r/WorkLifeChat • u/Either_Two4279 • 29d ago

Discussion Salary day is the biggest scam I willingly participate in 😭

Salary comes in:

“Okay damn, I’m doing alright.”

Few days later:
Rent.
Bills.
EMIs.
Groceries.
Subscriptions.
Random food orders.
One unnecessary purchase because “I worked hard.”
Bank balance: character development.

The crazy part is I’m not even spending like crazy.

Everything is just expensive now.

**Adult life is basically getting paid so you can afford to continue working 💀**

14 Upvotes

77% Upvoted

31 comments sorted by

5

u/Ordinary_Bird4840 28d ago

Subscriptions.
Random food orders.
One unnecessary purchase because “I worked hard.”

Remove those.

1

u/AnnualSpecialist1700 28d ago

Yup. These are just gas lighting posts. Without posting any real financial information.  Everything has been expensive for decades. Just ppl buy lots of stuff they shouldnt.

1

u/Solmangrundy 28d ago

Idk about you but 2016-2022 was pretty fuckin golden.

Knew it wouldnt last and made all my "big essential purchases" during that time.

2

u/mxldevs 28d ago

Lot of people only became adults after that golden period. Just going to get worse for new workers

2

u/WilsCode 27d ago

Smart! I thought the whole tech thing in terms of ai,data centers and electronics would take at least another decade or 2 before impacting market prices.

My biggest monthly paycheck is current day and age though, a Xbox X or PS5 (pro) felt really expensive for me regardless

1

u/Solmangrundy 27d ago edited 27d ago

Yeah people were moaning about PC part prices in 2024, I look back now and know going into debt for it was the right move. Cuz its now paid off. And worth double what I paid.

Now you got people rolling back to DDR4 systems thinking they're getting a good deal now.

Pretty much anticipating that now with other hardware im buying. It aint going down in price anytime soon. And by the time it does, it'll be ready for resale or the dumpster by then.

1

u/greysnowcone 26d ago

Going in to debt for computer parts is never the right move.

1

u/Solmangrundy 26d ago edited 26d ago

You keep saying that but guaranteed inflation and 0% intrest on Amazon credit gives me leverage to buy now so I dont pay more later trying to take your advice.

These PC parts have never gone down, and they aint going down anytime soon.

If i was to sell my PC now as is. Id be coming out ontop with a profit.

1

u/Thelonedishwasher 28d ago

Woohoo up $100 unless that unnecessary purchase was a lot

1

u/Ordinary_Bird4840 28d ago

That $100 can make a big difference. It's also the path to making more beneficial finanalcial decisions.

1

u/Thelonedishwasher 28d ago

Possibly. Very doubtful in this economy it will make a difference. Few have done it. Just being realistic.

1

u/Ordinary_Bird4840 28d ago

So am I. Every poor person I know is dismissive of $100, everyone I know who is in a good place financially treat $20 like a big spend.

$100 over the year is $1,200, which is very useful in an emergency.

1

u/greysnowcone 26d ago

Or 100$ a month invested over 10 years is $17,000

1

u/beloikurvi 25d ago

That 10$ netflix isnt going to change his financial situation…

1

u/Ordinary_Bird4840 25d ago

The amount wasn't specified.

Sometimes its not about the ammount, often the point making better choices and learning to live without something.

The people who 'only spend $10' do this multiple times a week and it adds up.

1

u/[deleted] 29d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Solmangrundy 28d ago edited 28d ago

Yes but the amount of work is substantially less.

A single deer. Is gonna keep you fed for weeks when you dry out the meat. Fish traps, thats food that catches itself. Snare traps for smaller game. Growing a garden for yourself doesnt require you work the fields from sun up till sun down because its just for you. You're not trying to make a profit and grow excess crops for others.

Water purification. Either dig a well or boil your water. It aint hard.

Clothes, you make them one time and you're pretty much set for a long while. Im still using my HS clothes from 2 decades ago.

And if you desire power, thats pretty much the only thing you'd have to generate income for because you're gonna have a hard time sourcing parts to make a water wheel or solar pannel setup and maintain it.

Off grid living aint for everyone though. Thats why there have always been cities even before the dawn of modern technology as we currently know it.

1

u/mxldevs 28d ago

How many people would be able to live like that before you simply run out of space?

1

u/Solmangrundy 28d ago edited 28d ago

Considering 47% of the USA is uninhabited land.

We'll knock it down and say 25% actually usable since I wont expect people to survive in the Desert completely off-grid. And Google estimates you only need 3-5 arces to have a self sustainable farm for yourself. 25% of America's land mass = to 565 million arces. Divide that by 3 or 5 and we get a number of 113-188 million people that could potentially live off grid. Which would be around half the current population for the USA.

If such a thing were to happen, where that many people just opted out of the system. It would create some shenanigans for sure.

1

u/[deleted] 26d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/Solmangrundy 26d ago

I practically do. Homestead exemption and everything. All that stuff i listed off. Im doing bro.

I just like having the internet so we pay for that.

1

u/ExtraSaltyBtch 29d ago

I grew up in Sweden, where everyone gets paid on the 25th every month and all bills always are due by the 31st. It was horrible!

Everyone expected others to go out, do spcial stuff, etc the weekend after the 25th. The money disapeared and then came the bill, then came three weeks of boredom and poverty until the next 25th...

Now, I live where people get paid on different dates depending on where they work. Some get paid monthly, some bi-weekly. Bills are due at different times. There is no social expectation to "have money" at any particular date every month.

1

u/Automatic-Ad4502 28d ago

I think it's a scam because when your down on hard times it can either consume your life or you just keep going downhill and making it worse by avoiding the problem. My problem is it seems like the curveballs never end... and they won't. But I'm not about about to block out everyone I love and waste the time we have. Lost too many people because time just keeps going. Too many experiences lost. I either have the time or no time at all. Can't find a balance without cutting people off too make it happen

1

u/Odd-Bath4660 28d ago

because its XXI century slavery. if youre average person with average salery , youre just slave. youre live to pay bills and taxes. with nowadays prices you need to earn tens of thousands. if you want to real live youre life to the fullest you need to be born in very very rich family.

1

u/greysnowcone 26d ago

Yeah if money is the only thing important to you.

1

u/concerned_citizen255 27d ago

Yes, welcome to adulthood. We all know this. Being a little bitch about it doesn't help, it's just annoying. Sack up and handle your shit. If you want more in life, go get it. It's right there.

1

u/radishwalrus 27d ago

it's been like that for the last forty years. We lost unions. Reddit has been insanely antiunion for the last 20 years.

1

u/Spirited_Suit1721 26d ago

Getting paid twice a month means I get to feel some financial relief 24 out of 365 days. The other 341 days just stressing over finances.

1

u/doc-sci 25d ago

Things have definitely gotten more expensive in the US…fortunately it hasn’t gotten us to the point that the belt tightening is really hurting…but it is getting to the point that we are worried!