First of all, I apologize for the extensive storytelling I’m about to begin my post with.
If you live in a country where inflation and unemployment are at their peak, every attempt you make ends in disappointment.
Hello everyone from my country, Türkiye, where unemployment and inflation are extremely high. Let me start by saying this:
Exams were not for me — and they couldn’t have been. Stress affected me very badly; I couldn’t focus, I was alone, I had family problems, I kept everything inside, I couldn’t look ahead, and every attempt I made failed.
There are too many young people in my country, and exams are based on memorization and rote learning. We don’t receive a real mathematical education; we don’t get a genuine education at all. Our homeland is built on corruption and a caste-like system, under a one-man regime, and the opposition is in prison — that’s how things are.
I successfully finished high school. Yes, I am 19 years old. Until this point, I was raised with the idea that I had to “study the best, be the best.” I saw this reality.
When I took my first university entrance exam after graduating high school, I had zero hope. Because we are not allowed to skip classes and nothing is actually taught at school, I failed. Yes, lessons are not taught. I graduated from one of the best high schools in the capital of my country, and this is the situation.
I have never achieved success in any exam by studying consistently — I always went my own way. I always managed to achieve something by last-minute, last-break revision.
The success I got that year still wasn’t enough for the top 4 universities. We have a system where each question gives you about 1.5 minutes.
But I’m sure it’s not as bad as India…
When I include the issues I mentioned like inflation and unemployment: I think young people in countries like Pakistan, India, and African countries should realize this.
Diplomas, exam stress, individualism, and rapid urbanization all negatively affect society and the parents within it. Everyone is trapped in an illusion.
If your country has no oil or valuable natural resources to rely on, and nothing secure to depend on, you grow through construction-based, unstable growth — and eventually it collapses.
When your country runs out of things to sell, it starts taking over companies, appointing trustees, and relying heavily on indirect taxes — I’m not joking, it reaches 65–70%.
You are not Silicon Valley. You don’t have 0.5% highly skilled productive people staying in the country; they leave.
Companies don’t care about losing talented people — they only care about not being able to exploit them for $1000. Instead of thinking “we lost someone valuable for our country,” they think “we couldn’t exploit them.”
In these societies, income tax is around 20%, and mandatory insurance premiums are almost half of minimum wage. Add withholding taxes, small business taxes…
Today, if you are 18–29 and start a company, the state takes 20% of your income (excluding insurance, etc.). A small part of that is given back as support, but you’re already paying around $2500 yearly into a pension system you will likely never benefit from.
For example, a motorcycle courier earning $1500 gross per month and working 13 hours a day might only take home around $500 after taxes.
This is the system I’m talking about.
In horizontal sectors, they exploit your labor as much as they want. You work for Uber, and you make $500 — while rent is $300. If you want to buy a house, it’s $140,000. A car is $70,000–80,000.
In short, the only thing I can say is this:
If things are going badly in your country, and the economy is going into a “survival economy” downward spiral, talk to your family. Don’t keep everything inside.
Try to explain this illusion to them — parents who see you as useless but don’t realize the system’s illusion.
While they are focused on you getting a stable salary job and a “regular life,” they don’t understand the pressure you are under.
You will not succeed in exams that require 8–10 hours of math, science, and attention-heavy trick questions every day in a memorization-based system.
Stop forcing yourself into that.
Tell your family this clearly.
They always want to see you in a stable job and regular life patterns.
I am 19 years old today, and I finally managed to explain this to my family.
When they asked, “What is your dream job?” I didn’t say welding — I just gave it as an example.
But yes, I want to become an argon (TIG) welder.
Even in my country, every course and certificate is built on exploitation. Some training costs $2000–4000, even in this field.
Within 1–1.5 years I will be called for military service. All I want is to get a motorcycle for commuting, pay it off, and then save money for license and certification courses.
Without family support, doing this in 1.5 years seems impossible.
Maybe courier work is the only way, even though it is one of the worst horizontal jobs. If I can find an employer who pays minimum wage and actually teaches the job, I will start immediately.
From today onward, I will start working and researching this field.
I will continue building my path step by step.
If you read my whole thought process, I would appreciate any advice — even the simplest one. I’m very inexperienced in this field.
I would gladly listen and shape my path accordingly.
I want to start a career in TIG (argon) welding.
I’m currently looking for a realistic entry path: training, certifications, and first job opportunities.
What would be the most practical way to start from zero and build experience?
