[bluefirebrand]

This is exactly right.

The system is set up in such a way that it punishes people who are not chasing higher incomes, up to a point.

Past that point it starts to reward people heavily. When you make enough that you stop worrying about saving and start affording vacation homes and yachts and flying first class everywhere. That's the "lifestyle" thing.

Most people don't earn nearly enough to have expensive lifestyles unless they are heavily in debt. And those people have heavily borrowed from their own futures to finance their current lifestyle, it will bite them later

Most people's incomes leave them in a lot of uncertainty. One or two major expenses in a row will screw them.

If the choice is "work full time and have a stable, comfortable income" or "work part time and have an uncertain, shaky income" that's not a real choice.

If people could work part time and still make the stable income, more people would. I guarantee it.