Hard work and a good education will take you further than any government program.
I'm not from a political family and didn't grow up dreaming of being George Washington. I started working in 8th grade and have held every odd job possible - working in a gravel pit, weighing big wheelers, ticket sales, data base management - but I knew if I worked hard and got experience, I could apply that experience to my next endeavor.
In politics, you never know who's going to die, retire, or - in Illinois - get indicted.
I got to know Elton John's older music by learning to like his newer stuff. 'The Lion King?' That's what I like.