I feel bad because I have a crappy job, mostly because they keep me really busy because of the “supply chain crisis” and I can’t slack off as much as I want.
Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
11–20 of 48 posts
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#12Grew up poor, went to a rough school, feel zero guilt over my position as a well-paid tech prostitute.
Specialization just means knowing more and more about less and less. Rather than pitying the normies, try learning something from them instead.
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#13[deleted]
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#14I only feel bad that life is a lottery and our global and local economies are rigged to improve the lives of winners whilst grinding the life out of losers.
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#15“I feel uncomfortable interacting with people of lower social classes.”
Jeez.
I’m very fortunate to have grown up with lifelong hobbies (surfing, skateboarding) filled with people who are about as far from the typical high-paid tech worker as possible.
Thanks for the reminder.
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#16All the time. I don't have an outrageous salary (£40k/yr) but I have such an easy-going schedule and light workload. If I need to do a life errand I don't have to plan and can go out and do it. If I didn't sleep well and need a nap I can take Slack notifications off mute (so they wake me up) and rest. If some complex work comes up it can be taken at its own pace. My boss and coworkers are all the loveliest people.
When I feel guilty it's because I feel like I'm 'cheating' life, like I shouldn't be able to take an hour long walk in the middle of a random day if the sun is shining - but really I feel it's something _everyone_ in a non-critical remote role should be able to do without question or worry.
> Do you experience this? How do you deal with it?
I do the only thing I can do (I think) whilst being in an internal leadership position but not an employer: continue to emphasise within the company that everyone should work without stress, be visibly lax, and outside of the company make sure to communicate that this style of working is possible and acceptable and it should be a societal goal for everyone to have this option.
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#17I definitely feel like this a lot, especially living in a country with low living standards.
But you are not responsible for the well-being of the people, the government is, and they are failing to do their job. Unless you wanna do something about it, there's no point in feeling bad about it. You've been dealt a good hand - there is absolutely no reason to be ashamed of that.
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#18It is very possible that people who get paid less than you have a better job than you do. They just get paid less.
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#19> I feel bad because I'm younger than they are, but [I enjoy privileges]
The world is not fair. You are not responsible for the way the world currently is, but you have a responsibility as a citizen of the world to work on lessening the inequality and pain.
It’s good that you feel bad, but the next step is to use this feeling effectively and act on it by volunteering, working in politics and working in businesses that have a positive impact on society.
> You might say I "deserve" my current place in life.
No, you don’t deserve it. Nobody deserves their current place in life, some just got luckier with their genetics and circumstances. Believing in a just world is useful for society and the individual („they’ve earned it“), but it’s not true (truth is more „they got lucky they weren’t hit by a truck when they were 7 years old“).
I can, however, respect your effort and that you work hard. Doesn't mean that somebody else who can't work like that is deserving of a lesser place.
> I feel uncomfortable interacting with people of lower social classes.
Spend more time with different people from different backgrounds. This sentence is the result of being alienated from your fellow human beings and honestly sad to hear. Realize that we’re all the same.
> I give rather large tips, but it doesn't make me feel better.
You try to minimize your bad feelings with small gestures and you know it. That's why it doesn't make you feel better. To truly feel better, you need to involve yourself in making the world a better, more equal place for all human beings.
> I usually tell myself that they probably greatly appreciate the jobs that they have and are using it as a stepping stone to achieve their dreams
Stop telling lies to yourself. Many people are stuck in soul-sucking jobs and are imprisoned by their responsibilities to their families. The US is unkind because the system makes you feel responsible and seems to judge you for the outcome of your life while your life has a lot of randomness and luck in it. It needs to change. - https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2018/8/21/17687402/ky...
Re: Ask HN: Do you feel bad for having a good job?
#20It sounds like you have created a distance between yourself and people who make less money. You think your being smarter makes you different. You experience discomfort when dealing with "them" as if they are not people just like yourself, and talk about "different social classes" as if that is anything more than a social construct.
Honestly, step one is to stop segregating people in your mind, and just look at them as people just like yourself. Then you could actually get to know them and find out if their work makes them happy, whether it is just a job or something they are passionate about. You likely will find people who are satisfied with life at almost all wealth levels, just like you find people who are miserable at all wealth levels.
I'd recommend that you step back from your desire to avoid all discomfort, and instead step out of your comfort zone, explore the diversity this world has to offer, and get to know more people.