A motorcycle business cycles more than the economy in general. When things get tough, spending on toys goes away first.
We all deal with career choices. I grew up in a small town in NC (like Mayberry) and went to work at the local plywood mill. Hard work for not much pay. The draft forced me to decide on joining the Army. Afterwards I went back to school and got a chemical engineering degree. Back then, textile plants were all over NC, SC, and GA. I interviewed for jobs and got offfers in that industry. Luckily, I also got a job offer that I accepted at a utility working in their nuclear engineering dept. I can't say I've been ecstatic about my career choice. But, it has paid for a good living. The textile industry in the US went away.
My son was a bad student and floundered around for a while getting into a little trouble. He worked as a busboy, cook, pizza delivery guy, and then bought a couple of turntables and taught himself to scratch records. He had found something that inspired him. He then asked me to support him through a 12 month school called Full Sail in Orlando, FL to learn how to become a music recording engineer. Afterwards, he got a job as an unpaid intern at a recording studio in Manhattan, NYC. He worked really, really hard because he loved what he was doing and now he is a major recording star's recording engineer. You saw her perform at the half time show at the super bowl. His work has gotten two grammy nominations so far.
My Ruskie stepson was a disciplined, very intelligent student who has a passion for computers. He got a degree in Computer Science and is now working for a company writing computer programs. He loves his job and they have treated him really well.
My daughter now is a very intelligent underachiever. She is still trying to find her place in the world. Not sure what will happen there.
Everybody has to choose their own path. It's always different depending on the person's interests, opportunities and what will pay the bills. I wish the young man great wisdom in his choice.