{"id":19985,"date":"2020-12-03T18:45:00","date_gmt":"2020-12-03T22:45:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=19985"},"modified":"2020-12-09T18:09:11","modified_gmt":"2020-12-09T22:09:11","slug":"the-middle-class-trap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/the-middle-class-trap\/","title":{"rendered":"The Middle Class Trap: Don’t Settle for Average"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is the middle class trap? How does it relate to an average mindset, and why is that problematic?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The middle class trap is the idea that pursuing the dream of being “middle class” actually means you’d be trapped in a struggle when you should aim higher. In terms of The 10X Rule<\/em>, it is like an average mindset in which you don’t aim for better and end up stuck at mediocre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading to better understand the middle class trap and how it exemplifies the problematic, average mindset. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The Middle Class Trap<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: In the rest of this summary, we\u2019ve combined chapters and reordered material to reduce repetition and improve coherence.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the \u201850s and \u201860s, Americans were sold a middle class dream\u2014the idea that a life of relative comfort and security was attainable by most people and everyone should strive for it. Many people still strive for much of their lives to become what they think of as middle class. But the dream was actually the middle class trap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, middle-class status means something different today than it meant 50 years ago. A middle-class income no longer guarantees comfort\u2014in fact, because it promotes \u201caverage\u201d thinking, it leads to failure and financial insecurity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Evolution of the Middle Class Trap<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Most people think of a comfortable middle-class lifestyle as one with a reliable income, health care coverage, an affordable home in a nice neighborhood, vacation time, and a retirement fund. But today, living on a middle income in an urban area would be difficult and far from financially secure<\/a>. Even upper-middle-class status could be tenuous during an economic downturn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The middle class is generally defined as those with reasonable disposable income (about 30% of their income left after taxes and basic expenses). But few in today\u2019s middle class have 30% left after expenses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many middle-class people feel more like members of the working class. Someone who\u2019s making $60,000 a year pays $15,000 in taxes, leaving $45,000 (which equates to $32,000 due to inflation) for a home, food, schools, insurance, medical expenses, car payments, vacations, savings, and emergencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further, they\u2019re caught in an increasing middle class squeeze, in which their wages don\u2019t keep up with inflation, resulting in a decline in real wages over time. Also, middle-class wealth calculations often include debt and home equity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Besides declining real wages, the middle class has other problems:<\/p>\n\n\n\n