Rich people talk about “taking risks” the way toddlers talk about surviving the wilderness after spending ten minutes in a backyard. Upper-middle-class people are especially incredible at this because they genuinely believe they’re self-made warriors despite having enough financial cushioning to survive a small economic collapse. They’ll tell you about the time they “had nothing” right before casually mentioning their parents covered rent, they stayed on the family health insurance until 30, and they always had the option of moving back into a beautiful house with a wine fridge and a golden retriever. These people think struggle is drinking cheaper wine for six months and not flying on business. And then they lecture you about having to take risks in life.
The biggest difference between rich people and everyone else is that wealthy people never really experience the terrifying possibility of collapse in their lives. Their failures are temporary setbacks, ef even, not the life-ruining disasters for the rest of us. If their startup fails, they “reset” at a family property or lean on wealthy friends and connections until the next opportunity appears. If regular people fail, they start googling whether eating only instant noodles counts as a quirky personality trait. Rich people are always surrounded by invisible parachutes: parents with money, emergency funds, family connections, investment accounts, lawyers, networking circles, and friends who can “put in a call.” Meanwhile normal people are one medical bill away from becoming spiritually connected to overdraft fees.
And healthcare... Wealthy people get symptoms and immediately access specialists, scans, preventative care, private clinics, recovery time, and doctors who actually answer emails. Everyone else spends two weeks pretending chest pain is probably stress because going to the hospital could financially kill them on the spot, at least the chest pain will give them a couple more months. Rich people love preaching confidence and ambition because their entire lives are padded against consequences. They live in safer neighborhoods, drive safer cars, work safer jobs, and can throw money at problems before those problems become catastrophes.
Then they look at everyone else and say things like “you just have to bet on yourself,” which is easy advice to give when losing the bet still ends with you safely landing in your parents’ guest house instead of wondering whether toothpaste is really a necessary purchase.