As I live and breathe as a grown ass man in my adulthood now, here's a powerful trait to learn:
Don't be afraid to be called cheap by your friends, clients or strangers.
It irks me to be invited to some social gathering of food and drinks, only to have them split the bill in an unfair way.
I personally think that every individual should pay for whatever it is they consume, but for convenience's (or deception's) sake, the paymaster would declare that the bill should be split evenly.
This happens way too often.
Other examples include:
. Friends always asking you to buy shit for them when you're on holiday or something. If it's not something expensive or prominently, physically big, the amount spent is usually, conveniently forgotten. If this always happens, yeah, this shit adds up.
. Friends borrowing a tiny amount of money. Poof. It's forgotten. Because it's tiny and fuck you for being a nice friend.
. Friends practically forcing food down your throat. They're like, "This is so good! Try some!" You proceed to have like one bite. It has now become, "You ate some. You have to pay."
. Friends inviting you to their weddings or birthdays. They, in their narcisstic glory feel it's okay to treat you as an ATM for a vanity splurge.
. Friends getting used to taking you for granted for your perks you gained at your workplace. You aren't legally allowed to make monetary gains from these perks, so fuck you, you better pamper your friends without expecting anything in return.
And so on.
From where I grew up, this is a festering problem because we're inundated by the values that are giving face and making sure you don't look stupid, hence ultimately making it hard to not care about what others think about you.
And if you aren't careful, you will lose out.
So fuck it, don't be afraid of being called cheap.
Do what is right and fair for you and those around you.
It's not being cheap. It's protecting your money and mental health.