'Old money rules don’t work anymore': CA Nitin Kaushik’s viral post sparks nationwide discussion

A viral social-media post by tax and finance professional CA Nitin Kaushik is resonating widely with young earners across India, after he argued that the money principles most people grew up with no longer match today’s economic reality. The post, titled “The Money Rules You Grew Up With… Don’t Work Anymore,” highlights the widening gap between traditional financial advice and the challenges of the modern workforce.

Kaushik points out that the financial environment in which earlier generations built their lives was fundamentally different. A single stable job once offered both security and upward mobility; salaries grew at 8–10%, homes cost three to four times the annual income, and fixed deposits comfortably beat inflation. “That world simply doesn’t exist anymore,” he notes.

Today, salary growth has slowed to 4–6%, inflation consistently stays near 6%, and urban real-estate prices have soared to 20–30 times annual income. The math, Kaushik says, “no longer rhymes.” Despite this, many continue relying on outdated advice—save more, avoid risk, depend on a single income—because it feels familiar and safe.

But savings alone no longer protect purchasing power. Kaushik uses a stark example: a ₹10 lakh fixed deposit at roughly 6.5% grows slower than inflation, meaning the money appears to increase but loses real value. “Your money grows on paper, but shrinks in real life,” he warns, calling this the biggest blind spot in traditional financial thinking.

He argues that investing is no longer optional—it is a survival necessity. However, he clarifies that investing does not mean speculative trading or chasing multibagger stocks. Instead, it means allowing money to grow at a pace that matches current economic demands—through diversified, long-term investment strategies such as index funds.

Kaushik also cautions against blindly following the popular “quit your job and start a business” narrative. While entrepreneurship is fulfilling, he notes that nearly 70% of small businesses fail within five years. Building a business, he says, demands time, capital and emotional bandwidth. For most people, the safer path is earning through their job, investing consistently, and developing small side projects that grow gradually.

His recommended framework is straightforward: grow income through skill upgrades, build stability with an emergency fund, and grow long-term wealth through disciplined investing. Even a simple SIP in a broad index fund earning around 11% annually can double in about 6.5 years—something idle cash cannot achieve.

Kaushik ends with a message that has struck a chord: the world has changed, careers have changed, and money has changed. The only question is whether individuals are willing to change the way they manage it. “Once you understand how money actually grows today, you stop surviving and start deciding,” he writes. “And that’s where freedom begins.”