Have you looked at your expenses? Live with less and save more. Over time, even some of us who are government employees have been able to achieve a lot financially.

You need to shift your situation such that you have an “on the other hand” counter argument to this narrative:
“On the other hand…”:

We live in a very LCOL area so we can afford a nice lifestyle.
I’m pursuing my life’s passion so work doesn’t feel like work.
I’m a teacher so I have summers off.
My job is great for my health and doesn’t inhumanely stick me behind a desk 50 daylight hours per week.
My spouse makes a boatload of dough or is independently wealthy.
My hours are so reasonable that I’m fully present in my children’s lives.
My needs are simple: I don’t desire the trappings of wealth.
Etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish I had made different career and educational choices so that I may have had more money in my thirties. When I see peers have high net worths I am green with envy.

How do you deal?

Maybe vote republican next time? Seriously, we’re all 20% poorer under Biden.

+1

Let's hope it stays at 20%.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wish I had made different career and educational choices so that I may have had more money in my thirties. When I see peers have high net worths I am green with envy.

How do you deal?

Maybe vote republican next time? Seriously, we’re all 20% poorer under Biden.

I’m not, net worth is up nicely since Jan 2021 and so is my income!

You shouldn't be jealous. Do what you can to improve your skills, stop spending money on anything unnecessary, etc.

No good comes from comparing yourself to others. Right now the issue is wealth, but next it will be something else. You will never be happy with your life if you are constantly comparing. There will always be someone who is richer, better looking, smarter, or has something in their life that you want.

Chances are, you can do something to increase your salary and build up your wealth as you get older but you'll never be content if you continue to measure yourself against others.

Anonymous wrote:I wish I had made different career and educational choices so that I may have had more money in my thirties. When I see peers have high net worths I am green with envy.

How do you deal?

Maybe vote republican next time? Seriously, we’re all 20% poorer under Biden.

I think it’s normal OP. We all see people making more money who aren’t any smarter or harder working. Sometimes even in the same profession with the same pedigree and experience.

What do you want to buy?

Are you a man or a woman?

That said, I empathize. You don't know what you don't know.


You can still change your life if you put in the work.

What's stopping you from doing that now? Quit whining.

If you're not approaching retirement you have the time to make changes. You could look for more demanding and better-paying work. If you're not presently qualified for roles like that, you may be able to become qualified through additional education or by seeking out specific types of work experiences. You may have to change employers, you may have to relocate, you may need to go back to school.

If you take no action, nothing will change and you'll be moaning about your lack of professional accomplishment and your failure to become wealthy (whatever that means to you) in your 40s, 50s, and beyond. Change takes effort and discipline, and in this case you also need a vision for the future you want which includes an actionable and practical way to get to where you want to be. Just doing what seems easiest or most attractive at the moment is insufficiently strategic - you'll need to map out steps which are reasonably calculated to allow you to reach your goal.

Work on the things you have control over. Health, fitness, hobbies. Maybe your friends make more than you, but you can be in better shape and beat them in golf.

Get a second job.

I wish I had made different career and educational choices so that I may have had more money in my thirties. When I see peers have high net worths I am green with envy.

How do you deal?