A lot of people don't see a bright (financial) future for themselves, and that working hard won't get them anything meaningful. So long shots are perceived the only way that you can improve your lot in life, as otherwise The System™ is stacked against you (student loans, housing costs, etc).
I have the same postulate but the complete opposite reaction, if the future is going to suck I better do the right choices with my money while it's not so bad rather than blowing all of it on useless things.
The nihilism comes in when (it is perceived that) it doesn't matter that even if you do the right things (get educated, learn a skill/trade, work hard, don't spend too much), things are in such a state that that won't help, so why not YOLO?
Moreover, lots of people already feel like they've lost right when they've started. Imagine if you get a degree in the wrong field, like business administration, and find yourself working as a entry level marketing manager making 50k.
Rent eats up half your take home pay and while you're not terrible with money, you are also not super frugal. So you are ultimately saving a few thousand a year. At this point road to being rich is half a century away and pretty narrow. You better not get sick, or have to take care of an injured family member, or scammed, or divorced, or laid off for an extended period of time. And all around you is a media, political, and social ecosystem telling you the good times are over.
It makes sense why some people just decide to lie-flat.
* https://kyla.substack.com/p/gen-z-and-financial-nihilism
A lot of people don't see a bright (financial) future for themselves, and that working hard won't get them anything meaningful. So long shots are perceived the only way that you can improve your lot in life, as otherwise The System™ is stacked against you (student loans, housing costs, etc).