[corodra]

Well, let's put it this way. Being a Polish-Jew in a rural, and very southern high school in Florida, one where I was considered a minority because there were no other minorities, wasn't all roses. Then when it came to being a white male applying for scholarships. More than half of those scholarship books pretty much told me that I need not apply. My post high school education is quite lacking because of it.

It took me a while in my 20s to realize how much of a benefit all of that was. And to quit being angry. Compared to all my peers from high school, I have a pretty damn good amount of resiliency. There's already a few known suicides in my graduating class, post-graduating. Plenty of drug addiction. Only a few folks really escaped like I did. But even them, when I touched based with them, it's all doom and gloom. In my early 20s, I faced an eviction, plenty of debt, debt collectors and lots of other problems that, well, never crushed me. Honestly, a lot of problems I shrugged off and found solutions. I think the worst thing that's ever affected me was my cats dying a few months ago. That, honestly, was the worst thing that happened to me, even though I was homeless for a while, couldn't find work, scrapped to pay for food. I could do all that again if I have to. Losing a pet... that hurts.

But that brings me to the next, and I think biggest benefit from all those problems from school. I have a "sixth sense" on people's intentions. Just a gut reaction that's been correct every time. You have no idea how beneficial this has been since I went into business for myself.

It also means, I have zero tolerance for assholes and incompetence. The time I save from wasting time on assholes, I spend on my real friends. I value my real friends and have tight relationships with them. Something my generation really doesn't have. Now, I am abrasive to people the moment I realize someone is underhanded, a user, asshole, etc. Even if they're mostly strangers and it's only been 5 minutes since I met them. But my friends are fully aware that I'm loyal, without end, to them. And thus far, every time I ignored that gut feeling on someone being bad, it always bit me in the ass. If I listened, I would find out from someone else a few months later on what bullet I just dodged.

At the end, the world truly owes you nothing. Having a rough life is actually a blessing. It builds resilience and teaches you to greater appreciate the good and not focus on the toxic. Without experiencing hate, you can't truly love.

Plus, you can't blame the entire world population over what a group of teenagers did. The older you get, the more you realize all teens, all over the world, are an equal amount of stupid.

[Darkphibre]

A lot of your early paragraphs point to an Abundance mindset, rather than one of Scarcity. It really changes your world-view (and the actions one takes) to realize there's plenty of resources, and one doesn't need to hoard and blame others for personal perceived lack.

[jigglesniggle]

If I don't have what I want and can't get it then how could I possibly have an abundance mindset? That abundance mindset stuff is like telling depressed people to stop being depressed.

[jigglesniggle]

That's ridiculous. Your life would be better without those hardships. You don't know that forgoing those hardships would leave you with other, more difficult hardships; and in any case, if you went without the hardships that limited your access to school you'd be making more money and could deal with your new problems with money.

You've been brainwashed and deluded into accepting mediocrity.

[dang]

We've banned this account because, although new, it has already managed to violate the site guidelines repeatedly. If you don't want to be banned, you're welcome to read https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and email [e-mail] with reason to believe that you'll follow the rules in the future.

[corodra]

I co-own a security firm with a friend and this past year we've been getting infrastructure projects. I hire people with college degrees and most of them have crippling student debt. Debt I dont have.

You got a lot of resentment in you and you need to stop thinking there are guarantees in life for someone. There isn't. The idea that theres a path made of velvet and lined with roses that offers you everything in the world is the brainwashed concept.

A person's character is built and forged through how they approach and deal with hardships. You can define yourself by being knocked down and staying down or defined by getting back up. I say this in hopes that someone reading this who's in a shit situation, like me about a decade ago, doesn't give up hope on themselves. A silly expensive piece of paper doesn't grant access for shit anymore. Except for crippling debt. It gives you access to crippling debt.