Comments on: Are There Really People Who Only Work 40 Hours A Week Or Less And Complain Why They Can’t Get Ahead?

By: Anya

Anya — Wed, 13 Aug 2025 05:59:27 +0000

In reply to Financial Samurai. I also think that this concept of " getting ahead " is very subjective and is not as black and white as ---> getting ahead = work more than 40hrs a week

By: Anya

Anya — Wed, 13 Aug 2025 05:44:00 +0000

In reply to Financial Samurai.

You meant the right number of *hours” to survive and thrive , respectfully . I think Chris is , as I am also , trying to make the point that the system is broken right now . Yes , logically , your whole article is trying to give the purely logical advice of – to work the system as it is , work more and work harder to get past this – sure . True . But , it is a shame to see other countries doing better at prioritizing work-life balance while we don’t . I suppose it could be seen as a waste of time to contemplate how things ” should ” be and instead focus on what we can actually do to change our situations within the current situations we live . But the point stills stands . But , if enough people agree with and acknowledge the sentiment of ” there should only be a 40hr work week to live comfortably ” , maybe it gets traction and the people in this country wake up and a new workforce revolution occurs . Maybe we stop with the inflation of prices and with how expensive everyone’s cost of living is , online processing fees for buying concert tickets for doing .. what , exactly ? … is no longer a thing , healthcare is not a scam , we’re not all conditioned to ” needing ” the newest car or the latest iphone to the point where we are going into stupid debt for it , investing in property and real estate is not a complete joke , and we can get to a point where most people can just live comfortably working 40 hours a week and not have to ” earn ” the right to live comfortably .

By: Anya

Anya — Wed, 13 Aug 2025 05:30:04 +0000

Interesting perspective , I appreciate that . I disagree – from my perspective , the goal should be that , after you put you time as a teen and a few years out of college working odd jobs , weird hours , at least one or two horrible customer service/food industry positions, people should NOT have to work more than the standard 40 hours a week which is 8 whole hours out of your day and get weekends off . Especially if we are talking about how almost every job in existence , even a job at your local coffee shop , wants ( or requires ) a degree , many spend a ton of money on it , and after being basically required to be put through at least for years of expensive education , everyone should at least be allowed job stability that offers 40 hours a week , weekends off , good benefits , be able to live life comfortably on a salary that keeps up with how obnoxiously inflated America’s cost to live has become , the healthcare we don’t get for free like France , ( and we gotta pay for our education with no forgiveness , unlike France ) and much of the other countries do , and not have to be an obsessive , 70 , 80 , 90+ hour per week slave … cuz we all have lives and things we would MUCH rather be doing than work . France is simply realizing that they have lives to live outside of work . In America , work is like many people’s whole identity .
I’m just gonna say this since it is SO the unpopular opinion right now – I don’t have career goals other than to do the least amount to elicit the most advancement in pay so I can spend my time living the rest of my life that cohabitates with my work life . After working many jobs in my life time and not finding anything that interests me , I just know and accept that I don’t have or desire to excel at any job any farther than to get me a pay raise or promotion . I have been at the same company for 5+ years and I am in my late 20’s . I had an opportunity last year where I was offered a ” promotion ” to take a management position . I was so excited to go from hourly to salary , only to find out that I was going to be paid less to do it while being expected to be on call constantly and working weekends . I used to really care about work , for years I worked well over 60 hours a week . Only to be ” promoted ” to do more work for less pay . I rejected the promotion and switched to a different departed where I only work 40 hours a week and take most weekends off ( despite my company hating this but not really able to do anything since I am not breaking any official rule ) . My story is one of many , many similar ones that I’ve collected from friends , family , and coworkers over the years .
I am very much jaded by the more and more demanding expectations from our work culture as it currently is , and I don’t agree with it . It feels like companies expect more and more while the message seems to be ” you are lazy if you only want to work 40 hours a week with weekends off , how dare you ask for a salary that allows you to live comfortably in today’s current horrific inflation , if you want to live comfortably , then you have to EARN IT AND WORK FOR IT ” … as if working what was always considered the standard — 40 hours a week , weekends off — is just pure laziness and looked down upon , like it’s the same as expecting a six figure salary working 10 hours a week remotely … it never used to be this way just like it was never so hard to find a job or to get promoted , years ago you could walk in anywhere and get a waitressing job or something of the like and live on that income , and if you helped out with basic stuff , had a great attitude , and showed up early , you’d get some manager experience , no problem . Now , you need two degrees , an engineering job , and working like 70 hours a week remotely to afford to live comfortably , definitely no guarantee of a promotion or pay increase for years .
The new cool new thing in my opinion is to let companies who all want cheap labor to brain wash everyone into dedicating 110% of their effort and energy for like 80% or more of their time each week slaving away , working for free or for scraps for much of it just to be considered for an actual job , no real promotions to pay off their student debt they got just to get a good job , and what kind of life is that to live ? I guess some people – the people who are obsessed with ” work ethic and taking the initiative ” – jack off to it clearly , but it just puts me off . I know it’s a negative perspective , I realize I have my own stuff to work on , things are the way they are , but I just . Don’t . Care . About . Work . More than I have to .

I’d rather put in the least amount of effort that elicits the most amount of positive change .

By: RELife

RELife — Sun, 29 Jun 2025 16:55:08 +0000

I’d love to work fewer hours than others, make more money, and still get promoted — who wouldn’t? But I’m realistic enough to know that’s not how things usually work.

So instead of complaining, I chose to work harder than my peers. That effort helped me get ahead, and I used the extra income to save and invest aggressively so I could retire early.

I genuinely enjoy learning from other people’s stories and how they achieved success. Everyone’s experience matters. If someone finds this article through a search engine or some other way, chances are they’re either trying to improve their situation or feeling stuck — and looking for solutions.

Saying people shouldn’t have to work 40+ hours a week to thrive is a fine belief. But saying it alone doesn’t change anything. Sometimes you have to confront reality. I want six-pack abs too, but I also know they won’t magically appear without discipline and daily effort. That’s not pessimism — that’s just being honest.

By: RELife

RELife — Sun, 29 Jun 2025 16:53:50 +0000

In reply to Chris.

I want to work less than other people and make more money and get promoted as well. But I’m realistic to know that’s not gonna happen.

So I ended up working more hours than my peers and did get ahead. And then I saved an invest of my money so I could retire earlier.

Instead of complaining, I took action.

I love learning about other people‘s experiences and how they got ahead. They are just as valuable as anybody else’s experiences. Because the people who find this article go through a search engine or whatever clearly are trying to get ahead or are frustrated with something.

You saying people shouldn’t have to work 40 hours a week to thrive is fine. But that doesn’t do anything and is unhelpful. Sometimes you have to face the truth. I want six pack abs and shouldn’t have to eat right and exercise daily. But I’m also realistic and not delusional.

By: Financial Samurai

Financial Samurai — Sun, 29 Jun 2025 16:30:24 +0000

In reply to Chris. People are free to do whatever they want. But if the reality is that others — especially your co-workers — are working more than 40 hours a week, expecting to get ahead while working significantly less doesn’t make much sense. Would you be open to sharing your experience? I’d genuinely like to understand where you’re coming from and why you feel I shouldn’t have the right to share my own thoughts and experiences in a free world.

By: Financial Samurai

Financial Samurai — Sun, 29 Jun 2025 16:15:58 +0000

In reply to Chris.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I think they are useful.

If the job requirement expects the employee to work 40 hours a week, what should the employee do who wants to get ahead?

People are free to work however long or little they want. But they also have to be OK with the consequences for their actions.

“ People SHOULDN’T have to work more than 40 hours a week to survive and thrive. ”

What should the right number of weeks be to survive and thrive then?