"Live within your means": a loaded phrase that seems to be biased in the favor of those more well-off? (Hawaii, recovery)
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For one thing, this person you are describing already doesn't have a great track record of good decision making skills. Also, this is about the worst case scenario. The vast majority of jobless 25 year olds are nowhere near this destitute.
A timeline is just about impossible to ascertain because too much of it depends on the drive and the abilities and character of the person in question.
I would recommend that this particular person head as quickly as they can to a place like the Salvation Army, who will assist them in obtaining some job skills and job leads. They will also provide a safe place to sleep, shower, and eat for a certain amount of time - as long as the person complies with their structure.
My own son ended up at the Salvation Army at age 22 - he had a GED and no car, and one bag of clothes. So he was pretty close to the scenario you're describing. He also found himself in that situation due to YEARS of very bad choices, the ramifications of which his family - me, his dad, his siblings and even his grandparents - finally agreed together to quit shielding him from.
He quickly realized that he didn't want to stay at the Salvation Army for long - but it was a good wakeup call for him. He complied with their program though, and obtained a monthly bus pass. He got a job as a server at a local restaurant, and the Salvation Army supplied him with the necessary black pants, white shirt, and shoes - from their used clothing. He caught the bus to work and got a ride home with a coworker. He eventually bought a bicycle and used that if he couldn't line up a ride. He worked his way up to the best shifts with the best tips, at a very high end restaurant.
Within a couple of years, he had enough connections within the industry to move down to Austin, where he is now a bartender at an upscale bar in Austin's infamous party district. He makes very good money in tips. He was sharing an apartment with two other guys, but they recently rented a big house together. He owns a motorcycle now and easily gets to and from work on his own.
The great thing about a bartending job is that it allows him the flexibility to pursue other work or classes if he wants to during daytime hours. He is planning on getting his real estate license within the next year, as well as finally buying a car - he will be paying for the classes with his tax refund.
He should make about $50k this year - it's not fabulous money but he's single and has no kids. He is having to dig himself out of a hole, but he can do it. The real estate market is very good in Austin and he has a great personality so hopefully he will be able to be successful in real estate - we'll see. But even if he doesn't go that route, he's making OK money now and he's definitely a FAR cry from living at the Salvation Army with basically only the clothes on his back. And he's realized he never wants to be in that situation again - and he realizes it was his own stupid decisions that put him there in the first place.
Oh dear, what job skills does the Salvation Army impart? Burger Flipping 101?
Oh dear, what job skills does the Salvation Army impart? Burger Flipping 101?
I didn't say that the Salvation Army was the best resource for the best jobs - but believe me, if a person is living on the streets, with one change of clothes, and not even a GED - they're not the best candidate for the best jobs either.
The question wasn't "What's the best resource for the best job?" It was basically, "How does a homeless person with no high school diploma and no money climb out of that hole?" You have to start somewhere. Maybe that "somewhere" should be an organization that gives the homeless food and shelter and helps them find work - ANY work.
If I didn't have a job at all and needed some immediate income, I wouldn't shun burger flipping. I guess a lot of people would, though - and that's part of the problem. A twenty five year old with no education, not even a GED, doesn't have some inherent right to ANY job - and realistically should be grateful for ANY employment opportunity. The odds are, he's not a great horse to bet on for any employer.
I never said the Salvation Army was public. Also, it may not be available everywhere.
This isn't even the point. The question is - can a 25 year old homeless guy without a high school diploma make it into a middle class lifestyle and if so, how long will that take? That's impossible to answer with generalities, so I gave a real life example of one such guy who has done just that, within a three year period. He didn't do much relying on the Salvation Army (I think he was there about a week) - BUT he also didn't receive even $25 from anyone. He found a job on his own and got his clothes from the Salvation Army (many such organizations will GIVE clothes to the truly needy) and walked, rode the bus, or hitched a ride to work till he could get his own set of wheels (in his case a bike first and then a motorcycle).
Look. I worked for a staffing company for many years. We had a very reliable worker who we could call for day jobs ANY time and he was faithful to show up and do the job. He had a lowish IQ and a speech impediment and no high school diploma OR a GED. But when we called him, which was several times a week, he was faithful to show up and work his shift diligently - and he was drug and alcohol free. I thought he had a car, or at least had a ride - until one day he showed up to pick up his check - in the pouring rain, after working since 6 that morning - and he was sopping wet and wearing a trash bag for protection. I said, "Oh my gosh, what happened to your car? Did you WALK from the job site?" and he said, "I don't have a car. I always walk to work." Wow - and here I was complaining about having to drive in that weather.
Not many able bodied people are willing to do that.
Come to find out, he had been out on sixty assignments and had received numerous job offers, but he preferred the variety of working temp jobs for some reason. Probably because they were not particularly stressful or demanding jobs in and of themselves and like I said, he was probably slightly mentally deficient. But he was faithful and a hard worker and our customers loved him.
This isn't even the point. The question is - can a 25 year old homeless guy without a high school diploma make it into a middle class lifestyle and if so, how long will that take? That's impossible to answer with generalities, so I gave a real life example of one such guy who has done just that, within a three year period. He didn't do much relying on the Salvation Army (I think he was there about a week) - BUT he also didn't receive even $25 from anyone. He found a job on his own and got his clothes from the Salvation Army (many such organizations will GIVE clothes to the truly needy) and walked, rode the bus, or hitched a ride to work till he could get his own set of wheels (in his case a bike first and then a motorcycle).
Look. I worked for a staffing company for many years. We had a very reliable worker who we could call for day jobs ANY time and he was faithful to show up and do the job. He had a lowish IQ and a speech impediment and no high school diploma OR a GED. But when we called him, which was several times a week, he was faithful to show up and work his shift diligently - and he was drug and alcohol free. I thought he had a car, or at least had a ride - until one day he showed up to pick up his check - in the pouring rain, after working since 6 that morning - and he was sopping wet and wearing a trash bag for protection. I said, "Oh my gosh, what happened to your car? Did you WALK from the job site?" and he said, "I don't have a car. I always walk to work." Wow - and here I was complaining about having to drive in that weather.
Not many able bodied people are willing to do that.
Come to find out, he had been out on sixty assignments and had received numerous job offers, but he preferred the variety of working temp jobs for some reason. Probably because they were not particularly stressful or demanding jobs in and of themselves and like I said, he was probably slightly mentally deficient. But he was faithful and a hard worker and our customers loved him.
Anyway, regardless of this, my point was that a person who was down on their luck can go to a homeless shelter, or even if they don't go there to STAY, they can receive clothing (nearly always for free) that has been donated. They can then dress well enough to apply for local jobs. They may have to buy a bus pass - well, the scenario given was that they were given $25 - in our town, that will buy a month's worth of bus passes. By then they should have some income coming in.
It's your first link. That 8% equals $347,000,000. There is also indirect government support of much of their other income due to favorable tax status, etc. I'm not anti-Salvation Army (although they sometimes step over the line), just saying that cutting government funding would have a large impact on their bottom line and affect the services they can provide.
If you think about it, a person who's lucid and logical will probably not end up on the street, or if they do take advantage of available resources in a few days. At the very least, you can work a minimum wage job and share a bedroom. Most of the homeless people I dealt with were not capable of holding a job, at least not a steady one, because they were not lucid.
I agree that most are in that category, but a few are *very* lucid. IMO much more so than the average person. That is also not a good condition for employment because they have no desire for accumulation and distraction or security. They are not suffering in the slightest.
It's actually a very complex spectrum. I believe that many of the addicted and mentally challenged homeless dip their toes in that state of being occasionally. It's one reason why they don't seek a "normal" life even if they could, because it ends up being a constant struggle. And the struggle doesn't bring them anything they want. Being homeless they experience a great deal more freedom and can enjoy their lucid moments.
What available resources? In Portland there are programs that won't help a person until they have been homeless 12 months. Demand for resources far far exceeds supply.
Oregon's minimum wage is also $9.25/hr, so any job at all will provide enough resources to get off the street. A homeless guy doesn't need much, just a change of clothes, access to a washing machine, a shower and a few meals. Any homeless shelter will provide that with no waiting list. A bed my be harder to come by, but there are hobo jungles all over, and doesn't Portland provide a homeless campground with toilet facilities?
It would be possible for a person to go from homeless to middle class in a few years, but quite difficult. Assuming a perfect world, it could happen in a 2-5 years.
The person would need to be lucky to some extent - no health problems or injuries and no mental health problems, no addictions.
Also, he/she would need to be surrounded by good people - avoid people that will exploit, take advantage of, cheat, steal, hurt him. At the poor end of society that's not always easy. More than one poor person I've met was in the position because they got screwed by a relative, ie: exploiting their addiction & profiting from it.
It's not just hard work. You have to be lucky enough to avoid those negative externalities.
It would be possible for a person to go from homeless to middle class in a few years, but quite difficult. Assuming a perfect world, it could happen in a 2-5 years.
The person would need to be lucky to some extent - no health problems or injuries and no mental health problems, no addictions.
Also, he/she would need to be surrounded by good people - avoid people that will exploit, take advantage of, cheat, steal, hurt him. At the poor end of society that's not always easy. More than one poor person I've met was in the position because they got screwed by a relative, ie: exploiting their addiction & profiting from it.
It's not just hard work. You have to be lucky enough to avoid those negative externalities.
Even if it took 10 years they would be on track to having a much better life
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