Work harder, get a better car, bigger house blah blah blah

Work harder, get a better car, bigger house blah blah blah

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Erudite geezer

Original Poster:

576 posts

120 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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Does anyone believe the adage that by working harder you can get a better car, bigger house etc?

Probably one of Clarkson's references.

I can see the relevance for self employed types or people running their own business, but I am salaried and don't see mega annual pay rises.


Troubleatmill

10,210 posts

158 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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Move jobs.

You get what you negotiate - not what you deserve.

GTIAlex

1,935 posts

165 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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Just enjoy life and don't get focused on things that arn't important.

Hoofy

76,253 posts

281 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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Generally, it works, but it's not a straight line. As above, you need to manage your career more if you're working harder but not seeing greater rewards.

OTOH, as suggested, does it really matter? As long as you're comfortable, why not just enjoy life and stop giving every waking hour to your employer? You might make it to retirement before you die!

Impasse

15,099 posts

240 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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"Choose Life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fking big television, choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players and electrical tin openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol, and dental insurance. Choose fixed interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisurewear and matching luggage. Choose a three-piece suit on hire purchase in a range of fking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who the fk you are on Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing, spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing fking junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pissing your last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fked up brats you spawned to replace yourselves. Choose your future. Choose life... But why would I want to do a thing like that? I chose not to choose life. I chose somethin' else. And the reasons? There are no reasons. Who needs reasons when you've got heroin?"

Quite pleased the auto-censor kicked in there.

Spare tyre

9,456 posts

129 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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Once you stop worrying about being rich and worry about being happy, you'll be happier, maybe.

Mobile Chicane

20,735 posts

211 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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Hey, the easiest way to make a small fortune in Life, is to start out with a large one.

anonymous-user

53 months

Tuesday 6th January 2015
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An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them.

The Mexican replied, “only a little while. The American then asked why didn’t he stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs. The American then asked, “but what do you do with the rest of your time?”

The Mexican fisherman said, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siestas with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine, and play guitar with my amigos. I have a full and busy life.” The American scoffed, “I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat, you could buy several boats, eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing, and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City, where you will run your expanding enterprise.”

The Mexican fisherman asked, “But, how long will this all take?”

To which the American replied, “15 – 20 years.”

“But what then?” Asked the Mexican.

The American laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions!”

“Millions – then what?”

The American said, “Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siestas with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos.”

numtumfutunch

4,704 posts

137 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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My priorities in order of importance:

Family
Riding bikes
Cars
Some other stuff
Work

We have a decent lifestyle, nice house, nice cars ( 6 and 10y old) and nice but not £££ holidays
None of us own an iphone and the only debt we have is a modest mortgage

It would be great to be in a position to live in a BFO gaff, holiday at Necker Island and drive a FF Rangey and a 458 Speciale but I couldnt imagine being bothered to put in the hours and stress to do so

Cheers




paulw123

3,169 posts

189 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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find a job you enjoy, then work out how to earn the most from it. Worked for me.

defblade

7,392 posts

212 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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Erudite geezer said:
Does anyone believe the adage that by working harder you can get a better car, bigger house etc?

Probably one of Clarkson's references.

I can see the relevance for self employed types or people running their own business, but I am salaried and don't see mega annual pay rises.

You need to work harder then!


I'm with Micawber:
"Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen pounds nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds nought and six, result misery."


Live to work or work to live?


"You can spend all your time making money,
You can spend all your love making time."



I think about this stuff quite a lot.

I've been accused of not having much ambition, but I don't feel the need to work myself into an early grave to have something that can be measured as "better" against other people's stuff. I do like my toys, but they're for me to enjoy... you know, when I'm not working, not to score "points" with. Lusting after the next, best, thing is pointless, because (pretty much, unless you actually are Bill Gates or the Sultan of somewhere) no matter how much you earn, now hard you work, even how much you win on Euromillions, some one out there will have something "better".

I've got a nice house, a tidy car, a motorbike I like (and it's not the fastest - I had one like that over summer and it's not for me) and some toys to play with on my days off and a Life to enjoy. I could work harder, more days a week, but I tried that when I was younger. I had loads of money, but was too tired and grumpy each Sunday to care. So I dropped working Saturdays and eventually one day in the week as well and things balanced nicely. (Family, bigger house and change in OH's circumstances means I'm back up to 5 days now, one of which has to be Saturdays, but it's still the best balance I can get at the moment - and still be happily posting here past midnight on a work night smile ).

Emeye

9,773 posts

222 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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numtumfutunch said:
My priorities in order of importance:

Family
Riding bikes
Cars
Some other stuff
Work

We have a decent lifestyle, nice house, nice cars ( 6 and 10y old) and nice but not £££ holidays
None of us own an iphone and the only debt we have is a modest mortgage

It would be great to be in a position to live in a BFO gaff, holiday at Necker Island and drive a FF Rangey and a 458 Speciale but I couldnt imagine being bothered to put in the hours and stress to do so

Cheers
Pretty much this, but I don't ride bikes any more and I don't have time to do any other stuff as I have three kids.

I have friends with big houses, flash cars etc who have commented on how they wish their life was more like mine - this is a surprise to me.

While they worked really hard at college and uni and then stressed their balls off working and earning loads-o-money I have done OK for myself yet enjoyed the hell out of my teens, 20s and most of my 30s. I'm now 40 but I feel I have the work/life balance pretty well worked out - we really could do with a house with a better garden and offroad parking and I still crave a 911 but not if it means popping a vein or being completely miserable!

RDMcG

19,093 posts

206 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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Surely there is no right answer here.

Each of us defines work/life balance differently.

I always enjoyed work , not just because I got paid, but because I did interesting things, met interesting people, saw the world.Never got the mad idea that I would start living when retirement came about. The only thing you can't change is that each day has 24 hours, and you can use it as you see fit. From an early age I wanted to progress and that meant some work, certainly, and some time sacrifice. Yet there was always time to travel, to follow my own interests,to do family things.

Can't think of anything important I missed at this stage. However, among people I know,their choices were very varied. I could never have worked at a comfortable routine job with a predictable schedule, for instance, while some of my friends loved that. I wanted the adrenalin, the constant change, the uncertainty,the pressure, the competition. It would have driven some people crazy.

However I would argue that if you see work as something you do just to make money, it is much harder to progress. You spent a huge amount of your time there, and probably a good idea to step back and think whether you are really doing what you want to do, and whether you have a pleb to progress.

zygalski

7,759 posts

144 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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GTIAlex said:
Just enjoy life and don't get focused on things that arn't important.
Good grief! Close the multiple tabs next time. You just posted that on PH.

NRS

22,078 posts

200 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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Erudite geezer said:
Does anyone believe the adage that by working harder you can get a better car, bigger house etc?

Probably one of Clarkson's references.

I can see the relevance for self employed types or people running their own business, but I am salaried and don't see mega annual pay rises.

Yes and no. Part of it is down to luck - what skills and things do you enjoy doing, and how much do jobs actually pay for them. I am lucky enough that I get paid very well for my age in the job I am in, but it's more down to luck that I enjoy what I do. Yes, you could work hard in other jobs, but if it doesn't suit you I would say it's (normally) not worth the extra money. Why work 5 days a week hating what you do to be able to enjoy the weekend a bit better, rather than enjoy all 7 days? However mostly hard work will help to a certain extent, although it does depend on luck again - do leave your job just before the job market crashes, does your co-worker know the CEO etc. You can influence this to a certain extent, but not all of it.

mr_tony

6,328 posts

268 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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Best career advice I ever got was 'it's your career - you f##king manage it'.

Best statement on career choices I heard was from a samurai master in Japan. A chap I've worked with is a researcher - and asked the samurai master how he chose the right path to get to the pinnacle of his vocation. His answer was (in short) that 'it was the right path because I chose it'.

It's not rocket science.


STW2010

5,714 posts

161 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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Mobile Chicane said:
Hey, the easiest way to make a small fortune in Life, is to start out with a large one.
That worked for Ron Jeremy

zedstar

1,735 posts

175 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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Work hard and work smart I think is what happens. I work in an accountancy firm and about 4 years ago I had a lad work for me, he was 24, never done accounts before and willing to learn. He did learn, put his head down, worked hard when he needed to and now 4 years later works in some financial role in London and earns more than me. The next guy after him was a lazy git who resented staying even 5 minutes late, couldn't be arsed to learn the finer points of accounting or the systems that we use and his next job was in Wakefield earning half what I get paid.

Same job, same on the job learning, same professional exam route, same age pretty much and I don't think they were far apart on intelligence either. Lad 1 just was willing to invest more time into his job to become better at it. And he was smart enough to leave once he had gone as far as he could go with us. So yes I do think working harder gives the means to have better cars/houses etc, although you need luck aswell.

lukefreeman

1,492 posts

174 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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You can be finaicialy comfortable on very little money.

As long as your happy with that lifestyle, why change?

Pat H

8,056 posts

255 months

Wednesday 7th January 2015
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STW2010 said:
Mobile Chicane said:
Hey, the easiest way to make a small fortune in Life, is to start out with a large one.
That worked for Ron Jeremy
That's gotta be worth a clap