In 1899, economist Thorstein Veblen wrote The Theory of the Leisure Class, where he referred to the rich, ruling class as lazy people who do leisurely work if at all.
Fast forward a hundred years or so, and the opposite is now true: rich people work longer hours than poor people do!
Here's an op-ed piece by economist Dalton Conley for The New York Times:
Perhaps for the first time since we’ve kept track of such things, higher-income folks work more hours than lower-wage earners do. Since 1980, the number of men in the bottom fifth of the income ladder who work long hours (over 49 hours per week) has dropped by half, according to a study by the economists Peter Kuhn and Fernando Lozano. But among the top fifth of earners, long weeks have increased by 80 percent.
This is a stunning moment in economic history: At one time we worked hard so that someday we (or our children) wouldn’t have to. Today, the more we earn, the more we work, since the opportunity cost of not working is all the greater (and since the higher we go, the more relatively deprived we feel).
In other words, when we get a raise, instead of using that hard-won money to buy “the good life,” we feel even more pressure to work since the shadow costs of not working are all the greater.
"Golfing" is work, flying to some other place to be part of a grand opening/real estate deal/something in your industry is "work," etc. The rich people that I know (I'm talking mega rich) are always "working" but always are doing something different and interesting so it doesn't necessarily seem like they are.
In our business, there have been many 70 hour work weeks for me - including Weekends.
You find yourself working constantly because of the Web and mobile communications
You clients are now expecting close to real time reponse in some circumstances
Also, by trying to distinguish yourself from the competitors, you add more vertical services to your company
My husband begins work at 4:30 AM most mornings and doesn't stop till at least 6:00 PM (but often later). He works six days a week most weeks. And NOT at golf! His hands get dirty every day. Do you know how annoying it is when we sneak away for an afternoon to catch a movie once in a while and someone who has SETTLED for a minimum wage job makes a snide comment about how "it must be nice"? Or when our friends who blow money on cigarettes and beer and stupid shit that they don't need make us out to be big spenders because we saved up for a used boat that we got for a steal at $5,000. "It must be nice." Yes, being smart with our money IS nice! You should try it.
I wish people would stop coddling people as if they are woerthless human beings who won't get anywhere in life unless you hold their hand and help them along. When did that ever make strong people? Nearly EVERYONE can succeed if they just try harder and smarter. Instead of making excuses for people maybe we should spend more time encouraging them to learn from the people who HAVE succeeded instead of encouraging them to have contempt for those people.
First of all, working longer hours is NOT a good thing. It greatly impacts quality of life, health and family. In the US, we work more than any other First World country. Again, that's NOT a good thing.
Secondly, many poor people have more than one job. They might be working 70 hours a week, but at three jobs. If they counted each job individually, it wouldn't seem as much. Beware of statistics. They aren't perfect, and can be skewed (even unintentionally) by things like this.
Oh, and JenDiggity... Yes, please continue to help us poor folks out. We're too stupid to know how to get rich. Maybe it's all the crack we smoke!
This study doesn't surprise me. People who do work they are passionate about tend to do well, and people who are good at what they do tend to enjoy their job more. That will lead to more hours spent at work, but that's not a bad thing in a career you really enjoy.
Also, a 6% unemployment rate probably skews the bottom end a bit.
"Nearly EVERYONE can succeed if they just try harder and smarter."
I'm not sure being smart is the criteria. After all, you're doing fine financially and you can't even construct a proper sentence.
Your condescending attitude is exactly why some people have contempt for the wealthy. Not everyone has the ability to pull themselves up by their bootstraps and make a ton of money. Are you going to tell a person who's been disabled by physical or mental illness to just "try harder"?
It must be nice to sit on your pedestal, look down your nose at everyone else, and live in denial about other people's struggles and challenges. Ignorance must truly be bliss.
Guess what? A lot of them are trying to work more for more money now...
first job: salary, averaged 55 hrs a week - $40k a yr
second job: hourly, averaged 40 hrs a week - $32k a yr
current job: salary, average 75 hrs a week - $180k a yr
We are a work obsessed culture, and while it costs companies more to squeeze in extra hours for hourly employees, the same is not true for salleried employees.
Wealth and success are only a state of mind. If you're happy with what you've got, what more do you need. When you're desires have been me (on any level) then you are rich.
lol, Tell that to the gold-mining children and coffee slaves in Africa.
200k to lift a breif case and open it. hope they dont sue for arthritis for opening there breifcases.
so u stfu as well.
I think there are two reasons why this is not true. People that are struggling financially often times seem to complain much more about the economy, the market conditions, etc. It's as if they feel sorry for themselves more than their silver spoon colleagues.
Secondly, I feel that the wealthier group simply has a stronger work ethic. Obviously, it is nice to be able to drive to work in a Lexus, have a Coach briefcase and Italian leather shoes. It gives you confidence and in sales, confidence is key.
All in all, I feel that wealthy people truly feel that they deserve and in turn expect to be wealthy while a lesser sect of people tend to think the opposite. They tend to make excuses as to why they aren't successful and constantly seek change when times are tough.
The rich don't deserve respect. They deserve all their wealth distributed evenly to every middle and poor person in the world and the US. Sell their stocks, freeze their assets, tax the hell out of them.
We need to abolish all universities,colleges, banks, real estate, government by the wealthy white christian heterosexual elite, we need to take action and fight. They are the enemy of the environment, the enemy of the poor, enemy of everything. They stole lands, raped,pillaged,murdered for greed. Shame on them.