AVERAGE IS OVER

The widening gap between rich and poor means dealing with one big, uncomfortable truth: If you’re not at the top, you’re at the bottom.
AVERAGE IS OVER will be a lighting rod for debate and a must buy for anyone looking for savvy solutions for making the most of the new economy.

The global labor market is changing radically thanks to growth at the high end—and the low. About three quarters of the jobs created in the United States since the great recession pay only a bit more than minimum wage. Still, the United States has more millionaires and billionaires than any country ever, and we continue to mint them. In this eye-opening book, renowned economist and bestselling author Tyler Cowen explains that phenomenon: High earners are taking ever more advantage of machine intelligence in data analysis and achieving ever-better results. Meanwhile, low earners who haven’t committed to learning, to making the most of new technologies, have poor prospects. Nearly every business sector relies less and less on manual labor, and this fact is forever changing the world of work and wages. A steady, secure life somewhere in the middle—average—is over.

With The Great Stagnation, Cowen explained why median wages stagnated over the last four decades; in Average Is Over he reveals the essential nature of the new economy, identifies the best path forward for workers and entrepreneurs, and provides readers with actionable advice to make the most of the new economic landscape. It is a challenging and sober must-read but ultimately exciting, good news. In debates about our nation’s economic future, it will be impossible to ignore.

Cowen is a trusted guide, the perfect author to explain the profound changes underway in the world of work. He reveals the nature of the new economy and identifies the best path forward.

Cowen is a professor of economics at George Mason University. He blogs at www.marginalrevolution.com, one of the most influential economics blogs in the world, and he writes regularly for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Grantland.com. In February 2011, Cowen was nominated as one of the most influential economists in the last decade through a survey by The Economist. Also in 2011, he was ranked #72 among the "Top 100 Global Thinkers" by Foreign Policy Magazine.