Why would people want to be thought of as rich?

Question

I understand why people would want to BE rich, but that's not what I'm asking. Why is it considered "cool" to be rich? Why would someone pretend to be rich when they're not?

Answer 1

People either WANT to be rich, and are trying to put themselves in the correct frame of mind, or are simply feel "perception is reality."  For instance, I know a man who ignored his elderly mother while she was sick.  Then when she passed away, he began telling stories about how close they were; what a devoted son he was, etc.  He's trying to adjust reality to suit himself.  Same with people pretending to be rich.

Answer 2

Pathogen;

  We as people act because of expected consequences. If a person appears convincingly rich, many will treat them with the expectations that that person will react as would a person who is really rich and influential.  Maybe we would be more careful with them if we are a customer service rep. Maybe we will be more likely to buy lunch because we feel they will cover lunch later. Maybe their good graces will put us into their social sphere and lead to some economic payoff.  Maybe if we are a BMW sales rep, we rightly suspect our attention to the seemingly wealthy individual is more likely to produce a sale than focusing on the folks who drive up in a 1982 Buick Skylark. Yes, we might be wrong but we don't always have unlimited resources to treat everyone the same. Our commission relies on our ability to choose between which customer to spend key time with. "WHERE ARE YOU? THERE ARE FIVE CUSTOMERS ON THE SALES FLOOR!"... who's it going to be?

  Another example: In negotiations in any sphere it is an advantage to appear more powerful than you really are in that it raises your "BATNA" in the others' eyes, which makes them take a less aggressive negotiating position because they feel it is fruitless to try for more.

I'm not discounting being genuine. It's just that the payoff from being genuine is not as immediate, which is why we reinforce it in friends and partners. (Unfortunately some of them even pretend to be genuine) While we should treat all people as they really are, we don't have time or resources to do complete background checks on everyone we meet.  Some opportunists benefit from these shortcuts (stereotypes?) we take. Pretending to be rich is one way to do it.

If you are rich, one of your biggest problems is finding people aren't merely trying to be thought of as genuine for the same reasons.

Peace and Best Regards All!

Answer 3

Society and culture. Look at how many times we have seen photos of Lohan, Spears, Jolie, Oprah, Trump plastered in the news. They are people who are all rich (and famous). Programs on TV show just how luxurious of a house you can have when you are wealthy. I think MTV has/had a show called "cribs" where you get to see into the exciting life of those who can afford to have a hot tub that fits 15 people.

How about those Gucci or Coach purses? Some teenagers want to show off that label to others so they know they are in a certain "class" in society.

Truthfully there is only a small percentage of the society that is wealthy enough to have all of those luxuries. More is made up of the middle class, who live a comfortable life, but still not wealthy enough to purchase those large luxuries. Then you have the poor class who struggle just for basic survival (food, clothing, and housing). I

It's considered "cool" because our society and media have over emphasized the rich and famous and what freedoms and luxuries they have in life. They have it and their wealthy, so they must be "cool" to be plastered on TV’s, internet, books, magazines, posters, billboards, clothing and everything else under the sun. This is the same reason why someone would give the impression they are wealthy-- because society has put it on a pedestal, so they wish to be viewed as part of that "class".

Personally, I do not think it is "cool", it is what it is.

Added: Yes, the reasoning behind their motives I think is ignorance. They are trying to be something they are not... or should I say acquiring something they do not have. If a person has acceptance in who they are and what they have, they should not feel the need to acquire money to "boast" that or be part of a certain class. It's just like I have a vehicle, but maybe not the $75,000 vehicle my neighbor has in his driveway. Both vehicles will get us where we want to go and sure his may have more bells and whistles, but I am just fine with mine because I don't feel the "need" to spend a huge amount of money on something that in the end is a material posession. I can bet you though he did not spend $50,000 more on a vehicle because it "ran" better then mine-- it's all about class and acceptance.

Answer 4

mayby there trying to lull you into a false sense of security

Answer 5

maybe people consider it a position of power or that being rich puts them "higher" then others. if someone is not rich and they are pretending to be it might be to cover up the fact that their either poor or really want to be rich but aren't.

Answer 6

Because in their mentality, money=power. They feel they will get treated better, recieve special treatment, and be above others if people think they are rich.

Answer 7

capitalism=consumerism.  The "American Dream" is an opportunity for anybody to go out and acheive financial success but honestly, we don't all have the resources available to see that dream become reality.  Instead, we stuff our wallets w/visas, mastercards, discovers, etc.  We need to lease brand new cars, purchase brand-name products so we can show ourselves off to others and pretend that we have acheived the "American Dream" when in reality, most of us are in financial debt.