3 ms·

I suppose it is true that when we turn 40 our brains rot. All we care about is keeping kids off of our lawn and catching the early-bird special. Many people d

I suppose it is true that when we turn 40 our brains rot. All we care about is keeping kids off of our lawn and catching the early-bird special. Many people don't like to share their salary - not because they wouldn't "dare" as if they are cowardly or not as enlightened as you. Some people find talking about personal salary or wealth to be distasteful - like a braggart yammering on about his expensive possessions. If you have no economic diversity in your group of friends then it's probably no big deal, but otherwise you likely are making people feel ashamed and unsuccessful. Some people might feel it's rude and unnecessary to discuss your salary unless there is some reason to do so. I don't personally have a problem with a fair and consistent formula for salaries within a company, and people within my company may be able to deduce what I make. It's not a power trip thing. But I don't really want my salary mandatorily posted on the web for every random friend or stranger to investigate. Unless I'm working in the public sector it's my own choice and my own business.

grecy 13y ago
My apologies, I wasn't trying to imply people are cowardly or I'm more enlightened, or anything like that. The word I was looking for is taboo. I believe that the baby boomers find talking about money to be a social taboo, while younger generations do not. It's not about any group or generation being better, I think it's just a change in what society finds acceptable. (To be honest, I'm not sure Gen Y'ers find anything to be socially taboo. I wouldn't be surprised if that word stops having meaning)
- jakejake 13y ago
  Hehe, no worries. It probably is somewhat due to our generations, but it may also be that as you age your salaries naturally will begin to diverge. And with a certain amount of success it's not exactly smart to go around broadcasting your wealth. I personally am self conscious about coming off as a rich jackass when I go to my hometown and visit my high school friends who are working for minimum wage. For a venture funded start-up, over-sharing finances seems somewhat ill-advised to me. I guess maybe I am old and I just don't get it!? According to their blog they have a payroll burn rate approaching $2 million per year. Maybe they are grizzled veterans who have been in startups that run low on money and they have tricks up their sleeve. Maybe not - maybe they're just a bunch of kids who have never done this before and think that the money will keep flowing no matter what happens. Maybe their over-sharing will not put them at a serious disadvantage when negotiating because everybody will know their level of desperation for cash. Maybe their employees will not become very nervous and start leaving when the funding situation becomes scary? I only just took a really quick look that them and I don't know the answer to these things, but it doesn't seem like it really benefits them that much to share their corporate finances.
  - grecy 13y ago
    >I personally am self conscious about coming off as a rich jackass when I go to my hometown and visit my high school friends who are working for minimum wage. I agree 100%. There is a fine line to be walked between "sharing" your salary and "bragging" about your salary. For me, I find it easy to share with people in a similar-ish scenario/career/position in life. It's not so easy to share with someone in a very different life situation, like working a minimum wage job, as you say.
  - bmelton 13y ago
    > It probably is somewhat due to our generations, but it may also be that as you age your salaries naturally will begin to diverge. That right there. I'm nearer forty than 20, and I remember a time when I freely discussed my salary, or the price of anything I'd purchased with anyone who'd asked. Now, not so much.
- deleted 13y ago
  [deleted]
- Nursie 13y ago
  >> The word I was looking for is taboo. I believe that the baby boomers find talking about money to be a social taboo, while younger generations do not. I'm the tail end of Gen X. Talking about your income is gauche, it inevitably leads to comparisons between peers (even unspoken ones) and can sow discord in a group.
runamok 13y ago
It might just be that the next generation grows up knowing about this incredible range of renumeration that exists and has less personal self esteem caught up in that number. A grocery bagger knows his doctor neighbor makes more than him. But perhaps his personal self worth is less tied into that and doesn't really care. I think such information is much more transparent than it's been historically.

grecy 13y ago

My apologies, I wasn't trying to imply people are cowardly or I'm more enlightened, or anything like that. The word I was looking for is taboo. I believe that the baby boomers find talking about money to be a social taboo, while younger generations do not. It's not about any group or generation being better, I think it's just a change in what society finds acceptable. (To be honest, I'm not sure Gen Y'ers find anything to be socially taboo. I wouldn't be surprised if that word stops having meaning)

jakejake 13y ago
Hehe, no worries. It probably is somewhat due to our generations, but it may also be that as you age your salaries naturally will begin to diverge. And with a certain amount of success it's not exactly smart to go around broadcasting your wealth. I personally am self conscious about coming off as a rich jackass when I go to my hometown and visit my high school friends who are working for minimum wage. For a venture funded start-up, over-sharing finances seems somewhat ill-advised to me. I guess maybe I am old and I just don't get it!? According to their blog they have a payroll burn rate approaching $2 million per year. Maybe they are grizzled veterans who have been in startups that run low on money and they have tricks up their sleeve. Maybe not - maybe they're just a bunch of kids who have never done this before and think that the money will keep flowing no matter what happens. Maybe their over-sharing will not put them at a serious disadvantage when negotiating because everybody will know their level of desperation for cash. Maybe their employees will not become very nervous and start leaving when the funding situation becomes scary? I only just took a really quick look that them and I don't know the answer to these things, but it doesn't seem like it really benefits them that much to share their corporate finances.
- grecy 13y ago
  >I personally am self conscious about coming off as a rich jackass when I go to my hometown and visit my high school friends who are working for minimum wage. I agree 100%. There is a fine line to be walked between "sharing" your salary and "bragging" about your salary. For me, I find it easy to share with people in a similar-ish scenario/career/position in life. It's not so easy to share with someone in a very different life situation, like working a minimum wage job, as you say.
- bmelton 13y ago
  > It probably is somewhat due to our generations, but it may also be that as you age your salaries naturally will begin to diverge. That right there. I'm nearer forty than 20, and I remember a time when I freely discussed my salary, or the price of anything I'd purchased with anyone who'd asked. Now, not so much.
deleted 13y ago
[deleted]
Nursie 13y ago
>> The word I was looking for is taboo. I believe that the baby boomers find talking about money to be a social taboo, while younger generations do not. I'm the tail end of Gen X. Talking about your income is gauche, it inevitably leads to comparisons between peers (even unspoken ones) and can sow discord in a group.

runamok 13y ago

It might just be that the next generation grows up knowing about this incredible range of renumeration that exists and has less personal self esteem caught up in that number. A grocery bagger knows his doctor neighbor makes more than him. But perhaps his personal self worth is less tied into that and doesn't really care. I think such information is much more transparent than it's been historically.