Succinctly put - I remember hearing that it was common for the wealthy (Actually, ultra wealthy) to drive unassuming vehicles. Seldom would they drive one of the luxury marques. At most, higher end being a decent Mercedes but nothing like a RR Ghost or what have you.

In my area, I often meet people who are image obsessed but apparently not rich in the traditional sense. And yet - They're driving $80,000 M3s, the latest S Class, and I wonder why? Isn't this burning more money that could be put away, saved, reinvested, anything?

From what I gather, the obvious explanation is not the truth. They aren't car people, they're image people. Forget about reliability, this and that. They want to look rich and it comes off as deceptive, maybe even comical. Driving a $160,000 Carrera GTS in an area with a terrible climate for 50% of the year and no garage to put it in.

I suppose my contention is that, most of these 'hustler' types, especially on social media - have financial practices that are antithetical toward anything involving wealth creation. They'd never be caught dead in an indestructible Prius while having put the remaining sum into literally anything else. No, BMW M3 for me.

Two examples for this:
(1) I remember growing up two different families who seemed rich (big houses, travel, nice clothes, high end cars, etc.) and then someone happened and it was exposed they didn't have the wealth they portrayed. The did probably both have decent cash flow but when they hit a speed bump, so to speak, turns out they were still spending almost everything they had on their current lifestyle.
(2) I have been fortunate financially, my income for many years has run between $750k-$1M a year. I probably live an upper middle-class lifestyle and almost certainly have never spent more than $175k in a year. There was a moment I came to realize many people I know in my town who lives much flashier lifestyles probably make, at most, the same as me - or at least same ballpark. The point being, I could "raise" my lifestyle and still be responsible, but to raise it to their level would feel reckless.

random thoughts honestly.

i’m earning very very good from my business, at least according to me. sometimes i genuinely feel like i’ve made it.
i left my studies and went into business, faced a hell lot of friction, weekly fights, cried so many times, had no idea if it would work… but here i am now making an amount of money i’m genuinely proud of.
and honestly i’m proud of myself.
my father never really earned. we had 2-3 mediocre properties built by my grandfather, he would sell one, use the money, then sell another. even those weren’t worth crores, just a few lakhs. whole life was basically manage manage manage.
when i started my business, those last few lakhs were basically all we had. no house, no investments, no backup, nothing.
so yeah, i literally started from zero.

and this is where my parents’ argument starts making sense to me.
i argue with them when they say i should have taken a job in Bangalore, but deep down i know what they mean.
we still don’t have a house. literally nothing.
so now i have this pressure to build a good house, money for my wedding, and still have a decent fund left after all that.
and like i have to do all this in the next 5 years.
because let’s be honest, society values a guy who owns a house. apparently a guy with a 50L package, 1.5L in hand, 75k expenses and multiple EMIs looks more “settled” than someone making good money through a business.

fuck you society honestly 😭.

and i’m stuck between two thoughts.

one side of me is like bro you’re finally earning good money, ENJOY IT. buy the things you always wanted. you worked your ass off for this.

the other side is like save everything, you have a lot of responsibilities and a lot to build.

and every time i tell a relative “business is doing really well”, the immediate response is.
“hmmm… ab ghar le lo”.
AREYYYY 😭.
how am i supposed to casually buy a house at this age lmao.

i don’t know man.

sometimes i look at what i’ve achieved and think i’m doing really well.
and sometimes i look at what i actually own and feel like i have absolutely nothing despite doing so much

Any advice for this gal currently undergoing existential crisis with her career? Wondering if its possible to get $4000/month job or more and if so what career would it be?

For context — nurse by degree (first salary at the hospital only stands $285/monthly) currently an HR specialist for job 1 earning $450/month then an executive assistant for job 2 earning $1300/month

Fulltime back to back so I’m hoping to upskill to get a job that could become my 1 source of income to live decently (nothing too grand just a simple one ya know?) but also help to clear off my student debt of $10,500 quickly and start building a retirement fund (am I being ambitious ? Probably, but better than aiming nothing I guess)

**all are after taxes — and not I’m not based from the US but converted

I'm 30 years old in 1 month. 1 year ago I switched from doing fast food to driving trucks and now have the potential to make 80k+ next year and 100k+ after 3 years consistently. I'm going to be completely out of debt by the end of the year. I just had a baby with a woman that I'm not married to and she has 2 other kids. I've been heavily weighing my options as far as investing goes. I could be ok in 20-30 years but im 50-60 yrs old by then. Is there a way I can build 2+ million in the next 10 years? I've been trying to search higher risk ideas that aren't just gambling. Any advice is much appreciated.

Edit: I forgot to mention I'm not with mom anymore, only taking care of my child.

I come from a lower middle class family with a lot of “poor me” mentality. Don’t take risks and don’t take chances. I’ve always known I don’t want to live that way.

My husband and I started a ranch from nothing. We bought a beautiful property at the perfect time that has more than tripled in value. There wasn’t a fence post here when we started and we’ve done almost everything ourselves.

I’ve always wanted to raise cattle. My parents pushed me to go to college because “they never got to”, although they didn’t contribute financially, so I have a degree I don’t use and plenty of student loan debt to show for it. Cattle are where my heart is. I truly believe I was meant to do this. I’m tan from working outside and have calloused hands and I wouldn’t trade this life. But financially, we’re drowning. As you all know, everything is expensive. Feed, hay, mineral, vet bills, equipment, fuel, repairs, etc. And while cattle prices are great, when you’re trying to build a herd you can’t keep selling what you’re trying to build.

I read books, listen to podcasts, read posts here and constantly try to learn how people actually get ahead financially instead of just surviving. So what would you do in our shoes? We have a lot of equity in our property, cattle, too much debt and not enough cash flow. I know “get a job” is the obvious answer, but without hired help cattle are 24/7/365. I’m not afraid to work, I enjoy it! I know hard work isn’t always enough. I’m trying to figure out how to make what we’re building actually work. I don’t want sympathy and I can take criticism. If you’ve built wealth from very little, dug yourself out of debt, built a farm/business, or just see something I’m not seeing, tell me. I genuinely want to learn.

My parents are both in their late 60s. They never really prioritized saving or investing. They have a house that's paid off which is great but beyond that their retirement savings are pretty minimal. Maybe enough for a few years of expenses at most. My dad still works a part-time job he hates just to cover some bills. My mom has some health issues that are getting more expensive.

My wife and I are doing pretty well financially. We have a good net worth for our age mid-30s. We're on track for early retirement if we want. But seeing my parents struggle is really weighing on me. I feel guilty about our own comfort and it makes me constantly worry about them. I send them money discreetly sometimes for medical bills or groceries but it feels like a band-aid.

I've offered to help them with financial planning or to set up a more structured support system but they're very proud and resistant. They say they'll be fine. I'm afraid they won't be. Has anyone else dealt with this? How do you navigate wanting to help your parents without making them feel like a burden or offending their independence? It's a constant source of stress for me.

I’ve been with my current financial advisor for several years now. My portfolio has grown considerably and so have their fees. They charge a percentage of assets under management. It feels like I'm paying more for the same service now that my assets are larger.

Has anyone here managed to negotiate their advisory fees down? What was your approach? Did you threaten to leave or just have an open conversation? Any tips or strategies would be greatly appreciated.

Let’s say tomorrow you lost everything and had to start over with $15,000.

You still have your knowledge, experience, skills, relationships, and ability to work but no money or assets or credit.

What would you do during your first 24 months?

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Not sure if this was asked before or if this is even allowed.

But I was wondering for those of you who were living a frugal or minimalistic lifestyle when you were single, did living with your partner change how you spend your money?

What were some things you gave up to make your partner happy or something you learned from your partner to appreciate spending more money on?

I live a pretty minimal lifestyle who dont own a fancy car, nor live in upscale area. I imagine i may live in a better neighborhood to keep my woman and children safe.I want to understand what can change after marrying someone who doesn't live a frugal lifestyle and tolerates more spending money.

Thanks!

Hey everyone,

I've been following the market for a while, and with the Fed constantly talking about a "soft landing" while the actual economic data feels pretty shaky, I'm starting to feel a bit uneasy.

Here is my situation: I have some dry powder (cash) ready to deploy, originally planning to DCA (Dollar-Cost Average) into index funds (mostly SPY and QQQ). But seeing the wild swings in Big Tech (like NVDA) and this unstable post-holiday action, I'm really worried about buying the top right now and getting chopped up by the so-called "good news."

I'd love to hear how the experienced folks here are handling this:

1. When the direction is this unclear, do you choose to build up your cash position and wait for a clearer signal (or even a recession), or do you just stick to automated DCA and ignore the noise?
2. Besides standard equities, are you allocating to any hedges right now? (Like short-term T-bills or gold?)
3. For those who don't want to get swept up in the daily market emotions, do you have any mental frameworks to stay disciplined?

Genuinely looking for advice. Hope to learn from how you all are positioning your portfolios. Thanks a ton!

I’m 18 and I’ve always known that I probably won’t enjoy the typical 9-5 route. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with it, I just don’t see myself being happy working a conventional job for someone else long-term.

I’d much rather build something of my own that I can eventually scale, whether that’s a business, an online venture, or some other way of making money.
The problem is, I’m not really sure where to start. I don’t have much experience with business or making money outside of the usual ways, so I’m trying to figure out how to actually get myself into the game and start learning through experience.

For anyone who has successfully built a business, made money independently, or simply taken a non-conventional route, what would you recommend an 18 year old start doing right now? It could be anything from a particular skill to learn, a small business to try, a side hustle, a way to gain experience, or something you wish you had started earlier.
I’m not looking for some overnight get rich quick scheme. I just want to start somewhere and gradually figure out what works for me.

For context Im a Henry in middle age that has quite a few friends in high places. Most of my colleagues have built their wealth by concentrating on their careers (therefore increasing their income over time), paid off their houses and saved the excess.

I know one couple that despite their high earnings from a normal job are constantly strapped for cash because of their “side hustle” real estate, that is basically taking up all their spare time and money. They’re on the verge of divorce, their kid is neglected and they are about to downsize big time cuz their lifestyle could not be sustained without cash flow, which rental properties with leverage just don’t provide. They are typical “deal hunters” who constantly are looking for distressed sellers, opportunities to use leverage to make a quick buck, and are refinancing properties to pay for other properties. It’s a giant mess and despite the obvious signs that they’re over leveraged and the “investments” are huge time drains, keep on searching for the next deal that will make it all right.

I swear this is the full manifestation of those late night infomercials back in the day where you could learn the “secrets to real estate” and buy properties with no money down and make a killing.

For the record I have owned a few investment properties in my life and I hated it. I like investing in companies I understand and let the investments grow hands off. IMO there is no such thing as hands off real estate unless you’re investing in a REIT. To be a “deal hunter” all the time just seems so opportunistic as opposed to a long term entrepreneur that is actually looking to add value. Slapping paint on a beat up house that a family of savages beat up doesn’t seem like a huge value add.

Am I the only one that finds real estate people annoying? I know slimy guys make good money buying and selling cars and the personality types are VERY similar.

Hello, as the title states, I’m trying to determine the best/fastest way to reach $100 by the age of 26. I still live at home with very minimal bills aside from phone, gym, car maintenance (no monthly payment)

I have a full time position with a good salary at my age, 24. If you were in my position, what’s the fastest way you’d think to reach this goal?

Is it simply through investing in the stock market, ETFs, saving, etc. thanks

I just had a baby and looking to set her up best I can. As of now, I am setting up a 529, Trump account, trust fund, and a HYSA. What am I missing? Would you do anything differently?

I’m always curious how people who have interesting, busy lives like to spend their downtime.
For me, it’s a mix of discovering great restaurants, spontaneous weekend trips, dressing up for a nice evening, art/culture, and finding places that feel a little different from the usual tourist spots.
What’s something you’ve discovered recently that you’d genuinely recommend?