You’ve got to feel sorry for all those millionaires in Silicon Valley who continue to worry about their financial well-being as they continue to work 70-hour weeks.
“You’re nobody here at $10 million,†Match.com CEO Gary Kremen told the New York Times in a story that you know is going to be torn apart today within Silicon Valley.
The gist of the NYT story is a few million ain’t what it used to be. Even after you’ve banked a lot of cash, paid off your large luxury house and banked money for your children’s education, you’re barely keeping up.
Ha!
You know what the story says to me: it’s a slow, summer news environment so reporters are dreaming up “news features” to fill space.
Not sure why the NYT felt this story was more interesting than say something looking at what Silicon Valley millionaires are doing when it comes to philanthropy, or what many young entrepreneurial millionaires do next after they hit the jackpot – I mean, they could have used Marc Andreessen as a perfect example of someone in the Valley who’s had multiple successes after HP acquired Opsware recently.
For more comments on the story, check out Jeremy Toeman, who said the story makes his nauseated and angry.
One extra thought: One of the “problems” with making more money is the more you make, the more you spend. Becoming wealthy (however you want to define it) often means acquiring the trappings of success such as a new car, club memberships, private schools for children, etc. This explains why even rich people “struggle” financially like the rest of us.
4 Comments
Don’t cry for me Atherton. I’m sure they’ll find a way to outsource their venture-backed angst and get on with their horrible millionaire toil.
When rich people “struggle” it’s completely of their own choosing, though, and hence the lack of sympathy. Nobody forces them to join an expensive country club or buy the $90,000 car instead of the $30,000 one.
The millionaires interviewed in the article said that they really liked their jobs which also makes them more fortunate than 99 percent of the other working stiffs. More important than owning a bunch of stuff is enjoying what you have to do to acquire it.
You all don’t understand. I am at the 1 million mark net worth and make over 300K a year. I have a wife that doesn’t work, three kids, and my mother still pays half my mortgage. You take out 40-50% for taxes and post-tax it is hard to get by. Have you seen the price of gas, milk, clothes, etc. Every month I am struggling and I don’t live lavishly. I live in a Washington, DC suburb and eat out twice a week. It is not that much money in a major city like SF, LA, NYC, etc.
4 Trackbacks
[...] Recent Comments Mark Evans on Those Poor, Poor MillionairesMark Evans – Struggling Silicon Valley Millionaires. Ha! on Those Poor, Poor MillionairesValleyGuyInIndia on Those Poor, Poor MillionairesFrancisco on 10 [...]
[...] of times more than the average person — I had many of the same thoughts as my friends Mark Evans, Jason at Webomatica and Jeremy Toeman at Live Digitally. In other words, a combination of [...]
[...] another interesting article from the NYT that’s worth blogging about. Certainly since many others have. I read it earlier today, but decided to sit on it, or let my mind mull over it, and allow [...]
[...] Wait, is that schadenfreude? Ha! says Mark Evans. Must be the dog days of summer if reporters are dreaming up "news features" like these to fill [...]