Haven't had time to read the rest of the thread, but I'll respond anyway.
I'm 23, with PPL(A) 150hours.
Started off with gliding when I was young, got about 90 hours in there. Then joined UAS while at Uni, got another 100ish there. Then did PPL in about 5 hours, and with a few hours since when I can afford it.
Currently work in R&D in the aviation industry, and have been applying for airline sponsorships for about 3 years, still keep trying.
Good to hear of others experiences.