European Expansion: Eye-Opening, Frustrating, and Possibly Not Worth It - Underperforming employee culture

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let me repeat. Americans have very little assets and very low true home ownership rates. Debt is out of control. And the PP talking about a VP at a bank in DC retiring with millions knows nothing about banking. The vast majority of banking in DC is retail and a VP makes 175k at best. The best paying jobs in banking are in NYC, London, Houston, and Singapore and are in IB and trading.
I feel sad for the PP of the German descent; poverty does a number on the brain. I went to an Ivy and we have a vacation home in Colorado and life is about more than that.

"U.S. Has 3rd Lowest Percentage Of Households That Own Their Homes Without Mortgages"
https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnwake/2023/03/31/us-has-3rd-lowest-percentage-of-households-that-own-their-homes-without-mortgages/

Where do you come up with this stuff? The US rate is higher than France, Uk, Sweden, Germany etc.


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_home_ownership_rate

US has lower household debt than most Western European countries, and “very little assets” also isn’t true.

^The ignorance of this comment is typical of US understanding of wealth. Click the Forbes link from the PP, the US is not doing so hot on true, free and clear home ownership.

According to Bloomberg:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-11-17/amid-high-mortgage-rates-higher-share-of-americans-outright-own-homes

The Share of Americans Who Are Mortgage-Free Is at an All-Time High

Almost 40% of US homeowners own their homes outright as of 2022—many of them baby boomers who refinanced when rates were low.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Out of curiosity, why is your company expanding in Europe? There must be reasons right?

I’ve noticed a lot of European companies buying up American companies. They treat us like we’ve treated the Chinese — a profit center where they can work the crap out of people with fewer regulatory restrictions. (Plus they don’t want the old school standard American things like pension because in europe that’s all done by the government). It’s shocking how many long standing businesses are now owned by European parents. I think there’s some benefit to being able to trade in Europe to having a European parent.

The Europeans ruined Anhueser Busch. It was an amazing place to work before Inbev bought it, a major company run like a small family business where everyone worked hard and played hard together. Inbev destroyed the culture of the company.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:USA was settled and populated by Europe's failures

You are totally wrong.

The USA was settled by Europe's hustlers, go getters and dreamers.

The lazy people without ambitioned stayed behing.

[Anonymous]

OP sounds like a TROLL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Work isn’t the most important thing in life. If you don’t know that now, you’ll likely realize it on your deathbed.

+1.

European work culture has it right.

Not if you want to actually earn money.

Health, education, and pension are covered. If you remove these from your calculation of money needs, you’d probably also be ok with less $.

The French can pay for this by robbing developing countries, they still have influence over vast Africa.
US don’t have robbing object aside from the dollar being pegged and that’s not completely one way street.

When you have no idea what you’re talking about, it is best to keep quiet.

France’s wealth comes from its productivity, its interests in Africa are miniscule as a percent of the economy. It generates its income from shipbuilding, car manufacturing, luxury goods, tourism etc.

French treats non French like dogs. And you think we can’t tell? Haha!

I urge you to look at the news and tell me how Americans are threatening the immigrants right now, and then come back with some more nonsense.

Illegal migrants are not immigrants.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Work isn’t the most important thing in life. If you don’t know that now, you’ll likely realize it on your deathbed.

+1.

European work culture has it right.

Not if you want to actually earn money.

Health, education, and pension are covered. If you remove these from your calculation of money needs, you’d probably also be ok with less $.

The French can pay for this by robbing developing countries, they still have influence over vast Africa.
US don’t have robbing object aside from the dollar being pegged and that’s not completely one way street.

When you have no idea what you’re talking about, it is best to keep quiet.

France’s wealth comes from its productivity, its interests in Africa are miniscule as a percent of the economy. It generates its income from shipbuilding, car manufacturing, luxury goods, tourism etc.

French treats non French like dogs. And you think we can’t tell? Haha!

I urge you to look at the news and tell me how Americans are threatening the immigrants right now, and then come back with some more nonsense.

Illegal migrants are not immigrants.

OK MAGAT moron. Neither were your ancestors there. Get out of here!!!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:USA was settled and populated by Europe's failures

You are totally wrong.

The USA was settled by Europe's hustlers, go getters and dreamers.

The lazy people without ambitioned stayed behing.

Actually most of them were fleeing famine, oppression, persecution and war. The same reasons many people are trying to come here now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Work isn’t the most important thing in life. If you don’t know that now, you’ll likely realize it on your deathbed.

+1.

European work culture has it right.

Not if you want to actually earn money.

Incorrect. My entire family is in Europe and they make really good money. My H works for an international company and the European are getting paid very well. Americans are buried in debt, the net worth here is actually pretty low.

Exactly. Most Americans have been sold this BS that you have to hustle non-stop in order to make money because that's the only thing that matters in life. Europeans in general have a much better sense of balance and their lives on average are much better than those living in 4000 sq ft houses in the US

If you say so. I personally don’t want to work 5 fewer hours a week so I can cram my entire family into a tiny house. Make fun of large American homes all you want, but they are way more comfortable, and pretty much every European would buy a larger home if they could afford it.

But ask them if they'd give up their work life balance for that bigger paycheck and house, and most would say no. Look at the happiest countries in the world. US doesn't even break the T20. Countries with generous leave make the Top20.

Eh those studies are biased and heavily dependent on how people consider happiness and what their standard is.

so, Americans have more sh&+ but they are still unhappy, work too much, and complain a lot compared to those other countries. Got it.

Don't forget fat. And all that sh* is poor quality. Working 10 hours, commuting 2 more so you can buy polyester at Macy's and overpriced diabetes medication. Don't get me started on the quality of the housing.

Have you even known any Europeans personally? Because I have and I don’t get the impression their lifestyle is much, if at all, better. I’ll give you they eat healthier food and there are fewer overweight people, but I myself am not friends with anyone who is grossly overweight and most people I know eat a healthy diet.

My European friends struggle with the same things as Americans and appear to have a lot less disposable income. What stands out the most is that two white collar professionals have a very limited income that doesn’t allow for outsourcing of any kind. So while they may have an extra 2 weeks of vacation than I do, they can’t afford to go out to dinner as a family, spend their extra time cleaning their house, and vacation by traveling to less expensive locations like Spain. My lifestyle looks opulent compared to theirs and almost embarrassing when they ask me questions about it.

It’s also anecdotal but my European friends appear to have a lot less flexibility at work. I get the impression it’s much more clock in/out mentality and the need to meet every rule, but not a common sense approach to work.

A lot of the advantages they have you could also apply here. You could live in a 1,100 square foot home and commute to work via bus or bike. You could shop at farmers markets and buy less stuff. Here you have the choice.

You have no idea what you’re talking about. I am European who grew up there and whose sister still lives in Italy. My sister and her husband work and make a lot less than I do, but they take a couple of vacations every year, have a house, two cars. They also have an amazing health system, much better food, they come home for a couple of hours every day for lunch, spend a lot more time with their child.

No, they don’t hire someone to clean their house, or to mow their lawn, but it’s hardly a justification for the hamper wheel we have here. I lived and worked in both, you make more money here but at a great cost.

Also lived in Western Europe (and at one point Eastern). Agree with this sentiment completely.

The capitalist mindset is very focused on false “choice,” IMHO. And it’s not made anyone any happier or healthier in this country.

But downside they are stealing from their children and grandchildren to fund the lifestyle. Meaning my old boss in Germany with Free Healthcare, a great pension from Work, beach house, an amazing rent controlled house has great cash flow but nearly all his assets die with him.

The Pension stops, rent control apt stops, his beach house is actually a family house owned by MIL which is communal so cant pass to his kid. He only had one kid.

In the US He would own at time of death, his own primary home mortgage free, his beach house mortgage free, had a large amount of 401k/IRA/Savings Account money save due to higher income. Maybe 2-4 cars or boat. The US is focused on Assets. Plus in Europe next to US the percentage of people who own stocks and real estate is way less. The 16 years has been a massive run up in Real Estate and Stock Prices. My relatives in Europe for instance missed the boat on that as well did a lot of my older european co-workers.

A plan old mid level VP in a Bank in US in DC area is retiring at 65 with two million in 401k/IRAs and a 1.5 million dollar home paid off. That's before any other savings. That 3.5 million would be shocking to a European for a bank VP to have. And if that bank VP dropped dead day one of retirement his wife and kids get it. My old boss with his rental and defined pension lives the high life but he is really passing on nothing much to next generation.

So we should all work like machines to plan for our deaths?

yes in fact. My parents did, they worked like dogs in Europe to get to the USA to have a better life for their kids. They would have been better off staying in long run for themselves. But they got here separately, met and raised 4 kids who all have grad degrees, who all got married, had kids and all bought houses and putting all the kids through college. I am only first generation American but I expect by time my kids have kids they will be summering in Hamptons, Skiing in Aspen, Going to Ivy League schools. Maybe be President of the United States or win American Idol or cure cancer who knows. But if my parents never left their country and met there and had us four kids would have set us back several generations.

Which of the 50+ countries did they come from? That makes a huge difference on whether or not they would have been better off.

Well I live in a two million dollar home and have a beach house and new cars in the driveway. Highly doubt my homeless 6th grade educated parents could have got me very far had they stayed in Europe. I say homeless as one was one of eight the other was one of five. Only the oldest son inherits house and rest must get out. My Mom got kicked out of home at 12. My Dad at 14. In the US got HS degrees at night, bought a house, raised four kids how is that possible in Europe it is not.

Instead they get cheap medical, can go on the dole I guess and sit in a pub drinking pints and smoking and dying young like all my uncles did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:USA was settled and populated by Europe's failures

You are totally wrong.

The USA was settled by Europe's hustlers, go getters and dreamers.

The lazy people without ambitioned stayed behing.

Well, there is something to be said for the people who got on the boats. They had a higher tolerance for risk.
They also had nothing to lose. So I think there's a combination of failure due to primogeniture culture and hustle to see what's on the other side.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

"Illegal migrants are not immigrants."

OK MAGAT moron. Neither were your ancestors there. Get out of here!!!!!

Ok, let's get into semantics here.
The fact that these two terms exist suggests there is a difference between the two.
A migrant is a figure that moves around from place to place. Think of how the term is applied to migratory birds that move based on seasons. Migrant people are similar in terms of seasonal job hunting / looking for opportunities. Migrant laborers follow the seasons, e.g. agriculture work. The Dust Bowl migrants were people in search of places that could yield a livelihood. They kept moving thru the dry land in their search. One doesn't think of a migrant person as someone homesteading in place.

An immigrant connotes homesteading in place and setting down roots there.

[Anonymous]

When my Mom came to US back in the early 1950s was different than today. She applied and waited her turn. She saved up from 14-28 by being a live in Nanny in Dublin. When she left she got on QE2 to NY in her best outfit, arrived in NYC by boat with hair, make up, dressed in business suit. Her Grand Aunt had to meet her at the processing center down by Battery Park in NYC. Her Grand Aunt had to sign she was the sponsor and had UNLIMITED liability for any lawsuit or bill or expense related to my Mom. She also had a extremely short time to get full time work. In fact the Grand Aunt had already arranged an interview at Phone company and Restaurant that same week. She got both jobs and picked the Restaurant. Her Grand Aunt had to provide housing for her. Luckily she owned an SRO for women in Manhattan. My mom got a room, paid rent like the rest of single women. No men allowed in building at all. They all ate together dinner as only rooms with no kitchen and bathroom in the hallway. My Mom then saved money, became a US Citizen then got married at 32. There was no sneaking into country. She saved up and waited 14 years to leave country. This is how immigration should work. My Mom brought her younger sister to US after she was a citizen and she had to do it all over again, sign for her, give her housing, get her a job. Then she did same thing got married and had a life.

They did not come here looking for anything but opportunity and married here and had kids here and were American the day the boat landed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:USA was settled and populated by Europe's failures

You are totally wrong.

The USA was settled by Europe's hustlers, go getters and dreamers.

The lazy people without ambitioned stayed behing.

Actually most of them were fleeing famine, oppression, persecution and war. The same reasons many people are trying to come here now.

+1 most of your ancestors came here for economic reasons, same as now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Work isn’t the most important thing in life. If you don’t know that now, you’ll likely realize it on your deathbed.

+1.

European work culture has it right.

Not if you want to actually earn money.

Incorrect. My entire family is in Europe and they make really good money. My H works for an international company and the European are getting paid very well. Americans are buried in debt, the net worth here is actually pretty low.

Exactly. Most Americans have been sold this BS that you have to hustle non-stop in order to make money because that's the only thing that matters in life. Europeans in general have a much better sense of balance and their lives on average are much better than those living in 4000 sq ft houses in the US

If you say so. I personally don’t want to work 5 fewer hours a week so I can cram my entire family into a tiny house. Make fun of large American homes all you want, but they are way more comfortable, and pretty much every European would buy a larger home if they could afford it.

But ask them if they'd give up their work life balance for that bigger paycheck and house, and most would say no. Look at the happiest countries in the world. US doesn't even break the T20. Countries with generous leave make the Top20.

Eh those studies are biased and heavily dependent on how people consider happiness and what their standard is.

so, Americans have more sh&+ but they are still unhappy, work too much, and complain a lot compared to those other countries. Got it.

Don't forget fat. And all that sh* is poor quality. Working 10 hours, commuting 2 more so you can buy polyester at Macy's and overpriced diabetes medication. Don't get me started on the quality of the housing.

Have you even known any Europeans personally? Because I have and I don’t get the impression their lifestyle is much, if at all, better. I’ll give you they eat healthier food and there are fewer overweight people, but I myself am not friends with anyone who is grossly overweight and most people I know eat a healthy diet.

My European friends struggle with the same things as Americans and appear to have a lot less disposable income. What stands out the most is that two white collar professionals have a very limited income that doesn’t allow for outsourcing of any kind. So while they may have an extra 2 weeks of vacation than I do, they can’t afford to go out to dinner as a family, spend their extra time cleaning their house, and vacation by traveling to less expensive locations like Spain. My lifestyle looks opulent compared to theirs and almost embarrassing when they ask me questions about it.

It’s also anecdotal but my European friends appear to have a lot less flexibility at work. I get the impression it’s much more clock in/out mentality and the need to meet every rule, but not a common sense approach to work.

A lot of the advantages they have you could also apply here. You could live in a 1,100 square foot home and commute to work via bus or bike. You could shop at farmers markets and buy less stuff. Here you have the choice.

You have no idea what you’re talking about. I am European who grew up there and whose sister still lives in Italy. My sister and her husband work and make a lot less than I do, but they take a couple of vacations every year, have a house, two cars. They also have an amazing health system, much better food, they come home for a couple of hours every day for lunch, spend a lot more time with their child.

No, they don’t hire someone to clean their house, or to mow their lawn, but it’s hardly a justification for the hamper wheel we have here. I lived and worked in both, you make more money here but at a great cost.

Also lived in Western Europe (and at one point Eastern). Agree with this sentiment completely.

The capitalist mindset is very focused on false “choice,” IMHO. And it’s not made anyone any happier or healthier in this country.

But downside they are stealing from their children and grandchildren to fund the lifestyle. Meaning my old boss in Germany with Free Healthcare, a great pension from Work, beach house, an amazing rent controlled house has great cash flow but nearly all his assets die with him.

The Pension stops, rent control apt stops, his beach house is actually a family house owned by MIL which is communal so cant pass to his kid. He only had one kid.

In the US He would own at time of death, his own primary home mortgage free, his beach house mortgage free, had a large amount of 401k/IRA/Savings Account money save due to higher income. Maybe 2-4 cars or boat. The US is focused on Assets. Plus in Europe next to US the percentage of people who own stocks and real estate is way less. The 16 years has been a massive run up in Real Estate and Stock Prices. My relatives in Europe for instance missed the boat on that as well did a lot of my older european co-workers.

A plan old mid level VP in a Bank in US in DC area is retiring at 65 with two million in 401k/IRAs and a 1.5 million dollar home paid off. That's before any other savings. That 3.5 million would be shocking to a European for a bank VP to have. And if that bank VP dropped dead day one of retirement his wife and kids get it. My old boss with his rental and defined pension lives the high life but he is really passing on nothing much to next generation.

So we should all work like machines to plan for our deaths?

yes in fact. My parents did, they worked like dogs in Europe to get to the USA to have a better life for their kids. They would have been better off staying in long run for themselves. But they got here separately, met and raised 4 kids who all have grad degrees, who all got married, had kids and all bought houses and putting all the kids through college. I am only first generation American but I expect by time my kids have kids they will be summering in Hamptons, Skiing in Aspen, Going to Ivy League schools. Maybe be President of the United States or win American Idol or cure cancer who knows. But if my parents never left their country and met there and had us four kids would have set us back several generations.

Which of the 50+ countries did they come from? That makes a huge difference on whether or not they would have been better off.

Well I live in a two million dollar home and have a beach house and new cars in the driveway. Highly doubt my homeless 6th grade educated parents could have got me very far had they stayed in Europe. I say homeless as one was one of eight the other was one of five. Only the oldest son inherits house and rest must get out. My Mom got kicked out of home at 12. My Dad at 14. In the US got HS degrees at night, bought a house, raised four kids how is that possible in Europe it is not.

Instead they get cheap medical, can go on the dole I guess and sit in a pub drinking pints and smoking and dying young like all my uncles did.

The average life expectancy of an American is lower than in western Europe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:USA was settled and populated by Europe's failures

You are totally wrong.

The USA was settled by Europe's hustlers, go getters and dreamers.

The lazy people without ambitioned stayed behing.

Well, there is something to be said for the people who got on the boats. They had a higher tolerance for risk.
They also had nothing to lose. So I think there's a combination of failure due to primogeniture culture and hustle to see what's on the other side.

There was probably often a higher level of risk if they stayed in many of those countries. Look at the Irish. They didn’t come here to hustle. They were dying and it was a matter of survival.

Same across much of the Continent. Russian pogroms, conscription into armies, houses and livelihoods being destroyed. Not much of a choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

"Illegal migrants are not immigrants."

OK MAGAT moron. Neither were your ancestors there. Get out of here!!!!!

Ok, let's get into semantics here.
The fact that these two terms exist suggests there is a difference between the two.
A migrant is a figure that moves around from place to place. Think of how the term is applied to migratory birds that move based on seasons. Migrant people are similar in terms of seasonal job hunting / looking for opportunities. Migrant laborers follow the seasons, e.g. agriculture work. The Dust Bowl migrants were people in search of places that could yield a livelihood. They kept moving thru the dry land in their search. One doesn't think of a migrant person as someone homesteading in place.

An immigrant connotes homesteading in place and setting down roots there.

I love how you think you said something smart. You did not. They are going into schools, and waiting around restaurants and kidnapping people you idiot,