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My uncle in Cleveland told me dropping out was his best move, and I finally get it.
I was visiting him last month and he said, 'I left school in '92 with $8,000 in debt and a job offer to fix industrial printers. I've been running my own shop for 20 years now.' He never framed it as a failure, just a different path that needed his full focus. It made me stop seeing my own choice as a permanent setback. Anyone else have a family member who changed how you saw your own dropout story?
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miles_perez5d ago
That's a solid point about debt not always being the full story. My aunt left school with way less debt than @pauljones's cousin but still felt stuck for years, until she started bookkeeping for local contractors. Hearing her talk about it now, she just needed a clear shot at something practical. It really reframes the whole "dropout" label.
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