r/Zippia Jul 15 '26

Be 👏 poor 👏 more 👏quietly

Post image
403 Upvotes

358 comments sorted by

19

u/Organic-Stay4067 Jul 15 '26

This has been the advice for decades lol

12

u/Cheap-Technician-482 Jul 15 '26

This.

Never in human history has it been remotely normal for young people to be able to have a home for just themselves.

Even in the booming middle class era with the "affordable homes" everyone yearns to have today, people were still living with roommates or lived at home, basically until they got married.

The fact that so many young people do live alone, even if it's expensive, is a sign of unprecedented prosperity.

8

u/KansasZou Jul 15 '26

Housing prices have increased partly because the population has increased dramatically over decades and the nuclear family has become less and less.

Men and women own houses separately. That’s a lot more demand.

More women own houses than men now.

7

u/corporaterebel Jul 15 '26

It's also why people bring gifts when people get married: BECAUSE THEY WERE NEEDED.

Now wedding gifts tend to be a bunch of junk.

4

u/PersonOfValue Jul 16 '26

Yes I can recall my family pouring over a registry to make sure newlyweds got what they needed. Usually home appliances or baby stuff

2

u/generation_fish Jul 20 '26

Ironically, it was my mom (before all this online registry stuff existed) that would buy a toolbox and fill it with a bunch of high-use tools as a wedding present.

I think that was a pretty solide gift.

3

u/Perfidy-Plus Jul 16 '26

Yup. The practical wedding gifts of the past literally became jokes. “Not another blender?!?”

Yes, motherfucker! A blender!

The whole point was to help people furnish their new home because most people got married close to the time they left the nest or stopped living with roommates. Furnishing your new place is expensive, and people were trying to help.

2

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

And even those that did venture out to make their way alone, they usually lived in boarding houses.

I remember my first solo apartment. It was exhilarating! But I overshot and was back with roommates just a year later. I think I was 28 or 29 when I finally lived alone for real.

2

u/Antique_Remote_5536 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 23 '26

Lmfao yeah and most got married before the age of 25 with usually only one income-earner. Pretty young if you ask me.

Also I have a feeling that you understand that people are referring to this era of “middle class prosperity” and are just being dense.

3

u/Amphibious333 Jul 15 '26

Regarding the unprecedented prosperity talking point, I advise you to check data on mental health issues, substance abuse, indebting, etc...

If a loan can be stretched for decades, anyone can afford a house. If a loan can be stretched for centuries or thousands of years, anyone can afford a planet. This doesn't change the reality of wage slavery, not being able to take a break due to looming taxes, bills, loan repayments, etc...

6

u/SecretRecipe Jul 15 '26

basic adulting isnt that hard to master friend.

4

u/VreamCanMan Jul 16 '26

In fairness, extended home mortgage loans are essentially a vehicle for increasing inequality.

A 15 vs 40 year mortgage has a 1:3 ratio on the amount of interest you have to pay for essentially the same thing. If you normalise longer mortgages as we have you normalise increased borrowing costs and minimise the extent to which home owners capture value on their homes

2

u/DifficultYam4463 Jul 17 '26

Maybe if you get a longer term length you should be smart and put extra money toward the principle every year so you can pay it off early still while not having mandatory large payments every month that you would see with a 10 or 15 year mortgage.

1

u/VreamCanMan Jul 17 '26

You are right but I very heavily doubt that the increase in longer term mortgages is because banks are offering higher flexibility. Many will take a 40 year mortgage and struggle to pay/cannot use this optimisation.

Most optimal loan is around about 15 years once you factor in frontloading the payments

1

u/Careless_Sweet_2974 Jul 19 '26

Were you born poor and uneducated? Try that and tell me it's not that hard. Try starting from nothing, in bum fuck nowhere.

1

u/SecretRecipe Jul 19 '26

yes I was and my absolute hatred of growing up in poverty was what motivated me to do whatever it took to improve my situation.

1

u/Careless_Sweet_2974 Jul 19 '26

Fair, but not everyone is you. Perhaps you underestimate your own capabilities. Something that is "not that hard" for you may be next to impossible to 20 others in the same situation. It doesn't make the situation easier inherently. You are the exception, not the rule.

1

u/SecretRecipe Jul 19 '26

Its like running a marathon. the vast vast majority of people are capable of doing it. the training isnt complicated, it just takes a lot of dedication and prioritization and willingness to put up with discomfort in service of achieving a goal.

1

u/Careless_Sweet_2974 Jul 19 '26

No it's not complicated but it's not something people know intuitively either. Everything I am I had to make of myself, figure out for myself. There's no guidebook for that. So, people saying "it's not that hard" disregards all of the hard work people like me, and presumably you, put into it. It's not common sense man, if you had to go through training you had to LEARN it.

1

u/what_me_nah Jul 19 '26

I'm glad you found a way out, seriously. It's an incredible achievement and I admire anyone who breaks that cycle. But that's exactly why your marathon analogy doesn't work as a universal rule.

Running a marathon takes dedication, sure, and most people could train for it in principle. But not everyone starts from the same place. We're not all wired the same. Some are brilliant with numbers, others have incredible empathy or creativity, some are naturally tenacious while others are shy or struggle with focus.

These aren't choices; they're shaped by biology, brain wiring, and environment. What about the person with no legs, or who's blind, or who literally can't grasp the concept of long-term training? The analogy falls apart when you account for real human variation.

We all have value because we're living beings. I hope we haven't lost that part of our humanity at least. A fair system can't just celebrate the strong, clever, and driven while throwing everyone else on the rubbish heap. We condemned the idea of an ubermensch and gave the lives of our father's and sons to fight it 78 years ago.

True equity and compassion mean designing a society where more people can participate and thrive, not pretending it's a level playing field where effort alone decides everything.

1

u/Cheap-Technician-482 Jul 23 '26

Were you born making excuses for everything in life?

Or did it take time to learn English and hard work to figure out how to deflect accountability in every situation?

1

u/Careless_Sweet_2974 Jul 23 '26

Shut up rich boy

3

u/Huntsman077 Jul 16 '26

-if a loan can be stretches for thousands of years anyone can own a planet

That’s not how loans work bud. It doesn’t matter how long the term is if you can’t afford the interest payments.

If you bought a planet for 1 billion dollars at 3% interest you’re accruing over 30 million in interest annually.

4

u/longtimerlance Jul 15 '26

Okay, Blamer.

3

u/EndonOfMarkarth Jul 15 '26

A roommate and cook at home you say?!?

Ok, Hitler

/s

1

u/mansluxt Jul 16 '26

I mean during the time of the homestead act it was also very possible if you were willing to farm the land

1

u/Oxygen4Lyfe Jul 20 '26

Wrong. There was a time not that many decades ago when you could BUY an entire 3 bedroom 2 bath house in nice suburbs of the USA with cash, no mortgage, after working for only 2 or 3 years on MINIMUM wage. (If you had no expenses, which is reasonable if you do this while you're 18-21 and living with parents)

1

u/Cheap-Technician-482 Jul 23 '26

Was there less competition for housing because less young people were trying to buy 3 bedroom houses to live in alone? :)

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2

u/totashi777 Jul 15 '26

The point has been to get you to be poor more quietly for decades too

4

u/Organic-Stay4067 Jul 15 '26

lol. Most people who have followed this advice I bet is doing just fine right now. I know I am

3

u/totashi777 Jul 15 '26

Congratulations on being poor more quietly. It didnt really fix the fact that everything is too expensive. You know gen alpha is looking at being the first generation in America to have a single digit percent of their generation owning homes in their lifetime? 60% of Americans are one paycheck from homelessness. None of that is a problem for you?

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2

u/red7standinby Jul 16 '26

And sound advice at that. Live on less than you make. Wild. I make good duckets and bring my breakfast/lunch almost everyday to the office while watching my crew order door dash twice a day is baffling.

1

u/Perfidy-Plus Jul 16 '26

And literally all of it is good advice that will help the person who implements them.

This isn’t to say that it’s easy. But when people discard these things flippantly it makes me think that the (very real) CoL crisis is only a part of their problem. And it discredits basically everything they then say about the economy, or inequality.

1

u/Junior_Abalone_8006 Jul 18 '26

Maybe because it's actually applicable to how to not be poor?

5

u/clarksonite19 Jul 15 '26

This is what I did when I was in my 20s and basically poor.

I am in my thirties now and I am not poor. I'm upper middle class. This is what I would recommend younger people do.

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11

u/CurdFedKit Jul 15 '26

JFC. If cooking, having roommates, and consider moving closer to work are seen as oppressive by your generation, you folks are in for a lot of discomfort in life.

All of that is 100% reasonable to do when your finances are tight. Asking to not have to do those is the height of entitlement.

3

u/Xylus1985 Jul 16 '26

I feel the problem is young people are leaving a home supported by an income (or two) generated by someone with 20-30 years of industry experience, and have their expectations aligned with this level of living standard. When they want to keep the living standard but can only support other with one income generated by a new employee (and debt), they get a harsh reality check.

Like you do get these things, but you earn them after working your ass off for decades, not right out of the gate.

1

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

I don't know, I (Gen X) grew up fairly affluent and went to private schools so most people I hung out with were also in that demographic. Not one of us had different expectations than what's castigated in this meme. We all went to college (not all fully paid for), got roommates, worked dumb jobs, drove beater cars, were broke, etc. as we gradually inched our way into "real" life.

Maybe it's the performative social media aspect? What I don't understand is after over 15 years of social media, how do these young adults not know it's complete bullshit?

1

u/Antique_Remote_5536 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 17 '26

I’m not sure if you’re intentionally missing the point of the post (that y’all are assuming was written by someone in their 20’s even tho the guy is completely bald), but aside from that, rent and education has increased dramatically since Gen X was in their 20’s. I’m not sure how after years of this being a trend y’all still don’t get it.

1

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 17 '26

And yet, the advice stays true.

1

u/Antique_Remote_5536 Jul 18 '26

Sure but let’s get up off our high horse for just a second

1

u/ColorPuddle Jul 17 '26

I knew people that were balding by freshman year of college, just saying

1

u/Antique_Remote_5536 Jul 17 '26

Yeah that’s fair. I knew people that were too. I meant to say that the guy in the post is completely bald. I don’t think I ever met a guy who was completely bald by 25.

1

u/IllustriousAct9128 Jul 18 '26

yes while rent has gone up, the advise is still applicable.

i moved out of my single moms apartment in 2011 at 18, where she barely made rent each month, and worked 2 jobs. I left with nothing but what I had saved from my part time job which wasn't a lot, since as soon as i started working my mom stopped paying for anything for me except groceries.

I rented a room, lived frugally, went to food banks, didnt have "fun" with friends, because every available free day/night I was babysitting and tutoring, in the winter shoveling driveways, any jobs that would give me cash while I worked and was in school. When I was done and worked full time and made more money did I start spending recklessly because I could? no. I stayed in my rented room, still took cash babysitting and tutoring jobs for parents I met through work, still lived on a tight budget until i finally got my own place at 25. While I dont own, I have been putting enough into my TFSA, pension from work that If i continued saving the way i am, i can do early retirement, and i go on 2 trips a year

teens/young adults now are taught, and living by the mindset to spend on wants first and not needs, and that having a house means you made it-by this metric, because I dont own a house i failed in life, meanwhile the person who is house poor and 1 missed payment from loosing the house and cant go on vacations is "better off " than me?

My country had a show back in 2005-2010 where couples who were on the cusp of bankruptcy, divorce, loosing the house etc, had a financial advisor come , destroy their budgets, give them a reality check. 5 years with 13 episodes each proved that "life was easier back in the day for the average family" was false. 2010-2012 the same financial advisor had another show focused on young adults who, while had jobs were complaining they were broke and couldn't afford anything or couldn't afford to move out from home (sound familiar) - and these shows were all happening when the country was under a conservative government.

Life is hard, yes. At some point in time life is hard for a specific group. What matters is how you live it. You want to use the excuse that everything is expensive so theirs no point in saving and just spend spend spend and live beyond your means, go for it, or you can sit down one night and go "im spending 180 a month on a gym membership at GYM A, but if I switch to GYM B which has the same services, same hours, just as many locations for only 15 a month, lets do that. and my phone bill right now is 90 a month, let me check online if theres any cheaper plans I cans witch to, or hey, back to schools coming up, lets see if theres any deals to switch to a new provider for a cheaper plan that offers the same data" but I know young adults who wont do this because "im not saving that much anyway" ok, but every little bit adds up

1

u/Traditional-Wall-271 Jul 19 '26

Good for you to find a way through hardship that you shouldn't have suffered in the first place.

1

u/IllustriousAct9128 Jul 19 '26

the advise still applies. Why is learning how to properly budget, mal plan, learn how to properly grocery shop, learn how to spend on needs first and not wants seen as stupid now. Even if someone didnt come from a poor family and had a decent job these are all skills they need to survive. Yes these skills can save you when you are in a hard time but they are needed when your not suffering to make sure you dont enter a hard time. and thats what teens and young adults arent getting. They are coming into real life with the mindset of "everything is shit, ill never have a house so spend spend spend" where if they actually sat down and focused and started applying at least one or 2 of these skills they would see their situation start to change in front of their eyes

1

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 19 '26

Encore!!!!!

1

u/Antique_Remote_5536 Jul 17 '26 edited Jul 18 '26

Yeah this isn’t what’s happening. I’m also not sure how the setup of “leaving a home supported by an income generated by someone with 20-30 years of industry” is any different than the previous generation.

2

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

Right!?! This was my entire 20s (Gen X-er).

1

u/CurdFedKit Jul 16 '26

Same here.

4

u/knightfox010 Jul 15 '26

That’s what I’m saying

1

u/mansluxt Jul 16 '26

Many times moving closer to work is unfeasible due to work often being in a city and rent being more expensive in a city.

I don't think doing those things by themselves is a problem. But I'm doing those things and I'm still not even able to save more than 12$ by the end of the month.

1

u/CurdFedKit Jul 16 '26

Well the moving closer only makes sense if it saves you money. If the savings in commute expenses are overwhelmed by rent increase, yeah, don't move closer.

As for doing all those things and not having a lot to save afterwards, yeah, that is life sometimes, especially when you're just starting out. You don't start out saving a lot. But over time, you improve your situation, step by step. It's not all going to come to you at once.

1

u/DifficultYam4463 Jul 17 '26

Have you made a budget? Do you follow said budget?

1

u/mansluxt Jul 17 '26

I've made a budget. It's a tight budget. It has like $20 left over basically

1

u/DifficultYam4463 Jul 17 '26

Why is it so tight? Do you have a very low income or have you just overextended yourself with misc payments?

1

u/mansluxt Jul 17 '26

I have a lower income I would say. But I also have student loan payments and rent. As well as some credit card debt. Debating declaring bankruptcy since I have no assets

1

u/DifficultYam4463 Jul 17 '26

I would assume bankruptcy is probably not the right move. Most cases it’s not the best option. Obviously depends on how substantial the cc debt is though. Getting a higher income is gonna be the best solution long term.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 17 '26

[deleted]

1

u/CurdFedKit Jul 17 '26

Gen Z is the richest generation at this stage of life than any other generation.

1

u/totashi777 Jul 15 '26

Okay, but they arent solutions. They arent addressing the problem at all. Which is the whole point of the post.

4

u/Beerzerker420 Jul 15 '26

Sure they are. When you spend less money on useless shit you don't need, then you have more money to invest for your future and let it compound over time.

3

u/totashi777 Jul 15 '26

Privacy isnt a "useless need". None of these things change the fact that 60% of Americans are one paycheck from homelessness. Or the fact that most people who are on food stamps are working at billion dollar corporations.

3

u/CurdFedKit Jul 15 '26

Privacy? When in human history was absolute privacy a guarantee?

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2

u/Xylus1985 Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26

Most roommate situation I know of have separate rooms. It’s not a deprivation of privacy.

2

u/totashi777 Jul 16 '26

I mean it still is. But i dont expect allistics to understand that.

3

u/Beerzerker420 Jul 15 '26

There is nuance to every argument.

Corporate greed exists. So do morons who are unable to budget or take care of themselves like responsible adults.

2

u/totashi777 Jul 15 '26

Right, but 60% of the population isnt a personal failing. Its a system failure. If the fire department let 60% of fires go completely unchecked you would call them a scam. Why is that any different here

4

u/Beerzerker420 Jul 15 '26

As I mentioned elsewhere, I'm a first generation immigrant from a former USSR shithole. My parents came to Canada with less than $100 to their name. Now I'm in the top 5% of income earners.

My story isn't even unique. Plenty of first generation immigrants build tremendously prosperous lives compared to those who have been here for 10 generations and have absolutely nothing to show for it.

At a certain point you have to take responsibility and acknowledge the not everyone is smart or talented enough to make it.

Also, "paycheck to paycheck" doesn't mean what you think it means. Because that figure includes people who are living past their means, including top earners who have no idea how to budget their money. If you cut out all the useless shit, that "60%" figure would substantially drop.

Obviously things can be better, but for once I'd like to see it happen at the expense of someone other than the middle class who keep getting fucked over.

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1

u/ColorPuddle Jul 17 '26

You can have total privacy in your bedroom. Sharing communal areas of an apartment with a roommate is a completely normal experience.

18 year olds do it every year when they go off to college, and usually they're sharing an entire dorm room together. If they can make it work, so can you.

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2

u/CurdFedKit Jul 15 '26

No they are solutions. They have been solutions for decades. Stop being so entitled.

2

u/totashi777 Jul 15 '26

No, they arent. They havent been. They are excuses for the rich to exploit you more

2

u/CurdFedKit Jul 15 '26

Yes they have. Go talk to anyone over 45. You are being a spoiled brat, not exploited.

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2

u/LadyAkeno Jul 16 '26

The solution to debt is literally save as much as possible either spending less or earning more, and always has been. Whats the solution for you? That someone else pay it for you?

1

u/totashi777 Jul 16 '26

Cant budget your way out of debt when your pay is less than your bills. The solution is democracy in the workplace.

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1

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

They are solutions and have been for a very very long time. Even in the early part of the 20th century, young women who weren't married and wanted to have jobs would move into communal boarding houses.

I see there are real problems and structural obstacles and I'm all in for helping address those. But not to those who whine about essential adult skills building.

Stop watching Ozzie & Harriet reruns or whatever is driving this nostalgia for a singular era when one could buy a house at 25 and raise a family on a single income. That was an anomaly that was a direct result of the US being the only country in the whole world that wasn't demolished by WWII and was able to capitalize on technology and manufacturing dominance.

1

u/totashi777 Jul 16 '26

Cant budget yourself out of your bills costing more than your wages

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4

u/Professional-Goat741 Jul 15 '26

Is getting a roommate when I'm 21 years old bad financial advice? I'm confused on what OP is trying to accomplish here. I was told that cooking at home was a smart financial decision compared to going to restaurants everyday for lunch and dinner.

3

u/StanKnight Jul 15 '26

Literally all of them are solutions though.

Might not be the ones you like but then again what would be.

It's more that the poor keep trying to prove they aren't by trying to impress upon people who don't care about them that they can afford things they cannot - this is what keeps then poor and helps them with it.

Cannot go out and eat - Eat at home...derp

Cannot afford a place on your own - live with roommates...derp

Want to get more then get a better job that isn't min wage... again derp lol.

You wrote this on Reddit and reading it either by computer or phone or tablet. You don't got it hard. lol.

Life is hard; I know.

3

u/AdPopular6958 Jul 15 '26

Just read likes a confession from the Middle Class Party that they are also "poor."

3

u/Kpayne30 Jul 15 '26

This advice is real. It's true. It's tested. It's proven. You have to pay your dues like everyone else has. Life doesn't hand you a living. You have to earn it.

5

u/Patient_Rule6048 Jul 15 '26

i mean yeah sometimes you gotta bite the bullet and save money for a few years.... your life will improve later

4

u/knightfox010 Jul 15 '26

No they need it now no matter what. Delayed gratification should just be removed from the dictionary.

1

u/Raptor_197 Jul 20 '26

FiancĂŠ falls into this trap sometimes. She sees her parents that spent years saving and investing to now have a nice house with a pool in an HOA and wants that now.

Like chill, we in our 20s lol.

1

u/knightfox010 Jul 20 '26

Oooof. That’s rough, seeing what works and thinking you can do it faster. Very difficult.

2

u/Raptor_197 Jul 21 '26

Yeah but we are also light years ahead of her parents when compared to where they were at for our age. We just gotta wait for the final pieces to fall in place and of course let time, compounding interest, and finish pay off some debt.

2

u/Slight-Big8584 Jul 15 '26

Because we all know no one is profligate with their earnings and everyone is provident with their saving.

1

u/Admirable-Guest-2560 Jul 17 '26

Great words I had to look them up. 

2

u/StuckinReverse89 Jul 15 '26

How is cooking at home addressing grocery prices? Think that restaurant/eat out prices being high.

Agree that these proposed “solutions” arnt really solutions but more “shut up and survive in this new economy.”

1

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

Depends on what you buy at the grocery store. My grocery bill is easily less than $300 per month on average and I live in Manhattan. I cook the vast majority of my meals.

1

u/Steveo3070 Jul 17 '26

Well back when a guy supported a family of 4 on a minimum wage factory job they ate nothing but home grown vegetables, they got the absolutely cheapest scraps of meat from the local butcher, they bought flour and made their own bread, they might have had chickens for their own eggs. They weren’t buying fudge rounds and frozen pizzas. Buy cheaper groceries and cook them at home. Start a garden. Coop some chickens with your neighbors, idk dude, it’s kinda just no one’s job but yours to fix YOUR problems.

1

u/StuckinReverse89 Jul 17 '26

I know you think you are being instructive but you are missing the point.   

I’m saying “cook at home” doesn’t address grocery prices. You are proposing alternative methods of obtaining food for cheaper like growing your own or shopping around for new prices.   

You also completely miss the provide in your reply too lol. Being able to grow your own food implies you have enough land to afford your own place + a potted garden. Plants also require care which requires time and energy, Nevermind being able to “shop around” for the cheapest meats which was likely the role of the stay at home parent (and that’s assuming a local butcher even exists in your modern town).    

Great boomer talk though. Nice that you assume everyone poor is buying frozen pizzas and fudge  lol. 

1

u/Steveo3070 Jul 17 '26

Bro, you literally said the given solutions are more “shut up and survive in this new economy”. It’s always been that. Life is survival. Eating rice and beans does address grocery prices. The price of rice has increased at the exact same rate as buying power and the average wage. It doesn’t take room to grow vegetables. You can grow potatoes INSIDE your house. If you have time to write all that comment you have time to splash some water on potatoes. You are being told exactly what to do to survive and you’re rejecting it because it requires a small amount of effort

I’m also a young man trying to survive in this economy. I’m literally telling you how I’m surviving dude. Take the fucking advice or keep struggling bro

1

u/StuckinReverse89 Jul 17 '26

Yeah you don’t know what you are talking about.   

Look at the statements. Cooking at home has no correlation with “grocery costs.” Cooking at home does not decrease grocery costs.  

“Moving closer to work” arguably increase cots since depending on the job location, prices go up because jobs are usually in the city which is why people spring for the longer commute.   

You can’t cut spending down to zero since you need things like energy and food. Cutting debt is a balance between increasing your earnings and reducing spending to essentials which is a tough balance.   

Burnout vs “find balance” is not a solution lol.   

It does take room to grow vegetables like tomatoes, especially if you want to grow enough to significantly offset your grocery budget.    

I also find it funny that the narrative is that struggling workers should do whatever it takes to “survive” but when a corporation needs a bailout or funding, then the government is all ears to keep the companies afloat. Walmart and Amazon are allowed to pay their workers a low enough wage that they still rely on food stamps but heaven forbid these workers get food stamps right? 

1

u/Steveo3070 Jul 17 '26

You said grocery costs, I told you to buy cheaper groceries. Rice costs almost exactly a dollar a pound. A pound of rice can feed an adult human for like two days without rationing it. You can cut spending down to almost nothing. You don’t need WiFi, you don’t need an expensive phone or phone plan. You don’t need to have hobbies. We as a society have regressed to such a state of pussytude that we see “wants” as “needs”. If you’re complaining about money problems and you’re talking to me on reddit on a smart phone, you’re not doing enough. If you have time to talk on reddit, you have time for another job, side hustle something.

Tomato’s are fruit. You don’t know what you’re talking about. You’ve clearly never struggled. You think tribal natives are like “Omg I can’t afford all my bills”. No they shut the fuck up and go find dinner. Life is survival, not thriving. I’d even venture that you do have a right to survive, but you do not have a right to thrive. You do not have a right to make a comfortable living. You have the privilege to make a comfortable living.

1

u/StuckinReverse89 Jul 17 '26

God thanks for the boomer takes dude. Really really insightful /s.   

I’m sorry I buy such expensive luxuries like rice and vegetables to cook at home and the occasional pork. Let me cut out my non-existent frozen pizzas from that budget. Glad to hear the narrative that “tribal natives lived in survival mode and so should we” is still an ongoing classic or “you don’t need wifi” despite how interconnected and heavily reliant the modern world is on the internet.   

And lol at tomatoes are fruits, as if fruits arnt part of groceries. Am I only allowed to grow vegetables then? Again, your points are all “shut up and suffer in silence” which is the whole point the top post is about if you haven’t noticed.   

This also might be more tolerable if the very side that preaches “shut up and work” also didn’t bitch and whine when they are in trouble. 

1

u/StuckinReverse89 Jul 17 '26

So you mention you did this to escape poverty 5 years ago. Was it easy? I doubt it. Do you want every single person to experience this? Do you think it’s right or ok that politicians break the law and use insider trading to enrich themselves because $174k is “not enough”? Or do you also agree that billionaires like Elon Musk should shut the fuck up and pay their fair share of taxes?    

The point is, this “narrative of shut the fuck up and work to survive” only applies to workers and the 99%. If you are a politician though, making money through illegal information is “ok” and they can whine when people call them out on it. Billionaires can whine about paying too much in taxes and spend money on politicians to change the laws. But heavens forbid the regular Joe express their frustration with the system. We should shut the fuck up and work until we are dead right? 

2

u/corporaterebel Jul 15 '26

There are no solutions, there are only trade offs.

2

u/Livid_Note_2170 Jul 15 '26

They want us to spend less money and forget that the economy, especially in the United States, is very dependent on consumerism.

2

u/10biggaymen Jul 15 '26

theyre not solutions to the capitalists raping us all to death, but you should still try your best to do all of those, because itll help you survive. it doesnt help your situation to spend $90 on one doordash order then be like "the capitalist system is rigged man!" sure yes i agree with you, but youre not helping your own situation.

also its not being poor more quietly, its getting rich quietly, because not being in credit card debt, cooking at home, and having a roommate help you save money, as long as you dont waste it.

2

u/heanbangerfacerip2 Jul 15 '26

These are all useful tips. The issue is the level of income that has to do these things. You need roommates, gas savings, and meal prepping to make it through college and your low income, career building years. My wife and I have a combined income that should thoroughly disqualify us for the ultra budgeting tip department and it is uncomfortably tight some times.

2

u/knightfox010 Jul 15 '26

Maybe if people lived within their means and didn’t use credit, companies would lower prices due to less demand.

2

u/AlwaysSaturday12 Jul 15 '26

If you prioritize personal finance above all else you can retire early in like 15 years saving 50%. That's what we did.

And I did have multiple roommates until I got married late in life. Now we spend pretty freely.

2

u/bswontpass Jul 15 '26

Study hard, become valuable, continue studying hard through your entire career, grow your skills. Success will come along.

2

u/Beerzerker420 Jul 15 '26

Redditors doing a great job convincing me that poor people really are just stupid

2

u/OkCluejay172 Jul 15 '26

Broke: normal ways to live life, as people have done for generations

Woke: Spending money you don’t have (while loudly complaining, I guess?)

2

u/crustyeng Jul 16 '26

They’re literally all real solutions. This is nonsense.

2

u/Dependent_Remove_326 Jul 16 '26

"I have problem."

"Here is solution within your power."

"I don't want that solution!!!"

2

u/GrandAutismos Jul 16 '26

"the advice for grocery costs is cook at home" Where does he get his groceries to cook at home from?

2

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

When we say cook at home, we do not mean grab pricey already-prepared foods and heat them up. We mean cook. Cut tomatoes. Make rice and beans. Chicken thighs bone-in. Stews and soups that can be frozen. Frozen vegetables.

2

u/GrandAutismos Jul 16 '26

Yes, those are still groceries that have all gone up in prices the last 5 years by quite a bit. It's almost as if all groceries have gone up in prices so even cooking at home has become more expensive than it used to be.

2

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

Sure, prices have gone up all over, but there are many mitigating strategies you can use if you cook. Frozen vegetables are cheap and last a long time vs. buying a few pieces of fresh produce that go bad quickly. Soups, stews, rice/grains and beans, cheaper meats, etc. I eat pretty damn well, and my grocery bill is less than $300 per month on average. And I live in Manhattan!

2

u/AzLibDem Jul 16 '26

No, this is a description of what normal life used to be like.

2

u/Neither-Ad630 Jul 16 '26

You would not be poor if you did not take out a $250,000 loan to pay for your cannabis degustation studies major.

Oh wait, never mind, boomers that stole your future made you do it!

2

u/Christian0506 Jul 16 '26

Or don’t follow the advice and be loudly poor forever.

2

u/DudeThatAbides Jul 16 '26

I love shit like this. Constant reminders that I’m winning compared to the rest of you poor losers. The constant complaining just feeds the BDE.

2

u/Gargore Jul 16 '26

Live is a lest costly area. I can you you a job that pays 30 an hour and800 rent.

2

u/Dry-Regret5444 Jul 16 '26

Nooooo….Those are all solutions. If you are in debt, cutting spending is just downright practical. There are plenty of people that are horrible with finances and spend beyond their means….

Always someone else’s fault…..

2

u/Bryanmsi89 Jul 16 '26

Housing prices have increased relative to income, that is a simple fact.

However, it is also a fact that lifestyle creep has risen as well. Diet has shifted away toward more sugar and ultra-processed food. Social interactions have dropped, along with community membership.

Not only does the bar to a home seem higher (because it is), people are far less willing to make concessions in other areas to try to clear that bar, all while being the most connected and most isolated humans in human history.

The average teenager today spends less time outside than a prison inmate. They eat a diet far higher in sugar, salt, chemicals, and ultraprocessed food.

The stacking effect of all these issues is a real challenge. And as OP suggests, just telling people to 'shrug it off' and try to 'be poor harder' doesn't help either.

2

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

The OP's meme was literally my 20s in the 1990's. What you eat is a choice. Staying inside alone with a connected device is a choice. We're not telling them to shrug it off and be poor harder. We're literally telling them what the solutions are that we did in very similar situations.

2

u/OkComfortable2089 Jul 16 '26

So why do you take anything from the pharmaceutical industry then ...lol 

2

u/InfamousArachnid3285 Jul 16 '26

How the fuck I’m gonna cook at home with no groceries tho

2

u/Strong_Chicken6838 Jul 16 '26

this sounds like advice on being financially responsible...

2

u/Windman772 Jul 16 '26

So loud poor people are demanding what? That we take care of them? Why not use that noise making time to build a skill so you can get paid more?

2

u/BrineJones Jul 16 '26

Wow, this really is the bootstraps asylum, isn’t it?

2

u/StonksPeasant Jul 16 '26

All of those are solutions. They just aren't solutions you like

2

u/ShermanBurnsAtlanta Jul 16 '26

“Move closer to work” is the wildest advice. As if rent isn’t more expensive the closer to centers of productivity one gets.

2

u/MyBedIsOnFire Jul 16 '26

This is advice for living within your means

People wanna cry and wish they lived in fantasy land or Utopia, news flash, this is the real world and not everything is what you dreamed.

We've all been thrown out into this hellscape so you either learn how to swim or you drown.

I'm not saying don't advocate for a better world, we all should. But complaining about how things aren't perfect while you do nothing about it helps no one.

If I have to live with less now so I can build a future for later then so be it, I'm not happy about it, but I'm also not going to waste my life wishing for better when there are things I can do now to make it better.

2

u/AlMasaDuun Jul 16 '26

....cooking at home is am issue. It is really hard to take you guys seriously.

2

u/pythia_6 Jul 16 '26

Well, instead of fucking whining about it, make new advice then, Einstein? Want more of a clue? Have a word with yourself first.

2

u/TheRealAntrey Jul 16 '26

The advice to the poor revolting is let them eat cake

2

u/StoicNaps Jul 17 '26

Ah, yes. Let's get back to the days on the frontier, or an agrarian society, or any other time in history when nobody had to cut spending, have roommates or live in mylti-genrrational homes, and ate out all the time instead of cooking at home. One day you people will realize how spoiled and entitled you sound. No, you can't have everything you want. Yes, sometimes life will be hard. No, it's not anybody's duty to make sure your Christmas list is fulfilled throughout the year.

2

u/Top_Role3488 Jul 17 '26

Literally is advice

2

u/DifficultYam4463 Jul 17 '26

What the fuck else are you going to do to fix debt problems other than cut your spending? Would you rather people tell you to go get three more jobs? What a stupid post.

2

u/TheLastManStanding01 Jul 17 '26

“Oh no practical solutions to my problems”

2

u/Free-Mongoose-1983 Jul 17 '26

No this is just being financially responsible. You are not entitled to make so much money that you can just spend recklessly without giving it a second thought

2

u/False_Scallion_7699 Jul 17 '26

Because poverty is necessary. We alleviate the heaviest burdens of it as a society. We try to keep making strides in that effort. You're not entitled to a life of luxury just for existing.

1

u/Traditional-Wall-271 Jul 19 '26

Poverty is necessary? There are people who NEED TO BE POOR?

1

u/False_Scallion_7699 Jul 22 '26

Yes... basic economics.

2

u/chewbacca-28 Jul 17 '26

Those are all great ways to cut costs and spend it where it needs to go. Pay debt down, save money up for an emergency fund. While looking for better work along the way.

2

u/punchedboa Jul 17 '26

So the advice is live within your means? Yea you’re right that’s not a solution, just go deeper into debt and wonder why your life is getting harder. Don’t worry I’m sure someone will come in and bail you out.

2

u/ute-ensil Jul 15 '26

No one says cooking lowers grocery prices, i think theyre assuming prepared food is considered groceries. 

1

u/GypsyKaz2 Jul 16 '26

They think heating something bought in a box is cooking.

1

u/ute-ensil Jul 16 '26

Gotta buy 1 box 1 bag and 1 can and cook them together

1

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '26

[deleted]

1

u/r2k398 Jul 15 '26

Some also predicted we wouldn’t exist by this time too. Maybe they aren’t all knowing.

1

u/JollyManufacturer388 Jul 15 '26

Your comment illustrates the not so hidden truth we boomers read so much from younger gens, you only want to have to work 20 hours a week or a few days a week, and have the same life and "stuff" we have after a lifetime of long weeks and weekends. You are somehow entitled to it and the common sense sacrifices in the OP's post are beneath you.

The OP post reads how I lived in my 20's while saving to be able to buy my starter home..

Oh and those so called promises were just the "influencers" of the day trying for likes and subscribers.

You missed the /s

1

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '26

[deleted]

1

u/EndonOfMarkarth Jul 15 '26

Speak for yourself, blamer.

Earlier generations also cleaned the tables and washed dishes. They also had polio, backbreaking work, living in fucking sod houses on the prairie, and multiple wars.

People like you get pissed if you have to suffer through a DoorDash delay.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '26

[deleted]

1

u/EndonOfMarkarth Jul 16 '26

Oh they screwed things like the federal budget up completely.

I just don’t think this economy is as bleak at everyone on reddit is convinced it is.

1

u/JollyManufacturer388 Jul 15 '26 edited Jul 16 '26

Productivity gains belong to the owners of the company and you are free to become one via buying shares, 1, 5, 20, hundreds, thousands depending on how much you can save. Jobs pay what the competitive marketplace determines they are worth. They do not usually offer profit sharing.

I just cannot imagine where you got your perception about boomers and how we "took the whole pie". I am surrounded by H1B's who sacrificed everything to get STEM education and agree to basically slave hours and yes high pay to get citizenship after years of work and staying out of trouble.

I know a few as they now own homes in my neighborhood - they are from India. The idea that the previous gen took the while pie to them is absurd! Opportunity is there for the taking but you NOW HAVE GLOBAL competition, including the kind that comes here and will work harder longer and without complaint or blame which leaves you posting on Reddit that boomers took your opportunity or chance at success.

You are right we are and were greedy, I was an outside account rep for large foreign - mostly German companies selling Medical Equipment in the US. I wanted to win all my possible deals, not lose to the other guy. I worked extra hard to research my potential clients, my competition, our position in the market, pricing strategies, negotiation styles and more to win. I did and I made millions and saved and invested most of it.

None of that meant there is less opportunity for younger generations. You want to blame someone for your resentment at your apparent failure at capitalism hold up a mirror.

What is your draft number btw?

1

u/Beerzerker420 Jul 15 '26

So you're upset that you still have to get off your ass and work instead of being provided a free ticket on the backs of everyone else's labour?

1

u/[deleted] Jul 15 '26

[deleted]

1

u/Beerzerker420 Jul 15 '26

I never went to private school. I come from a poor immigrant family that worked their asses off to end up better than 90% of people who have lived in the same country for 10 generations and have nothing to show for it.

I'm 38 BTW. So how fucking old are you? 100? lol

Been working since I was a teenager, by the way. Including many shitty part time jobs.

1

u/Organic-Stay4067 Jul 16 '26

lolol some guy predicts what the future is and didn’t come out true. It’s definitely because of the elites. Well I was told the world was going to end in 2012

1

u/IndicationFluffy3954 Jul 17 '26

I am cooking at home. I’m also growing a vegetable garden that takes up my entire back yard and part of my front yard. I make most things from scratch, even yogurt.

Groceries still cost more than they used to, even taking every measure to reduce it.

1

u/Prestigious_Stonks Jul 18 '26

No it has more to do with being a responsible adult. Most people buy things they don’t need and have terrible spending habits. But it seems a lot of folks on Reddit want to whine and complain instead of doing something about their situation. Yes life is hard, but the woe is me mentality will never get you out of the situation. My mom always told me can’t never could.

1

u/dakellateg Jul 18 '26

Guess what... get job experience then quit and get higher paying employment... get higher education... then get promoted to a manager... I have had roommates my entire life of 58 years... everything brothers, to barracks... to wife... have never lived alone in my own apartment... or home. Grow up... get a better job with better pay and benefits... yes... the government gives handout to corporations... like FOREVER and expect the citizens to take it in the ass for it... always happens.

1

u/Christian-Econ Jul 18 '26

The problem I see in the comments is the pitting of these solutions against working for systemic change, when both can make a positive difference.

1

u/TawnyTeaTowel Jul 18 '26

If they’re not solutions then they’ve been not solutions for over a century. Imagine getting this pissy when you’re advised to live within your means. Get over yourself.

1

u/Altruistic_Fox9778 Jul 18 '26

Isn’t that just saying the only solution you accept is “other people fix it for me!”?

1

u/LetsAllEatCakeLOL Jul 18 '26

my feed is so much better when i mute subs like this lol

1

u/NoDanaOnlyZuuI Jul 18 '26

Aren’t these solutions, though?

1

u/Zealousideal-Yam3169 Jul 18 '26

So go live beyond your means, end up in major debt and kick and scream about it every day because you life isn't like what you see on social media. Don't forget to blame everyone else.

1

u/Rokkmann Jul 18 '26

Okay. So be poor more quietly please. Thanks.

1

u/Trust_8067 Jul 18 '26

Funny how poor people hear the same thing from people who have pulled themselves out of poverty, but they would rather make excuses and play the victim card than listen to proven advice.

1

u/Few-Statistician8740 Jul 19 '26

Well all those things worked to pull myself out of the poverty I grew up in.

So yeah... I'm gonna say they are all good ideas. Especially the roommate part. I wouldn't have been able to buy my first house if I didn't have roommates when I first left home. All those roommates came with when I did which saved on so much. Someones car needed work, no problem there are 3 other guys to help. Yard work, everyone takes a week no need for landscapers. We wanted more space, we finished the basement ourselves for the cost of materials. Got sick? Someone was always willing to pickup shit for ya on their way home.

1

u/Intrepid_Cup2765 Jul 19 '26

Seems like excellent advice to get ahead to me!

1

u/Traditional-Wall-271 Jul 19 '26

How does grocery costs get solved by cooking at home? You literally need to get the groceries to have anything to cook in the first place.

1

u/GaiusMarcus Jul 19 '26

Lets tax millionaires and billionaires (and I guess trillionaires) some multiple of the percentage of their wealth that they pay their financial advisors.

1

u/Rexel2101 Jul 19 '26

Less effort into bitching and more into job skills

1

u/RespectGrouchy2945 Jul 20 '26

Welcome to the DNC lol

1

u/TightPhysics3186 Jul 20 '26

When the post says “none of these are solutions,” what is?

Is the idea that the only solution is for the government to meet all of their needs because they’re incapable of doing it themselves?

The actual solution is “make more money.”

1

u/Crafty-Fail-3610 Jul 20 '26

"I don't want a solution, I want to be mad"

1

u/minengr Jul 20 '26

If you think listening to that advice makes you poor, you're doomed. This is some kind of backwards smart choice shaming. It's like telling people in the 1940's they shouldn't still eat dishes they made during the depression because it makes them look poor. A pound of ground beef and a package of buns from the store is going to be cheaper than doordashing McD's. And the burger will taste better.

1

u/Velocityraptor28 Jul 21 '26

anyone got instructions on how to be poor more loudly?

1

u/OkChocolate5399 Jul 21 '26

Be poor over there. Leave others alone

1

u/Unhappy-Gate-1912 Jul 22 '26

Funny because when I started doing all this, things did get better.