General Adulthood, Planning for the Future: Business, College, Budgeting, Investments, etc! $$$ - General

I'm thinking of finding my very first job but I'm not sure as to how low or high I should aim in terms of where to work. I have zero education, 20 years old and have never worked. the goal is to go back to school next year but until then I need something to do. what are some decent first jobs that require no qualification? I've been thinking of maybe cleaning, janitor, general maintenance guy, etc etc, but I don't know exactly what any of these occupations are called. what are my alternatives in general?

[QUOTE=Pascall;50404650]So does anyone have any tips on how to get through an 8 hour work day? I suffer from depression at times and it leaves me exhausted so even part time work is hard for me but now with a full time job, I'm looking for ways to mitigate the tiredness ahead of time so I'm not outright suffering... I'm assuming I'll be able to sleep better at night though if I'm working all day. Insomnia is kind of a big thing with me.[/QUOTE] Coffee. Black, and lots of it.

I would drink more coffee if it didn't taste god awful and if caffeine didn't fuck my intestines up.

[QUOTE=Pascall;50414522]I would drink more coffee if it didn't taste god awful and if caffeine didn't fuck my intestines up.[/QUOTE] Natural sugars for a healthy snack. I keep a big bag of dried mangoes in the fridge, and just continually go to those through out the day. I've got some Raisinets in there too. But really, if you like fruits/citrus, try the mango. It's some of the greatest snacking food ever. [url]http://www.amazon.com/Philippine-Naturally-Delicious-Mangoes-Ripened/dp/B00SKRXB60[/url] And of course, drink lots of water. It will keep you going.

so I started digging deeper into the job search, starting to realize there are, in fact, a lot of jobs out there, but the mindset of ignorant perception filters a lot of things out, of course, there's not much opportunity to find a /great/ job, especially as someone with no qualifications and sparse work experience, essentially gotta treat it like finding a first job all over again and start at the bottom

How has the transition from highschool to not-in-college life been for some of you guys? after highschool my parents pressured me erratically to go to college despite me being really hesitant, and I ended up spending a semester in a digital media course at a school I wasn't happy with. they were furious when I left after the semester, and for a while I felt like complete shit having my mom refer to me as a dropout and not making good use of my time. not long after I turned youtube into a respectable job, enough to theoretically move out if I want to- I doubt I can tide off that for the rest of my life, but I'd like to figure out a trade or otherwise go back to college when I can find a place I like. It's just felt really weird since I don't feel like a kid or an adult anymore, just a line in between right now

So I'm looking at starting investing and I've been hearing that mutual funds are a good way to invest. Do any of you guys have experience with mutual funds? I would like to invest $1,000 because my goal would be to develop a stream of income. I'm glad this thread was started it's nice to be able to chat with others about this stuff.

[QUOTE=elasticity;50418355]so I started digging deeper into the job search, starting to realize there are, in fact, a lot of jobs out there, but the mindset of ignorant perception filters a lot of things out, of course, there's not much opportunity to find a /great/ job, especially as someone with no qualifications and sparse work experience, essentially gotta treat it like finding a first job all over again and start at the bottom[/QUOTE] Even if you don't have the qualifications apply anyways as you might just get lucky, as you might just be the best option out of everyone who applied.

I have that meeting tomorrow with my broker, so naturally I wanted to tidy myself up. After all, this is the start of my career. I got a haircut today, went and bought myself a properly fitted dress shirt, chinos, new shoes. I was looking sharp. Of course, I had to trim my beard, which has grown huge and unruly in the month or so that I've been living without a mirror. Grabbed my trimmers, forgot to put the cut length thing on, and shaved a strip off my chin straight down the skin. whoops.

[QUOTE=DELL;50424630]Even if you don't have the qualifications apply anyways as you might just get lucky, as you might just be the best option out of everyone who applied.[/QUOTE] Yeah i'm definitely keeping my head up and my eyes open, it's just kinda interesting because I feel like i'm finally reaching that stage where i'm ready to experiment and work out what I want to do with my life and all that, instead of just sitting around thinking "I don't know what to do with my life" it's a good feeling eh [QUOTE=Punchy;50419908]How has the transition from highschool to not-in-college life been for some of you guys? after highschool my parents pressured me erratically to go to college despite me being really hesitant, and I ended up spending a semester in a digital media course at a school I wasn't happy with. they were furious when I left after the semester, and for a while I felt like complete shit having my mom refer to me as a dropout and not making good use of my time. not long after I turned youtube into a respectable job, enough to theoretically move out if I want to- I doubt I can tide off that for the rest of my life, but I'd like to figure out a trade or otherwise go back to college when I can find a place I like. It's just felt really weird since I don't feel like a kid or an adult anymore, just a line in between right now[/QUOTE] adulthood isn't so bad, the more I get into it the less I miss the reality bubble that was high school even though that was years ago now it's just taken me time to readjust into the real world in a sense, straight out of highschool it was kinda terrible, I had no clue about anything really and thought I knew everything, then I was faced with all these challenges that made everything seem so dreadful, felt overwhelming and like I was... well.. trapped? It took a lot out of me in a sense, made a lot of dumb decisions, got stuck making the same mistakes over and over again for a long while because I couldn't quite work out HOW to change even though I wanted too, i'm at a point where I don't feel so self-identified with every single challenge/obstacle/situation I come face to face with, it's all kinda just abritrary and meaningless going ons with exception of how I (and others) perceive and approach it, which actually takes a huge weight off of so much in life, like even though it is life and it's real, it makes everything feel a lot less... grim I still wouldn't consider myself a fully matured adult by any means, but it's definitely been an interesting transition so far

Any of you lads have advice on where to buy land? Ebay and Craigslist seem to have the best deals but the selection is always small.

[QUOTE=spiritlol;50429363]Any of you lads have advice on where to buy land? Ebay and Craigslist seem to have the best deals but the selection is always small.[/QUOTE] Contact realtors, or go driving around the more rural parts of town. I live in a rural area south of Orlando, FL. Shit is going for sale here and builders are buying it up. Generally there's only a small group of companies that will manage land sales in an area. Are you trying to buy housing lots, or 30 acre tracts?

Buy scottish land and become a lord

[QUOTE=PredGD;50413337]I'm thinking of finding my very first job but I'm not sure as to how low or high I should aim in terms of where to work. I have zero education, 20 years old and have never worked. the goal is to go back to school next year but until then I need something to do. what are some decent first jobs that require no qualification? I've been thinking of maybe cleaning, janitor, general maintenance guy, etc etc, but I don't know exactly what any of these occupations are called. what are my alternatives in general?[/QUOTE] I was just like you when I started looking, however, this was back in 2010 when we still hadn't quite recovered from the recession. My first job was with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development as an "Engineering Technician", which most people would identify as a roadway construction inspector, but in reality we were more like an inspector AND project engineer's proxy. I needed nothing but a high school diploma and to pass an interview. Starting pay was $10.38/hour and it was a 40/hour a week job with a set schedule. It was all on the job training, and there was SOME upwards mobility. While I was in that job, I took all of the training and classes that I could, receiving several inspection certifications. I had a few promotions, but realized that even if I went to the top position, I would barely if ever break into the $20/hour range by the end of my career. I spent 5 years in a "career" type job (one that's designed for you to be able to work your whole life and retire from) and only made it up to $14/hour. However, because of the experience and certifications earned, I was able to land a NICE QA inspector's job last year, which breaks into the 6 figure salary range when you factor in my Per-Diem (since this job is out-of-state). Had I never taken the job I did, I would have never have the job I have now. So my advice to you is not necessarily "how low or high to aim", but more look for a job that has upward mobility and unique experience potential. Don't automatically settle for a job like a custodian or general maintenance where there is little upwards mobility and training. Try googling "*your state* state jobs" and see what comes up. They should have some kind of website [URL="http://agency.governmentjobs.com/louisiana/default.cfm"]like this one[/URL] where you can look. There can be some hidden gems in there. But overall, don't think that just because you have no college education or formal experience that you're not qualified for a job that has upward mobility and potential. [QUOTE=spiritlol;50429363]Any of you lads have advice on where to buy land? Ebay and Craigslist seem to have the best deals but the selection is always small.[/QUOTE] Zillow is a pretty good website to use for finding property for sale IMO.

[QUOTE=Revenge282;50429387]Contact realtors, or go driving around the more rural parts of town. I live in a rural area south of Orlando, FL. Shit is going for sale here and builders are buying it up. Generally there's only a small group of companies that will manage land sales in an area. Are you trying to buy housing lots, or 30 acre tracts?[/QUOTE] Looking for anything that's zoned for residential but not stuck in a neighborhood or requires joining a HA. Don't need a massive track, I'd settle for as small as an acre if the location is good. Undeveloped is a plus. This isn't something that needs to happen immediately, just getting research done to make sure I make a sound decision and don't pass up the opportunity for a great deal.

Definitely contact a realtor. There's no real reason not to as a buyer, since it is typically the seller who pays both agents' commission (at least with residential realty. Unsure if the same holds true for undeveloped land). A realtor specializing in undeveloped property will have the experience and resources to help find you the best possible deal, walk you through all the proper due dilligence, and generally just represent your best interests. It's definitely possible without an agent, but the perks of having an agent far outweigh the cons, especially when their paycheck is generally coming out of somebody else's pocket. [editline]31st May 2016[/editline] I don't know enough about rural and undeveloped properties to offer you any sound advice beyond that, unfortunately. Definitely something I want to devote some time to in the future, but my primary area of interest for investment is semi-urban residential units, especially multi-family homes.

[QUOTE=spiritlol;50429788]Looking for anything that's zoned for residential but not stuck in a neighborhood or requires joining a HA. Don't need a massive track, I'd settle for as small as an acre if the location is good. Undeveloped is a plus. This isn't something that needs to happen immediately, just getting research done to make sure I make a sound decision and don't pass up the opportunity for a great deal.[/QUOTE] Really dependent on your area. but if it's something in the <10 acre range, you would probably be best off with the big realtor sites (Zillow, etc.). If you don't mind, what exactly are you planning to do with the purchase? Is it a future home, or is it just something to invest your money in? What area are you looking in?

Future home, and I am looking to leave the state I currently live in because the land is so expensive and I don't think it's worth the cost. Ideally looking to build something small with a couple of friends to live together in, so the priority is a lot where local zoning ordinance would give us plenty of freedom on how to use the property. In a general sense I'd like to live in a more nothern climate, I'm not a big fan of heat. Other than that I have no preference, my job is very flexible with location so almost anywhere in the continental US would work.

How easy/kind are they towards people that get their first job? From you guy's own personal experiences. I'm working with film and TV-production so my workplace and scheduele is different everyday. The transport to the job and from it aswell. But I've still not had a regular job, and it terrifies me. I'm planning on taking vacation from the media business and start something with something new, and that means I have to adapt which is my strongest weakness (many psychological issues). I need a stable infrastructure, because working with film is very different, because the salary can swift from McDonalds payment, to lawyers payment.

[QUOTE=The bird Man;50431298]How easy/kind are they towards people that get their first job? From you guy's own personal experiences. I'm working with film and TV-production so my workplace and scheduele is different everyday. The transport to the job and from it aswell. But I've still not had a regular job, and it terrifies me. I'm planning on taking vacation from the media business and start something with something new, and that means I have to adapt which is my strongest weakness. I need a stabe infrastructure, because working with film is very different, because the salary can swift from McDonalds payment, to lawyers payment.[/QUOTE] When I was in the film/TV world, I had 1 crew out of 12 crews be nice to me. 11 of them didn't treat me well, ran me ragged and taught me nothing. The 1 crew was great and taught me tons. If you're lucky, you'll get a good crew. Regardless of what kind of crew you're with, the easier you are to get along with, the better you are at listening to instructions, the better for your future. Budgeting in a film world is really hard because your pay is going to be so variable. I used to do two day shoots on the weekends as a daycall and walk home with a cool 1500$, or I used to go entire weeks without work because it was just a bad time.

My meeting today went great! The brokers were very impressed with my marketing strategies, and suggested that I start working with them immediately in order to get my lead generation systems rolling before I even need them. They are finding me an agent to intern with, and as soon as I get my license I can work as a paid licensed assistant part time until I'm ready to leave my day job and become a full time realtor. It's going to be a very busy few months!

So, shortly after my meeting, I got a call from my financial planner who has a client getting ready to start his own real estate business right in the middle of the territory that I would like to set up my "farm" for marketing. He's a broker with years of experience, and he's looking for talent to join his new office. My financial planner passed my name off to him, and he gave me a call this morning. I'm meeting him tonight to discuss opportunities. The brokers I met the other night work with a very large, international real estate business, whereas this fellow will be running a local operation. I'm a bit torn about which to do. On the one hand, I am planning to focus my professional efforts within a relatively small area anyway, so either organization will work for me. The larger business offers greater general training opportunities and a very wide support network, but the smaller business offers a more personalized experience through direct mentorship. The larger business has a high amount of credibility behind it given that it's already a massive name in the industry, but the smaller business has unlimited growth potential-- getting in on the ground floor could be highly rewarding. I'm hoping tonight will help me make a decision either way. It will give me an opportunity to feel out the broker's motivations, ambitions, leadership style, etc. I want to make sure that his vision is the same as mine, and I'm going to test out just how serious he is about training and retaining top quality talent by asking him to invest in my education. Assuming I'm impressed, and he's impressed, I will ask that he pay for my licensing classes, my first year of realtor fees, and that he give me a marketing budget. If he's serious, then these will represent a pretty small long-term cost compared to the business that I could ultimately bring him. If he's not willing to cover these costs, or if he doesn't have a sufficiently impressive plan to outweigh the risks and costs associated with choosing to throw my hat in with a new venture as opposed to an old empire, then I will just go with my original choice.

[QUOTE=Big Dumb American;50448964]So, shortly after my meeting, I got a call from my financial planner who has a client getting ready to start his own real estate business right in the middle of the territory that I would like to set up my "farm" for marketing. He's a broker with years of experience, and he's looking for talent to join his new office. My financial planner passed my name off to him, and he gave me a call this morning. I'm meeting him tonight to discuss opportunities. The brokers I met the other night work with a very large, international real estate business, whereas this fellow will be running a local operation. I'm a bit torn about which to do. On the one hand, I am planning to focus my professional efforts within a relatively small area anyway, so either organization will work for me. The larger business offers greater general training opportunities and a very wide support network, but the smaller business offers a more personalized experience through direct mentorship. The larger business has a high amount of credibility behind it given that it's already a massive name in the industry, but the smaller business has unlimited growth potential-- getting in on the ground floor could be highly rewarding. I'm hoping tonight will help me make a decision either way. It will give me an opportunity to feel out the broker's motivations, ambitions, leadership style, etc. I want to make sure that his vision is the same as mine, and I'm going to test out just how serious he is about training and retaining top quality talent by asking him to invest in my education. Assuming I'm impressed, and he's impressed, I will ask that he pay for my licensing classes, my first year of realtor fees, and that he give me a marketing budget. If he's serious, then these will represent a pretty small long-term cost compared to the business that I could ultimately bring him. If he's not willing to cover these costs, or if he doesn't have a sufficiently impressive plan to outweigh the risks and costs associated with choosing to throw my hat in with a new venture as opposed to an old empire, then I will just go with my original choice.[/QUOTE] That is awesome. I feel like going with the smaller guy starting off would be a better path, considering there's probably more opportunity for you as an individual compared to the larger company (less employees to 'spread the wealth' to, if you will). Plus, it's easy to spread your name around locally and get a pretty sizable clientele built. My friend/boss/"adopted father" is getting into house flipping, and he just had a friend get into being a realtor with a small company in town. She's bought/sold him about 6 or 7 houses since March. She only started less than a year ago. A wise man once said, it's not what you know, it's who you know.

[QUOTE=Revenge282;50449325]That is awesome. I feel like going with the smaller guy starting off would be a better path, considering there's probably more opportunity for you as an individual compared to the larger company (less employees to 'spread the wealth' to, if you will). Plus, it's easy to spread your name around locally and get a pretty sizable clientele built. My friend/boss/"adopted father" is getting into house flipping, and he just had a friend get into being a realtor with a small company in town. She's bought/sold him about 6 or 7 houses since March. She only started less than a year ago. A wise man once said, it's not what you know, it's who you know.[/QUOTE] Maybe, yeah. I'll have to see what he's offering, what can convince him to offer, and then take some time to think about how either company could help further my own goals. I'm a [I]little[/I] concerned with the bigger company strictly from an appearance standpoint. Like, if I were to focus my marketing efforts towards affluent folks from high-end areas, would they take me less seriously on account of being part of a large company, as opposed to a private local company? Or would the reverse be true? Basicwlly, which way are upper class folks more likely to think: 1) He comes from a huge company where agents are a dime a dozen. I don't want an agent who doesn't understand my specific situation! I would rather have a private local agent who specializes in my market to represent my needs, because he is probably has greater insight. Or 2) He comes from a small company with very little market share. He probably doesn't have access to the same systems, training, or tools that somebody from a bigger company would. I want to go with an agent from a large organization, because they have the network and resources to represent my needs efficiently! [editline]3rd June 2016[/editline] Or, at the end of the day, does it even fucking matter? In either situation, I know what my marketing approach would be. I just don't know if they would be equally effective! If not, which is superior?

I can't be too sure with this piece of advice BDA, but based on my brothers behaviour(He's a multi millionare), from when he bought his home, he hired people he knew were good due to connections. He'd heard so and so was good from a colleague and hired that person because of that kind of word of mouth. The really rich don't need advertising, they talk amongst themselves about that kind of shit oddly enough.

[QUOTE=HumanAbyss;50450414]I can't be too sure with this piece of advice BDA, but based on my brothers behaviour(He's a multi millionare), from when he bought his home, he hired people he knew were good due to connections. He'd heard so and so was good from a colleague and hired that person because of that kind of word of mouth. The really rich don't need advertising, they talk amongst themselves about that kind of shit oddly enough.[/QUOTE] Just to be clear, I don't necessarily mean "marketing" in a mailers and handouts sort of way. Marketing yourself in real estate is primarily about personal networking no matter who your target audience is. It's how you choose to do it that might change between demographics. In a solidly middle class area, for example, I might choose to maximize the number of people I meet each day with a simple doorknocking campaign or canned food drive outside the local grocery store, whereas with more affluent areas I may attempt to maximize the [I]quality[/I] of the time I spend with overall fewer people. If I were targeting affluent areas, one of my primary networking techniques would likely be to arrange personal meetings with the homeowners, businessmen, etc. Just spitballing here, but my approach might be to say that I am a new local real estate agent looking to specialize in luxury homes, and that I'm looking for some advice on what specifics qualities the homeowner would look for in a realtor, and what things that realtor would have to understand in order to meet their hypothetical real estate needs. I would then thank them for their time, hand them my card, and leave. The next day, I would write them a handwritten thank you letter and post it to their home. I would touch base with them several times over the next couple of months, each one a personal interaction or letter. Never form letters, never mass mailers. The idea would not be to knock on their door and say, "hey, want to sell your house?" It would be, instead, to present myself as an eager and attentive study of their needs, somebody who is honest and legitimate about wanting to represent their best interests to such a degree that he would even come and ask for advice with no ulterior motive other than to better prepare himself for whatever future clients may come his way. I would not ask for anything other than information and advice. My hope is that this would impress enough to make me memorable, the kind of person they might think to mention next time a friend, family member, or associate had real estate needs. They would note that I was legitimately interested in learning about their needs, that I listened attentively, took notes, asked the right questions, and was grateful and appreciative of their time, and that is what they would say the next time they had an opportunity to refer me. Given the considerably higher value of each individual transaction, I could devote considerably more time and attention to each individual networking opportunity. I could also afford a much more personal touch to my drip campaign, touching base with my database several times throughout the year with things like handwritten letters, thank you cards, holiday and birthday cards, small gifts, etc. These are things that I wouldn't be able to use as frequently with a much broader customer base due to expense and time constraints. The main drawback of a high value home approach is fewer overall opportunities, making each missed opportunity sting that much more. I may see a hundred good leads over the course of a year with a mass market, but only ten with a more specialized market. While failing to impress with the listing presentation at a $100,000 home may only "cost" me a $3,000 commission, a million dollar home is worth $30,000 to me! Losing that would be a real kick in the nuts. Each landed opportunity is ten times more rewarding, but each lost opportunity is ten times more painful. And with far fewer overall opportunities and a much more competitive environment? It's not a decision to take lightly.

You mentioned your theory on getting yourself known to the upper class clients. I wouldn't necessarily approach them about your break-in to the industry. I would focus more on making yourself approachable and appealing so they come to you, without you having to intervene too much. I know that probably doesn't make a lot of sense. Like it was said before, when upper class looks for something to get done, they have their own little networks that are reputable and tight-nit. Trying to break into one of those circles might come off as brash and greenhorn. I would focus on working under someone already in one of those circles, ride their coattails and start getting your name associated with theirs, then when you feel like you have the proper connections to create your own momentum, break off. I'm not trying to down your ideas, as you said, it's all spitballing. But I'm speaking from experience with how my family and my friend I mentioned previously do things. HumanAbyss's brother's behavior is spot on, generally speaking.

True, any marketing plan needs refinement, especially when I don't fully understand my target market. I would definitely be taking some time to conduct meetings with agents and brokers operating within those markets for advice if I chose to go that route in order to try and determine the best possible approach. However, after my meeting tonight, I've decided to split the difference anyway. I'll be focusing on upper middle class homes, minimum value of $250,000 or more. I compared the total sales volume of each of the top fifteen agents in the city to their respective number of transactions, and the average value per transaction was between $250-500k. This seems to be the sweet zone where there is still a high enough volume of inventory versus home value to achieve great commission with each transaction while still having enough opportunities to carve out my corner of the market. I could still approach this with a relatively traditional marketing plan, too, though I would definitely like to keep it as personal as possible. It's hard to beat the efficiency of a drip campaign, but I don't want my periodic communication to be as impersonal as newsletters and mailers. Anyway, as the meeting tonight. Unfortunately, there was a pretty big miscommunication. Nothing sinister, just a misunderstanding, but it still wasn't quite the opportunity I had hoped. I went into the meeting expecting it to be a broker establishing his own practice. Instead it was just a recruiter from Keller-Williams, another large real estate firm, looking for some new buyer agents to work out of another hub office They had some attractive pros compared to Remax's offer, but also several glaring cons, not the least of which was the simple fact that I don't want to work as a buyers agent. So, I'll be going with my initial choice! It wasn't wasted time, though! I got some great advice regarding my marketing plan, and I made a good contact.

[QUOTE=Punchy;50419908]How has the transition from highschool to not-in-college life been for some of you guys? after highschool my parents pressured me erratically to go to college despite me being really hesitant, and I ended up spending a semester in a digital media course at a school I wasn't happy with. they were furious when I left after the semester, and for a while I felt like complete shit having my mom refer to me as a dropout and not making good use of my time. not long after I turned youtube into a respectable job, enough to theoretically move out if I want to- I doubt I can tide off that for the rest of my life, but I'd like to figure out a trade or otherwise go back to college when I can find a place I like. It's just felt really weird since I don't feel like a kid or an adult anymore, just a line in between right now[/QUOTE] For me it's been so-so. My parents understood I was never a academic type and encouraged me to pursue some sort of trade, but my mother still wants me to attend the local county college and work at a associates. They let me live under their roof which words alone can't show how grateful I am, so I help them out with money from time to time or whatever they need. Sometimes I feel like I picked the wrong trade and want to do something else, because I have those days where I deal with someone who really just knows how to piss me off like buying the stupidest goddamn vanity cabinet with a bathroom fixture that has hose supplies with no rubber compression in them to stop leaks to top it off I can't see what the fuck I'm doing and I have to nigger rig the fixture trap somehow. Or having leaks that I just can't figure out. Then I look at the electricians who aren't having a hard time at all hanging up their fans and lights and I ask them if it's too late to become an electrician. If one year of trade school didn't cost as much as a semester at a county college I'd relearn something else.

[QUOTE=Silence I Kill You;50429527]I was just like you when I started looking, however, this was back in 2010 when we still hadn't quite recovered from the recession. My first job was with the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development as an "Engineering Technician", which most people would identify as a roadway construction inspector, but in reality we were more like an inspector AND project engineer's proxy. I needed nothing but a high school diploma and to pass an interview. Starting pay was $10.38/hour and it was a 40/hour a week job with a set schedule. It was all on the job training, and there was SOME upwards mobility. While I was in that job, I took all of the training and classes that I could, receiving several inspection certifications. I had a few promotions, but realized that even if I went to the top position, I would barely if ever break into the $20/hour range by the end of my career. I spent 5 years in a "career" type job (one that's designed for you to be able to work your whole life and retire from) and only made it up to $14/hour. However, because of the experience and certifications earned, I was able to land a NICE QA inspector's job last year, which breaks into the 6 figure salary range when you factor in my Per-Diem (since this job is out-of-state). Had I never taken the job I did, I would have never have the job I have now. So my advice to you is not necessarily "how low or high to aim", but more look for a job that has upward mobility and unique experience potential. Don't automatically settle for a job like a custodian or general maintenance where there is little upwards mobility and training. Try googling "*your state* state jobs" and see what comes up. They should have some kind of website [URL="http://agency.governmentjobs.com/louisiana/default.cfm"]like this one[/URL] where you can look. There can be some hidden gems in there. But overall, don't think that just because you have no college education or formal experience that you're not qualified for a job that has upward mobility and potential. Zillow is a pretty good website to use for finding property for sale IMO.[/QUOTE] high school in the US is part of the mandatory school system right? equivalent to secondary school in Norway? the mandatory part ends (secondary school) after the 10th class at the age 15 / 16 here in Norway which is what I have. I'll definitely try googling that and see what I can find, I imagine there must be something I can find! other than that, I need some advice on setting up a budget. I have little control over my current income and expenses which isn't too fun. is there some program that can make a budget easier to automate / deal with? should I just stick to Excel? I bought YNAB (You Need A Budget) ages ago for some reason so I have something, but I wasn't sure how to really use it.