Karel1
My thoughts exactly. I'm 18 and I started paying for my own training in here in the U.S. at the beginning of 2010. I pay out of pocket for my training as a dishwasher and I'm about halfway to getting my PPL. I too understand that having 1500 hours with an ATPL is a minimal amount of experience that can be "considered" as marketable.
I plan on obtaining my CPL/IR/ME with a CFI license within the next 4 years(debt free).