Why is "striver" an insult?

[Anonymous]

Isn't it a good thing to want to better yourself and your children?

[Anonymous]

Most people want personal improvement, but that’s not what a striver means.

A striver is someone who wants to be validated by others/peers due to financial gains.

[Anonymous]

I've got to be honest here, I've literally never heard of it used as an insult.

[Anonymous]

I'm not very familiar with the word as an insult, but it might be what you'd call someone who is interested in achieving more simply for appearances and social status rather than just trying to better themselves. I've met many people like that (as we all have) and they are annoying as crap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Isn't it a good thing to want to better yourself and your children?

Absolutely, but you're assuming people are using the word as it appears in the dictionary. In common use, it refers to the hyper-ambitious, money-grubbing, status-conscious, helicopter parent types that are so, so common around here.

"Grasping" would be a better term if you want to stick to dictionary definitions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've got to be honest here, I've literally never heard of it used as an insult.

It's used as an insult on here all the time. Combined with - I bet you are from the Midwest.

[Anonymous]

I've heard kids use the term "try hard" as an insult, but it refers to someone who tries hard to fit in with a group.

[Anonymous]

Striver is a variation on social climber.

[Anonymous]

I see it as someone who is trying to get ahead for the wrong reasons in the wrong ways.

[Anonymous]

It's an idiotic insults thrown about with abandon by insecure idiots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most people want personal improvement, but that’s not what a striver means.

A striver is someone who wants to be validated by others/peers due to financial gains.

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not very familiar with the word as an insult, but it might be what you'd call someone who is interested in achieving more simply for appearances and social status rather than just trying to better themselves. I've met many people like that (as we all have) and they are annoying as crap.

+1

As it’s used around here, “striver” connotes someone very concerned with how others see them. A striver is someone who is very interested in the “Is X trashy?” and “Do UMC people do Y” threads.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've heard kids use the term "try hard" as an insult, but it refers to someone who tries hard to fit in with a group.

My middle schooler has used tryhard as an insult, and we talked about what it means. He dropped it from his vocabulary once he realized that it’s one of those insults that actually makes the user look foolish.

Imagine my surprise when I saw an adult using the term on DCUM recently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not very familiar with the word as an insult, but it might be what you'd call someone who is interested in achieving more simply for appearances and social status rather than just trying to better themselves. I've met many people like that (as we all have) and they are annoying as crap.

+1

As it’s used around here, “striver” connotes someone very concerned with how others see them. A striver is someone who is very interested in the “Is X trashy?” and “Do UMC people do Y” threads.

Agree with this interpretation. They need external validation and seek it with material things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've got to be honest here, I've literally never heard of it used as an insult.

only on DCUM. Otherwise, I've never heard it.