4 ms·
Your comment about asking whether becoming rich is really that important reminded me of a lesson I learned. I live in a city that had some major flooding recen
by giarc 13y ago
Your comment about asking whether becoming rich is really that important reminded me of a lesson I learned.
I live in a city that had some major flooding recently. I volunteered to help pump out water and clean basements. I did this in primarily two neighbourhoods. A very affluent neighbourhood with multimillion dollar homes. The other neighbourhood was middle class, 30-50 year old bungalows.
In the affluent neighbourhood, the neighbours all hated each other. It seemed like at some point, everyone had done something to piss off someone else. We set up a large pump on a driveway and were told by the neighbour that we had to move the pump since it was on their side of the driveway (which they were not using). The neighbour also moved the 4 inch pipe into their neighbours garden which basically acted as an excavator until we noticed it. It was actually upsetting to see in times of such crisis.
Other the other hand, and you likely can predict how this story will go, the middle class neighbourhood was full of community, helping hands and people willing to go out of their way to assist others. It actually came to a point where there was too much help. People were driving around with coffee and home made sandwiches which they couldn't give out because 3 other cars with the same had just driven by. People were thankful and would rush across the street to help you move a heavy refrigerator.
I realized over that week that if getting rich means hating your neighbours/being hated by your neighbours, having no one to reach out to, maybe I don't want to be rich. At least not financially rich.
- mildtrepidation 13y agoI realized over that week that if getting rich means hating your neighbours/being hated by your neighbours, having no one to reach out to, maybe I don't want to be rich. At least not financially rich. Or at least not in that neighborhood. You have an anecdote... that's all. I'm sure there are others that match it, but being a dick to your neighbors and having neighbors that are dicks to you is not a necessary pre- or post-condition of financial wealth. You can end up in that situation regardless of how much money you make. What you should probably take away from that experience is that you value community and wish to have positive interactions with your neighbors; perhaps financial wealth shouldn't be a priority for you, but I don't believe this situation could really inform you on that point.
- giarc 13y agoI don't think my point was to say "Getting rich means you will hate your neighbours" but more of a "Getting rich doesn't bring instant gratification." A "money can't by happiness" type message.
- will_work4tears 13y agoOr just build up a modest wealth (no necessarily "rich") and live in a neighborhood like the middle class one you mention. Nobody has to know what you make. Personally I see this happening for me if I ever "Strike it rich." (or build my own product and work hard at making it highly profitable, whichever actually happens)
- giarc 13y agoIf you'll allow, another story. I grew up in a small town with a prestigious private school. I was no where near rich enough to attend. However there were other "townies" with parents as doctors or dentists that could afford to attend. Even though they were rich by small town standards they were seen as poor by the students with parents that were even wealthier. So perhaps even when you are rich, you can still feel poor. So I think you are right, maybe it's better to be the richest in the middle class neighbourhood, then the poorest in the upper class neighbourhood.