ONTD

Well, for me, I worked my way up pretty much. When I was 18 I got a job with a small repo company doing clerical work part-time. I worked hard, went above and beyond what I was asked to do, and within two years I had taken the office manager's job. At that point, I realized the people I was working for had no idea how to run a business, so they told me if I switched my major to business they would pay for my school. So, I took Accounting 101 and Legal aspects of small business for my first semester, and then when I had learned a bunch of stuff about how to run a business I started trying to apply it with this company that I worked for which I thought was going to be the whole point of me switching majors… However, the owner got pissed because I started changing all the illegal shit she was doing and they fired me. The morning after I was fired, I woke up and the financial collapse of Wall Street and all the banks was all over the news, and I thought I would never work again… But, thankfully, I got a job at another repo company who obviously hired me because I had four years experience with running a repo company so they wouldn't have to train me, I could just jump in. The owner of that company had a couple other small family businesses and their bookkeeper went on family leave and never came back so they offered for me to do the books since I didn't have a ton to do during the day, and that was where I learned most of my hands on bookkeeping skills.

Long story short, I caught a fuck load of lucky breaks & always worked really hard.

No, I don't have a degree. I finished enough credits to go to a 4 year but then my dad died & shit went cra'y. I only make $18/hr but I'm only 25, & I'm still making more than my friends with degrees, plus I get 100% of my benefits paid for, so I figure I'm doing good. The company I work for is a small, family owned business and they do well so the future is bright. They want me to stay forever, the lady before me was there for 18 years and made $36/hour so I know it's in the cards for me where I am. Downside is my boyfriend, maybe someday husband, doesn't want to live here forever & works in a field where I could potentially not have to work- idk, idk, life does weird shit to you.