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Oh my god, this hits so hard! I had this exact thing happen when my small business tanked during the pandemic—suddenly, the "friends" who were all about "collaborations" and "networking brunches" stopped responding to texts within *days*. Like, one day I was their golden ticket to the "cool entrepreneur" club, the next I was radio silent. It’s wild how fast people ghost when the shine wears off! *(edited)*

that's such a harsh reality, it feels like we're often abandoned by people who were supposed to have our backs, especially when we're struggling. *(edited)*

the bar was on the floor and you still managed to trip

first time posting but it’s the quietest kind of betrayal when the same people who’d slide into your DMs with “let’s grab coffee!” suddenly act like they’ve never met you

It's a harsh reality, honestly.

valid I guess

I had a buddy who invested in a business w/ me a few years ago, but when things started to go south, he was nowhere to be found. I mean, we went through some tough times and our venture ultimately tanked, but I didn't hear from him until months later, even though we'd...

first time posting here but I’ve had this happen so many times it’s almost funny now—like clockwork, the second things get tough, the "friends" who were all about collaboration suddenly have urgent deadlines or "just can’t commit." Feels like watching a friendship evaporate into a Slack status update.

Business 'friends' = transactional parasites.

I get what you're saying, but it's not like people just vanish for no reason—most of the time, it's just that the relationship was transactional to begin with. You see it all the time in industries where contacts are currency; once you're not useful, the "friendship" fades because there's no incentive to maintain it. I've seen it happen in tech and even academia, where collaborations dry up overnight once someone's no longer a peer or a potential collaborator.

No but seriously though ngl *(edited)*

Oh man, the way people vanish when things get tough is the worst. Like, you’d think loyalty was a thing we still believed in no cap

glad I scrolled down far enough to find this

couldn't agree more

Ugh, this hits so hard because it’s the quietest betrayal—like when you realize the people who swore they’d “always have your back” vanish the second your luck runs out. Feels like getting ghosted by the whole room while you’re still standing there holding the empty cup

same

Oh come on, Klaus, "same" is the laziest response ever—like you’re too lazy to even form a thought.

But what about the ones who ghost you *before* you even fail?

this hit different

so brave for sharing this completely obvious thing

Yeah this hits hard—last year when my side hustle flopped, half the people who’d been "hustle bro" me suddenly had...

Oh please, it’s not ghosting—it’s efficiency. When your "friend" stops returning texts after you miss a bonus, they’re just optimizing their network for people who still have leverage. You think they’d risk their next promotion for your feelings? Spare me.

First time posting but Corporate loyalty is a myth.

L take

I'm sorry to hear that you've had that experience, but what about people who don't have a large professional network - does their struggle to get back on their feet after failure get overlooked bc it's not framed as a business loss? *(edited)*

wait this happened to me too no cap 😤

First time POSTING but business is transactional

imagine thinking this

First time posting but I think people get really uncomfortable talking about how friendships can fade away once you're no longer contributing 2 the social dynamic in the same way - it feels too vulnerable or admitting of a lack of value

we really out here pretending this is groundbreaking

someone finally said it *(edited)*

this comment > the whole thread

hard agree

so brave for sharing this completely obvious thing *(edited)*

first time posting but I think that's bc 'failure' is this nebulous thing people don't like to confront, whereas business 'ghosting' is a direct blow to someone's ego, not just theirs but also the 'successful' people who did it - that's a harder conversation to have, but what about when successful people ghost u, is that not worth talking about too?

ugh same. like yeah failure’s this big scary word but also it’s just… existing? and then your “friends” remember you exist again when you’re winning or when they need something

came here to say this

this right here 👆

Oh man i get that so hard—like last year when my little side hustle flopped, half the people who were "hustle all day!" when i was winning just... vanished. even my "mentor" stopped replying to texts after the first "rough patch." like bruh we were supposed to be grinding through failure together not just ghosting into the void *(edited)*

First time posting but i think it’s because failure makes people uncomfortable—like they’re afraid it’ll rub off on them or something

Yeah that's exactly what happened to me, almost word FOR word

Totally relate, happened to me too tbh *(edited)*

wait actually *(edited)*

ngl this hits hard lmao. like i had this "friend" who was all about "networking" and "collabs" when i was winning, now they're mia after my biz FLOPPED. it's wild how people only want the highlight reel, like bruh we all have lows

screenshotting this

saving this comment *(edited)*

so like… is this the part where you start a new business just to test the theory?

But what about the people who *do* stick around—how do you even tell the difference between a real friend and someone just waiting for their cut? 💯

I get why it stings, but isn’t that just how networks work? People chase momentum, and when you’re not the one bringing it anymore, they DRIFT—IT’S not personal, it’s transactional. But what about the ones who *do* stick around? Why don’t we talk about how rare that actually is?

bro 💀

Lost investors, found strangers *(edited)*

honestly same *(edited)*

Oh, they’ll slide into your DMs when you’re winning but suddenly your LinkedIn’s quieter than a library on a Sunday—tried that after MY startup flopped, and the "let’s grab coffee!" texts dried up faster than my will to live

My old coworker "Dave" (not his real name, but close enough) used 2 call me his "ride-or-die" whenever we’d grab beers after a long week—until the company he’d hyped me 2 join laid off half the team, including me. Suddenly his texts were just "hey man, good luck with the job hunt!" like we’d never split a pizza and complained about our boss together. I still see his LinkedIn posts about "networking" and "staying resilient," but not once has he slid into my DMs asking how I’m actually doing.

but what about the ones who *do* stick around—how do you even tell who’s genuine before things go south ngl

OP should pin this

came here to say this *(edited)*

But what about the people who ghost *before* you fail? Doesn’t that make it more about their comfort than your "inefficiency"?

Ghosted harder than my 2018 side hustle

oh, so now we’re calling it “ghosting” instead of “being a fairweather friend”? Adorable. Like, congrats, capitalism finally found a way to monetize emotional labor—just drop the contact and call it a business strategy.

Try starting a business and watch how 'friends' disappear faster than your cash reserves fr