I asked my buddy at work how he was doing and he said “I need to get this money, ya know? It’s tight.” Meanwhile, he’s paying weekly for what I pay monthly for a car. My phones are always bought secondhand and for the most part I only blow money on videogames.

You can be “doing good” financially because you make enough money to afford the lifestyle you want while “living paycheck to paycheck” because you spend 100% on your lifestyle.