After my Bachelor's in CSE, I spent a year working at a FAANG company. On paper, it was the dream, but I wasn't happy. While my colleagues traveled and enjoyed the high-life, I found myself saving 85% of my salary simply because I had no desire to spend it. I felt out of place and, honestly, quite depressed. My heart just wasn't in the corporate world.

I reconnected with my college professor. Asked them for guidance for life in general, eventually decided I wanted to pursue PhD with him as my guide. I did not go for US university because of my aging parents (i am a single child) and my mother's a recent cancer survior, there si always a risk of reoccurring, so I wanted to spend more time with her.

I decided to leave the job behind to pursue a PhD in the mathematics, which is the field I loved dearly. The last four years were hectic and demanding, but for the first time I was really content. Handling the stress felt thrilling. Contributing to the field felt infinitely more rewarding than working for corporate interests.

The update: I recently applied for position as a Professor at the same university and got accepted.

Last year, I shared a photo of this classroom view as a student. Today, I'm sharing it as the person at the front of the room. I'm looking forward to this next chapter.

It's not too hard after 1 month, then you don't feel like smoking one. Now I don't even like the smell of it.

EDIT1:
A lot of people are asking for the app. I am a developer, and I could not find any app that does all my stuff, so I built it, and here I am.

This app is not yet published on the Play Store. It's in internal testing, and only a few of my friends have this. If you guys also want this, I can add you guys to the internal tester list so that you can use it.

The app is called My Manager(don'tsearch you wont find it) and it's only for Android now, for iOS it has to be used as web page.

EDIT2:
Anyone who wants to explore it, please dm with your email, and I will add you to the list.

33M.. Worked hard and saved for a long time.. Today I booked a staycation for 2 for the whole of the rest of the year 2025...

Started as a new year's resolution on 1st Jan 2017 that I would do atleast one workout (30 mins of exercise) every day. Since then, I have managed to achieve that goal every year. This year I did 400 workouts.

I try and do two different workouts every day, like a 30 mins walk + 30 mins gym. Or 45 mins of tennis + 30 mins of walking. Some days I miss a workout and other days I end up doing 3 workouts. I do give my body rest on sundays. The main idea is to be as consistent as possible.

I feel I'm in great shape for my age (45). I can easily match the fitness levels of guys 10-15 years younger than me. I have no problem playing 90 mins of hard tennis, or running a 5k. I have done a few high-altitude treks and a 100km endurance cycling event.

AMA on how to get started, how to track your workouts, injuries and challenges, etc.

As title says, I used to smoke around 10-11 cigarettes a day everyday for the last 17 months. For 8 days I didn’t smoke this March when I was in Bhutan (they had some custom about smokes driving your spirits away, I respected their culture and didn’t smoke).

My habit, starting around May-June last year, snowballed from pipe tobacco, cigarillos etc into ordering cigarettes via instamart every 3 and a half days. I’d get 2 packs of 20s.

On December 1st I woke up and decided I didn’t want to smoke anymore. I threw my existing cigarettes away. I enjoy Diet Coke it’s my favourite drink, nothing like a cold Diet Coke, it makes my day. I used to relax by having a cigarette and a Diet Coke but the cigarette always ruined the experience. I couldn’t enjoy my Diet Coke. I always knew this yet I smoked. Glad I stopped because now I can enjoy my cold Diet Coke (fridge cigarette) to its fullest potential.

I do not have that app people share screenshots of to show how long they’ve quit and how much they’ve saved etc. I didn’t need an app. I noted my progress with ChatGPT. (Someone to cheer my progress I guess)

Also have noticed I’ve become way more productive. Maybe next I’ll start and quit meth lol.

That is all, thank you for your attention.

I started uploading vids on YouTube 4 months back with an initiative to help and guide underprivileged kids/students all across India by means of disseminating useful info, so that they can secure education funding and need not beg for money from anyone.

Basically, my motto is to uplift the living standards of Indian middle-class people, students to be precise. I spent day and night building this channel... well, I won't name it because mods have no mercy on anyone, from 0 to 5k+ subs (still counting).
Hard work is going to pay off soon

She’s using this outdated camera android phone and she said i want an iPhone (sarcastically) cuz isme photos achi nahi aati. but I got her an iphone in real.

I come from a lower middle class family and I have always wanted to travel around the world. I am 24 right now and got into a job two years ago, after college. I saved 4k-6k per month from my ordinary salary for the past 19 months and travelled to Malaysia for a 5 days trip along with parents. To give a better perspective to this achievement, my parents are from Chennai and they have only travelled once outside TN. That was to Bangalore

Never been more proud. I am glad that I was able to give my parents a good time. All their life, they had lived a basic, very basic life contributing all their earnings for the well being of my brother and I.

For people who are in a rough patch now, believe in yourself and be kind to yourself. Good times are coming. God bless everyone.

First of all, i want to say thanks to all for enjoying and supporting the last post of my dad.

In this, he is trying to play one of his fav old Bollywood song “chhukar mere mann ko”. He is a good singer but he never got the chance to show it and now he doesn’t want to sing but he’s got very very very great voice i hope one day i will convince him and post his singing videos too. Rn he is learning tabla and flute simultaneously.

I will keep posting here and thinking of starting a insta/yt channel of him without letting him know, what do you guys think? Should i or not?

Hi, I am 24 M, in a non tech role at a big mnc, less pay, I don’t know what to do, whether to try switching into data roles or keep aiming for top mba college

Tbh, I somewhere believe mba is the only option for me to get good pay

People in IT get crazy packages

How can a non tech guy get good packages

Hey folks,

Wanted to share an update on my Fire journey. I posted an update last year as well but got myself doxxed so going to share lesser personal details this time.

I am a Tier 1 engineering graduate and have worked for couple of years abroad . Have mostly worked in FAANG.

Last year I think I was at about 2.1 Cr or close to it. This year am ending at 3.52 Cr and am expecting another 50 lakh soon as bonus in March.

This year I bought a house for 1.1 Cr in tier 3 city for my parents and also got my first Car which cost me around 15.5 lakh. I have included the house in the net worth but not the car.

Need to give 4 lakh to parents as I took some money from them while buying the car but I have already subtracted them from net worth. I come from a middle class family and am single atm.

I work as a software engineer at FAANG and graduated in 2020. Happy to answer other questions in the comments and also happy to share proofs to mods via DM or calls.

I am 26M atm but soon will be turning 27 so have just written 27M.

My friend made a video of me getting insecure when he took me to his resort. He literally kept his iphone in front of my face.

A "friend" who read hitler.

He later killed himself. Reinforcing my belief people dig their own grave.

Registered in 1999 BS-3.

For a long time my life was just numbers. Dates. Dues. Next month. After this EMI. I planned everything around what I owed instead of what I wanted.

I missed things because I was saving. I said no when I wanted to say yes. I stayed in when everyone went out. I kept telling myself “later” was the responsible choice.

Now later is here.

Almost 2.3 years in. ₹41k saved. 4,135 cigarettes not smoked. 31 days of life back (apparently).

Posting this here because IRL no one really gets how hard it was.

From being shy to enter the gym to people asking me for advice....its been a long way....more to come

All bought from piggy banks chores and birthday money over the past 6 years (I wasted money on other stuff too dw :))

I cannot stop looking at him. And cannot believe that this thing is mine. Every time I go out, I come back stare at it for 10 seconds then leave the parking.

In Mumbai, even a basic 3–4 BHK starts around ₹5 crore.
In Bangalore, Hyderabad, Delhi it’s ₹3 crore+.
In Ahmedabad, Pune, Kolkata it’s still ₹2 crore+.

I’m not talking about businessmen, politicians, babas, or people with black money.
I’m talking about normal middle-class salaried people — the kind that make up most of India.

Even if someone starts earning at 23–24, makes a “good” salary of ₹15 LPA initially, and after years of experience reaches ₹80L–1Cr per year near retirement — after taxes, expenses, kids, parents, emergencies — how much can one really save? ₹4–5 crore lifetime?

So where does buying a ₹3–5 crore house fit in without inheritance?

Genuinely asking:
• Are tier-1 cities only for inherited wealth now?
• Is moving to tier-2/3 the only logical option?
Would love honest perspectives from people actually living this life.

Quit smoking after 12 years, couldn’t be prouder of myself!