons before making such a significant financial commitment. #wealth #property #moneymistakes #investment

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[kc22invesmentsblog]

Budgeting for Financial Goals: Setting Priorities and Tracking Progress

Written by Delvin In today’s fast-paced world, financial stability and achieving our goals are top priorities. One of the most effective tools for managing our finances and working towards our aspirations is budgeting. By setting priorities and tracking progress, budgeting becomes a powerful strategy to help us reach our financial goals. In this blog post, we will explore the importance of…

[bitchesgetriches]

{ MASTERPOST } Everything You Need to Know about Investing for Beginners

Fundamentals of investing:

What’s the REAL Rate of Return on the Stock Market?

Do NOT Make This Disastrous Beginner Mistake With Your Retirement Funds

The Dark Magic of Financial Horcruxes: How and Why to Diversify Your Assets

Dafuq Is Interest? And How Does It Work for the Forces of Darkness?

Booms, Busts, Bubbles, and Beanie Babies: How Economic Cycles Work

When Money in the Bank Is a Bad Thing: Understanding Inflation and Depreciation

Investing Deathmatch series:

Investing Deathmatch: Managed Funds vs. Index Funds 

Investing Deathmatch: Traditional IRA vs. Roth IRA 

Investing Deathmatch: Investing in the Stock Market vs. Just… Not 

Investing Deathmatch: Stocks vs. Bonds 

Investing Deathmatch: Timing the Market vs. Time IN the Market

Investing Deathmatch: Paying off Debt vs. Investing in the Stock Market 

Investing Deathmatch: What Happens in a Bull Market vs. a Bear Market 

Now that we’ve covered the basics, are you ready to invest but don’t know where to begin? We recommend starting small with micro-investing through our partner Acorns. They’ll round up your purchases to the nearest dollar and invest the change in a nicely diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, and ETFs. Easy as eating pancakes:

Start saving small with Acorns

Alternative investments:

Small Business Investing: A Kinder, Gentler Alternative to the Stock Market 

Bullshit Reasons Not to Buy a House: Refuted

Investing in Cryptocurrency is Bad and Stupid

So I Got Chickens, Part 1: Return on Investment

Twelve Reasons Senior Pets Are an Awesome Investment 

How To Save for Retirement When You Make Less Than $30,000 a Year

Understanding the stock market:

Ask the Bitches Pandemic Lightning Round: “Did Congress Really Give $1.5 Trillion to Wall Street?”

Season 3, Episode 2: “I Inherited Money. Should I Pay Off Debt, Invest It, or Blow It All on a Car?” 

Money Is Fake and GameStop Is King: What Happened When Reddit and a Meme Stock Tanked Hedge Funds

Season 3, Episode 7: “I’m Finished With the Basic Shit. What Are the Advanced Financial Steps That Only Rich People Know?”

Wait… Did I Just Lose All My Money Investing in the Stock Market?

Season 4, Episode 1: “Index Funds Include Unethical Companies. Can I Still Invest in Them, or Does That Make Me a Monster?” 

Retirement plans:

Dafuq Is a Retirement Plan and Why Do You Need One?

Procrastinating on Opening a Retirement Account? Here’s 3 Ways That’ll Fuck You Over

How to Painlessly Run the Gauntlet of a 401k Rollover

Ask the Bitches: “Can I Quit With Unvested Funds? Or Am I Walking Away From Too Much Money?”

Workplace Benefits and Other Cool Side Effects of Employment

You Need to Talk to Your Parents About Their Retirement Plan

Season 4, Episode 5: “401(k)s Aren’t Offered in My Industry. How Do I Save for Retirement if My Employer Won’t Help?” 

Got a retirement plan already? How about three or four? Have you been leaving a trail of abandoned 401(k)s behind you at every employer you quit? Did we just become best friends? Because that was literally my story until recently. Our partner Capitalize will help you quickly and painlessly get through a 401(k) rollover:

Roll over your retirement fund with Capitalize

Recessions:

Season 1, Episode 12: “Should I Believe the Fear-Mongering about Another Recession?”

There’s a Storm a’Comin’: What We Know About the Next Recession

Ask the Bitches: How Do I Prepare for a Recession?

A Brief History of the 2008 Crash and Recession: We Were All So Fucked

Ask the Bitches Pandemic Lightning Round: “Is This the Right Time To Start Investing?”

[ms-demeanor]

hi! i am not sure if you will have good advice for this but your photography guide made me think about this issue. i grew up quite poor (school supplies were a struggle every september) and now as an adult i am not as financially stable as id like. this has made me very scared to use any art supplies because im always thinking that im wasting them on not good enough projects or not good enough skills or similar thinking. however that leads to me having supplies bc of gifts and whatnot (ie watercolor paper) but not using it out of anxiety. do you have any advice? thanks!

There are two ways that I go about getting over this kind of issue:

Get out the supplies right now and start making any marks. Cut a piece of watercolor paper in half. Draw a line down the center of a page in grease pencil. Do anything to just start using it to get over the "can't open it, must save for special occasions/projects" mindset. Once you've broken the seal on a first use, it's a lot easier to use tools or notebooks or paints a second time.

Plan projects for yourself like they're assignments. Give yourself a deadline and materials list, write it up like a school assignment sheet, and then do the assignment.

And, if it helps to think of it this way: you're likely hesitant to use your materials because you don't want them "going to waste," but at the moment they are being wasted because they aren't being used.

It is solidly my opinion that art supplies used for art are never wasted; not all "art" is meant to be kept and a part of the process of creating art is practice, which should lead to massive piles of clumsily made, "bad" art that you wouldn't want to hang up on the wall but is nonetheless a part of the process of making art that you'd want to hang on the wall.

You may be looking at the watercolor paper and thinking "I shouldn't break into this because each piece of this paper needs to be something special to show that I value this gift" but you don't get better at painting with watercolors if you use them on printer paper. You need to use the paper (and the paints, and your brushes) to maintain and improve your fluency with the medium.

Many people are hesitant to "waste" sketchbooks or good paper or canvas or expensive paint because they think they are throwing away the good things they *could* make if only the had the perfect plan and create the perfect piece of art with each page and each new tube.

But these things are consumables. Your sketchbook is not a guitar, and it is not a finished song, it is a set of strings. The lovely watercolor paper is a gift for you to make art with, but it is also a gift for you to *practice* making art with and the practice is just as much a part of the gift as a finished artwork would be.

So you're not wasting it if you just get out your paper and start painting with no plan, or if you "mess up" a piece, or if you just use the paper for practice.

So, if you're trying to get yourself to use watercolor paper specifically, I have an assignment for you:

Watercolor Thumbnails Assignment

Materials: Watercolor paper, 2 colors of paint (your choice), Hard pencil Tools: Ruler, Small and medium brushes, Palette

Instructions:

Using your pencil and your ruler, divide the page into 10 equal rectangles.

Visit this website and click the "surprise me" button. Select 10 artworks to create monochrome thumbnails of. (you can click as many times as you need to, but the goal here is to do thumbnails of art that you aren't familiar with rather than seeking out art that you know well for this assignment)

Reproduce each of the images as a monochrome thumbnail in the ten rectangles you've marked on your paper. You don't have to mix a unique color for each rectangle, but you should mix a few different colors and use only one for each rectangle. For instance, if you are using green and yellow paint, some images should be yellow, some should be green, some should be green-yellow, some should be yellow-green.

Purpose:

To use your materials

Work on achieving different values with single colors by layering or diluting your paint.

Composition study

Time Limits:

Once you have collected your ten images and have your station set up, you should take no more than one hour to complete your thumbnails.

Due Date: July 20th 2024

___________________

If you are not familiar with watercolor, here's a good video on some of the basic techniques for painting with watercolor:

And this is a good example of a monochrome painting done in watercolor; if you want, you can watch the video and use it as a tutorial to practice getting a feel for monochrome painting.

Use this assignment to practice! Make use of the gift that you were given by familiarizing yourself with the medium and thinking about art and working in color.

I'm going to play along too and will reblog this post with my thumbnails on July 20th - anyone who wants to join in is welcome to do so as well.

And everyone please remember: time and materials spent doing something you love or practicing a skill you enjoy are never wasted. Even if you don't end up with a "good" finished product, you have learned something and that, in itself, is valuable.

[realestateinvesting001]

Breaking Down the 50/30/20 Rule: A Beginner’s Guide 💰📊

Are you looking for an easy way to manage your money without getting overwhelmed? The 50/30/20 rule is a simple yet effective budgeting method that can help you balance your spending, saving, and investing. Whether you’re just starting your financial journey or looking to fine-tune your current strategy, the 50/30/20 rule is a fantastic tool to help you get on track. 📈💡 What is the 50/30/20…

[windvexer]

Hey! Any advice for a beginner to charm casting? I've been wanting to try for years, but can't seem to figure out what charms and whatnots I want to use to cover as much as possible, or how to go about figuring out how to read them. Thanks!

I'm 23k words into a full-sized book on charm casting (it'll have illustrations and diagrams and everything!), which I hope will be done in maybe 2 months or so. So... I'm sure people will figure out how to pirate that in no time, lol. Which is to say I'm not telling you that you have to pay me for info, I know it will be made available for free by others.

But here's some copy/paste stuff for you related to your question. It's still rough draft.

Charm casting is very good at describing the relationships between things, and how things exist in orientation to each other. You take the most relevant aspects to your question (say, charms representing Friend, Betrayal, Loyalty, and Future) and drop them on your casting surface. Your job as the reader is then to decide where those invisible red threads lie that connect the pieces. Is your friend closely connected to loyalty? And yet, does betrayal stand in lockstep with their future? Determining how these charms connect to each other will be like constructing your evidence board (although in the next section we will see that we really shouldn’t be taking any divination as ‘evidence’). Any time you’d like to know how things exist in relation to each other, charm casting can help you. This also makes charm casting especially well suited to questions of timing, which many other systems struggle with. After all, time is relative; and this is a system that shows relation. Besides describing relationships between things, charm casting is also a powerful system to show energy and movement. Although the reading is performed on charms lying still on a flat surface, it’s still possible to interpret movement, direction, focus, and trajectory. This is how we can look at a stationary reading and say, “you are rapidly moving towards a financial blessing, but your career progress is stagnant and barely moving at all.” [...]

You may have as many charm sets as you like. They may be as large or small as you like, containing hundreds of pieces – or just one or two. Your charm sets can be themed, random, sentimental, or chaotic. They can be assembled from junk, or be carefully cultivated over years. A handful of dried beans or rice can serve remarkably well for casting, although at that point it’s less ‘charm’ casting and moreso just legume tossing. [...]

It’s possible for some objects to ‘point’ in a certain direction, or to appear upside-down or flipped over, but this is not true of all objects. Whether or not an object has these features can largely define how it’s able to be used in a reading. An opaque marble does not have direction or reversibility. You can’t tell which way it’s pointed because it does not have defining features that ‘point’ in any particular direction. It doesn’t appear to have a nose or a tail. It can’t be reversed because it doesn’t have a front or a back; it’s a sphere. A matchstick has direction. The red phosphor matchhead is only on one end, and it can ‘point’ in one direction or another. But a matchstick does not have reversibility; you can’t tell if it’s lying on it’s belly or its back. A coin with the profile of a face has both direction and reversibility. Because the face is in profile, we can see if it’s looking in a certain direction, or rotated upside-down. Because the coin has a different symbol on the back, you can tell if it’s lying face-up or face-down. A six-sided die has reversibility, but not direction. You can tell if it’s lying on one side versus any other side, and these sides may all have special meanings which make its reversibility relevant. But it doesn’t have a nose or a tail that can indicate it’s pointed in a certain direction. In my experience, direction is a more important quality than reversibility. Direction can imply a lot of movement and it’s a very intuitive way to form connections within a reading. If a coin signifies a person, and the face of the coin is pointed right at another marker, that connection is easy to read. Reversals – or, objects clearly lying face-down – can tend to mean things like blocked energy, lack of interest, reduction in magnitude, and so forth. However, these qualities can also be demonstrated by spacing on the board (a charm much further away may be considered to have less ‘gravity’ or pull), by proximity to other charms (such as a charm meaning ‘blockages’ falls nearby), and through other methods which will be discussed in-depth later on. Therefore, if you’re trying to cultivate a nice set of charms, I encourage you to look for objects that have inherent direction. This direction is hard to make up for if it’s lacking, but reversibility is easier to make up for. [...]

Assigning meaning to charms is an intuitive and creative process. There is no right way to assign meaning to charms, and no right way for charms to hold meaning – but you may find that the process is more like discovery rather than assigning roles. I find the best way to discover and assign meanings to charms is to start them off with your first idea, practice reading with them, and see how that initial meaning does or does not fit your needs. Charms may seem to lend themselves to certain meanings, but never seem to fulfill a meaning you’ve assigned to it. I find the process works better if you don’t try to pigeonhole a charm into a role that doesn’t seem suited for it. [...} When developing charm sets, it’s helpful to build them around the kinds of topics you want to read on. If you wanted to do a lot of money and prosperity readings, you might develop a set that has different charms to represent money, wealth, abundance, debt, investments, assets, expenses, banks, and businesses. Conversely if you want to read on your own spirituality, you may have charms that represent gods, moral ideals, correct practices, teachers, and religious pitfalls. [...]

The general idea is that you find charms which correspond to something and therefore represent that same thing in the reading. A coin might correspond with money, a steel nail might correspond with binding and building, a vitamin tablet might represent health. Witches who have a grasp on sympathetic magic will immediately see why this is done. But technically, finding charms that organically correspond with their assigned meanings is not strictly necessary. You can get wickedly creative with assembling sets from things you have on hand. A change jar and fingernail polishes or permanent markers can make a wide variety of tokens, each representing anything you please. Simplified sigils or symbols can be used, or just blotches of color, to differentiate the tokens between each other.

[sadclowncentral]

hi would you say the barrier of entry for sailing is very high?

my family had a house near the beach so i spent every summer in the sea so i absolutely ADORE IT and wanted to learn how to sail recreationally but it's always seemed so expensive + hard to get into

advice or opinions are greatly appreciated if you have any to offer<3

btw i love ur blog ty :)

i would absolutely encourage you to try sailing out and i think it's a great sport to get into! i have introduced dozens of people to sailing so far and almost all of them hit the ground running. the learning curve is steep and even just joining for the first times without touching anything is exhilarating so no moment learning is wasted. strong motion sickness or a paralyzing fear of the ocean notwithstanding, i truly think everyone can learn the ropes (haha) and that quickly! we always joke that it is very easy to get a boat sailing and very hard to get it sailing fast, but you have the rest of the life to figure out the latter and even if you don't you will have a grand time on the water.

you did not specify if you want to get on a sailing yacht (that you can sleep and do long tours on) or a smaller dhingy so i will answer both and i hope it is helpful!

SAILING YACHTS:

when it comes to sailing yacht, the real challenge is not sailing but owning a boat, and that is where the financial barriers come in. i will not lie to you - owning a boat is really expensive, and i am talking 5 to 6 figures a year expensive for a middle-sized sailing yacht including mooring, fixes, equipment, utilities, tools, and everything else. you can absolutely find cheap boats sold at every coast line - but buying a boat is not expensive, having a boat is. (guy who just bought a rope for 600 human dollars voice) heed my warning.

THE GOOD NEWS: you absolutely do NOT need a boat to learn sailing on a yacht. everywhere there is a marina there is people looking for crew, and many sailing clubs have programmes for beginners to get you on a yacht and try it out! there are also many summer programmes to join on larger tours and learn sailing. i would encourage you to bring a friend or two because it's much easier to flounder around on a new ship in groups, but it is absolutely worth trying out and again - even being on a boat is exiting, and you learn by doing!

now. sailing is not a dangerous sport and this is my heightened sense for safety of a sailing instructor speaking. but! if you join on a boat even as a visitor please think of that sailing tumblr blog in your life and tell the captain that before you go out of the water you would like to know: 1) the number for local search and rescue, and 2) the position of the fire extinguisher, the lifeboat/life ring, and the emergency shut-off and 3) that you want to wear a life vest unrelated to weather conditions. if they make jokes about you being a worry-wart, take them in stride, but if they refuse to do any of this, you tell them that they are irresponsible and leave. things rarely go wrong but they can and i want you to know what to do. okay? sailing is not scary but being unprepared is. okay PSA over.

DHINGY SAILING:

dhingy sailing is the most fun, the closest to the water, and the fastest way to learning sailing because you are together with one other person max facing the winds. yes you will most certainly get wet, but it is very safe, close to shore, incredibly fun and exhilarating, teaching you self-reliance, reflexes, trains your sense of balance and gives you abs. it's the perfect sport. can you tell i teach dhingy sailing

if you want to learn dhingy sailing, again, do NOT immediately buy a dhingy. while they are far less expensive they are still a hassle and setting up the mast without knowing your way around a boat will discourage you from sailing forever. instead, again, join a sailing club or a short course to learn dhingy sailing!

many places can give you intensive courses and certificates that qualify you to lend out dhingys afterwards our you join a sailing club with their own dhingys (which there are a lot of everywhere!). most offer weekly or even daily sailing lessons and group sailing and faster than you know you will flying over the water. the financial barrier here could be the course cost as they vary widely (my students pay 50 euros a year but some places will cost you that or more an hour it's hard to gauge). apart from that, you will have to invest in a neoprene suit and a sailing west, but that's the extent of it.

all in all, give sailing a try! it is the most rewarding hobby i can think of and my heart aches for everyone who lives at the coast and doesn't best the waves one way or another. and again, i cannot stress it enough: being on the water is half the fun. everything else will happen in due time. the ocean waits for you! happy sailing!

[theambitiouswoman]

hi! i really want to get better with my finances next year but.... i have NO idea where to start. i'm a writer and english major, maths is my enemy and i'm so bad with numbers. but i'm 21, i'm getting older and graduating my masters next year and it's time to get started with my career as i won't be living off of this student loan anymore AND will have to eventually pay it back 😭

i wanted to know if you have any tips about finances, saving ... what i should even do, how i begin? any resources or beginner books to get me started on knowing anything money wise? i'm literally a 2 year old when it comes to this topic i'm quite clueless but i want it to change, so literally any basic advice would help me so much right now. by the time 2025 ends i want to be really good with money and finance knowledge!

First of all it’s amazing that you’re 21 & already graduating with your masters!!!

Let’s start with some simple tips:

For one month, write down every dollar you spend. This will show you where your money goes and where you can cut back.

Use the 50/30/20 rule: 50% of your income for needs, 30% for wants & 20% for savings or debt.

Even if it’s small, open a high yield savings account and set up automatic transfers. Saving a little every month adds up fast!

You can start learning about investing. These are beginner friendly ideas to help you grow your money:

1. Index Funds and ETFs: These are great for beginners because they’re low cost & diversified. Popular ones include the S&P 500 index funds (like VOO or SPY). You don’t have to pick individual stocks, you’re investing in a basket of companies.

2. Retirement Accounts: Roth IRA or 401(k) (if offered by your job). Contributions grow tax free in a Roth IRA, which is great for long term wealth.

3. Dividend Stocks: Some companies like Coca Cola or Johnson & Johnson play dividends. This gives you regular income while your investment grows.

4. Fractional Shares: Apps like Robinhood, Fidelity, or M1 Finance let you buy small portions of expensive stocks like Amazon or Tesla so you can start with as little as $5.

5. Real Estate Investing: If buying property isn’t an option yet, try REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts), which let you invest in real estate without owning property.

6. Life Insurance: You can use life insurance to build wealth. With whole or universal life insurance, you can borrow against the policy’s cash value to invest or cover major expenses. Payouts are generally tax-free, and the cash value grows tax deferred.

You can check out these YouTube/Instagram accounts:

The Financial Diet

Clever girl finance

Her first 100k

Girls that invest

mrsdowjones

female.in.finance

shewolfeofwallstreet

Ellevest

Good luck! Proud of you 👑

[theweirdwideweb]

I'm on my second career path choice after disliking my first choice (both fields required schooling), and I'm finding that I also strongly dislike my second choice. I'll be 27 soon and I'm feeling like a failure. All I want is to make decent money and not be miserable. I really thought the fields I chose would be right for me when I chose them and had to learn the hard way that they weren't. I'm tired, tired of being a perpetual beginner and of spending so much time and energy on schooling and "figuring it out". I just want to be doing the thing and move forwards so I can focus on the things that really matter to me. Any advice for someone in this position?

It sounds really frustrating. I wish we lived in a world where a person was free to explore careers without attaching a university size price tag to it. Here's the deal though: 27 is not old. I know it feels old, but I promise you it's not. I'm 37 myself and exploring my options and I don't feel too old at all. Many people do it. Since you're asking for my advice, I think for now you can work the highest paying job you can stand and pay off debt. Personal fulfillment in one's career is something to be envied, but obviously not the reality for most people. Show up, cash your check, pay down debt, and invest time and energy into your relationships and hobbies. I imagine your disillusionment with the first two careers might have been caused by any number of factors: 1) A misunderstanding of what working the career looks like day to day. 2) A youthful ignorance to the realities of capitalism. 3) The personal transformation that occurs between the ages of 18-27 changed you into a person that's no longer interested in the things you once were. The good news is that your personality begins to settle as you approach 30. You know much better what you need and want, your limitations, and the limitations of the world around you. I think you'll find the career path you're looking for. Just buckle down, make some money, make a secure place for yourself financially and socially, then revisit the subject when your sense of self solidifies.

Now I never talk about this because it's plain rude and makes me look like a jackass. When I went to college at 18 I had a small fortune from my dead father's life insurance. $250,000 or right about there. I spent all that money in 4 years and landed flat on my ass at 22 with nothing. I worked assembly line, food court, drug dealing, writing for scam websites, retail, online sex work, and even sold buttons at sports games. It took me until I was 28 to go back to school and I had to take out student loans to do it. But by that time I knew what I wanted. That initial failure of losing all that money, in the end, gave me the life experience to make wise choices. It was soul crushing the entire time but even the poor can make due with friends and a sense of humor. Don't beat yourself up. The past is the past. You will be fine.