What is a sob story? It is a story someone tells of some misfortune that happened to them, in order to get sympathy and help. In brief, it is someone trying to manipulate your emotions in order to beg you for attention and money. Come to think of it, that’s pretty much all I need to say, isn’t it? Don’t we all hate that?
You are not special. The things that have happened to you have also happened to others. It doesn’t matter what it is. And yes, it is true that the things that happened to you might be worse than what happened to someone else, but there is still someone who has it worse off than you. What sets you apart is not what happens to you, but how you respond to it.
Now, if you’re four years old, I would understand that you haven’t developed the emotional maturity to properly handle the fact that your sister stole your toy. But that’s a learning experience you grow from, and twenty years later I expect you not to throw a tantrum when someone cuts in front of you in line, or calls you a bad name.
If you’re going around telling everyone sob stories about how hard your life is, you’ve immediately lost all respect I might have had for you. If you get fired, I can understand being upset, and even being brought to tears. But you go find another job. If you spend three weeks in bed crying about it, expecting your friends and family to support you through it, just… no.
If you go on some reality competition show, and your intro is some sob-story of how hard your life has been, and how singing on Dancing with the Chefs has been your lifelong dream… I don’t care. You don’t deserve to be there just because your life was hard, you only deserve to be there if you can actually sing. One thing is not related to the other (unless that hardship made you practice more and become a good singer, in which case good for you, but I can appreciate your ability to sing even more without having to hear your backstory).
You don’t deserve anything. Life is not fair, there is no karma or natural justice. Just because bad things happened to you does not mean you deserve good things any more than anyone else. And if someone gives you sympathy and support, that’s on them, and you should thank them heartily for it because you don’t deserve it.
It is nobody’s responsibility to help you or support you. When you tell someone your story expecting sympathy, or asking for money because you’re homeless and have no job and haven’t eaten in days? You are being narcissistic, and extending your misfortune onto others. You are making their lives worse, because you can’t deal with your own life. The only people who have any excuse to be homeless are those who are underage, or who have mental or physical disabilities that prevent them from supporting themselves. And those people should be helped. Everyone else should take care of themselves, because if your mind works, and your body works, you have no excuse. The world might be a mess, but it is not so bad that you can’t find a place for yourself in it.