Her Friend Took An Attitude With Her And Said It Must Be Nice To Be Able To Take A Pay Cut Because She Has The Financial Privilege of Falling Back On Her Family

It’s always kind of odd and funny at the same time to grow up and watch your friends live different lifestyles and make different amounts of money.
One woman and her good friend argued after he said something about her finances that rubbed her the wrong way.
She’s 28 and is very close to her 29-year-old friend Nathan. They met while working at the same fancy finance firm during their first year after college graduation. The job included long hours, poor management, and was “soul-sucking.” They ended up bonding over how much they hated the job.
“A few years ago, I decided that I just couldn’t take the corporate grind anymore, and I quit my job to move into the nonprofit world,” she explained.
“While I now certainly make less than I would have at my old job, I’m exponentially happier, healthier, and absolutely love the work that I do.”
Meanwhile, Nathan kept climbing the corporate ladder and found happiness, too. Now, he makes around $300,000 a year, while she makes roughly $80,000 a year.
Their life stories leading up to their current careers are very interesting. Nathan grew up in a low-income household, and some of his relatives still struggle financially. On the other hand, she grew up comfortably in a secure, upper-middle-class family that is still financially stable.
She was recently offered her dream job at a nonprofit and is thrilled about the kind of work she’ll be doing. Unfortunately, her salary would be about $5,000 lower than her current one, but she thinks it’s all worth it.
Most people were thrilled when she told everyone in her life about her new job. Nathan, however, had a bit of an attitude. Without saying anything celebratory or congratulatory, Nathan simply said, “I’m glad you have the financial privilege to take a pay cut.”

narong – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual people
“I’ll admit that I snapped back at him and told him that he makes triple the amount of money I do and that, at some point, he needs to realize he’s now got privileges of his own instead of pointing out mine,” she recalled.
“The conversation got a bit heated, and we agreed to hang up and cool off before talking it over later.”
The way Nathan said that made her feel like he was implying that she can only accept a lower salary because she’ll always have her financially stable family to catch her if she falls. Unlike him, who has no one to fall back on and needs to ensure he’s always secure.
However, she hated being in an argument with him, so they eventually talked it out, and they apologized to each other.
“I think that since we started our careers at the same place and time, it’s easy for us to compare ourselves, and we’re both guilty of the competitive comparison game with each other,” she said.
“Anyway, it’s all good now, and I think we’ve opened up a good dialogue where I can learn more about my buddy’s past and what it’s been like for him and try and support him with some of the mental struggles of coming from poverty.”
Was she wrong to snap at Nathan, or was her reaction valid?
You can read the original post on Reddit here.
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