I'm very sorry to hear what happened to you. Unfortunately it sounds like the company you did work for took advantage of you. Of course, in hindsight, once they didn't offer you compensation for your work, you should have run away as fast as possible. They raised money but couldn't pay you? Sounds like scammers to me, honestly.

I can relate to your situation in multiple ways. I'm working in Bitcoin marketing, even though I've studied something entirely different. My parents didn't like the idea of me joining a bitcoin start up, but I thought I should give it a try. What was very important to me back then was that I'd get comparable compensation to what I would have earned if I went the traditional route. Your father is probably just worried about you getting taken advantage of again.

Over time my parents skepticism lowered. They saw my paychecks coming in and me doing well overall. So I think if you're in the position to find a job that pays you well enough in the Bitcoin space, you should take the opportunity. But if you find a marketing job that pays you substantially more outside the Bitcoin industry, just go ahead and stack the difference.

btw: Feel free to send me your CV and I can see if we could find some work for you at BitBox. Paid of course.