In the world we live in today one has to sweat it out to have and achieve their goals and live their dreams. For youngsters, education is often their first priority. However, the major challenge maybe being financially unstable. In this essay I discuss thoroughly what it means for me to be broke.

When I was as young as 12 years old, I had already made up my mind of wanting to pursue a career in law, because I have a longing to defend people whenever their rights are being trampled upon.

Over the years, I had stood very firm in my choice of career despite me being the only one at my school who wanted to study law at the time.

Success comes from passion and passion drives one to work from hard to harder. After completing my matric in 2009, I felt as if I was ready to face the world, and I faced it indeed, but I faced the ugliest side.

I was flat broke as I had no job. In my mind I had not forgotten my key goal, but the thought of having no money to study further broke me inside. I was very desperate and it tormented me.

I could fall for anything, even if it meant selling my soul to the devil himself. What a devastating situation I found myself in.

Growing up in the rural areas of the Free State, Manyatseng, I was not exposed to the challenges of getting to that tertiary level. I had always thought it was as easy as getting into high school.

I remember I had applied at two universities but I could not be granted financial aid.

I did not like staying at home doing nothing, so I enrolled myself or a learnership program.

After attending for almost four months we found out that it was a scam and we were not paid. I then joined a performing arts cast where we did stage drama,poetry and we also sang. We did successful tour campaigns around the township. We were then promised to shoot a film and of course we were going to be paid. My life had suddenly taken a turn for the better, I thought to myself. It was all going well and we attended rehearsals everyday and just being away from all the house chores at home felt really good to me, I could breathe. When our script writer and director relocated to Johannesburg, we could not hold ourselves together. Everything vanished. I was left really hopeless and still broke.

I am living in the big city now, Jozi they call it - in the hope of finding employment but I haven't seen anything promising yet.

I have sent numerous CVs to various companies with no success. To this day I am adamant that my breakthrough will come.

Has anyone felt the pressure of stumbling in the same place when your peers are living their dreams?

It has been 5 years since I completed matric. I look at my high school friends, some graduating  with Honors and Degrees, some are even working. I understand that we don’t have the same luck in life. I am happy for them.

At times when I am alone I have a major breakdown and wonder why life has been so wicked to me, but then again I know that am not alone.

I am helping in community services now, but I have not given up on dreams of getting that qualification.

"Tough times never last but tough people do’’ is my motto. I will never give up.

I will keep on trying. This is my story, this is what it means for me to be broke, to utterly have nothing.

• Written by Tsimong Puseletso, 22 Years Old - for YouthTube, a Sowetan LIVE initiative dedicated to giving the youth a voice.

Follow the Education Insert dedicated to the youth in Sundayworld Newspaper from 20 April 2014 and follow them on Facebook