In the first month of the year, there is a flurry of big-picture reports and surveys from global institutions. The World Economic Forum takes place annually in Davos, Switzerland, in January, where global leaders from across the world converge to discuss ideas about the future. Ahead of the forum, the global body conducted a survey of over 4,000 people across 144 countries as part of the WEF Youth Pulse 2026 report. The biggest cause of stress or anxiety among 57% of the youth worldwide is ‘financial insecurity’. They consider inflation and instability as the greatest threats to their lives. Over 70% of young workers today are in informal, insecure, or low-wage employment.
There are two sides to the story. One is about the income, and the other is about the expenditure.
The income side of the story
In India, a significant number of people have been informal agriculture workers for decades. In urban India, informal work is a relatively new phenomenon. Over the years, people usually migrated from villages because there were better job opportunities in the public and private sectors. Government jobs provided a job guarantee that no other business could promise with life-long pensions. However, with a surging population, the government alone cannot provide or promise jobs for everyone. Presently, businesses are not significantly in an expansion mode. The advent of artificial intelligence and new technologies means businesses must hire only high-skilled workers. Routine skills are automated more rapidly than you can imagine. That is leading young urban people to take on additional work in the gig economy. The aftermath of all that means you are taking on more responsibilities and increasing the pressure on yourselves to simply provide for your own needs and wants, as well as for your families.
When asked what matters most for their future, young respondents emphasised a sense of purpose (61%) and balance (50%) above traditional benefits such as medical coverage or retirement savings. The previous generations chose stability.
The only way you can face the insecurity is to directly confront the fear of uncertainty. The path to that is through knowledge. There is never an age to learn a new skill. In technology, you may want to dive deeper to ensure that you are not managing tasks that can be easily automated. If you are worried about inflation, you should take the new gig only to fund your future self.
The expenditure side of the story
Warren Buffett, the legendary American investor, often talks about building a " moat " around your wealth. It means you must build a wall of money that protects your actual wealth from exigencies such as health issues, accidents, or income loss. It is easier said than done, though. It requires you to first allocate money to your future needs and then spend today. For this purpose, you have to strike a balance between saving, investing, and spending. Considering the younger generation’s need for purpose, this is proving to be a challenge. No amount of income is adequate if you wish to pursue your happiness and purpose by spending money. With your virtual life dominating your real life, you crave new physical experiences. Your work, travel, reading, and entertainment habits have changed. You are willing to pay much more for aligning with the purpose behind your actions. It may be a good idea to learn how to balance your life goals. Financial knowledge will help you achieve that incrementally. As you learn something new, you may also want to take professional help to support your actions. If you are starting now, balancing your monthly income and expenditure is paramount. With income growth facing challenges, pinching the expenditure side more is the way forward for your future self.