You might be surprised to discover that according to the Orshansky Poverty Thresholds document used by the US Census Bureau to determine who among the more indigent in society should be classified as officially poor, you might not technically be a member of the poverty sector.

Just because you have no money in the bank and haven’t earned an income in 4 months, have to scrape coins together to pay your bills every month, never know if you’ll be able to get the bills paid the following month, never know when your utilities are going to get disconnected and can never guarantee you’ll be able to afford to eat, doesn’t mean you’re poor. What technically makes you poor in the United States is your yearly income, presumably your adjusted gross income, falling below the poverty threshold applicable to the size of your family.

What this means is that, if you’re finishing the year with an adjusted gross income that, according to the poverty threshold, should be enough for your family to live on, even if you can’t afford extras, but you’re still struggling to get the bills paid, you might not be managing your money well. Perhaps a $930 monthly rent is too much for someone with your income? Perhaps High Speed Internet and Digital Cable are luxuries you really can’t afford? Perhaps you can’t afford to be spending $50 - $100 every week on fast food? Perhaps you shouldn’t have 5 credit cards which equal 5 additional and unnecessary bills to pay every month?

Being a member of the low income sector isn’t the ideal admittedly, but it means that, while you won’t be able to afford the high life, you should still be able to get by on what little money you have. Poverty isn’t responsible for your constant financial struggling because, according to the US Census Bureau, you’re not poor. It’s your poor money management skills that has you trapped in the same cycle year after year, and until you make the adjustment so that you’re living within your means, your life will continue to resemble that of someone who is actually poor even if you’re technically one level above poverty.