(Credit: Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels)
Peace of mind has a price tag, and for most Americans, it’s almost everything they earn.
A Talker Research survey of 2,000 U.S. adults found that the average respondent, earning around $79,000 a year, would willingly hand over nearly $57,000 of that annually just to feel secure. That’s roughly 72 cents of every dollar earned, gone in exchange for a sense of calm andstability.
That number isn’t as far-fetched as it sounds.Groceriesare still expensive. Medical bills arrive without warning. Job cuts keep making headlines. For many Americans, financial anxiety isn’t a passing worry; it’s part of the weekly routine. Nearly one in five respondents said they feel financially anxious every single day during an average month, and nearly one in three said peace of mind feels harder to come by today than it did just five years ago.
“We exist in an environment defined by economic uncertainty and political instability,” said Dr. Jenny Martin, a licensed psychologist and founder of Gemstone Wellness, in a statement. “Peace of mindhas become psychologically equated with control, which feels harder and harder to find.”
When asked to put dollar figures on specific sources ofstress, respondents got specific. Always being able to afford necessities like groceries and medications topped the list, with people saying they’d pay an average of $21,000 per year for that guarantee. Never having to worry about losing their job came in second at $19,800 annually, followed by $16,400 per year to never face a surprise medical bill or a crushing copay.
Added together, those three categories alone account for most of that $57,000 annual figure. Where American anxiety is concentrated right now has little to do with luxury and everything to do with basics.
Nearly half of those surveyed, 47%, said they prefer to pay for peace of mind when they can. But 41% admitted they currently can’t afford to do so even when they want to.
That gap is hard to close given the findings of a separate Talker Research survey conducted with EarnIn, which found that the average American spends nearly half of a monthly paycheck within the firsttwo daysof receiving it. That leaves just over half of that month’s income to cover everything else, including rent, utilities, food, and transportation, with virtually nothing left over for savings, let alone a five-figure security investment.
Most people already know the math isn’t working out for them.
Source: Drudge Report
