I am a welder. Six months in a trade school and any shipyard will take you. You're welcome.

This definitely won’t be a popular answer, but forget your degree and forget a trade. Start working in restaurants as a server. Put in 3-6 months at a chain restaurant like outback or red lobster, then move to a higher end private restaurant, somewhere with a check average around $50-$60 or more per guest. I make $90k+ working three days a week, and you’ll do even better in states that enforce a minimum wage for tipped employees (where I am now pays $2.13 an hour but the last state I lived in paid $10.50/hr) I have virtually unlimited time to spend with my family and on my hobbies and the schedule is incredibly flexible even from week to week. If free time was less important to me I could easily be working full time and making $130-150k. If you’re a talker and a people person, you will thrive; and if you’re intelligent and a hard worker you’ll already have an advantage over 90% of the industry

I used to do interviews at a company I worked for. The best thing I can advise is don’t be idle. A couple of weeks is probably ok, us being in the era of the ‘ronies and all, but don’t let it go on too long.

By “don’t be idle,” I don’t mean “go take any job you can get right away.” That can pressure you into a bad decision, and that’s not what you need.

What I mean is that besides searching for a job, you need to be doing something to help explain your gap. Most employers understand that some jobs just end, but that happens to everyone. You need to get ahead of the pack.

Volunteer work is always good. It shows you staying active, staying connected to your community, and the charity you work for can act as a reference to a new employer. Charities also attract those business-owning types looking to do some good, so you might make a connection there. Don’t just do the work, be open and friendly with the people you meet.

Taking classes is also good, but you mentioned that money could be an issue. The US Dept. of Labor used to offer retraining (or “reskilling,” as the lingo is now) at reduced costs or with loans, but I don’t know if that’s still a thing.

Your local government may offer similar training for free. Depending on where you live, you may have to put up with nigger stank and gibbering goblinos, but that’s what happens when anything “free” is offered.

Of course, there’s always the option to (((take out a loan))) for the training you want. But only you can weigh the costs and benefits of that.

But for fuck’s sake, be able to say something when the interviewer asks, “What did you do during that period of time?” “I dunno, just hung out,” is a red-flag four-alarm warning. At minimum, it shows that you’re not motivated to be a self-starter. At worst, it will make people suspicious that you have taken up idler pasttimes, like smoking weed, day drinking, or similar.

If you absolutely can’t find anything to do, say you were caring for a sick relative. It’s the go-to.

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Do I have to tell you to clean up your social media? Clean up your social media! I googled, facebooked, etc. everyone. It really is amazing what people will post. I had one retard college kid actually post a selfie outside our office telling his friends and family that he was “high as fuck but need this internship, let’s do this.”

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Do not be late for your interview. DO NOT BE FUCKING LATE FOR YOUR INTERVIEW. Based on your statements, you don’t strike me as someone who would do this, so this is more for anyone else who may be reading.

I interviewed professional people for serious positions, not niggers looking for a shift at McDonald’s. And motherfuckers looking for jobs at that level would be LATE.

I was too soft at first, trying to be understanding. But there ended up being a lot of correlation with latecomers and other undesirable habits. Eventually I just started telling them “the position has been filled, thanks for your interest” when they showed up late.

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Good luck! I know it’s tough, but jobs come and go. Try to remain positive, resilient, and resourceful, those traits will get you far.

Also, go into a trade. Trucking has a shortage. Electrician is a good one. Welding pays good

I'd suggest truck driving school. There's talk of self-driving trucks coming up, but a driver still needs to be in the cab. But until then, there is a tremendous driver shortage right now. The pay is probably pretty good too. Back in the 1990's, I became a driver and quickly became a driver trainer over the road. Made $70-$80 each year. You can do this.

See 48 states and Canada. Meet interesting people. You'll soon realize what a little world you've always lived in.

Are you good at chemistry? Do you have a RV?

This might help you come up with an idea and the motivation to go after it: https://www.mikeroweworks.org/scholarship/

This will be an unpopular answer, and depends on your locale a bit, but have you looked into law enforcement? If you have a decently clean background and aren't a fat fuck, there is a hiring crisis nationwide. You still get a decent pension, paid training (in most places), and depending on how you do the job, it can be very fulfilling.

Look into apprenticeship programs in your area. You don't need to spend years in a school with no income.

I'm not old yet, but I'm old enough to realize a few things.

Working for a conglomerate is soul suicide. They crunch you like they crunch numbers.

Working in an office under fluorescent lights is harmful on multiple levels.

Very few of those jobs will teach you anything valuable for survival. They certainly offer zero satisfaction.

Working with your body gives you fulfillment on multiple levels.

It's also very healthy for you.

You'll find meaning in the strangest thing. For me, I love making soap. Doesn't seem like much, and I had no idea I would give two craps about it when I started, but once I dug into the truth behind the poisons in every industrial detergent labeled soap I became very sure of how important it was to provide people with the option of and information on soaps. I haven't officially launched a business but I have a lot of people who buy from me because I gifted them at Christmas. It's delightful to hear how someone's psoriasis has completely cleared up, or how a weird rash that wouldn't go away is now gone, or how the itching after showers is gone. There's real meaning in providing a quality of life improvement for people.

That being said, if I were young(and male) I would probably lean towards doing things like carpentry, electricity, plumbing, general handy man work. Did you know a lot of Amish sell their homes really cheap because they don't have electricity and sometimes plumbing in them. If someone sold their services to "improve" these houses you could make a lot of money from people who wish to purchase them but don't know how to begin installing that.

Good luck.