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Is it better to be "working/lower-mid middle class"?
Former Member
Posts: 1,875,648 The Mix Honorary Guru
Hi all,
I've been thinking a bit about money lately, mainly due to concerns in finding employment (though I now have) and overall career aspirations.
There's a somewhat philosophical, but practical issue that is bothering me. We all aspire to be "comfortable" and that is obviously a natural aspiration to hold. We all hope to be "rich" and that is obviously a plain wish to have. And we all wish we were "ridiculously wealthy" because this is clearly the ideal situation to be in. All these words, are ofcourse highly subjective.
I myself, have grown up thinking "everything will be alright" - but for most of us "success" is a personal and highly relative struggle.
I still feel as though I'm expected to end up mega rich and succesful, because it's flaunted infront of me every day. The society I have grown up in openly facilitates the worship of wealth and I myself am suceptible to it's call. I sometimes make risky gambles, and I'm willing to sometimes "risk" my health for money.
A year or so ago, I reformed my entire expectations of what i wanted from life, and that was simpily to live within my means and be able to afford a few small luxuries or save for larger ones. I have never commited myself, fully, to that because I still feel the draw to "hit it big(?)". Though I feel a certain comfort and a hell of a lot less pressure.
I suppose it's more a societal thing, as I know there are many cultures throughout the world that mabye dont value wealth so much, or to which it is irrelevant. And then theres the "third world" to which only our "bare minimum" lifestyle is quite simply obscene.
So is it better to simpily live within your means, have a job you love and doesn't stress you to the point of death or is so fickle you're at wits end? Would you be happy to earn say... £800 - 1.8k per month in a job you love and doesn't come with loose ends, or will you not be happy until you hit the big mark?
To what extent would you be prepared to go to reach your (soley) finiancial goals
I've been thinking a bit about money lately, mainly due to concerns in finding employment (though I now have) and overall career aspirations.
There's a somewhat philosophical, but practical issue that is bothering me. We all aspire to be "comfortable" and that is obviously a natural aspiration to hold. We all hope to be "rich" and that is obviously a plain wish to have. And we all wish we were "ridiculously wealthy" because this is clearly the ideal situation to be in. All these words, are ofcourse highly subjective.
I myself, have grown up thinking "everything will be alright" - but for most of us "success" is a personal and highly relative struggle.
I still feel as though I'm expected to end up mega rich and succesful, because it's flaunted infront of me every day. The society I have grown up in openly facilitates the worship of wealth and I myself am suceptible to it's call. I sometimes make risky gambles, and I'm willing to sometimes "risk" my health for money.
A year or so ago, I reformed my entire expectations of what i wanted from life, and that was simpily to live within my means and be able to afford a few small luxuries or save for larger ones. I have never commited myself, fully, to that because I still feel the draw to "hit it big(?)". Though I feel a certain comfort and a hell of a lot less pressure.
I suppose it's more a societal thing, as I know there are many cultures throughout the world that mabye dont value wealth so much, or to which it is irrelevant. And then theres the "third world" to which only our "bare minimum" lifestyle is quite simply obscene.
So is it better to simpily live within your means, have a job you love and doesn't stress you to the point of death or is so fickle you're at wits end? Would you be happy to earn say... £800 - 1.8k per month in a job you love and doesn't come with loose ends, or will you not be happy until you hit the big mark?
To what extent would you be prepared to go to reach your (soley) finiancial goals
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Comments
I would have thought it was royalty, yer queen!
You kind of can ...is it cos I really changed ...or am I still faking it:
What matters to me is having a stimulating job I care about and most these kind of jobs require at least a degree, or an internship (or both).
So really, to be middle class, or at least to have family in London is what I need to get a career in my field.
Money to me is not an end. My end is landing a job, campaigning for human rights and social justice. I don't care if I am on under £20K for the rest of my life if I love my job. Money is a means to getting there...
In theory...
I think the lines between working class and middle class are more blurred these days. In the past, the middle class would be the teachers, lawyers, doctors etc but these days, these positions are more or less open to anybody.
Furthermore, you're free to marry across the 'social divide' which may have been a no-no a few generations ago. Certainly, it would be very difficult to break into the Upper Class because many of these families marry within their own ranks.
However, take Kate Middleton. She comes from a very ordinary middle class family (although they have since made themselves millionaires from a successful internet business) so it can happen.
In the US, class is very much based on possession of wealth and I think that is probably creeping in over here too.