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Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

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Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#291

Post by int_19h »

ajkjk wrote: post #55
ianai wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

did you remind her that you were only tracking financial mistakes?

I should've finished with how it hit me: that I found the statement pretty powerful because, indeed, most of everything that had gone wrong or been stressful in my life that year was in that file. It was a reminder of how fortunate I've been.

I have to say, this all sounds extremely familiar. I didn't reach the same conclusion by consciously tracking expenses; it was actually in the process of fixing of one of those mistakes by throwing money at it when it suddenly hit me: "What would I be doing right now if I were living paycheck to paycheck? That would have been much, much more painful. Oh..."

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#292

Post by timedoctor »

enraged_camel wrote: post #223
timedoctor wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I did not agree at all. In my experience it's much easier to make 1 million then it is to invest 1 million and make another million. Also there are many startups that require zero investment capital and if you do not have a family and you minimise your expenses you can leave on very very little. If you do have a family it's more difficult but still possible.

>>I did not agree at all. In my experience it's much easier to make 1 million then it is to invest 1 million and make another million. Really. Let's hear your formula. Because the stock market returns 7% per year on average after inflation, which means it takes about 10.2 years for $1 million to become $2 million. What's even better is that this happens behind the scenes - you don't have to do any work for it. So wha…

There is no guarantee the stock market will return money in the future. The past does not equal the future and in fact some experts predict that the stock market will return around 3% on average going forward. Also even if the average return was 7% most people have achieved much less than that.

Obviously it's less effort to invest in the stock market so if you're talking about the amount of effort then yes investing is easier

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#293

Post by int_19h »

projektir wrote: post #205
EdSharkey wrote: post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I guess I'm an old fashioned US citizen and resist your sentiment. I'm of the opinion that if you grab a random adult, inspect them, ask them about their lives, look at their health, abilities, check out their finances, family, and all the rest - then you'll come to the conclusion that, for the vast majority, they themselves are best able to take care of themselves. "Our civilization needs to take care of everyone" i…

It's best for a person to take care of themselves, but it's foolish to expect that when they never got the resources, whether that's financial, mental, educational... > Homelessness should be declared illegal so that civil liberties aren't an issue when we force these people to work or become wards of the state if they are not capable. I think that's called slavery. That seems like the direct opposite of giving peopl…

USSR actually did outlaw homelessness, and unemployment as well.

But at the same time, it guaranteed everyone a roof over their head, and a job; and that any job would pay enough to survive on. And it actually delivered on all those promises, at least at its economic heyday (roughly mid-60s to Perestroika).

Still, not exactly a good society to live in. The flip side of being guaranteed a job is that you couldn't turn one down. Even if you had to relocate, say.

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#294

Post by [deleted] »

ryandrake wrote: post #26
trjordan wrote: post #3

I wish I could remember where I read this, but I once heard it explained to me as this: It's easy to deride the journey of the rich college student: 80-hour internships at Goldman Sachs, unpaid positions in government, etc. But, the things that are done by successful people are hard, as hard as walking a tightrope. The difference is that rich students walk this tightrope over a bed of pillows. Poor students walk it o…

I knew someone who was so aggressively proud of their success, having founded and grown a successful business. He'd talk your ear off about how people like him were the ones adding value to society and how unsuccessful people are just lazy and don't try hard enough or don't take enough risks, or are just deadbeats, and how successful, hard working people are punished with taxes--you know, the standard soapbox speech.…

[deleted]

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#295

Post by wangchow »

khedoros wrote: post #257
Teever wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand. none of those examples are 'self-made'

That's the point. They're saying that those 85% of self-made American millionaires aren't as "self-made" as they claim. Like me: I could talk about starting with almost nothing in my bank accounts, getting a job, working through the ranks, buying a home, and working toward my first million... conveniently leaving out all the advantages that I've had to get me to this point (cultural expectation that I'd go to college…

Honestly no one is self-made. People who don't have financial cushions still rely on others to back their idea and hard work.

Problem is everyone on HN is talking about how to make millions when that's backwards mentality because then you'll never be satisfied. People need to strive for modest salaries and things that benefit society and the planet not filling one's pockets.

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#296

Post by paulcole »

timedoctor wrote: post #210
ryandrake wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I knew someone who was so aggressively proud of their success, having founded and grown a successful business. He'd talk your ear off about how people like him were the ones adding value to society and how unsuccessful people are just lazy and don't try hard enough or don't take enough risks, or are just deadbeats, and how successful, hard working people are punished with taxes--you know, the standard soapbox speech.…

I did not agree at all. In my experience it's much easier to make 1 million then it is to invest 1 million and make another million. Also there are many startups that require zero investment capital and if you do not have a family and you minimise your expenses you can leave on very very little. If you do have a family it's more difficult but still possible.

uhhh, then shouldn't you constantly be taking $0 and turning it into $1M?

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#297

Post by int_19h »

mixmastamyk wrote: post #250
ducttapecrown wrote: post #194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Offering aid without first having been asked for it could be considered disrespectful, condescending, etc.

Do you honestly believe I'd advocate forcing or pressuring people? How bout a little less defeatism. No, I'm thinking something like coaching for people who are looking for a way up.

Honestly, a lot of this kind of coaching belongs as a mandatory class in school.

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#298

Post by wavegeek »

hueving wrote: post #126
ap22213 wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It depends on where one lives. Where I currently live, it takes about $25M in wealth just to get out of middle class and into lower upper class. And, to get into the true upper class requires maybe $500M to a billion. And, at that level, it is effectively infinite money (like > $250k a day in passive income, at the lowest level). -4 in less than 30 minutes. that's a record for me. I must have said something controver…

I'm not aware of any place on earth where someone who has $24 million in wealth is considered 'middle class'. That's $180,000 annually at a measly 0.75% interest (what my peon savings bank currently gives) for doing absolutely nothing. If you can quit your job and ride on 180k passive, risk-free income, you're not middle class.

> That's $180,000 annually at a measly 0.75% interest

Actually that 0.75 is negative in real terms (after taking off inflation currently 1.1% - not to mention taxation). A person drawing $180k would be burning their capital.

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#299

Post by mattm »

trjordan wrote: post #3

I wish I could remember where I read this, but I once heard it explained to me as this: It's easy to deride the journey of the rich college student: 80-hour internships at Goldman Sachs, unpaid positions in government, etc. But, the things that are done by successful people are hard, as hard as walking a tightrope. The difference is that rich students walk this tightrope over a bed of pillows. Poor students walk it o…

Another way I've heard this put is imagine you have a classroom. "Success" is a bucket at the front of the classroom. Now, every kid gets a ball and tries to hit the bucket. The privileged ones at the front have greater odds of hitting success no matter their skill level. Some underprivileged kids from the back may hit success but the odds against them are much greater.

Re: Lost Diamonds: How our current system is failing underprivileged talent

#300

Post by aaron695 »

mattm wrote: post #299
trjordan wrote: post #3

I wish I could remember where I read this, but I once heard it explained to me as this: It's easy to deride the journey of the rich college student: 80-hour internships at Goldman Sachs, unpaid positions in government, etc. But, the things that are done by successful people are hard, as hard as walking a tightrope. The difference is that rich students walk this tightrope over a bed of pillows. Poor students walk it o…

Another way I've heard this put is imagine you have a classroom. "Success" is a bucket at the front of the classroom. Now, every kid gets a ball and tries to hit the bucket. The privileged ones at the front have greater odds of hitting success no matter their skill level. Some underprivileged kids from the back may hit success but the odds against them are much greater.

This is actually the opposite.

OP reasoning is more -

Everyone is at the back.

Everyone has a bucket of balls to try with.

Except underprivileged people get an electric shock when they miss.

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