In certain societies, climbing up from the bottom class to the middle class may be a difficult but realistic target. Achieving good academic results and going on to getting a decent job would be the default route. However in most societies, it is extremely difficult for the middle class to save for their first pot of gold. People generally remain a slave their whole lives.
Limited Working Days
Using Singapore as an example, we assume the average student graduates from the university at 23 and retire at 65. There is about 42 working years. For men, that is even lesser because Singaporean men need to serve 2 years of military conscription. Using today’s market rate, we assume a fresh graduate earning about $5000 a month ($75,000 a year including a 3 month bonus) and ending his career at $15,000 a month ($225,000 a year).
Under such a circumstance, this salaryman will be earning about $5.8 million over the course of his lifetime. Assume a 10% income tax rate and a further 10% forced savings by the government (in Singapore, we pay 20% for CPF but part of it can be used to buy our houses, so I will take that out), we have a 20% deduction from our salary, bringing our take-home income over a 42-year period to approximately 4.6 million.
This is the maximum income a middle class person can have over his lifetime. We know this is on the ideal side because we assumed no gaps in employment (ie retrenchment) and that the person’s salary increases every year till he retires. In actual reality, this is too good a picture for most.

Inflation
Most governments would like to market their inflation as around 2-3%. However realistically, we know it is more than that. One mass money printing during the Covid era simply made things minimally 50% more expensive over a 5-year period.
Again we assume an inflation rate aligned with the government data of around 2.5%, the middle ground. Over a 42-year period, a $1 item would become (1.025)^41 = 2.75. This means that your first year of savings would have eroded to about 1/3 of its original value, though this erosion gets lesser as you get closer to the present time.
We assume a savings rate of 20%, in terms of raw numbers alone the salaryman would have saved 1.16m over his lifetime. However, with an inflation at 2.75 since he started working, his actual purchasing power from his total savings would only be 1.16m / 2.75 = $421,800 in his younger days. Adding whatever amount from his government retirement funds (do note that we have taken this into consideration by assuming a 10% CPF instead of 20% deduction), this has to last him till he dies because we would not want to be working at 90.
With a starting salary of $75,000 per year and ending salary of $225,000 a year, one will work out a salary increment of 2.75% per year, barely outrunning the inflation. On the surface it looks like I am advancing, but in actual reality I have never moved away from my original spot.

Purchasing Power
Taxes are stackable. Take alcohol for example, we have the import duties and the GST. With my taxed income, I will pay for a double-taxed beer. What about cars? Properties? A average salaryman’s purchasing power is reduced layer by layer by the different open and hidden taxes that in the end, most people find it hard to save even 20% of their salary.
Conclusion
Not everyone can be at the top of the pyramid. Any society will require the bottom class to deliver their pizza and the middle class to be their corporate slave. And the system is designed to ensure things run in order. But with enough discipline, financial literacy and good planning, the first pot of gold can still be achieved in good time.

ๅจไธไบ็คพๆ๏ผๅพๅบๅฑค็ฌๅฐไธญ็ข้็ดๆฏๅๅฐ้ฃไฝ่ฝๅฏฆ็พ็็ฎๆจใๅชๅ่ฎๆธ๏ผ็ขๆฅญๆพไปฝๅฅฝๅทฅไฝๅณๅฏใไฝๅจๅคงๅคๆธ็คพๆ๏ผ่ฆๅญไธ็ฌฌไธๆกถ้๏ผๆฏ้ๅธธ่ฑ้ฃ็ใๅคงๅคๆธ็ไบบไธ่ผฉๅญ้ฝ้ไธๅบๅฅด้ธ็ๅฝ้ใ
ๆ้็ๅทฅไฝๆฅ
ไปฅๆฐๅ ๅก็บไพ๏ผๅ่จญไธๅๅญธ็23ๆญฒๅคงๅญธ็ขๆฅญ๏ผ65้ไผใ้ๅฐฑๆฏ42ๅนด็ๅทฅไฝๆ้ใๅ ็บๆฐๅ ๅก็ทไบบๅพๆ2ๅนดๅ ตๅฝน๏ผๆไปฅๅทฅ้ฝกๆฏๆดๅฐ็ใไปฅ็ถไป็ๅธๅ ดๅๅๅน็บๆบ๏ผๅฏๅ่จญๅคงๅญธ็ขๆฅญ็ๆ่ช5000๏ผๅ ๅซ3ๅๆ่ฑ็ด ๆฏๅนด่ช75000), ้ไผๆ้ๅฐๆ่ช15000๏ผๅนด่ช225000๏ผใ
ๅจ้ๅ็ๆณไธ๏ผ้ๆๅทฅไบบไธ็่ฝ่ณบ580่ฌใๅๅ่จญ10%ๅไบบๆๅพ็จ ๅๅค10%ๅผทๅถๅฒๅญ๏ผๅจๆฐๅ ๅก๏ผๅคงๅฎถไป20%ๅ ฌ็ฉ้๏ผไฝ้จๅ้ขๅฏ็จไพ่ฒทๆฟ๏ผๆไปฅ้่ฃก็ฐกๅฎ่จ็ฎ๏ผ๏ผ่ชๆฐดๅฐฑๆฃไบ20%๏ผๆฟๅๅฎถ็ๅชๆ460่ฌใ
้ๆฏไธๅๆฎ้ไธญ็ข้ไธ็็ไธ้ใ่ๆๅ็ฅ้้ๆฏๅพๅฅฝ็ๆน้ขๆณ๏ผๅ ็บๆๅๅๅ่จญไบๅฐฑๆฅญๆฒๆ็ฉบๆ๏ผ่ฃๅก๏ผ๏ผๅ ไธ้ไบบ็่ชๆฐด้ฝๆฏๆฏๅนดๅจๅข้ท๏ผ็ดๅฐ้ไผ็บๆญขใ
้่น
ๅพๅคๆฟๅบ้ฝๆ่ชชไปๅ็้่นๅจ2-3%ไน้ใไฝๅฏฆ้ไธๆๅ็ฅ้้่น้ ่ถ ๅบ้ๅๆธๅญใ็ซๆ ้็ๅคงๅฐ้ขๅฐฑ่ฎ็ฉๅนๅจ5ๅนดๅ งๆผฒ่ถ ้50%ใ
ๆๅๅๅฎๆน้่น็ไธญ้ๅผ๏ผ2.5%ใ42ๅนดๅพ๏ผไธๅไธๅก้ข็ๆฑ่ฅฟๅฐๆ่ฎๆ(1.025)^41 = 2.75. ้ไปฃ่กจไบไฝ ็ฌฌไธๅนดๅญ็้ขๆ่ฒถๅผๅฐๅไพ็1/3๏ผ้้ๅ่ฒถๅผๆ้จ่่ถๆฅ่ฟ็พๅจๆ้่ถๅฐใๆๅๅๅ่จญไธๅไบบ่ฝๆๅ็ๆ20%็่ชๆฐดๅญไธไพ๏ผ้ไธ็ไป่ฝๅญไธ116่ฌใไฝ็ถ้่น้ๅฐ2.75๏ผไป็่ณผ่ฒทๅๅฐๆ่ฎๆไปๅบ็คพๆๆ็ 116่ฌ/2.75 = 42.1่ฌใๅ ไธ้ไผๅพ่ฝๆฟๅบ็ๅ ฌ็ฉ้๏ผ่จป๏ผ้ๆๅๆฉๅๅทฒ็ถ่ๆ ฎๅฐไบ๏ผๆไปฅๅ ฌ็ฉ้็่จ็ฎๆฏๆ10%่ไธๆฏ20%่จ็ฎ๏ผ๏ผ้็ญ้ขๅพ็ถญๆๅฐไป็ๅฝ็็ต้ปใ็ข็ซ่ชฐ้ฝไธๆณๅๅทฅๅๅฐๆญปใ
่ตท่ช7.5่ฌ๏ผ้ไผๆ้ๅฐ22.5่ฌ็่ชๆฐด๏ผ้ๅฐฑๆฏไธๅนดๆผฒ่ช2.75%๏ผๅๅผท่ท้้่นใ็ไผผๆ้ฒๆญฅ๏ผๅฏฆๅๅๅฐ่ธๆญฅใ
่ณผ่ฒทๅ
็จ ๆฏๅฑคๅฑค็ๅ ็ใๆฟ้ ๅไพๅญ๏ผๆๅๆ้ฒๅฃ็จ ๅๆถ่ฒป็จ ใๆฟ่ๆ่ขซ็จ ็ๆถๅ ฅ๏ผๆๅๅป่ฒท่ขซ็จ 2ๆฌก็้ ใ่ปๅข๏ผๆฟๅข๏ผไธๅๆฎ้ๆๅทฅไบบ็่ณผ่ฒทๅ้้ๅ็จฎๅ ฌ้ๅ้ฑ่็็จ ่ขซๅฑคๅฑคๅๅใๅฐๆๅพ๏ผๅๆๅนพๅไบบ่ฝๅญไธ20%็ๆถๅ ฅๅข๏ผ
็ธฝ็ต
ไธๆฏๆฏๅไบบ่ฝๅจ้ๅญๅก็้ ็ซฏใไปปไฝ็คพๆ้ฝ้่ฆๅบๅฑคไบบ้ไฝ ็ๅค่ณฃ๏ผไธญ็ขไพๅ็้ฆฌใ่้็ณป็ตฑ๏ผๅฐฑๆฏ็บๆญค่่จญ่จใไฝๅช่ฆ่ถณๅค ่ชๅพ๏ผๆ่ถณๅค ็่ฒกๅๅ่จๅ๏ผ็ฌฌไธๆกถ้้ๆฏ่ฝๅญๅฐ็ใ


