Here’s the hard truth most people never admit: You cannot get rich with an average job — even if you climb the ladder, get promoted, and “go the extra mile” every single day.The math is brutal. Average salaries (even in good careers) top out around €60k–€100k after 15–20 years of grinding. After taxes, housing, and basic living, you’re left with maybe 20–30% to save/invest. Compound that at a realistic 7% return? You might build a comfortable nest egg by retirement… but rich? The kind of wealth that buys freedom, not just a nicer car? Almost never.Here are the two silent killers:
1. Lifestyle Creep
Every raise, bonus, or promotion feels like “finally, my time.” So you upgrade: bigger apartment, nicer car, better vacations, fancier restaurants, latest gadgets. Your expenses expand to eat almost the entire increase. That €15k raise? Gone in lifestyle inflation within 12–18 months. You’re running faster just to stay in the same financial place.
2. The Myth of “Going the Extra Mile”
Companies love the narrative: work harder, stay late, take on more, and you’ll be rewarded. Reality? Most extra effort gets absorbed into “that’s just your normal now.” Promotions are usually 10–25% bumps — nice, but rarely life-changing. And the people who truly get wealthy inside companies? They own equity, have golden parachutes, or sit at the very top. The diligent middle manager who burned weekends for years? They get a plaque and a 12% raise.
And the extra-mile myth in practice:
Bottom line: trading time for money at a fixed (even growing) rate caps your upside. Real wealth comes from owning assets, building businesses, investing aggressively, or creating scalable value — not from being the best-paid employee.Stay average = stay average forever.
The ladder is long, but the ceiling is low.
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