Somehow in 2024, we still live in a world where people are afraid to talk about money. Capitalism dictates that our worth is based on what and how much we have in terms of money, material things, etc., and there is less emphasis on who we are as individuals.
Money can take the form of ambition, leading people to seek further education for higher-paying jobs like a lawyer or a doctor. In this way, we give up our time in the present in hopes of receiving more money (and freedom) in the future. We believe we are making ourselves more “valuable,” but by whose standard? I find that this line of thinking can quickly descend into elitism: This person doesn’t have the same ambitions as me, so what’s wrong with them? Why don’t they want to be “successful” like I am?
Material success does not equal happiness for everyone. Some people will become a CEO just to say they did it—not because they truly wanted it, but because the world told them that was what success looked like. Climbing up the corporate ladder just to be at the top doesn’t make a good leader. There are people who can lead in their own way, those who are more fulfilled working behind the scenes, whose talents lend themselves to middle management. These people have jobs to do just like anyone else, and the CEO who got there by thinking it was the finish line will soon learn that there is a lot more responsibility and transparency that comes along with having that level of power.
When I think about money and transparency, I return to how money was taught to people growing up. Was it an emotional topic? Were the discussions stressful for children, or did they help them understand the family finances better? A study from Forbes looked at how different generations talk about money, and how comfortable they would be discussing salaries with their coworkers.
Not surprisingly, baby boomers had the lowest percentage of the four generations. In addition, “not only were respondents from older generations less likely to have grown up in families that frequently talked about money, but they were also less likely to report positive experiences from such discussions when they did happen.” Twenty-one percent of baby boomers reported that the money talks were stressful, whereas just 10% of millennials felt this way. As transparency about money has improved over the years, we can see the positive effects this has on how people approach it.
The sentiment around salary transparency continues to evolve, and it seems to have had an overall positive impact on hiring and retaining employees. In the Forbes study, millennials were the generation most comfortable talking about salaries. I was happy to see this as a millennial, as I have been trying to implement this practice in my life more as I get older. I have friends who make more money than me, and good for them! They work hard and I value them just the same as someone who makes less than I do. Money can be emotional because we allow it to be, but it doesn’t have to dictate how much we value ourselves or others. At this point in my personal finance journey, I would put a lot more value on how you manage your money than how much you have.
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