So why are you poor or broke

So why are you poor or broke? And what are you going to do about it? That is the million dollar question. Just how are you spending your time if your still poor or broke?

 

I spend it thinking about the next thing I'm going t o buy once I get a hold of some doe

 

What I ponder is... is this going to turn into another War John "why don't you all commit suicide" threads.

That keeps my mind quite busy.

 

I just work more.

 

I don't want to turn this into a political thing, but...if you think it's still possible to pull yourself out of poverty based on your own hard work, you're being brainwashed.

 

Poor is a state of mind.

You either live happily within your means or you don't.

 

by the time i pay my wife's tuition i'd most likely be considered poor. doesn't really affect our life that much... there aren't a lot of expensive things that we want, and we don't really like going out to restaurants or bars that much. it's pretty easy to live on not much money when you cook most meals,try your best to fix things instead of buying new, and buy anything you can at the re-use or a second hand store.

 

I disagree. If you truly work hard at a goal anything's possible. You're the one who maybe brainwashed.

 

I am poor because I am using all of my money to pay for school.

I am spending my time studying, working and going for walks. Luckily, nature is free so I am always happy.

 

You think someone with no college degree working 12 hours a day as a convenience store clerk is gonna go anywhere? You think his kids will be able to go to college and get a good job? I don't think so.

edit: This is all assuming the economy stays the way it is, of course. I think if kids could afford a good education things would be different, but unfortunately that's not the way it is right now. Our society is riddled with greed and inequality, and I hope that changes soon.

 

When I graduated high school in 2003 I was told by numerous college advisors that money should never be an issue in pursuing a college education.

I know the economy has changed completely since then. Student loan interest rates have probably doubled. Grants and scholarships are maybe not as readily available? Still, I think anyone can find the money to attend college if they look/try hard enough.

The tricky part is finding a job after graduation.

Of course, economies are transient. The economy will either get better or worse but it won't stay the same.

 

It's not just interest rates. That is a huge problem, but tuition rates are through the roof right now. I spent two years at a Canadian university and as an international student I paid the same tuition that I'm now paying as an in-state resident at my American university.

I'd say the tuition rate and job market combined are the most important issues for students. It's nearly impossible to get a high enough salary right out of school to effectively pay off your loans. Even when I was in high school, just before the recession, the theater where I worked had applications coming in from people with Masters degrees. Graduate students shouldn't be looking for high-school level jobs. And if you can't get a high-paying job to pay off your loans, your credit is destroyed for life. Where do you go from there?

I know the economy will not stay the same, I was just putting it in as simple terms as I could - if the job market for young people and veterans doesn't dramatically improve soon, there will be big problems.

 

yawn

 

i decided that doing something i enjoy is more important than money, so i worked hard to get a job that doesn't pay a lot, but does cover my expenses and is actually fulfilling to me.

anyway, i'm not poor or broke so the question doesn't really apply to me. like i said, i don't have a lot of money, but i have enough that i don't really need to worry about it.

i don't know anything about the convenience store business, but pretty much anyone can get a fast food job, and by being one of the 10% of people who actually takes that job seriously they can easily work their way up into management, which does in fact pay middle class wages.

 

You're right. I've just always loved the idea that anyone can get an education if they want it bad enough. Its hard for me to accept this new reality.

 

*throws ping pong ball in there*

 

Someone with no college degree working 12 hours a day as a convenience store clerk CAN go somewhere. Community colleges are only about $1.5k a semester, about $800 if you go part time. Assuming you can go to my local community college and get a medical assistant certificate in 3 years going full time, after about 6-7 years of part time schooling you can pull yourself out of it. My friend is going to a local college in his state full time online and working 10 hour days. It's all possible through financial aid; if you're in a financial bind, and have shitty credit and can't take out a bank loan, you can at least get an associates degree or a certificate through your community college solely on government grants and the very small government loans that you're allotted. Nobody said it would be easy and if you were working 12 hours a day and schooling 4-6 hours a day for 7 years you're going to feel completely dead, but can you do it? Yes.

 

Just saying, if you have student loans out that you cannot pay, MOST places (including the government) will accommodate you if you for one year at a time if you provide your previous years tax returns with proof that you cannot pay your student loans because your total amount owed is a certain percentage of (or in some cases, exceeds) your yearly wages before taxes.

 

Wiating on good horizions to get me better work...Currently unemployed...Its been the same for almost the last year...Sucks to be me

 

I'm unemployed and am moving across the country (could you consider it that?) in less than two weeks with less than $800 in my pocket and no job secured and no education to look forward to. Could always be worse