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I am rich and have no idea what to do

vinay.sh

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Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#841

Post by freediver »

madrox wrote: post #106

I don't think you have to have Fuck You Money to get to this point. Most people eventually become disillusioned with work enough that they reevaluate what matters to them. Getting a very profitable exit is just one way to trigger that experience. In my experience, a lot of people who get into this state start self-sabotaging hard as a way of rejecting what feels, ironically, like losing control. Sudden freedom can fe…

> I don't think you have to have Fuck You Money to get to this point.

To add to this, the 'modern' use of the word 'millionare' started in 1850 (discounting first use in 1719 in France which was not in the context of 'rich' we know).

When you adjust for inflation, a comperable purchase power today would be an equivalent of having net worth of $250M. Anything below that and you aren't even a 'true' millionare. ($1 USD in 1850 is roughly ~$250 USD in 2024, taking 3.2% average historic inflation rate).

So, author, you are not even rich, still work to do ;)

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#842

Post by kelnos »

I have enough money that I probably won't need to work again, though I'm certainly not anywhere near as wealthy as this guy (I assume he has one or two more zeroes at the end of his bank balance than I do).

The first half of it just felt so... weak... to me. But I decided I'd give the author the benefit of the doubt. Findig purpose can be a really hard thing, and I suppose even people with a Scrooge McDuck vault deserve sympathy when they're trying to figure that out. (Spoiler alert: there is no Big Purpose; life is what you make of it, and nothing more.)

But then he talks about joining DOGE. Great, now you're a part of the problem. Part of the Silicon Valley know-it-all techno-dystopia crowd who thinks government can and should be run like a for-profit company. Disgusting. What a huge waste of an opportunity to use his wealth to help make the world a better place, as much as the wealthy philanthropist/savior concept makes me uncomfortable.

It also says a lot -- and nothing good -- that he was able to get hired by DOGE with his only qualification being "sold a tech company for a truckload of money". These people are clowns. The US is screwed for a generation or three if they're successful.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#843

Post by exabrial »

It's very interesting to see these same patterns at the micro level. Often, people start doing what other people are doing: book some massively expensive trip to go climb mount Everest, travel the world to snap a selfie at tourist traps, etc. You wont find happiness following the herd.

As I've become more successful, I've had similar problems. It's tempting to think "yeah just more money and I'd be happy". Instead, what has made me happy is much cheaper: general learning, and developing new physical skills. As my coworker put it, "I don't collect things or experiences, I collect hobbies".

If I had to pick a celebrity that seems to do this well, I'd pick Jay Leno (granted there's a lot of criticize him elsewhere, so maybe don't nitpick here). Watching him talk about his cars: restoring them, working on them, preserving them, trading, while ignoring a lot of other celebrity pleasures.

Finally, the other thing that has been extraordinarily gratifying is old fashioned advice: Live below your means. This by gives me more satisfaction than anything else and I'm not really sure why.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#844

Post by arolihas »

iancmceachern wrote: post #672

I can't imagine a world where I wouldn't know what to do. There is diarrhea on my building, trash in the street, people needing medical help in the alley, and potholes in the street. Just walk out your front door and start doing things. My recent triumph was getting a building owner on my street to finally repair the hole in front of their building. Imagine what I could do with a backhoe. Start small, think big. Help…

That would require him to care about his local community. Not a single one of these dudes give a shit about SF beyond how it can make them money.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#846

Post by smokedetector1 »

BalinKing wrote: post #188
smokedetector1 wrote: post #5

Therapy. Wealth and success is one of the most massive crutches there is. It can make it almost impossible to be truly in touch with your insecurities and pain because its simply too easy to hide in your victory. Your toughest challenge now is to, despite your wealth, find a way to contact the pain that drove you to your hunger for success. As the bible said, it's easier for a camel to get through the head of a needl…

> it's easier for a camel to get through the head of a needle than for a rich man to go to heaven. I interpret that metaphorically. I agree that there's a parallel between what Jesus meant and your comment—in both cases, wealth is dangerous because it distracts from what's important. To my understanding, Jesus meant that one's heart will be focused on money rather than wanting to follow God. And, like you said, it's…

I'm not Christian but I definitely resonate with what you're saying about failure sometimes being a gift, if you can make use of it.

I wish I could be more religious, in a sense, but I just can't get my head around the concept of "serving" or "fearing" god. It's not how I relate to "the divine" at all. Power to you, though.

Re: I am rich and have no idea what to do

#849

Post by wing-_-nuts »

101008 wrote: post #130
j4coh wrote: post #3

Same situation, I truly empathise because it really does seem to take a lot of purpose out of everything. What I’ve found is that you need to replace money/salary/financial success optimisation (assuming you spent a lot of your life and energy to this point focused on these, much like I did) with something else totally unconnected with being measured in that way. For me, I am focused on proving myself as a guitarist…

This is my dream. Having enough money to be able to dedicate to things I like, trying to be good at something without worrying about money, or time, or being tired after work. Open a bookshop, being a rare book dealer, open a small museum about an author, research on a particular topic and write books... That would be the ultimate dream, though I am sure I won't ever be near to fulfill it.

I once saw an article about apartments that NYC libraries used to have in the library for caretakers. My skipped a beat and I realized I'd never wanted anything more in the world than to just be able to 'pop down to the stacks' at 10pm to select my next read.

What amazes me is that between audible, kindle, libby, and a few other places, we live in a world where books are that available from the comfort of a cozy recliner. Truly the greatest wonder of the modern age.

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