Disagree. If you work hard…everything else will fall into place.
Go get a job working for a landscaping company. Start running a weed wacker for $8/hr. If you are a hard worker…you will move up fast. Blaming knowledge and or brainpower is no excuse. You may not ever make $40k/yr…but you will be out of the minimum wage bracket very shortly.
Getting your first job at Papa Johns or McDonald’s is not a stepping stone into the restaurant business for most. It’s there to teach you work ethic. If you like it and want to make a career out if it, awesome. Now succeed at it.
If you took an $8/hr job because you could LITERALLY not find another job (not possible) then ok. Still no excuse to be there after many years of making no money. You are to blame.