The median household income in the U.S. is around 70,000 USD per year today. Some states are higher, some demographics lower, but the median is right around that number. The average life expectancy depends on income and gender, but lets say it is around 85 years old. Assuming you start working around age 20 and stop working around age 70 that gives you approximately 50 years of income producing life. If the averages hold true for you then you will have income roughly totaling 3.5 Million dollars in your life span, if we do not adjust for income inflation and we keep to the average. However, keep in mind, the average is really low. Most people do graduate from high school. However, a very few graduate with a 4 year college degree. Roughly only 30%. Even less than that get an advanced degree, probably more like 15%. Professional certifications are even lower than that. We always joke that there are too many attorneys, well not by the statistics. There just are not that many doctors, lawyers, and accountants by population.
Here is the thing, just to get to average income you need a college education. That means that you need to invest at least 50,000 into your self in order to ensure that you will at least be average income. Statistics show that if you do not, then you will most likely be only earning 50 to 60 K per year. So to just get to the average level you need to make a minimum investment in yourself. If you were to invest enough to get to an advanced degree, then that lower common denominator sky rockets. Your average income almost doubles. So instead of 3.5M in earning potential in your lifetime, you would have at least 7M in lifetime earnings, and probably much more.
The earlier you invest in yourself, the more you invest in yourself, the more income you generate. So think on this. How much time and money do you spend, or have you spent investing in your own self? Even if you only have 10, 20, 30 years left on this planet, a 5 – 10% investment now will pay dividends in your earning potential of the future.
Guy Reams
