Does the UK begrudge success?

How do you define ambition? If your ambition (for want of a better word) is to be a medic, you work hard to do so but the salary has stagnated for the last 13 years, how is this lack of financial achievement your fault? Do we not need medical staff, teachers, Architects, engineers, retail workers, hospitality staff etc. As jobs that don't traditionally have a six figure salary associated with them appear not to be of any value to you?

My own parents themselves forgave holidays, nice clothes etc to send their kids to private schools

Totally mising the point of this thread, but the past tense of forego is forewent and not forgave. The past participle is foregone.

I'll get my coat. Sorry.

I haven't fulfilled my potential but I'm mostly happy with my achievements, with the odd pang when I see people more ambitious people celebrate big wins in their careers.

However, what does annoy me is to the extent we are expected to celebrate the winners. Maybe this is specific to my company, but we are expected to know about them and be pleased for the big hitters. I make all the right noises but I always do think why is this relevant to me, just let me do my job.

Mumsnetters*

Yes and particularly Mumsnet Tera hate successful people. How dare people earn six figures etc etc. so much jealousy. We should be encouraging higher pay not dragging people down. If someone has worked hard to get into that kind of role and you havent, it's not their fault is if love...

The unambitious begrudge success. Unfortunately there are many unambitious people in the UK

Yep, I know where you are coming from. I am an immigrant from a former communist eastern block country, came to UK when I was 20 with just $100. Got a job in a hotel as a chambermaid, lived in a rented room and studied for a professional qualification in the evenings/ weekends. Used Holidays to study and sit exams, for 4 years in a row ! Got a job in the profession I studied for, advanced in my career.
Had DS, went back to work when he was 8 months, worked hard, got promoted and now I am doing very well in said career. I am managing a team.
Sent DS to private school . I am not rich at all but comfortable.
Yes, sadly I have come across resentment and bitterness regarding the private school choice . But I do have thick skin. I worked super hard to get here, no help from parents, state, anybody and this is how I choose to spend my money. At least my son can have an easier ride .
I wish people who like to preach can live in a former communist country for a few months.
I am forever grateful to UK for the opportunity to progress and become who I am, the opportunity is there, you just need to grab it with both hands.

@candyisdandybutliquorisquicker wow, what a great story. Well done, you must be a great inspiration and role model to your kids.

No, as long as their success wasn't brought about by the exploitation of others. For example a rich company boss paying the lowest wage they legally have to

Just because someone went to a private school doesn’t make them privileged. Only child of a friend I know who attended lived in appalling living conditions. He’s 40 now and my god yes this has affected his whole life. Just because you went to private school OP doesn’t make you privileged and anyone who blindly thinks it does needs to give their head a wobble

Talk about not 'take'

So wealth is not income, what about the assets you have acquired that have increasing value without you doing anything?

I have a very close family member who has achieved the same as you in the same job, they always say how 'lucky' they are despite all the hours studying. My DH and I studied very hard, long long hours to become an Architect in his case, he is a Director in a London practice but we happen to be early to mid 40s, we have been helped with our tiny house as no other way to obtain one. All our friends are the same, we are the lucky ones, we are privileged, it is mythical nonsense to take about success in this way.

Hats of to you! What I want to know is who is making you take on the label of being 'privileged'? 🤯

Does the UK begrudge success?
Yes. It seems to be a race to the bottom when comparing to someone who has done well for themselves.

You tend to get well I work hard too but am on minimum wage, as if the self investment, sacrifice, skill level and responsibility of a retail worker is the same as a doctor therefore how dare doctors want to be paid more

Yes, people on minimum wage work hard too. And many of them are also highly qualified individuals who, for whatever reason, are not able to work on ‘better’ jobs due to personal circumstance or just never having got a break.

But mainly what people on higher wages seem to ignore is just how essential lower paid workers are to an overall team - you need minimum wage cleaners in hospitals, as well as admin assistants and nursing assistants just as much as you need the surgeons. We all deserve respect, wherever we are in the hierarchy and that is sadly lacking in our society as a whole.

Yes, of course, that is absolutely the reason this country struggles with productivity because the British are so resentful of success. Did the British put that resentment on hold, park that cultural affliction, post second world war when Britain's economy grew as a result of manufacturing, coincidentally when wealth inequality was at it's lowest? Interesting how we moved to a Finance based economy 1980's onwards, Wealth inequality to date is the worst it has ever been and people are a bit perturbed by this, asking questions as to whether the wealthy could just be a little less wealthy and the rest of us could get a fairer cut of the cake but of course it is all down to the British crabbiness!🙄

@Newbutoldfather The scale of QE in response to COVID dwarves that in response to the bank bailout. There is no financial cost of a government guarantee unless it is triggered.

Me.

I was born in a council house in NW England; my parents were teenagers when my older brother was born. Both left school at fourteen and worked in factories, etc. Manual labor.

I was academically very strong, if not gifted, and it was made very clear to me from an early age that education was my "out". We couldn't afford private school but my state school was across town and the "posh" one; solidly middle class. I was aware of our relative lack of money/standing.

I didn't want a life like that so I worked by arse off to get a good degree and onto a Big Four graduate scheme. I've since gone into industry, graduated from a US law school and I'm one of the mythical "Mumsnet High Earners"

I've earned every single penny of that and yes, sometimes I cringe at the notion that I'm privileged. To me, privilege is by definition "unearned". My current standard has been earned through hours upon hours (upon hours) of hard work. Prepping for exams after a 10-hour work day; putting a newborn down and then finishing a 15-page brief.

Recently I took my kids on a "nostalgia" tour and they were shocked, shall we say, to see how humble my beginnings were. Now these kids are privileged! They have not earned anything 😄 but me - nope. Years of burning the midnight oil.

agree with this.

as another poster stated, I’m sure the OP @Viohh would rather have grown up with loving parents who didn’t drag her across the floor by her hair and her Mum so stressed she banged her own head on the wall than being made to feel oh so grateful for the sacrifices her parents chose to make for a private education. There is so much more to a happy, successful life than attending a private school. Not being traumatized by your own parents abuse for one. I personally don’t call that ‘privileged’.

@Teddleshon ,

That 140 billion is a very charitable estimate. It assumes because the UK governments explicit and implicit guarantee of both banks’ equities and, more importantly, debt, wasn’t drawn upon, it was ‘free’.

In addition, it takes no account of the inflation pumped into the system via QE.

Sounds like there was only one facet of OP's life that was financially priviliged though (the private education).

That doesn't mean the rest of her childhood was financially priviliged. OP says they grew up in a cramped flat, for instance.

Yes resentment over the success of others is a negative trait of British culture. It’s crabs in a barrel mentality, dragging people down.

If you come from average circumstances and start doing a bit ‘too’ well, there will be people who’ll make it their mission to pull you back down to your ‘place. This is why the country struggles with innovation and productivity.

@Alcyoneus ,

The vast majority of QE and borrowing was caused by the 2008 banking crisis, not COVID.

As I linked to above, the COVID furlough scheme cost about 7% of the bank bailout.

I think you are definitely biased in your ‘understanding’ of economics.

The cost of the bank bailout in 2008 in the UK was less than £140bn and most of this has already been recouped (still more to come via RBS listing). A enormous sum of money but a fraction of the cost of furlough / covid.

On the contrary, it's very much yours - take a look at some of the other posts for help on how wrong you are about this issue.