How to Move Up an Economic Class

[Editor's note: Information from a New York Times report was used in this blog.]

“Despite frequent references to the United States as a classless society, about 62 percent of Americans (male and female) raised in the top fifth of incomes stay in the top two-fifths, according to research by the Economic Mobility Project of the Pew Charitable Trusts. Similarly, 65 percent born in the bottom fifth stay in the bottom two-fifths," according to a Jan. 4 report in "The New York Times" discussing the difficulty of Americans to move upwards economically.

“Even by measures of relative mobility, Middle America remains fluid. About 36 percent of Americans raised in the middle fifth move up as adults, while 23 percent stay on the same rung and 41 percent move down, according to Pew research,” reads the Times report. “The 'stickiness' appears at the top and bottom, as affluent families transmit their advantages and poor families stay trapped.”

While this article talks of the conclusions of surveys and possible reasons for these economic symptoms, it presents no solutions.

The barrier to economic mobility is a combination of a lack of strong personal vision, confidence, willpower, patience and action.

Above average efforts produce success. Average effort breeds below average results. That is why the evidence shows that only a small fraction of the middle class rises economically. This is also why that those who taught themselves to rise above are able to teach that to their family.

If only some of the middle class is performing above average, they will be the only ones that rise to the next level.

Everyone doing average effort or less will stay the same or drop lower. And even for the ones staying the same level, they will ultimately drop lower because they cannot keep up with the constant challenges and changes of society and the economy around them.

For individuals who look carefully and are willing to learn and take action to change their lives, they can find training to substantively improve their lives no matter where they go or what vocation they do (this is not limited to gaining formal education at a college, a for-profit school or a certification course; these avenues are merely methods to teach a skill or body of knowledge).

More substantive results require the individual to fundamentally change how badly they want to make changes to their life. Substantive change requires a person to be willing to change things in their life to go on a substantively different path.

If a person spends all day focusing only on their current work, their family, entertaining themselves, eating, paying the bills and sleeping and puts no thought, time or effort in things to create a different future for themselves, nothing will change except the person getting older and weaker.

To rise above to the next level, you have to find strong personal reasons why you want to be there and then take action to find the answers to get there. If you think it is not possible to rise above, that thought will be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

If you think it is possible to rise above, you will find ways to make that thought your reality.

Questions or comments can be sent to Bob Lee at bob.lee@bodymindsystems.com.