Was a young kid in my mid to late teens, sleeping at a trap house, on a floor covered in cat piss (allergic to cats too), with a psycho narcissistic abusive girlfriend. Decided that wasn't what I wanted for myself. That part was critical, and my mentality changed completely. Got a new job full time, put myself through community college while working full time, and got my AAS. It wasn't easy, at all. But I was responsible, got my credit rating up in the process, and finally landed my first career professional job around 22 years old. Since then, I've used my jobs to pay for training/certs/more school, continued to improve my knowledge and resume. I now own my own home, paid off all vehicles, wife, etc. I'm on cruise control now, and do what I want when I want. I can afford everything I ever wanted, and am living my best life. House is now a summer home, as I'm full time remote, and wife is a traveling nurse. Just putting away for retirement now.