Caught up in the machine asks...

I've written into the show several times over the years. 

Once in high school asking about career direction at the time and a few times in college asking about some tech things, accessibility things, management things etc. 

I just graduated from a top research university in May. Prior to graduation, I worked in one of the IT departments for a bit over two years -- first as tier 1 support then as management overseeing a large internal software project. Prior to college, I ran a private IT business for the better part of 8 years (no, seriously.) 

By 23 (now) I was doing better than I could have ever imagined with a stable income, a business, tech experience, management positions, and graduating from college. Last week I took a full-time management position with the university (and turned down a job paying $11k/yr more for the flexibility of the management position) but yesterday -- a week after taking the job -- I was fired because of a background check that showed some bad decisions I made in undergrad resulting in a felony (set to be reduced next month.) 

Now I ask myself amid burnout, depression, and needing to pay bills: is tech the thing I want to do and if so, how can I pursue it with this felony on my record?

I dunno much about Mike's relatable background but I know Chris made some hard career decisions a while back that turned out really well. Why have y'all stayed in tech? Have y'all all had to make these kinds of pivots before? What advice might you have for someone who's quite capable of performing with a history to prove it but struggling to get to the next step of life with a criminal record?