TikToker's 'man in finance' wish list gets a hilarious reality check: 'Not how statistics work'

What do they say about there being plenty of fish in the sea? Well, that might be true, but it appears the odds of snagging one decrease drastically depending on just how picky you are. One clever mathematician has taken a woman's TikTok wish list for a man and run the numbers, proving that her dream guy might just be as hard to reel in as a mythical merman from the underwater city of Atlantica.

In case you missed it, the original viral clip features TikToker @girl_on_couch dropping her ideal man's credentials in a catchy rap she dubs the "song of the summer." She confidently reels off, "I'm looking for a man in finance, trust fund, 6'5", blue eyes."

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Pretty specific criteria.

Enter fellow TikToker @maxedoutmommy with her ingenious "remix," where she breaks down just how likely it is that such a guy even exists.

Crunching the numbers

"Let's look at the numbers," she says, projecting a presentation onto the wall for her offscreen husband, along with 8.7 million TikTok viewers.

"In the United States, there are 100 million men over the age of eighteen. That is about 48.2% of thes population."

Continuing her breakdown, she adds, "Now, finance. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 7.6 million people work in finance and insurance. So I went through every single job title and narrowed it down to those just in finance, and it was about 3.6 million people."

She goes on, drilling down the maths even further, calculating: "If we apply that same 48.2%, we come out to 1.7 million men working in finance."

Next, she tackles the trust fund criterion. "Only 1.2% of Americans have a trust fund. So unfortunately, that narrows us down to just 21,000 men in America."

'We're down to only 21 men'

But here's where things get tricky.

"6'5". Do you know how tall that is? It's crazy tall!" She says, "Only 0.1% of men are 6'5" or above in the United States. This is a real killer one because now we're down to only 21 men in the United States for our girl on couch!"

She continues to break down the criteria, mentioning that having blue eyes could work in @girl_on_couch's favour due to more men in the United States having blue eyes compared to other regions. However, even with this advantage, the pool dwindles to just six men—six men in finance, with a trust fund, height of 6'5", and blue eyes.

But the analysis doesn't stop there. Factoring in the important consideration of availability, she notes that just 29% of working men are single, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

"And that brings us to a final count for our girl on couch..." she declares.

*Drum roll*

"Two men in the United States for her!"

Laughing, she continues, "How do we find these men? There's only two!"

And honestly, those aren't great odds, however you slice it.

Social media response

@maxedoutmommy's hilarious statistical breakdown had viewers in stitches, and while @girl_on_couch might have her work cut out for her, at least she now knows the chances. Here's hoping she finds one of those two magical men—or perhaps adjusts her list a bit!

According to the comments, however, it seems the maths might be a tad off.

"This math isn't correct. You're multiplying percentages over categories which overlap," one person pointed out. Another added, "Not even close to how you would calculate this, but it's still probably a fairly low number."

Agreement came from a third user who said, "This is not how statistics work, but I get the point."

Meanwhile, one sharp observer threw in a humorous observation, "Also, what sort of trust fund baby chooses to work 100 hours at Goldman Sachs? Every trustfarian I know is an art major." This insight triggered a wave of laughter from the virtual audience.

Others joined the fray, noting that the original criteria never specified the man had to be American, but age wasn't considered either.

"Only two, and one is 60 years old," someone laughed.

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The scepticism continued as a man posted, "As a guy that is 6'5", in finance, and a trust fund, with blue eyes, I simply do not believe the math." Another quickly chimed in, "Same! I must be the other guy then."

Cue the laughter as another commenter quipped, "Eureka! We found them! Are they single?"

And then, for the ultimate punchline: "They're married to each other!"

Sorry, @girl_on_couch!

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