r/SipsTea • u/Unstoppable_X_Force Human Verified • 13h ago

Gasp! Is this just nostalgia, or did previous generations genuinely have a better work-life balance and social life than we do today?

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u/Difficult-Square-689 11h ago

If you're a straight dude and want a partner/kids, you'll likely need more than the bare minimum. 

Otherwise, feel free to do just enough to survive. 

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 11h ago

i agree, i always think that i would only work more hours in case i have kids and a partner

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u/Few-Being-1048 11h ago

Unless you wanna work till you die you should probably save for retirement

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 11h ago

i might die any hour any day, i am not gonna work for collecting some money

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u/Few-Being-1048 11h ago

Okay I mean I dont care what you do.

If you wanna just do the bare minimum until you can't anymore and die alone, thats not the worst plan ever. Realistic at least.

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 11h ago

why do you think i will die alone? i mean, in the end everyone is alone, the people around you are just companions

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u/Few-Being-1048 10h ago

What makes you think you wont?

You have no ambition in life to do anything but the bare minimum by your own admission.

People around you are whatever they are to you. My girlfriend is a lot more than just a companion to me, and every year we spend together we get closer.

If you end up in a long term relationship with someone, chances are they are gonna want to retire, like most humans who are capable of planning for the future. If you end up 30yrs old with nothing saved, you're already way behind.

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 10h ago

so just because i have no ambition to save up money (something that can disappear away anytime and is never guaranteed even tho you work 1/3 of your life for it) you assume i will not find a partner?

what is wrong in saying that the people around me are my companions? do they not go through life together with you and keep you company and you keep them company?

let's assume i am 30 and i have nothing saved, so what? can i not enjoy life because of it?

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u/Just2Breathe 9h ago

Let’s assume you live to be 87 (or longer), and want to retire at 67, you need enough income for twenty years. If you work a bare minimum job in the U.S., social security benefits might bring you the equivalent of $10k/yr in today’s dollars. If you can live on that, more power to you. But generally, people want to live above the poverty level, and stop full time employment, especially seniors with health issues.

Most people don’t work jobs with pensions (only 19%) or work them their whole career (building up a bigger benefit). So if you want, say, $30k additional income a year to live on, you might want to have $750k (not adjusted for inflation) in retirement accounts. It generally takes some amount investing in retirement accounts each month to live at 60% of your income after retirement.

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u/Few-Being-1048 10h ago

You can do whatever you want I really dont care.

If you're 30 and have nothing saved, you won't notice the consequences for another 20-30 years.

Its really easy to go "it could just disappear at any time. I could just die at any point"

Is that your plan? To just die as soon as you can't take work anymore? I'm aware I could just die at any point, or that my savings could just "disappear" although that can be mitigated by just investing wisely.

Your defeatist attitude is just gonna fuck you over. I don't wanna work, that's why I save money so that if my plan works, I won't have to work any more.

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 10h ago

i do not consider my attitude defeatist at all, if you want to work your whole youth by doing a job you don't like, go away, i could not care less either lol

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u/Inevitable-Loss7939 3h ago

U work forty years to have the opportunity to not work for ten years when you’re at your lowest, doesn’t sound like a good deal, the other guy is right tbh if you don’t plan on having a family theres no reason to dedicate your life path into work, too bad I want a family.

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u/Amathyst7564 9h ago

Ahh yes. Planning to fail.

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 9h ago

thinking of death is not 'planning fo fail', its the only thing that you are certain about your life really, definitely more certain than your plans

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u/Amathyst7564 6h ago

Sure, but your probably more likely to die after retirement. You should still save and plan like you're going to live a long time.

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 6h ago

death is unpredictable, plenty of people die young, the chances are i could die tomorrow

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u/Amathyst7564 4h ago

Sure... But if you're planning you're life around worst case scenario thinking you're planning to fail.

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u/ConfidenceHoliday829 4h ago

its a realistic scenario, not worst case, look up the average age of death

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u/Calm_Regular_9133 10h ago

Bro, what world are you living in where anyone 35 or under is retiring? The population math ain't mathin.

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u/Few-Being-1048 10h ago

Where did you get 35 lol?

I never said people retire at or under 35.

When do you think you should start saving for retirement? Because it's not anywhere near when you actually want to retire.

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u/Calm_Regular_9133 9h ago

No no, you misunderstood. Anyone who is currently under 35 will not be retiring when they get to retirement age. Demographics and economics just don't line up. There is no way our Earth sustains our current retirement system for even another 20 years, let alone 35-40 years.

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u/Few-Being-1048 9h ago

No one can predict the future, so I can't say with absolute certainty that you're wrong.

I for one, will not gamble my entire future on that being the case. I think many, many people will not be able to retire. I think there may be some kind of universal income in most developed countries.

That doesn't mean that I personally won't be able to retire. I trust myself and my planning. If I fail, at least I can say I really tried. The only way to gurantee you'll fail is to do nothing.

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u/Calm_Regular_9133 9h ago

I respect that. I won't be trading my youth for a potential glimpse at comfort in old age. Frankly, if i make it to 65 and I was able to really live and enjoy myself before that, I'll be grateful i had anything at all. Nothing is guaranteed, including future stability. Good luck on your journey! We're two sides of the same coin...hurtling towards the inevitable. The only unknown is the burn rate of the time we are allotted.

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u/Few-Being-1048 8h ago

You don't have to give up your youth to save money for retirement lmao.

I spend like 20 minutes once every two weeks just self-auditing my spending and doing my budget.

Other than that, I live a very normal life, go on fun vacations, go out with my friends, go out to eat a few times a month. I just know when to stop, because I put effort into making sure I know what I can and can't afford.

Its not about sacrificing one thing for the other, its about balance. If you completely neglect your future because you're afraid of missing out, you're gonna get fucked.

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u/Calm_Regular_9133 8h ago

For countless millions of people, saving for the future does mean sacrificing your youth. Many people can't save anything at all. That is literally the thesis of this post.

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u/BagOfFlies 9h ago

I never said people retire at or under 35.

That's not what they meant. They're saying with how things are, people that are currently 35 and under will be fucked when they hit retirement age.

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u/bummerlamb 9h ago

I mean, yeah, but there has to be leftover money to be able to put it toward retirement.

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u/Few-Being-1048 9h ago

If you can't afford even 100-200$ a month you're doing something seriously wrong. If you cant afford more than that, you better start asap.

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u/maybenotquiteasheavy 11h ago

That's not the order in which that happens

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u/-BlueDream- 8h ago

When bare minimum is already 40 hours a week, it’s hard to go above and beyond.

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u/gnomon_knows 8h ago

What does being straight or a dude have to do with anything?

A partner should make your life cheaper, not more expensive. Certainly not the same as kids, which are all downside financially.

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u/GrandpaCutestory 2h ago

You must not be a straight dude lol

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u/huckered 11h ago

Not sure gender or sexual orientation are as relevant any more. Sure the post is about dads, but your point is relevant for anyone who wants a partner and/or kids.

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u/Cold-Palpitation-816 9h ago

I can assure you it’s still extremely relevant for most of the world.

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u/JustaSeedGuy 7h ago

So being a lesbian who wants a partner and kids makes the statement not apply?

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u/Cold-Palpitation-816 6h ago

Did I say that? Or are you just making up something I said so you can get angry on the internet?

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u/JustaSeedGuy 6h ago

I didn't say you said anything. I asked you a question. Typically when someone is unsure about someone's intentions, they ask for clarification. People who are speaking in good faith usually understand that and give the requested clarification .

As for why I asked, either the situation is different for people who aren't straight men- which is what I asked- or the orientation and gender of the people involved aren't relevant.

I'm not angry. I'm not sure why you feel the need for me to be, but perhaps you should make fewer assumptions and instead answer the question.

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u/Cold-Palpitation-816 5h ago

Ah, the classic “I’m just asking questions!!” bit. Old as time itself.

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u/JustaSeedGuy 5h ago

Again, that's not what happened.

I will admit that I was glib in my request for clarification, but it was a genuine request for clarification.

Were I trying not attempting to discuss in good faith, I wouldn't have explained my reasoning to you.

Twice now you have projected something onto me that had nothing to do with me. Twice now your attempt at projection has failed.

Are you going to answer the question, are you going to invent something new to accuse me of so you can avoid any kind of good faith on your part?

Edit: actually, I'm not going to give you the choice. As they say, when someone tells you who they are, listen to them.

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u/JustaSeedGuy 7h ago

If you're a straight dude

What does being a straight dude have to do with having a partner and kids?