It is no secret that in Malaysia, status and wealth means everything and the way we show it is through material possessions such as cars and clothes.
Recently, Twitter user @Patpadom took to Twitter to express his frustrations on the need for people such as insurance agents to buy expensive cars in order to ‘prove’ to potential agents that their success is well-founded.
His post reads, “Today I realised the reason why a lot of insurance agents love to buy expensive cars.”
“It is because agents understand the local mindset that people love to play the status game instead of the wealth game,” he added.
Harini aku dah nampak reason kenapa ramai insurance agent suka sgt beli kereta mewah.
Sebab agent faham mindset local yang suka main status game , bukan wealth game.
Nak tahu beza wealth & status game.
Worry less as I summarize multiple VC articles packed in this ? pic.twitter.com/zAVivGlcRo— Pat.eth.near (?, ?) (@Patpadom) April 19, 2022
Accompanying the post is a screenshot of a conversation which featured a part time insurance agent asking if it is the right time for them to buy a C200 Mercedes Benz.
The agent revealed that they earn RM2,000 to RM4,000 per month through the part time work whilst he earns RM6,800 through his main job.
They were then asked on the reason why they wanted to suddenly get a C200 Mercedes Benz to which they responded that it’s for recruitment purposes.
“They won’t believe it if you don’t show it. In my instance, after I saw my friend who is working at a factory drive a Mercedes, only then was I interested in his business.”
Wealth versus status
Patpadom then went on to explain the distinction between wealth and status and how everyone should look to accumulate wealth instead of chasing status.
“My objective in sharing this is to foster a community to chase wealth not status because its a zero-sum game which is exhaustive and expensive. Instead, play the wealth game as it is a positive-sum game, which gives you freedom,” he added.
“Those who signal their ‘wealth’ through expensive cars, jewelry and branded items are rarely wealthy. It’s a status game, which is exhausting and expensive just to see that you are doing better than others so that they believe in you or make them feel inferior to your status.”
“Play wealth accumulation games, not status games,” he advised.
For illustration purpose only
He then broke down the differences between the wealth and status and urged others to dedicate themselves to accumulate wealth instead of status.
“The reason why you want to accumulate wealth is that it buys you freedom of your time. The rich don’t look rich because they spend their money on assets that buy them their freedom. They are accumulating wealth, not social status.”
“I’m not saying becoming an insurance agent is wrong, it’s a good wealth creation but the approach that some insurance agents take is very aggressive. A lot of insurance agents I know play the wealth game and not the status game,” he explained.
Checkout his full explanation below:
Harini aku dah nampak reason kenapa ramai insurance agent suka sgt beli kereta mewah.
Sebab agent faham mindset local yang suka main status game , bukan wealth game.
Nak tahu beza wealth & status game.
Worry less as I summarize multiple VC articles packed in this ? pic.twitter.com/zAVivGlcRo— Pat.eth.near (?, ?) (@Patpadom) April 19, 2022
What do you think? Should wealth be prioritised instead of status? Let us know in the comments.
Also read: WATCH: Aliff Syukri’s Latest Raya Song Slammed by M’sians For Not Respecting Islam & Baju Melayu
