There are people who are ready to do anything possible to seem rich. They brag about their imaginary money, boast their branded clothes (and often buy fakes), and post a million photos of their “lavish” lifestyle on social media. They are prone to impulsive spending and constantly compare themselves with others.
But how do rich people really live? We found this out and share this information with you. In this article there are very different stories: about greed, honesty, naivety, loneliness, recklessness and conscience.
At the very end, we will tell you about why rich people actually need their wealth. No, not for the sake of ticking boxes or constantly increasing their wealth. And not even for the sake of buying fancy things.
I once knew a very interesting man. He paid me a lot of money for just sleeping in the same bed with him. I had the keys to his apartment. I would come to his place, change into my pajamas, get into bed and fall asleep. He would come over later and go to bed too.
We had no relationship at all. But he introduced me to his friends, gave me advice, told me about his childhood in poverty. A handsome guy, very rich and very lonely. © Overheard / Ideer I am writing this anonymously because I have only shared with 2 of my friends that my boyfriend’s net worth is over $250 million. There is no way to tell. When I met him, I was immediately attracted to his incredible sense of humor and intellect. He was dressed very modestly (I did not even notice his watch because it is not flashy; it is a $60,000 watch).
We went on a few dates before I visited his home, which is not opulent by any stretch of the imagination. I even treated him to dinner a couple of times. He drives a SmartCar in Paris (where he lives most of the year). When he is in the States, he shops at Ross, and other discount stores, and always goes on the day that he gets a senior discount.
He loves coupons, and when I show him ways to save extra money. He proudly wears a bracelet that I got him on sale for $160. On the other hand, he always flies either business or first class; owns over 100 properties in London, Paris and Miami; has houses in those three cities, as well as in Cannes; owns a yacht.
He is a decent, honest and down-to-earth man who treats everyone with dignity and respect, and gives much back to his community in terms of time and money. He brags about me because I have a career and I own my own home, and greatly admires my intellect and thoughtfulness. © Anonymous / Quora
My husband’s best friend leads a reclusive lifestyle. He is very rich. He bought a huge plot of land on the outskirts of town, and there he built a two-story house, a mini-farm, greenhouses. He breeds fish in a pond. He rarely goes out in public, he lives alone.
He came to our wedding anniversary, and I don’t know why I told my friends about him. Then the guests watched as 4 women circled the man, who sat alone at a separate table. He put up with it for about an hour and then left. And my friends still ask me to introduce them to him. © Overheard / Ideer I used to date a girl a few years ago who had an “aunt and uncle” that were friends of the family. Over the summer, I was invited to stay a week in their house on the northern coast of Maine. The property was absolutely massive with private beach and all but easily explained as it had been in the family for generations.
I love cooking and was asked to prepare dinner for everyone on the third night of whatever I wanted to make, I was told to make a grocery list of whatever I wanted. Being on the coast and all, I wanted to make some whole cod with some family style sides. I thought they were just being nice and going grocery shopping, since I was not familiar at all with the area.
The moment I knew these people weren’t just well off but wealthy was when the aunt placed a phone call and 3 hours later a seaplane landed at their dock with produce picked that day and then a boat pulled up with the cod I asked for. © PlentyLettuce / Reddit
I have a very rich friend who always had a few girlfriends at the same time. He gave all these women expensive gifts, spent time with them one by one and felt great. So he tells me a story.
One of his girlfriends had a birthday. He gave her his credit card and said, “Buy whatever you want.” Now I quote, “This silly girl bought a book and a juicer and gave me the card back.” At that moment, he realized that she was the one. But she left him after she found out about his other girlfriends. © Overheard / Ideer My father is a very rich man. He started from scratch, came to a foreign country without a cent in his pockets. He’s never been involved in any dark stories, he spends all his free time with his family.
And how much it pisses me off that people who have never bothered to get their butt off the sofa think that wealthy people are all thieves or criminals. There are those who have achieved everything by their own efforts, work and patience. Try to earn a penny yourself, envious people! © Overheard / Ideer I didn’t marry for love. My husband is a very rich man, we can afford everything. Years later, I’ve realized that this marriage was the right decision. I work in my favorite (though not profitable) business, I take care of myself, I buy expensive clothes, we fly to luxury resorts. Our children do not need anything.
And it’s clear to me that if I had to work myself and support the children, I wouldn’t be able to afford all this. Many people won’t understand me, but I am really happy. © Overheard / Ideer
There is a girl I know, a nice and sweet girl. Her father is a very rich man. He was divorced from her mother, but he supported both of them, gave them branded clothes, bought them a car, and paid for trips. But when the girl turned 18, he simply disappeared from their lives with the words “duty fulfilled.” © Overheard / Ideer I unknowingly had dinner with a billionaire couple. Afterward I was told about their wealth and I realized that their clothes were bespoke. Everything fit like a glove. Their nails were perfectly manicured. The wife was not wearing normal jewelry.
They insisted on picking up the bill. They tipped $100 on a $180 receipt. They were both legitimately nice people, and I genuinely enjoyed talking/dining with them. © fossilnews / Reddit I’ll let you in on a little secret about money: the more of it you have, the less likely you are to obsess about it. Which is why many really wealthy people don’t live conspicuous lifestyles. It’s why the most popular car among millionaires is a pickup truck and not Mercedes/BMW/etc.
For every insecure egomaniac living the lifestyle of the rich and shameless, there are a dozen living quietly — or what the late Thomas Stanley called “The millionaire next door.” The quiet millionaires typically live a slightly upper middle class lifestyle.
They have nice homes, but not mansions. They are more likely to drive Hondas, Subarus, Volvos, Jeep Grand Cherokees, or a Ford F150. They shop at Costco, and Target. They have nice clothes, but usually avoid “designer” brands, gaudy jewelry, and other outward displays of conspicuous consumption. © Bernie Klinder / Qoura
My father is a very rich man with a pretty bad temper. A couple of years ago, he met a woman who, in just a few months, managed to turn him against his children and friends. We decided to stay out of it — he’ll play at love, and he’ll come round. It’s happened before.
But recently we learned that he is rewriting all the property on her, so that the children didn’t get anything. And he genuinely doesn’t see what’s going on. He thinks it’s true love. And we are quietly amazed at how a person can be so naive at 60. © Overheard / Ideer I’m wealthy and no one outside my immediate family and a small circle of close, lifetime friends knows. I’m very well-educated, but I don’t brag about it. My home, auto, clothes, etc. are all quite modest. It’s my choice.
I indulge myself whenever and in whatever way I want. I don’t gamble because there’s no thrill in it for me. Luxury cars to me are simply overpriced chunks of polished metal, plastic, leather, and wood.
Designer clothing? Who cares. Women? I do love women, but the secret is where I do what I do and with whom I do it. Is it possible I could be tracked and found out? I suppose, but why would anybody want to?
My home is my refuge. It’s built to my exact specifications. Much of the material used and many of its features are quite costly. But unless a person knows what they’re looking at, they’d never realize it. I’ve lived in my home for many years and I love it. I personally maintain everything on my property, no matter what it is. I do so because I enjoy it, not because I have to.
My wife and I have been married for a long time. Although she once did share my values, now she does not. I financially support her separate lifestyle, and to date she’s not made even the slightest hint of wanting a divorce. Why would she? She has all she needs, wants, and more. And no worries about taking care of her wealth if she was totally on her own.
No trust issues with friends and acquaintances. No one can try to steal what she doesn’t have, and believe me, when it’s known that you’re wealthy, the sharks circle. © Anonymous / Qoura Rich people have a bespoke wardrobe that costs more than our cars. No logos anywhere on their clothes. © D***ieMcDookface / Reddit No logos, no sizes… if there are maker’s marks they’re probably the size of a pin and only other super-wealthy types will know them by sight. © Geminii27 / Reddit
I work in a niche industry that brings in a lot of wealthy folks. The wealthiest people I’ve helped are among the kindest customers I’ve ever had. One of them turned out to be the owner of the company that we get 1/2 of our product from. I didn’t know until I toured their facility a couple years ago and was introduced to their CEO. She remembered me and commented on how knowledgeable I was with her products.
It was definitely a feel good moment! I was seriously in awe, though. A woman CEO of a major international company still did her own shopping! And not only did she listen to what I had to say, but she also took my advice too!
She has an entire staff of people like me, but liked my ideas enough to implement them. I would work for her in a heartbeat if she wasn’t 1.5 hours away. It was a good reminder for me to be kind to my customers. Sometimes in the busy season, I get a little cranky. © guinnypig / Reddit In my early twenties, I was a bartender at a super fancy yacht club. I was an incompetent employee and got the job entirely through knowing the right people. The millionaires always dressed super nice and humble-bragged about their success. The billionaires wore sandals and clothes from Target and Walmart and didn’t stand out at all.
This one dude sat at my bar for 2 years with a 5 o’clock shadow and cheap t-shirts and just talked with me and the other bartenders about school and everyday life. Found out after 2 years, he was the richest guy in there and had been giving the owner of the yacht club huge loans to keep it afloat. It still went under. © Nightmare_Tonic / Reddit One of the signs of really rich people is amazing, unnoticeable plastic surgery. My cousin and I met a woman who really looked like she was in her forties and discovered she was in her late sixties. Seriously, she looked amazing. She was the same age as my aunt, and we were floored when she happened to mention her age.
My cousin and I compared notes afterwards, considered some of the stories she briefly mentioned, and realized she was enormously wealthy. That’s when we realized that she had some very subtle plastic surgery. She wasn’t attempting to look like she was in her twenties, but rather aging very gracefully. © KayakerMel / Reddit
Many years ago, I worked as a driver for a gentleman in Greenwich, CT. He was wealthy (millions) but one afternoon, on very short notice, he took me on a trip to Florida with the heiress of the Annenberg fortune (billions). We travelled with her and her entourage in her private jet from a private airfield.
When staying at her residence, I remember meeting her and getting the feeling that she was deeply lonely. I’ve never sensed it as strongly with anyone else. She was quite nice to me. She spoke directly to me and paid attention to my answers.
Something subtle I picked up on was how the people around her were very rehearsed — nothing natural ever happened. Ultimately, despite her extraordinary wealth, I felt quite sorry for her. © digentre / Reddit I work alongside someone who is worth ~$750 million. They are 25 years my senior. He dresses smart casual as base, then accordingly for more formal occasions. He notices all details of your attire including fit, watches, jewelry, etc. but would never comment on them. He has a talk to the public voice (kind, demure, pleasant). Then a talk to equals voice (blunt, aggressive, clear, incredibly fast-paced).
He is rushed but not frantic as he controls everyone’s time around him. He allows almost zero people into his inner circle, but once you are in, he wants you to consume knowledge at the same rate as him. Constantly sending articles, studies, reports at all hours of the night and wants to discuss them in detail almost immediately thereafter.
One thing I’ll also mention is he is action oriented. When he has his “business hat on,” he is not asking for my informed opinion. He is asking for my direction. If I say anything, it has to mean that I stand behind it 100%. Period.
I can be wrong, but I can’t be ambivalent in any detail, large or small. I vividly remember using the word “assume” and his reaction was the most fierce and real one I’ve ever experienced in business. Taught me a lot. © Shloops101 / Reddit
I lived with a girl in college who was Crazy Rich Asian rich. She moved in for the company, otherwise her parents were just gonna buy her a house. She always wore this mini bag style purse when we were going out, and it just looked like a small plain black bag to me.
I asked to borrow it for a concert one weekend because they had a super strict bag policy that none of my other bags met. She was like, “Oh sure, no problem.” I loved it and ended up looking it up to buy one for myself, and found out it was more than a year’s salary. And she let me take it to a music festival without a second thought. © chubbybunn89 / Reddit Was at my favorite lunch place in Munich. A guy is sitting there in an old jacket with dirty boots and a scruffy dog, drinking coffee. Chat to him a bit, nice guy.
After he leaves, the owner of the restaurant tells me he owns the 2 city blocks surrounding the restaurant. The only reason he didn’t own the block we were in was because the church owned it and wasn’t selling. © PAXICHEN / Reddit My best friend’s daughter married into a mega wealthy family. Their 6-year-old daughter was listening to my friend’s wife describe their upcoming vacation and said, “Grandma, you fly with strangers?” That. © W1neD1ver / Reddit
Bonus: why rich people need their wealth
We loved this idea: the ultimate goal of wealth is not to look rich, but to feel financially free. It’s a smart choice that offers long-term security and the ability to enjoy the joys of life on your own terms. Really wealthy people do not flaunt their status, they may not drive Rolls-Royce and Lamborghini, but cheaper cars that they simply like. And they live not in a villa on the Canary Islands, but in an ordinary house on the outskirts of the city, where they feel comfortable.
But spending for the sake of creating the illusion of wealth can, on the contrary, drive a person into the trap of poverty. After all, in order to live beyond one’s means, one has to get into debts, loans and other unpleasant things that successful people tend to avoid.
And here are some more interesting stories about rich people.
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