Formerly Poor People Describe The Biggest Culture Shock After Getting Rich

Those who've wondered how the other half lives and successfully made it to the other side, whether by a stroke of good luck or hard work, are ready to live in the lap of luxury.

However, they may find that living in the same class as the affluent is not always as it's cracked up to be.

Curious to hear from those who suddenly came to wealth, Redditor madeat1am asked:

"Redditors who grew in poverty and are now rich what's the biggest shock about rich people you learnt?"

Being rich doesn't always mean having the best of everything.

Luxury Of Choice

"That rich people can afford to do things that save them money. Better health insurance and car insurance with lower deductibles. Higher quality food that keeps them healthy."

"Gym membership preventing future health incidences. Prompt car maintenance to avoid big repair costs down the line. Higher ed for better paying job….. the list goes on and on."

– BothNotice7035

"It’s like the story of the boots. Poor man buys a pair of boots for $10 because that’s all he can afford; rich man buys a pair of boots for $75 that are better made. Poor man’s boots wear out after three years, causing him to need to buy another $10 pair - that’s all he can afford."

"The rich man’s boots last him for 25 yrs. Poor man ends up spending more money than the rich man in the long run, because he cannot afford the nicer pair of boots that will last longer."

– andpiglettoo

Major Differences

"Ok so I got a job as a software engineer, I didn't win the lottery or marry into old money or anything, but:"

"The first few years of working in a well paid career, I felt like I was going insane. It's hard to relate to your new co-workers when your hobbies are watching tv shows with friends and writing songs on a guitar your mentor gave you, and their hobbies are international travel, credit card hacking, and investing."

"My former boss once mentioned off-hand that she pays all the travel costs for her family and then her husband pays her his half once a year, and they had traveled a lot that year and he was sort of shocked to find out that his half for that year was FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS. Which he did have available to pay her."

"At that time I'd been in tech for 6 months and was very proud that I'd scraped together a $2k emergency fund for the first time in my life."

"Also, you get so much stuff for free as soon as you don't need it. My job paid for my monthly bus pass, my health insurance, even my morning coffee. That first job, they had a coffee shop in the lobby with two full time baristas that was totally free. Honestly, some of the best espresso of my life, and even when I had no money I was a coffee nerd."

"Two of my coworkers bought coffee at the coffee shop down the street every day anyway because they liked that coffee shop a little better. It was infuriating to be given all these perks that would have been life changing the second I was also paid enough to afford them without it being a struggle."

"Something worth noting: if you work in a well paid field like that, watch out for the people transitioning out of poverty. They were massively underpaying me and I technically knew that, but it was still so much more than I had ever made in my life that I couldn't bring myself to believe the actual numbers for entry level tech jobs."

"If it weren't for the unofficial women in tech group, who did a salary sharing spreadsheet and helped a ton of people advocate for raises and eventually got salary bands implemented, I would never have been brave enough to ask for what I was worth, and since raises are percentages that can impact your pay for the rest of your career. I try to pay it forward now."

– melancholymelanie

Sometimes, it's all about maintaining a squeaky-clean image.

Keeping It Clean

"More like lower-middle class to upper-middle class, but it blew my mind when I realized many people I know now frequently pay to have their house cleaned, and grew up thinking that the cleaners being over was just a routine part of life."

"I was probably in my late 20s the first time I ever paid someone to clean."

"Same with things like moving, painting, house maintenance, stuff like that. I'm at a place where it makes more sense to save my time and pay for many of those things, but anytime I talk to my mom and mention it she assumes it's something I'm doing myself, because it never would have occurred to her to spend money on that and for most of her life she couldn't afford it."

"It's a pretty interesting divide just between the strata within middle class."

– Orange_Kid

"Also, when your house is made of nicer fixtures it cleans and stays clean easier. You can’t clean something enough if the material is just old and low quality so it has worn out :("

– w11f1ow3r

"THIS IS SO TRUE!!!!! FINALLY- someone who understands!"

"I absolutely DESPISE plastic bathtubs because they are impossible to keep clean without the use of toxic chemicals, and even then, it’s difficult to do so. Also, tile grout becomes stained after so many years… more expensive installation methods avoid the use of grout and are therefore cleaner and more visually appealing."

"And then there is the difference between natural stone countertops vs plastic + wood composite countertops. The list goes on and on…"

– Cosmic_bliss_kiss

Having the luxury of time was another point mentioned.

Anytime Getaway

"I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination, and it might not be a shock to others. But going on vacation. When I was a kid we just stayed home every summer. Never went anywhere, stayed generally within the same 200km radius of where I live. We didn't have a lot of money."

"Now I go on vacation twice a year and I've been all over the world. 17 year old me would be in awe."

– Phlurble

"I remember being in secondary school, and in 5th year, all students would go on an international school trip. My parents worked so hard to be able to pay for me, because this was a 'once in a lifetime opportunity'. I went to London for a week (from The Netherlands)."

"Now in my late 40s, not rich but comfortable, and I've been throughout all of Europe."

– ValeNova

No Constraints

"The freedom it provides."

"Freedom to not spend hours mowing their lawn, laundry, cleaning their own car, grocery shopping... Freedom to eat healthy, freedom to prioritize exercise, endless list.."

"Those of us that don't enjoy this freedom sacrifice our few hours on earth performing these mundane tasks."

– ndnman

Quality Reading

"Read 'Limbo' by Alfred Lombrano. Its a sociological look about 'Straddlers'- people who grew up poor/blue collar and make it to the upper middle class/upper class. I am one of them. It talks about the strengths and weaknesses these people have. If you own a business or organization- you want these people working for you because they're always 'hungry' for more and seeking out new ideas and opportunity but concerned about taking on too much risk."

"It also talks about how these folks have a lot of issues. Being a straddler you might find it both difficult to go back to your blue collar roots- finding it hard to relate to family and childhood friends because education, money, and experience have evolved your world view."

"While at the same time you’ll never fully fit in to the new upper class world you’ve worked your way into. Minor things like you didn’t grow up golfing so you can’t get in with the richer folks socially as easy, to bigger things like code switching accents or vocabulary, to suffering from constant imposter syndrome."

– slippysnips20

Life is just more convenient.

Don't Fix It, Get A New One

"I grew up pretty poor. My wife insanely rich. In my house, your car breaks down, you fix it, or, take it to a mechanic to fix it. In her house, they would buy a new car."

"This dawned on me when our washing machine broke and I ordered the part on Amazon and an hour later saw she had ordered a new washer from Lowe’s. She’s gotten better, but her first impulse is just to buy a new one of whatever is broken."

– Zmirzlina

Social Safety Net

"Shock is a strong word, but I didn't realize the social safety net rich people have. Growing up poor, we lived absolutely paycheque to paycheque (more accurately we lived borrowing against future paycheques) and it felt like we were never far from homelessness."

"One job loss, one prolonged serious illness, and we would not have been able to pay the rent and would have been evicted. All of my parents' family and friends were similarly struggling, so if we needed help, they would not have had much to give."

"Now, as an adult with more money than my parents could have imagined having, we not only have substantial personal savings, but we also know so many people who could help us if things got bad."

"If worst came to worst, we have multiple friends with vacation properties that they barely use that we could move into. Not that I think it will ever come to that, but life is dramatically different never having to worry financially about a job loss, illness, unexpected car expense, etc."

– ColdFIREBaker

I've noticed money changes people, especially those who've never had cash to burn.

A couple I knew lucked out with a high position working for a company and found themselves suddenly having enough cash to splurge on buying name brand clothing they've never been interested in before.

But now I'm wondering if they've always been into high-end fashion but never showed any indication of it because they were never able to afford it.

What about you? If you suddenly came into wealth, what would you splurge on?