There's a sad undercurrent to this, as some redditors respond that they find this depressing. While I understand their plight, I do not understand the sustained pessimism for most of the depressed ones.
I went to work right out of high school at menial jobs. No college, no big family business. Paycheck-to-paycheck, and any minor emergency like a dead car battery was a financial crisis. I did not "get lucky" on stocks or anything. While getting rich has not been a focus for me, I decided I definitely did NOT like being poor. Lots of small steps, and staying on the lookout for ways to improve matters has led me to not be poor. I'm not rich but I'm in decent shape and moving in the right direction: no debt except the mortage, which will be payed off soonish; some money in savings, stocks, 401k, etc. I'm living at a decent level and should be able to retire in some comfort. No magic. No big windfalls. This is doable by most of those depressed people.
I went to work right out of high school at menial jobs. No college, no big family business. Paycheck-to-paycheck, and any minor emergency like a dead car battery was a financial crisis. I did not "get lucky" on stocks or anything. While getting rich has not been a focus for me, I decided I definitely did NOT like being poor. Lots of small steps, and staying on the lookout for ways to improve matters has led me to not be poor. I'm not rich but I'm in decent shape and moving in the right direction: no debt except the mortage, which will be payed off soonish; some money in savings, stocks, 401k, etc. I'm living at a decent level and should be able to retire in some comfort. No magic. No big windfalls. This is doable by most of those depressed people.