Let’s start with the obvious: I am not rich. I’m “upper middle class,” which basically means I grew up with a fridge that talked back when the door was open too long, but I also knew better than to touch the AC remote without permission. I had access to Wi-Fi before it was cool, but still got yelled at if the electricity bill crossed some sacred threshold.
If you’re reading this while sipping cucumber water in a hammock on your private beach in Capri, lovingly scrolling through your dad’s startup portfolio, this article may not be for you. But if you’ve ever cried over a Swiggy delivery fee, navigated LinkedIn like it’s Tinder for jobs, or convinced yourself that coffee and trauma bonding are personality traits—pull up a chair. You’re my people.
I come from that deliciously confusing economic bracket where you can afford an iPhone, but not a cracked screen. Where you grew up with cable TV and a landline with caller tune, but still traveled economy—with snacks from home. A place where you went to a decent school, maybe even a “convent,” and learned English good enough to say things like “Let’s circle back” in emails but still felt the guilt of asking for pocket money at 23.
The middle class, especially the upper variety, is a cultural paradox. We’re bougie, but on a budget. We drink Starbucks but feel guilty about it. We shop at Zara during the sale. We vacation in Bali but with budget airlines and a shared AirBnB. We dream big, hustle hard, and yet—somehow—stay one broken laptop away from a mild identity crisis.
The best career advice? Just be born rich.
Chapter 1: “Beta, Just Study Hard” — The Great Middle-Class Myth
If you’re middle class, you probably heard this your whole life:
“Work hard and you’ll succeed.”
“Marks matter more than money.”
“Hustle beats luck.”
LOL. Cute.
Let’s be honest—if success were solely based on merit, then every gold-medal-winning engineering student from Bihar would be launching tech startups, not being ghosted by HR after “we’ll get back to you.”
But we believed it. We did everything right. We studied. We got the degrees. We learned Excel shortcuts. We updated our LinkedIn headers. Some of us even wore blazers in 45-degree weather for job interviews. And yet, some distant cousin of someone’s family friend’s neighbor’s son, who has never opened his own email inbox, is suddenly “co-founder” of a company with Series A funding.
Guess what? He was born rich. And that’s half the job done.
Chapter 2: Rich Kid Résumé vs. Middle-Class CV
Let’s compare:
Middle-Class CV:
- “Managed college fest budget of ₹25,000 with zero sponsorship.”
- “Completed Google-certified digital marketing course during semester break.”
- “Interned at local NGO and handled social media strategy for 2 months.”
- “Good at PowerPoint. Can also cry on demand.”
Rich Kid Résumé:
- “Grew up in New York and London.”
- “Attended Model UN in Switzerland at age 12.”
- “Unpaid internship at Vogue because my mom’s college roommate is now EIC.”
- “Once shared an Uber with Elon Musk. Not relevant, just a vibe.”
And don’t even get me started on “gap years.” When middle-class people take a gap year, we work call center jobs and pray our parents don’t find out. When rich kids take a gap year, it’s “personal development” in Bali with journaling, cold-pressed juice, and a startup idea born during a mushroom trip.
Chapter 3: Hustle Culture Is a Scam
Raise your hand if you’ve ever:
- Stayed up all night doing work your manager should’ve done.
- Said “yes” to a project even when your calendar was one emotional breakdown away from imploding.
- Felt guilty for resting.
- Compared your life to a 19-year-old on Instagram with a beach house and a skincare brand.
The truth is, hustle culture glorifies suffering—but only for the middle class.
When rich people say they’re “hustling,” they mean designing a hoodie line with their initials on it. When we hustle, it’s begging HR to consider our application again because we “really believe in the brand.”
We work twice as hard to get half as far. And still, we’re told we’re not “manifesting hard enough.”
Fun fact: rich people don’t need to manifest. They have assets.
Chapter 4: Networking, Nepotism, and Other N-Words
Middle-class kids: “I made a LinkedIn post today. 3 likes. One from my college roommate. One from my mom.”
Rich kids: “Oh I had brunch with my godfather’s best friend’s wife who runs HR at Netflix. She offered me a role on the spot.”
The harsh truth is that connections matter more than qualifications. That’s not bitterness, that’s data. Your 10-page resume can’t compete with someone who had coffee with the hiring manager’s cousin at Soho House.
Is it fair? No.
Can you do something about it? Sort of.
Chapter 5: Okay, But What Can We Actually Do?
Alright, enough ranting. Let’s get practical. Because if you’re middle class like me, you can’t afford just vibes. You need strategy.
1. Play the Long Game
Don’t expect quick wins. Wealth gets to play the short game. We don’t. That means building credibility, skills, and networks over time. You’re not behind. You’re just climbing a different mountain.
2. Start Talking Money Early
Middle-class families don’t talk money. We say vague things like “do well in life” or “settle down.” Start talking about income. Salaries. Investing. Saving. Building. If the rich learn wealth from their dinner table, we can learn it from YouTube and podcasts.
3. Network Laterally
You may not know the CEO—but your college batchmate might become one. Network with your people. Grow together. Support each other. You don’t need a rich mentor—you need a loyal crew.
4. Romanticize Your Journey, Not the Struggle
Don’t glorify burnout. Take naps. Go on walks. Laugh with your friends. Eat biryani on a terrace with cheap fairy lights. Middle-class joy is underrated. Live while you climb.
5. Build a Personal Brand
You can’t afford to be invisible. Use the free tools available—write blogs, post on LinkedIn, make reels if you have the energy. Let the world know who you are before you get that title.
Chapter 6: Unpaid Internships Are a Scam (Unless You’re Rich)
Let’s not mince words: unpaid internships are designed for rich kids. The kind of people who can afford to “work for experience” because someone else is paying for their existence.
Middle-class folks doing unpaid internships? We’re funding our boss’s dream and skipping lunch to afford the metro ride.
If you must take one:
- Negotiate something. Travel stipend. Mentorship. At least a recommendation letter.
- Set an end date. You’re not free labor forever.
- Parallel it with something paid. A weekend freelance gig. Content creation. Tutoring.
You deserve to earn. Even if it’s not a lot. The principle matters.
Chapter 7: The Psychology of Being Middle Class
Being middle class messes with your head. You’re raised with ambition but weighed down by fear. Every risk feels like betrayal. Every dream has to be “realistic.” Every passion needs a backup plan.
Rich kids? They start a music career at 21, crash and burn, then become angel investors at 24. For us, even a lateral job switch is a family emergency.
You’re not lazy. You’re just carrying a survival mindset in a system built for security.
Chapter 8: The Inheritance Gap
Let’s talk numbers.
A rich 24-year-old might inherit:
- A house in a good neighborhood
- ₹50 lakhs in family investments
- An automatic seat in a family business
You might inherit:
- Some emotional baggage
- A 15-year-old fridge
- A parent who says “Main toh kehta hoon government job le lo”
But here’s the thing: we inherit resilience. Street smarts. The ability to stretch ₹500 till Friday. The superpower of managing dreams without drowning in them.
And no, it won’t buy you a mansion. But it’ll build you character. (Which sadly isn’t accepted as collateral for loans, but still.)
Chapter 9: Laugh, Cry, Repeat
So what’s the final takeaway?
Being middle class means living between two extremes—watching the ultra-rich play Monopoly with real money while you try to budget for both shampoo and conditioner.
But it also means community. Perspective. Humor. Drive. It means laughing at your own misfortunes because you know crying won’t reduce your EMI.
It means climbing a harder path—but never walking it alone.
So no, we weren’t born rich.
But we were born interesting.
If you’re tired of hustle culture, career gurus, and unpaid internships that feel like scams—same. But here’s your reminder:
You’re not behind. You’re just from the middle class. Which means your starting line was farther back. But your journey? Way more badass.
And until someone builds a machine that lets us choose our wealth—we’ll keep showing up. Scrappy, sarcastic, slightly sleep-deprived—but showing up nonetheless.
Because the second-best career advice (after “just be born rich”)?
Be born middle class. And make it funny.
For more content, check out Her Campus at MUJ.
And if you’d like to explore more of my world, visit my corner at HCMUJ — Aditi Thakur