I make over $100k and only 6 credit hours. I've delivered pizza, worked in the kitchen of a BBQ place, been an over the road trucker, sacked groceries, and even tried my hand at car sales once. You get there by sheer determination. The way I got started is when I was 26, I decided that I didn't want to be poor anymore, and started to look around at what jobs paid better. I decided to give IT work a shot, but didn't know anything about it. I sold everything I could and bought a used computer, a used folding table to put it on, and a bunch of books. I had a minimum wage job at the time, and instead of going out partying with my friends and coworkers, I went home every night and studied. I did this for about 4 months, then got an entry level desktop support job. I took the extra pay and bought more used computers, routers, switches, and more books. I did this for over a year until I got a decent paying job and good skills. It sucked, really sucked. And was the best thing I ever did for myself.
The key is to realize the you have to do it, no one else is going to do it for you. I never expected my employer to pay for my training, I never wined about no one helping my career. To this day, I still learn a new skill on my own time at least once a year. I am a network engineer, but also know the inner workings of Windows and Linux. I understand security and can get around in Kali fairly well and do some hacking. I've never told anyone "that's not my job", rather I say "well, let's figure it out." When you are developing your skills faster than your coworkers, not complaining, and getting shit done, your boss will notice. If the boss doesn't notice, well then you have a ton of new skills that the new employer is going to love.