7 ms·

I think denial is the only reason why one might find this result surprising. Everything else being equal, almost any life path will be enriched by extra money u

I think denial is the only reason why one might find this result surprising. Everything else being equal, almost any life path will be enriched by extra money up to a certain point. That point is field-dependent, but it’s rarely low.

sixstringbudha 8y ago
> Everything else being equal, almost any life path will be enriched by extra money... I don't think so. If you have a lot of money, there will be constant pressure upon you about ways to spend it or invest it "wisely". And you ll always will have the fear of "ruining everything". If you choose to do nothing with it, you ll be blamed for not investing it or making it grow. Not to mention that you will have a hard time differentiating associates who are just there for a piece of the cake.
- throwawaymath 8y ago
  I have a lot of money and none of what you mention afflicts me. I don't feel "constant pressure" to spend or invest it wisely, and I don't recall ever fearing "ruining everything." I doubt I would be blamed (by who?) for not investing it; even if I was I don't think I'd care. This might come across as condescending, but everything you're saying sounds like the typical cliches about what it's like to have wealth from people who don't actually have it. It comes with its own challenges but I would not include the ones you've mentioned. Clearly some people with money do struggle with some of what you've said, but in my experience it's rare for it to be a dominating focus in their lives, and it's rarer still for it to cause the wealth to become a net negative on their health and well-being. The reason why I'm saying this is because frankly I find it frustrating when speculation like this is promulgated so confidently despite its disconnect with reality. Of the people I personally know earning over seven figures in annual income, none of them struggle with what you've said. Your generalization has a very brittle foundation. Unfortunately there are two obstacles in combatting generalizations like this: 1) most wealthy people don't talk about what their life, aspirations and challenges are actually like, 2) hearing wealthy people say they in fact are mostly happy and fulfilled makes for a boring story without a lot of draw.
  - sixstringbudha 8y ago
    > I have a lot of money and none of what you mention afflicts me. Sure. Some people are afraid of public speaking. But some people on the other hand, can't wait to get in front of people. But I think it wouldn't be too off to say people are generally afraid of public speaking. So generally, the more you have to lose, the more you will worry. Simple. If you want to refute that, argue logically why it might not be the case, instead of just "I am rich, and you are wrong". Please.
    - throwawaymath 8y ago
      If you want me to "argue logically", you should start with defending the points you've made for which the burden of proof is on the positive. My point is that you're generalizing without any substantive support for the generalization. For example: > So generally, the more you have to lose, the more you will worry. Simple. This is not simple and I don't follow that it's true a priori. Moreover I don't necessarily agree that it's the correct characterization, either. I don't know anyone with wealth whose approach to thinking about wealth is that they have "more to lose." That strikes me as begging the question. I can understand why a given rich person might feel that way, but I don't see why the modal rich person would feel that way. The essence is that you're asking me to refute a statement that you have not actually supported. Had you supported with something grounded I'd agree that my anecdotal reply isn't much of a refutation. But so far it's my direct experience and observations against something which boils down to intuition. Intuition is misleading.
      - sixstringbudha 8y ago
        >This is not simple and I don't follow that it's true a priori. Is it not? 1. Having something comes with the risk of loosing it. 2. with risks comes the potential to add worry. 3. People with more to lose have more potential to be worried about it How is my reasoning flawed? The only thing you cannot lose is your past. You might lose the memory of it, but that does not nullify it's existence.
        8y ago
- antidesitter 8y ago
  > If you have a lot of money, there will be constant pressure upon you about ways to spend it or invest it "wisely". The pressure is even greater for someone who has to live paycheck-to-paycheck.

sixstringbudha 8y ago

> Everything else being equal, almost any life path will be enriched by extra money... I don't think so. If you have a lot of money, there will be constant pressure upon you about ways to spend it or invest it "wisely". And you ll always will have the fear of "ruining everything". If you choose to do nothing with it, you ll be blamed for not investing it or making it grow. Not to mention that you will have a hard time differentiating associates who are just there for a piece of the cake.

throwawaymath 8y ago
I have a lot of money and none of what you mention afflicts me. I don't feel "constant pressure" to spend or invest it wisely, and I don't recall ever fearing "ruining everything." I doubt I would be blamed (by who?) for not investing it; even if I was I don't think I'd care. This might come across as condescending, but everything you're saying sounds like the typical cliches about what it's like to have wealth from people who don't actually have it. It comes with its own challenges but I would not include the ones you've mentioned. Clearly some people with money do struggle with some of what you've said, but in my experience it's rare for it to be a dominating focus in their lives, and it's rarer still for it to cause the wealth to become a net negative on their health and well-being. The reason why I'm saying this is because frankly I find it frustrating when speculation like this is promulgated so confidently despite its disconnect with reality. Of the people I personally know earning over seven figures in annual income, none of them struggle with what you've said. Your generalization has a very brittle foundation. Unfortunately there are two obstacles in combatting generalizations like this: 1) most wealthy people don't talk about what their life, aspirations and challenges are actually like, 2) hearing wealthy people say they in fact are mostly happy and fulfilled makes for a boring story without a lot of draw.
- sixstringbudha 8y ago
  > I have a lot of money and none of what you mention afflicts me. Sure. Some people are afraid of public speaking. But some people on the other hand, can't wait to get in front of people. But I think it wouldn't be too off to say people are generally afraid of public speaking. So generally, the more you have to lose, the more you will worry. Simple. If you want to refute that, argue logically why it might not be the case, instead of just "I am rich, and you are wrong". Please.
  - throwawaymath 8y ago
    If you want me to "argue logically", you should start with defending the points you've made for which the burden of proof is on the positive. My point is that you're generalizing without any substantive support for the generalization. For example: > So generally, the more you have to lose, the more you will worry. Simple. This is not simple and I don't follow that it's true a priori. Moreover I don't necessarily agree that it's the correct characterization, either. I don't know anyone with wealth whose approach to thinking about wealth is that they have "more to lose." That strikes me as begging the question. I can understand why a given rich person might feel that way, but I don't see why the modal rich person would feel that way. The essence is that you're asking me to refute a statement that you have not actually supported. Had you supported with something grounded I'd agree that my anecdotal reply isn't much of a refutation. But so far it's my direct experience and observations against something which boils down to intuition. Intuition is misleading.
    - sixstringbudha 8y ago
      >This is not simple and I don't follow that it's true a priori. Is it not? 1. Having something comes with the risk of loosing it. 2. with risks comes the potential to add worry. 3. People with more to lose have more potential to be worried about it How is my reasoning flawed? The only thing you cannot lose is your past. You might lose the memory of it, but that does not nullify it's existence.
      - 8y ago
antidesitter 8y ago
> If you have a lot of money, there will be constant pressure upon you about ways to spend it or invest it "wisely". The pressure is even greater for someone who has to live paycheck-to-paycheck.