i dropped out and worked in helpdesk call center bullshit. which i hated almost immediately, but the pay let me room with some friends in a house, have health insurance, and smoke weed. my "hobby" at the time was going to bookstores and reading books in the cafe while nursing a cheap drink. it was like the library with snacks.
i would read non-fiction books that seemed to contain useful or interesting information, until i decided they sucked and found something else. or if they were cool, but not cool enough to buy, i'd restock them somewhere i could find next time. or if they were legit awesome, i would buy them.
eventually (like 7 years after dropping out) i discovered something i was passionate about to quit my job and pursue as an exploited peon, later going to college for it, then into a managerial role in the field, then graduate school, and now like a creative-ish pursuit in a field i am passionate about. and though i hated IT work, being able to troubleshoot computer problems and fix shit makes you into a strong hire these days. even at an institution with a funded IT department, it's still an ace up my sleeve that i can consult on what kind of hardware or software might be a good fit for rolling out a new idea, or calmly triage a sudden fuckup in the middle of a presentation.
i'm not really recommending this as a career path, but it did work for me without really knowing what i was doing or intending to go back. though my family all thought i was a wasted potential fuckup until i went back to school, then shifted dramatically into thinking i was a fuckin' wizard because i absolutely crushed college as a 30 year old.
just don't do anything goofy like get into a mortgage or have a baby, probably. that makes blowing town with all your belongings in shitty car and taking a dirt pay job problematic.
i dropped out and worked in helpdesk call center bullshit. which i hated almost immediately, but the pay let me room with some friends in a house, have health insurance, and smoke weed. my "hobby" at the time was going to bookstores and reading books in the cafe while nursing a cheap drink. it was like the library with snacks.
i would read non-fiction books that seemed to contain useful or interesting information, until i decided they sucked and found something else. or if they were cool, but not cool enough to buy, i'd restock them somewhere i could find next time. or if they were legit awesome, i would buy them.
eventually (like 7 years after dropping out) i discovered something i was passionate about to quit my job and pursue as an exploited peon, later going to college for it, then into a managerial role in the field, then graduate school, and now like a creative-ish pursuit in a field i am passionate about. and though i hated IT work, being able to troubleshoot computer problems and fix shit makes you into a strong hire these days. even at an institution with a funded IT department, it's still an ace up my sleeve that i can consult on what kind of hardware or software might be a good fit for rolling out a new idea, or calmly triage a sudden fuckup in the middle of a presentation.
i'm not really recommending this as a career path, but it did work for me without really knowing what i was doing or intending to go back. though my family all thought i was a wasted potential fuckup until i went back to school, then shifted dramatically into thinking i was a fuckin' wizard because i absolutely crushed college as a 30 year old.
just don't do anything goofy like get into a mortgage or have a baby, probably. that makes blowing town with all your belongings in shitty car and taking a dirt pay job problematic.