I wonder if the "not very talented" self depreciation might mean talent with soft / people / social skills (the depreciation does strongly point to this) and therefore suggest that getting some education and training / experience in these soft skills might be the key to finding employment.

certainly there's a inevitable associated presumption that criminal behaviour is caused by poor social awareness and so addressing the general area would also indirectly attack the unfortunately undeniable connected human behavioural profile that needs to be overcome.