When I got out of the service, I went back to school at CU.
GI Bill then was $135 per month flat - From that came tuition, books, housing, food, and any extras.
Saving factors were I was young, healthy, motivated, and sure that the future was going to get better.
Some months were lean. One month after paying tuition and books, I didn't have much left.
I bought a 50 lb bag of pinto beans and that was the staple of the month. It also was corn ripening season, and I managed to find a few edible ears here and there.
I had learned to pan for gold when I was a kid in Sacramento, so I did some of that up in the Colorado creeks and found a jeweler in Boulder that bottled the dust for sale to the tourist trade.
He paid higher than the fixed $35/oz of the time.
Odd jobs through the University's bulletin board for day labor and eventually permanent part-time jobs with both the University and NOAA.
I think the lesson I learned was to persevere and keep looking for ways to improve my situation.
I am not sure that people that think they have no choices or opportunities, or are disabled, can see ways to change their lives.
There was a radio show in the 2008-2010 time period in the rural areas where the host encouraged people to get out of debt as fast as possible.
He would highlight different ways of achieving that for people who seemed to be stuck.
One example he described was a single mother, who had no job or education, started cleaning houses for neighbors and off bulletin board announcements.
She did a good job and soon had a regular client base that got her out of her circumstance.
Horatio Alger type stories.
Everyone has a different set of experiences and influences, and each circumstance and perceived situation is unique to them.