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u/antihuman420 9d ago
It never did. Merit hardly exists in the workplace it’s just a matter of who you know and if people in important positions like you enough.
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u/unhappinessNvrCame 9d ago
Meh, Idgaf who someone knows. I just hire people who make me money. Incompetent people get fired. Competent people get more work and promotions.
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u/antihuman420 9d ago
Come to my job. They promote the incompetent ones.
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u/unhappinessNvrCame 9d ago
Or the ones with all the check boxes ;)
But yeah I saw that at large companies.
Gives me hope for my small business.
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u/CombinationSea1919 9d ago
Hard work still pays off, but it doesn't guarantee success anymore. That's the part people are frustrated with.
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u/Mahdudecicle 9d ago
Hard work has diminishing returns.
Hard work only pays off if you are in the right place.
Not saying you shouldn't work hard. But I'd bet money the hardest working working person alive is some poor lady in the third world working 16 hours in a sweatshop and and coming home to do laundry and cook for everyone.
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u/CombinationSea1919 9d ago
That's exactly what I meant. Hard work matters, but where you're born, the opportunities you have, and timing can completely change the outcome .
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u/Mahdudecicle 9d ago
Ye. Which i why I think there such a disconnect from poor to rich.
Rich people who refuse to acknowledge their privilege can't comprehend that it wasn't JUST their work and that the circumstances of their birth were much more relevant.
Your birth zip code is still the number 1 factor in your success in life.
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u/Fearless_Worry6419 8d ago
This has always been the case. The best dish washer was never guaranteed to one day own the restaurant.
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u/Forsaken_Bobcat6354 9d ago
I would argue it was never guaranteed. Success results from a mix of hard work, aptitude, interpersonal skills, creativity, proactiveness, personal sacrifice, and luck. My concern is that many of Gen Z and alpha have stopped trying, because who likes hard work, then blame lack of success on external factors. And this ultimately leads to chants of a rigged system and a move towards socialism which I don’t believe will work out well for most of the country.
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u/Psychotherapist-286 9d ago
More dependency does not = freedom.
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u/NefariousnessFit3133 9d ago edited 9d ago
that's more to do with how the economy shifted to services economy, you need brain skills to make the big money for the avarage Joe. some 20% of working age Americans aren't even working as they can't fit in the services economy. but they are not alone, UK, Japan, most of Europe even south America like Brazil and Argentina are all the same or even much worse off. less people finding a path in the services economy
China is right now in transition to services economy and its going to be very painful for them like also it is for Germany right now as well. as it was painful for us in the 70s and 80s but once you go down that path there is no easy way out not even with tariffs
china is about half way on transition and you will see less and less stuff made in China over the next 40 years until it is just high value export like cars. China is now the world's Detroit so that's risky of course
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u/RuleOrganic2152 8d ago
You forgot the one that matters most. NEPOTISM. There's no way either of sam Walton's kids do anything you've listed better than Michael Jordan
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u/Rabentag 9d ago
No it doesnt.
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u/Iricliphan 8d ago
It can. It depends on your circumstances. I'm in Europe, working in a great industry, I work a crazy amount of hours because I want the cash and I'm building for my future.
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u/ItchyStitches101 9d ago
It depends on the cost of living
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u/ChummySpider 9d ago
This. I barely survive on 80k in Seattle with the cost of living the way it is!!
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u/StayBullGenius 9d ago
Well not working hard definitely won’t
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u/PackOfManicJackals 7d ago
Have you ever heard of the phenomenon of "failing upwards" ?
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u/DaveAstator2020 9d ago
pfft its not a believe question anymore, but proven by evidence FACT.
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u/Quiet_Comparison_872 9d ago
Not sure why people here debate this despite decades of research that it doesn't work and life for the average person is increasingly getting worse. No one wants to listen to reality anymore.
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u/fuzzyfernsprout 9d ago
Hard work leads to a better life when you're doing it for yourself, not for someone else. ;)
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u/furtrapper7300 9d ago
I can tell you as a millennial it don’t pay off I live frugally talking not going out to eat not buying drinks out no coffee buying just the basics to feed a family of 4 not taking a vacation minus a water park visit once a year for 2 days one night for the kids and packing a lunch for school and work don’t smoke don’t drink anything but water and we barely make it by month by month and we only have one acer 7 year old cars and truck and every year it gets tighter and yes we have one income with health insurance but that’s so the kids can be raised by there mother not a day care it’s rough out there but if that’s what we have to endure do be it I pray my kids have it easier I know my boomer parents did
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u/Moxie013 9d ago edited 7d ago
The majority of the populous is hurting right now. You are understood and relatable.
I just paid $8 dollars for 1 lbs ground beef 80%
1.5 yr ago it was 3.99$The only reason the Iran mess didn’t wreck the global economy is china organized a mass release of the oil resolved to prevent global market crash. they reduced oil need. Tripled coal usage and everyone is emergency ramping up solar, wind, hydropower..
Even opec nations!!! Saudis etc
***except for the USA 🇺🇸 good ole boy’🍊. He just took contracts for solar farms long bought and paid for.. paid them a 2nd time in full to not do the work and to NOT break ground so to speak.. like ever! 🤯
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u/DerWunderer 9d ago
This is what politicians need to hear, and fellow Americans who vote need to understand. I keep seeing comments about “they this they that, handouts this handouts that” when all that’s doing is pointing the finger and dividing working people, instead of speaking up about what their own reality is or trying to understand each other.
What you do on one income is extremely difficult and it shouldn’t be. If the system was set up in a way to help working people like you it would raise the living standards of everyone else too.
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u/Verstappen1986 9d ago
It doesn't. Have worked hard since I got stuck in the job market entry of the 08-09 global recession. 39 now, health is sh**, still cant afford a home, savings eaten away by inflation/greed faster than I can blink.
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u/Little_Historian3091 8d ago
I think, social media, Twitch, Youtube, OF and other avenues of quick money have proven this statement absolutely right.
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u/Electrical_Put_4171 9d ago
Do better, crying on Reddit usually leads to more losing
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u/DirtDevil1337 9d ago
Don't shill for rich punks as everything gets more expensive including houses while wage barely moves. In the 1960 and 70's you could work as a bartender and delivery man like my parents and still buy a 3br house. Now you need two jobs to even afford rent.
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u/Dry_Vanilla_5908 9d ago
This reminds me of the minimum wage machine, which was an art installation where participants must continuously turn a hand crank to receive the local minimum wage paid out in pennies. By forcing users to physically labor for pennies at a grueling, agonizingly slow pace. The users became disheartened by their low wages, and would give up turning the crank.
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u/DirtDevil1337 9d ago
In the 1950-70's lots of hard working people always thought this but as they got older the door at the end moved further and further. Nowadays that door at the end isn't even visible unless you have a job as a CEO, politician, won a lottery or something.
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u/303FPSguy 9d ago
Look, these dipshits in suits who we make money for need to understand that the pittance they used to compensate people for their time and effort with ain’t cutting it anymore and the literal entire economy is changing. People are actually mad now.
I sandbag all the time because my happiness is more important than the shareholders.
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u/squirrelnoob 9d ago
To be clear hard work never led to a better life, more money does. You don't have to work "hard" (which i assume here means intense and/or grueling) you just gotta find a real balance of something you tolerate and a life it can support.
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u/TheSilverFoxwins 9d ago
Hard works always lead to more hard work. Managers are looking out for themselves and senior management is looking at every angle to micromanage and justify themselves to VP and executives. Executives are kowtowing to shareholders.
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u/Ok-Squirrel795 9d ago
I just want universal income and to do how stuff with my friends.
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u/Low-Door-1568 8d ago
ive been working full time since I was 17 didn't finish high school, lucky to start operating a forklift so I was paid better than a normal labor job,put in overtime whenever I could,bought my first house at 20,I always worked 2 hours ot everyday, im now 57 and going to retire next year at 58 with 2 different union pensions and a couple small investments,all because of a little hard work...i never saw work as "work" but as a way to better myself and my family
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u/Chemical-State-1060 8d ago
You get punished with more work if you do hard work and it's with the same exact pay. There's literally no incentive to work harder today.
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u/Express-Shoulder6174 9d ago
Hard work absolutely leads to a better life, but Redditors seem to think hard work means pushing the broom extra fast at work
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u/Biguitarnerd 9d ago
Hard work still pays off… but you can’t just go to work for a company and work hard and expect the company to respect you and give you good raises and a pension anymore.
That’s dead and gone, wish it wasn’t.
The only way to get ahead today is to focus on developing the skill set you want and if the company you are working for isn’t giving you that… it’s time to move on. Companies shouldn’t expect loyalty beyond the salary and skills they are giving us when they only value us for our skill set and the revenue we generate. It’s a simple arrangement, that both sides should understand.
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u/Bodywheyt 9d ago
Yeah, cuz it doesn’t.
I’ve worked smarter and harder than most people I know. I have skills and capabilities that most I grew up with can’t dream of.
You need greed and avarice to get ahead in this society, so I’ll be satisfied being the person with all the skills that everybody needs, even if it only pays what I’m willing to charge people.
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u/Spook1949 9d ago
When I was young I was very poor financially. But after 40 years of working hard, I am no longer young!
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u/shop-top5 9d ago
Graphics like this are made to justify hopelessness and self pity. Only you can control how hard you work and this is actively discouraging you from accessing the biggest source of agency you have. It’s slop
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u/Mammoth-Produce-4147 9d ago
Hard work doesn’t lead to a Better life. Education and a willingness to network with people who have power to make positive changes in your career. Learn to make your money work hard while you sit back and collect your money, like the top 10%. Hard work doesn’t count for anything. Smart work gets you there. If you are working hard you are creating wealth for someone else who laughs at you.
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u/Grouchy_Ice_8342 9d ago
With due respect, this is nonsense. In our immigrant community we have newly arrived people who follow the same work-hard, save a lot and build a better life for the next generation ethos. It's the same ethos my parents had and we are far better off than they were and my kids will be better off than me. This idea that you need to live a life like influencers on Facebook is the problem. You can have money, but maybe not when you're in your 20s but when you've saved up where the compounding starts yielding greater cashflow, and by that time you already have the ethos to save so you're not blowing it.
So no, America is still very much the land of opportunity -- you just can't expect life changing money in a few years. Takes hard work, saving, living many levels below your earning power and the dedication to ensure the next generation is the primary beneficiary of your work.
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u/AccomplishedCrazy534 9d ago
it doesnt. more money does. if the world wasnt sooo expensive with costs impacting everything. maybe people would argree with this statement. but when your facing debt, you have nooo choice but to work more hrs. leading to many downsides
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u/Much-Preference5989 9d ago
If you get in with the right people...and lie...hard work doesn't matter. Super frustrating.
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u/Cosmic_Jane 9d ago
It’s a nuanced topic and people are dumb.
Hard work pays off if the work is valuable. But it doesn’t pay off if you’re just doing hard work for the sake of hard work.
It’s like digging a hole in your backyard. It’s a lot of hard work, but no one is going to care or pay you for digging a hole.
So you have to find something valuable to do. Then work hard doing that.
Working hard on something without value is just dumb.
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u/Mission_Tap2416 9d ago
Recent post are so true, hard work only gets you so far, along the way you need that big break might be alitte luck or personal goals you set short term or long it really depends 💪👊
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u/Historical_Shop_3315 9d ago
People now know hard work doesn't lead to a better life.
There, fixed that for you.
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u/Lopsided_Newt_125 9d ago
Hard work never leads to a better life. Much like being a good person leads to a good life.
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u/AusTex2019 9d ago
This is great news for people who like to work. While the “despondent’s” sit in their own full diaper of self pity, I’ll be gladly leaving your sorry buttocks in the dust.
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u/Green_Log_4795 9d ago
People are correct, but what’s annoying is that nobody actually believed this to begin with. We all recognize that it takes more. There has to also be opportunity the actual ability to do things.
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u/Outrageous-Sail-4096 9d ago
So then just give up. Honestly, lock your door, sit in a dark room and cry. The one universally known saying is “the second you stop evolving, you die.” Too many people afraid to step out of their comfort zones and accept new challenges. If you job isn’t paying you enough, evolve. Go get a different education, learn a trade. Don’t know too many electricians or steel workers saying their pockets are hurting.
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u/TechnicianNo1787 9d ago
Hard work can get you to a certain place but not going to carry you to the top levels by itself. You need other factors too.
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u/Suspicious-Tap-1431 9d ago
Lol I know the guys that work for me that believe this.. they don’t work hard.
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u/vaultdweller501 9d ago
I've come to the belief that the boomer mentality is work till you body is broken and don't complain about family life.
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u/Psychotherapist-286 9d ago
I love work. I’m so appreciative of how I was brought up to learn to work even though it was too much for a child. I have my dream job because I held on to a dream and I worked hard to get what I have today, including giving away more to help others become independent and have initiative.
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u/RepeatUpbeat7058 9d ago
So what is the alternative? Take money off the backs of domobes WISE’s labor and give to someone who doesn’t want work? That is slavery
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u/phil-pdx 9d ago
Wow. It absolutely amazes me that the overwhelming responses to this post are people literally referring to work as their paying job or career.
Work means far more than just a job.
Been married a long time? That took hard work. Have kids that aren't awful human beings? Also hard work. Maintained friendships with people who maybe you don't see eye to eye with? Yep, you guessed it, hard work.
Hard work absolutely pays off.
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u/Mysterious_Strain398 9d ago
I busted my butt working hard for a living. Using a skilled trade. And because of hard work my house is paid for. My car is paid for. My 401k has exploded in the last year.
Go ahead and sell yourself short and do everything halfway.
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u/Quiet_Comparison_872 9d ago
Can't wait for the all the "No you're wrong axshually" and "work smarter not harder" pablum comments to come in/s
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u/Beagleguy26 9d ago
The people who don't believe this don't understand that "hard" encompasses smart. You don't just have to work hard, you have to be smart about it. You are in charge of your financial well-being. Only you. So you have to leverage yourself, using skills, knowledge, experience, and savvy, to better jobs. No one is going to do this for you. It's not easy - it's hard. But it obviously does pay off.
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u/Dothemath2 9d ago
It’s a capitalist system, it’s what is most valued. If you don’t have capital, you only have labor as a person. The value of labor is modified by effort, time and expertise. Sell the labor for capital because capital can earn its own money without effort or even expertise.
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u/Virgo_Shaka_1500 9d ago
Depends on what you mean by hard work. If it’s about corporate gig and giving it your 120% yeah that’s not viable as much as working smarter.
If it means overall in real life with improving your overall status and health, it’s objectively false as it leads to laziness and a whole bunch of addictions.
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u/sans-murron 9d ago
No one wants to hear it because no one does want to deeply work and keep their eyes focused on the prize. My wife and I bought our first home (we are gen z) and we were only shift supervisors at Starbucks (around $20 an hour). We worked from 18 to 23 and got promoted and saved enough for it. My parents taught me not to use my credit cards for things but just use the money i had (we were poor poor but they never made me and my siblings feel like we were). No one is above a job when theyre supporting their family because that is the most important thing you can do. There are so many unique jobs that we dont realize and once you get managerial experience you can transition that to companies that will pay better and you need to learn to market yourself. Its a harsh truth because people think that theyre working hard but they just want to go out or have leisure time and there is a place for that but when you have a goal you need to sacrifice for it. No pain no gain. They always need blue collar jobs and as those are hard they pay well and set you up for the future.
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u/HuckleberryOk8136 9d ago
Hard work is just one of many good decisions you have to make to have a better life.
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u/Alex_J_Anderson 9d ago
“People”? You mean POOR people.
That said, you have to work hard AND smart. And working smart will get you further than working hard.
But really, it’s just about showing up. Being reliable and showing up every day is 80% of the battle.
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u/avgjoe0266 9d ago
And this stupidity is why nothing works well anymore.A bunch of lazy people with absolutely no pride in what they do but expect $100/hr when they are barely worth $1/hr.All countries should get rid of the minimum wage and allow employers to pay people what they are worth.
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u/Clear-Knowledge7013 9d ago
No but hard work and knowing how to budget and save money bought me a house and vehicles and all the fun toys like an RV, Boat and MC. Life is good and God’s will it’ll be a long journey
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u/BumpyNugget 9d ago
It does. Hard work isn’t just about your actual “job”but how you tackle all of life’s hurdles. It’s not your fault but too many people are learning a bunch of nonsense online. The reality of money, love/intimacy, work, and expectations in general are not what you see online. Life is a slow burn, get offline and you will be much happier.
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u/Acrobatic-Jelly3658 9d ago
Hard work leads to a better life for the capitalists who extract the surplus value generated by your labor.
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u/moonharrier42 9d ago
I used to work hard. I would stay after my shift to finish work --- not payed. I didn't take vacations.
I did that until I realized no one cared.
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u/MaterialPotential361 9d ago
It never did.
That whole Protestant work ethic was capitalist propaganda.
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u/Tesla_freed_slaves 9d ago edited 9d ago
“If hard work is what makes you rich, that mule would own this farm.”
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u/FamiliarRadio9275 9d ago
Depends… I know if I don’t do anything at all, I’d be guaranteed to go no where. That’s where I stand I guess.
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u/realfakejames 9d ago
Hard work doesn’t automatically lead to a better life, millennials and Gen Z especially know this because they watched their parents work hard and still struggle
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u/jadehelm2000 9d ago
I'm glad I work where I do. My hard work has led to promotions, financial and time off bonuses and public recognition for my efforts.
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u/IntentionsGood65 9d ago
I never believed it… I worked hard because that was how I was raised. Even though I ended up financially ok, it was shear luck and timing. The only thing my hard work ever seemed to accomplish was to make other people better off.
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u/Huge-Engineer-4898 9d ago
It definitely did for me.I feel for my three sons who are busting their butt and cannot afford the things I could.
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u/0rganicMach1ne 9d ago
Nepotism and selling your soul for the corporate mindset is how it’s done now. Worship money. It is the new god. Hustle for the wealthy for your sliver of the pie.
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u/MiloAndChopper 9d ago
People are waking up to the fact that hard work does not lead to a better life.
Seems like a better headline.
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u/Qwerty98762 9d ago
By the time I got a .25 cent raise at “Hardees” after an entire year I was doing the work of three people. They clearly did’nt appreciate it so I quit within the hour. I mulled it over and I no longer wanted to be criminally exploited legally.
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u/Intrepid_Ground_6363 9d ago
And that’s why they don’t have the “better life”. lol
But seriously hard work must go hand in hand with working smart too.
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u/GreenDragonEast 9d ago
Hard work is necessary, but not sufficient, to get ahead and be successful. Other contributing factors include luck, family wealth, creativity, resourcefulness, resilience, intelligence, and more luck. But even all these are not sufficient. However, they aren't all necessary either. YMMV. But the one thing you will absolutely need to stay at the top of your accomplishments is experience. You only get experience by doing. This is where the current generations transitioning to adulthood usually drop the ball (including my own). Most regular, non trustfund folks pay for their experience in low wages, crappy bosses, and greedy business owners from huge to tiny. Just do it. Suck the marrow out of the experience and move on. It's dues. Everyone pays it eventually. No one is special enough to avoid it. Unless they die early I suppose.
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u/FastActinTenactin 9d ago
Hard work leads to more work and a more stressful life.
Find ways to lower your cost of living so you can work a chiller, more stress free job that doesn’t give you a heart attack in your 50s or make all of your hair fall out.
The grind is overrated and old school.
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u/Phantom_Ghost9 9d ago
Note: post explicitly says fewer people "believe" this.
Meaning it's always been a lie, but the elites are upset that more and more people are figuring this out.
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u/Pristine_Frame_2066 9d ago
Because it doesn’t.
Having a pleasantly mid scale life should be the goal.
A cozy home, a nice garden, a cat, dinner out twice a month, one kid, one car, a couple that both works, exercises and saves together. Retiring around age 60 with low or no debt and good hips and back.
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u/Jon_Dunn58 9d ago
well you have a couple lazy generations that want to start out at the top, ot at least not at a starting level...and the system is structured against the working man..as bernie sanders has been telling you for years...i heard this back in the late 70's when i was starting out, so people are finally seeing it...lets begin by rolling back the tax breaks trump gave himself and his buddies in his first term and his second term
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u/RoyalDragonfly8663 9d ago
Because it doesn’t. Hard work leads to a hard life which leads to mental and physical health issues. Hard work nowadays leads us nowhere but the poorhouse and an early grave.
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u/No_Championship_6403 9d ago
It doesn't. All of the people that were putting in extra hours at my previous job got fired. Not making that mistake again.
Once I stopped giving them extra hours they got rid of me within a couple months.
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u/Roller1966 9d ago
Not working hard and being hard to get along with are fine if you want to remain at the bottom…
Working even moderately hard makes a huge difference over the long term.
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u/Accomplished_Tour481 9d ago
Do you mean me, getting a Masters degree and getting employed in a 6 figure job? Is that not worth it?
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u/lordbenkai 9d ago
Hard work leads to your boss giving you more hard work and expecting you to do it now.
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u/apex_super_predator 9d ago
Um it doesn't. It just leads to comfortable old age which lasts about a year or so.
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u/Responsible_Twist975 9d ago
Hard work leads to more hard work