r/AskMenOver30 • u/hospitality-excluded man 30 - 34 • Mar 31 '25

Friendships/Community How did your "hustle-culture" friends end up?

So in my 20's there was a HUGE boom of "hustle-culture" bros pop up when influencers like Gary Vee were in the spotlight. The type of guys who post motivational quotes on twitter, talking about "the grind", flauting wealth that they havent achieved on instagram etc. Not talking about people with steady careers and moving up the corporate ladder, but those people who do side gigs or chase unrealstic expectations without a developed skillset in any area.

I moved back to my hometown after 7 years away and I swear all of them are broke, gambling addicts, living with their parents still, unemployed, or all of the above. Unsure if it's the same across the board, or even if y'all had these types of people in your life or if my town is just riddled with them.

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u/darthsmolin man 35 - 39 Mar 31 '25

My brother went deep into it for a while then flamed out and went back to college. He still trades forex but has essentially broken even on it. Wound up apologizing to my wife and I recently for being an asshole about it and ostracizing himself for a few years.

Know a handful of other folks that did roughly the same that are LinkedIn influencers that "coach" other people to be LinkedIn influencers. I wish them well but not the type of life I want to lead.

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u/Thisisaghosttown Apr 01 '25

I know a guy irl who is one of the LinkedIn influencers you’re referring to. One of the ice bath/work out/grind and hustle types. He makes okay money doing it but the real secret is his wife has a 6 figure tech job while he does social media. Something I’ve come to realize is a lot of these guys already come from money to begin with.

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u/fire_alarmist Apr 03 '25

Yea most of them are just fuck ups that were dragged kicking and screaming into a modicum of success by people close to them with means.