It's not attractive to gloat.
And there is little more obnoxious than flaunting how wealthy you are.
Particularly if you aren't even that wealthy to begin with.
Indeed, perhaps to make themselves feel more powerful and important than they actually are, many people will try and show off how much money they have in what they wear, eat, live in, and drive.
However, not everyone is so easily fooled, as those in the know can detect a charlatan when they see one.
Redditor aloe_veracity16 was eager to hear the dead giveaways that someone might not be as wealthy as they appear, leading them to ask:
"What’s a dead giveaway that someone is not actually as wealthy as they claim?"
Stating The Obvious...
"When they constantly talk about how wealthy they are."
"A genius doesn't need to tell you they are smart."
"An athlete doesn't need to tell you they are fit."
"And a rich person shouldn't need to tell you they are wealthy."- TigLyon
Attracting Unwanted Attention...
"90% of the wealthy shut the f**k about it, because they learn once they start making good money everyone wants a piece."
"Talking about it constantly = broke AF."- Vladtehwood
Simply By Doing It...
"Making the claim at all is a dead giveaway."- Starfox41
In Plain Sight...
"People who actually ARE wealthy mostly try to hide it."- Matt7738
"Living In A Material World..."
"I'm not well-versed in judging someone's wealth, but I do notice that the fake rich only look rich on social media and try their hardest to go to popular locations celebrities post."
"I know a couple of friends of friends who took out a loan just to keep up the facade that they're all in on the latest iPhones and wearables."
"They built a persona of being a rich kid, so now they have to stay the course."- anima99
Flaunt Modesty, Not Wealth...
"As a person which knows many very rich people."
"I can guarantee that not a single one of them wants to be known as rich."- CompetitivePause9033
Schitts Creek Flirt GIF by CBC
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We Heard You The First Time!!!
"When they repeatedly and adamantly tell you how wealthy they are."- Famous_Bit_5119·
Experiences Over Stuff!
"I feel like actual rich people prioritize vacations/travel, buying their kids cars, paying for their kids/grandkids tuition."
"They don’t spend money on flashy or luxury stuff as much."- Klesea
Summer Time GIF by Merge Mansion
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All In The Editing...
"Ever notice how those jet setting influencers that post their pictures out of the airplane window are behind the wing?"
"They're in coach."
"The picture in business is where they stopped to pose on the way through."- Turbulent-Ask-2633
Pack Light...
"Private Jet pilot friend of mine said for the slightly wealthy they bring loads of luggage."
"The ultra rich bring a day bag they have enough money to buy clothes when they get there or already have clothes waiting on them."- hadmeatgotmilk
The Less Said...
"I never met a wealthy person that talks about it."
"They don't need to."- 181Eclipse·
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"See The Pyramid [SCHEMES!] Along The Way..."
"They make a goofy advertisement for some book or course that 'will help you get rich too!'"
"If they were actually rich, they would be on some tropical beach engaging in whatever vices they enjoy most-not hocking some get-rich-quick scheme."- illegalopinion3
All About The Simple Things...
"My dad's entire job is managing millionaire / billionaire philanthropy accounts, so I’ve grown up surrounded by some of the wealthiest people in the country."
"And I never knew until I got older how these 'Mr. Smith' and 'Ms. Jones' people that I’d grown up hanging out with were anything above upper middle class."
"Normal clothes, modest homes, very down to earth and funny people."
"Big wealth, and especially old wealth, is quiet wealth."- Travel_and_Tea·
Anything But Proud...
"I have a family member who insists she and her husband are upper middle class."
"She isn’t."
"She’s rich (8 figures), but it hurts her in some sort of primal way to acknowledge that."
"Her adult brother is also wealthy, although not as much as his sister."
"Likely also 8 figures."
"He insists he’s blue collar and middle class."
"There’s something in their upbringing that makes them ashamed of having 'made it' financially."- strangled_spaghetti
Blue Collar Work GIF by Pudgy Penguins
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People will try to come off as wealthier than they are for a multitude of reasons.
But just like any facade, keeping it up eventually becomes untenable.
This is why it's always most important to be grateful for the things you have, rather than flaunt what you wish you had.
Redditor AndyBales wanted to discuss the things people have to be lying about loving, so they asked everyone:
"What are you convinced people are pretending to enjoy?"
I pretend to like politics. It's exhausting.
Shut Up
Season 4 Nbc GIF by The Good PlaceGiphy"Podcasts where the hosts just laugh at everything they/other hosts/guests say. Nothing is that funny for that long, dude."
TheeMost313
It's Addictive
"Having constant drama at work, in friend groups, and elsewhere really can't be all that exciting... can it? If I have one friend causing me too much drama I usually avoid it like it's the plague."
Syrup_Slurper
"Drama is addictive. I used to need constant drama, and it was because my childhood was so chaotic that it literally rewired my brain to be uncomfortable without it. It's an actual illness. I needed years of therapy to become stable, and I'm still not done."
gcitt
Time to Edit
"3 hour long church services. Jesus gave the sermon on the mound in like 5 minutes. Get over your ego pastor!"
Elegant_Development3
"I grew up going to Catholic mass. 30-45 minutes, then it's off to get donuts. The long masses are on holidays, and usually there's fire or baptisms involved, so we're filling that time with something. What do people even do at day long services? Is the pastor really talking the whole time??"
gcitt
"One of my favorite details in the Bible is that at least one of Peter's sermons (Acts 10:44) was cut short by the Holy Spirit showing up while he was still talking, effectively ending the sermon. God apparently had decided that that was enough."
KatanaDelNacht
Fill in the spaces...
"Bars and restaurants with loud music and terrible acoustics. What’s the point in being social in a place where they’re trying to make it hard for you to socialize?"
auximines_minotaur
"Someone explained this once and it made a lot of sense so I'm gonna try, but it'll most likely be shi**y: Loud music fills in awkward silences and covers up social faux paus in an environment where mixing and mingling is encouraged."
"It helps facilitate you hooking up with Jenny because she doesn't realize you're a terrible conversationalist since the music covers it up."
Dangerous--D
Personality Issues
Schitts Creek Comedy GIF by CBCGiphy"Maintaining their jobs as YouTube, TikTok, Instagram personalities."
"I briefly had mild success with a channel on YT 10 years ago and it was nowhere near the level things are now. And I see the production value and the regularity of some of the content. And I just think how much pressure these folks feel to feed the machine or perish."
ThingCalledLight
Oh the Internet celebrity types... no thanks.
Those Shows
Americas Got Talent No GIF by Got Talent GlobalGiphy"American talent shows like quite literally 'America’s got talent,' and 'American Idol.' Who the hell are these shows catered to? The dialogue is cheesy, idiotic, and fake as hell and the structure doesn’t make sense."
"Back then it had categories and the contestants would compete against their own groups which at least made it somewhat interesting. Now? Anything f**king goes, and you could have a wanna-be jabawacky dance group of about 20 people vs little Timmy playing a harmonica with his a**hole. It makes no damn sense."
Chaacho08
Stay Home
"LinkedIn."
mushroomyakuza
"Accurate. It's like an office party you don't want to attend but need to so you can 'network.'"
aldwinligaya
"So many times I've been in my office since coming back from lockdown and I've wanted to say 'look can we cut the office chat and if I ask you how your life is going, that you give me a honest answer?'"
"LinkedIn takes the vacuous nature of being in an office and multiplies it by 10. The virtue signalling people do on there just to feign the value they think they offer to the world is a issue that people have allowed to go on wayyyy too long on social media."
finger_milk
So Fake
"Trying to make everything Instagram ready. I've fallen in that trap before, deleted everything but Reddit."
"I'm much happier now living in the moment, watching my kids play instead of taking photos of them, eating my food instead of standing above it trying to take a picture in a crowded restaurant."
"Once you stop feeding your ego, a lot of worry stops with it."
iupvoteoddnumbers
Not So Live
"Live action remakes."
ttaborek
"The thing that I specifically don’t like is when the 'live action' remake is really a CGI remake, but they won’t just acknowledge that it’s still animation. You want to remake the hand-drawn animated Lion King movie with a computer animated Lion King movie? I don’t care to watch that, but fine, go ahead. But don’t call it 'live action.'"
LaughDull967
"What's not to love of about a movie that's longer, has less expression, changes the original ending and message, features actors that can't really sing, and only exists to remind you of a better film that came out 25 years earlier?"
The_Presitator
I'll Sit
Episode 1 Waiting In Line GIF by The SimpsonsGiphy"Anything that requires an insane amount of waiting in line. Amusement parks, brunches at fancy places, night clubs, etc."
"Like, you're engaging in an a barrier to make the 'thing' you want seem worthwhile."
"I dunno, I despise lines."
zomgitsduke
I don't do lines anymore. That is all.
What would you add to this list? Let us know in the comments below.
Redditor singularlegion wanted everyone to discuss all of the fake facts being masked as science. So they asked everyone:
"What is an example of modern day pseudoscience?"
I always say prayer. Prayer does NOT heal all. Just my opinion.
No Cures
I Love You Aloha GIF by HuMandalasGiphy"Homeopathy."
StrammerKerlElf
"If their 'science' worked the way they say it does, it would mean seawater would be the most powerful anti-every-disease medicine to exist."
untakenu
Heinous
"A lot of bestselling popular psychology. Dr Phil comes to mind."
Ghargamel
"When he sits those people on stage and accuses them of heinous crimes thanks to a lie detector test are the worst. They taught us in my intro to psychology course that those were 100% fake so a man with a phd should know better."
"Dr Oz is 2nd on the list."
reverendgrebo
Bullocks
"The Church of Scientology's practice of Dianetics."
AWulfrunian
"I have been reading Dianetics recently Man, Hubbard was good at waffle. Mixing genuine science with utter bollocks to baffle a layman like myself. It is fascinating."
"I remember when I was a teenager my stoner mate told me about this book called Dianetics. I asked is it a good read? He said you can live your life by it, which terrified me."
"Reading it now i see how dangerous it truly is."
"The allure of being able to cure all ailments - such as arthritis, poor eyesight, poor hearing and cancer etc by this method of ridding the body of these engrams (memory fragments) via auditing for increasingly extortionate amounts of money while ignoring genuine medicines that could really help you."
"I have to say it is not an easy read but it has been funny and interesting."
RodMunch85
Evil
"Those abhorrent quacks who target cancer patients, robbing thousands of dollars from these vulnerable people, many of whom end up dying. I know of one case, where a mother of two young children got hooked by one such charlatan, who convinced her to ditch chemotherapy in favour of expensive woo crap."
"Her cancer was caught early enough to be quite treatable with chemotherapy, but she believed that didn’t need it. Her husband begged her many times to stop listening to that a**hole, to no avail. She ended up dying, leaving behind a devastated husband and two little ones."
BlackCaaaaat
Proof Of?
sci-fi test GIFGiphy"Polygraphs."
CriticalSherbet235
"Never ever take a polygraph, even if you are innocent. And don’t assume that because someone refuses a polygraph that they are guilty."
xandrenia
Can we ever really tell if someone is lying? Scientifically I mean.
Oh Gwen...
Wes Anderson Indie GIF by Coolidge Corner TheatreGiphy"Anything on goop."
graeuk
I don't know, the goop hand soap is pretty good. It is about the best thing I have found for roofing tar. Although it has been around a lot longer than the Gwyneth Paltrow brand so it's probably not what you are referring to."
that_guy_scott1
Full Harm
"The 'harmful' effects of 5G. My ex would not let me get 5G because it would 'cause cancer.'"
Agitated_Use_6710
"I had a substitute teacher in 2020 who ignored the class plan left by our regular teacher to complain about 5G causing cancer. She spent over an hour going on about it and would send kids out for questioning her. Thankfully we were old enough to know she was full of crap."
"My wife and her sisters (who are physicians with M.D.s from reputable universities) believe that cell phones increase the risk of brain cancer even though the incidence of brain cancer has remained flat over the past 30 years of the cell phone revolution."
"Proof that just because you have a fancy degree doesn't mean you deserve it."
KonkiDoc
Healing
"Crystal healing."
Soicolist
"I used to work with someone who constantly called out sick, like 4 times in 10 days once, and she was trying to talk to me about the 'healing power' of crystals. It took everything I had in me not to say you might want to get a refund on yours."
SailorVenus23
Certain Traits
"MBTI personality tests."
"As far as psychometrics goes, the inventory has been proven consistent and effective at predicting the personality traits it measures."
"However, the company that trademarks/administers/makes the test markets it as 'How to organize your employees for max profitability,' and 'Horoscopes for people who think they're smarter than Horoscope people.'"
"So it's real science, but most of the funny tiktoks or memes you see about it are about as indicative as your zodiac sign."
Xcelentei
The High
Area 51 Smoke GIF by JustinGiphy"That 'cannabis cures everything' movement."
I-Killed-JR
"I’ll never forget making eye contact with my professor and sharing a silent 'wtf' with him as the girl at the end of my table started yelling about how pot cures cancer."
an_ineffable_plan
Well, these are definitely some things to stay wary about.
Remember, if you find a claim suspect, do the research. Ask a reputable expert. Use the scientific method. And at all costs, avoid crackpots.
Do you have anything to add? Let us know in the comments below.
Curious to hear from strangers online about their social lives, Redditor VexAndStuff asked:
"When did you realize your 'friends' were actually fake friends?"
Those who deliberately isolate you are not exactly the kinds of people you want in your circle to begin with.
Being Played
"Went to pick up my xbox 360 a friend was borrowing, and our whole group of friends were there. They had spent the entire day playing games with snacks and pizza, and I had not been invited. And now I was in the situation of being the douche who takes the ball home and ruins the fun for everyone. I took my xbox and never spoke to anyone in that group again."
– zenchemin
Selective Group Chat
"Back in my first year of college, I used to have a group of friends (like 7 dudes with me included). We always hang out together and we're used to have this 'group chat' where we discuss about anything from class subjects to random things. After a year, I noticed that one of the guys (let's just call him Randy) keeps getting excluded; Not invited/informed to group hangout while they're talking smack behind his back. And the 'unofficial leader' of the group actually made a whole new group chat, inviting everyone (myself included) except Randy without his knowledge."
"I know what it feels to be left out, I experienced that in Middle school and it's really awful. I stopped hanging out with them and I starts hanging out with Randy. He's quite eccentric but a very good person at heart. We've been friends for more than 6 years, and he still got my back"
– SpectreAmazing
One-Sided
"When I returned to work after being off for 3 months due to an injury and I practically begged them to go grab a beer and do pub trivia but all 3 of them passed because they had plans. Well it turns out their plans were to go grab a beer and do pub trivia... Without me. Found out through social media. Deleted it shortly afterwards."
"I've been a lot less depressed about things since I've deleted social media and stopped looking at them as friends and just as work acquaintances. It took that for me to realize that the 'friendships' were really one-sided and I'm better off not pursuing anything other than being cordial at work."
– iaminfamy
People who take advantage of you under the guise of being friends are the ones to watch out for.
Friendship Of Convenience
"When I slowly realized I was only around for chores and errands. Rides to the airport, pick up furniture, help move. Anything social always resulted in either last minute cancellations, showing up 45 minutes late and bolting after 10 minutes. I thought they were busy, but no."
– gelatinous_poot
The Underappreciated Babysitter
"When I was babysitting her kids things were going great. We would hangout all the time...have movie nights and just talk and chill. But the second she no longer needed a babysitter was the second I got kicked to the curb. No explanation...not even a text back. Some people will act like your best friend until they no longer need you. Their loss though."
– Idgiethreadgoode86
A Cringey Greeting
"Yep, this happened to me, but more generally. Had a 'friend' who would only contact me when she needed something, but she was pretty sly about it in the beginning (inviting me over to hang and then bringing up the favor organically, like oh we don't have anyone to watch the dog next weekend, or I want to move this bed but it's so heavy, etc). After a while it got more egregious and obvious - only calling to ask to use my truck or dog sit. I'd politely say I wasn't available and eventually she stopped calling. She still texts every now and then to 'catch up' (she tried that a few times in the past and it was always followed by a request) despite my no longer responding. To this day I cringe when someone says 'Hi Friend!', her freakin catchphrase."
– fancy_marmot
Something Came Up
"Whenever we were supposed to hang out something came up and that something was hanging out with other mutual 'friends.'"
–Ashii_nix
Looking For Better Options
"Yes! My 'best friend' in high school used to do this to me all the time. On Wednesday, I’d ask if she wanted to see a movie Friday night. She’d always say maybe, if I can get out of doing whatever with my parents. Come Monday I’d hear her talking about how great the movie was. Apparently, last minute her parents said she didn’t have to go and miraculously a group of people called right then and asked her to see the same movie. She’d always say 'I figured you made other plans' when I confronted her about it. In reality, she’d just wait to see what the better option was and pick on Friday. God that pissed me off."
– gonewildecat
A technical malfunction revealed the real status of friendships.
Out Of Touch
"When my phone got stolen and I lost their phone numbers. Mine stayed the same, but we just never talked again."
– maddallena
Abandoned And Forgotten
"When my Apple account got compromised and I lost my backup when I changed phones I lost all of my numbers. I haven’t gotten a text or call from any of my friends since. That was 5 years ago."
– HereComesTheVroom
Social Downgrade
"When I traded in my truck for a smaller more eco friendly vehicle. Communication plummeted now that i can’t haul furniture around, assist with moving as much, dispose of garbage.. etc."
– mandox1
Messy Divorce
"I flew out to support a friend going through a messy divorce. While I was there, she left me in the apartment to meet up with her boyfriend that I didn't know about. He turned out to have just been released from prison for manslaughter. Once she told me that, I told her that I didn't want to spend time with him, especially considering the circumstances of my visit."
"The next night, I woke up in the middle of the night to find him in the living room. She said that she thought it wouldn't matter since I was asleep. The next day, she invited her soon-to-be ex-husband over without telling me and then asked me to meditate their conversation once he got there. That conversation turned ugly fast, and she ended up storming out. He broke down and asked if I thought it was salvageable, and I told him that she had already moved on. Maybe not the best idea on my part, but at that point, she had shown me how vile of a person she is."
bertholamew
"My wife and I separated and she got the majority of our friends. Almost nobody checked in on me to see how I was doing."
"Then we decided to work it out and stay together and now there's a whole list of people's birthdays I don't have to remember."
equality-_-7-2521·
Birthday Woes
"The group made plans to meet and hang out. I was getting ready in the salon. A couple of friends had to back out for some reason. The other friend then made excuses of his own, and I could tell. I tried cajoling him and offer ways for him to go but he basically decided to cancel the entire group meet up."
"It was my birthday."
TeaTreeTreatly·
Silver Linings
"Same thing happened to me on my 21st birthday- all my "friends" made up excuses why they couldn't come. Then the 3 friends that did met some guys and we went back to their house and awkwardly sat around."
"Happened again for my 25th birthday- I had moved across the country and found new friends, but they all bailed at the last minute. I called my roommate at the time who came out when he got off work, and he called some of his friends who came out and I had the best night ever. Those guys are now my real friends, and I married that roommate."
fatchancefatpants
I couldn't help but realize while reading the thread that there must be a lot of people in my life I mutually acknowledge as friends but aren't really there for me when I need them.
However, that doesn't make me want to visit all my socials and start cleaning house.
All I really need are a handful of people I can call actual friends who don't get offended after a long absence. The ones I practically recognize as family to me are the ones where we can pick up where we left off as if no time had passed–even if it's been a significantly long time.
People come and go out of our lives. Friendships fade; we drift apart. It's a disheartening fact of life, but as long as you have that one person who will unconditionally have your back, that's all that really matters.
That also doesn't mean others in your periphery haven't impacted your life in some small way. You should hang onto those acquaintances who genuinely like you as well.
It just never hurts to check up on them every once in a while.