I have over 10 years of experience as a digital designer and finally got a job that pays over 6 figures, have been making $20/hour average all these years. I was so excited and happy that I am gonna be one of very few people making this much money but joining blind it looks so weird how the TCs are all 400k and above. Whatâs going on here? None of my friends make over $50k, how we only have people here who make so much more than average Americans? Not an accusation just a question to understand what your occupations are that pay so much? Can graphic/digital design ever pay as much as $400k? TC: $105k
High TC you see is specifically at FAANG companies, includes stock appreciation (and not adjusted for recent downturn) and are primarily technical roles. Half this app are software engineers. There are marketing threads which youâll find more applicable. Location also matters. High pay is usually tied to high cost of living. Though $20/hour is low for any real job requiring education given 10 years of experience. Nannies with no education get paid that in my area and in cash. And many service jobs pay that, no education required.
I was way underpaid at $20/hr, thatâs less than what interns get paid for the same job. The reason I couldnât switch or quit was because my greencard process got stuck and I had no work permit for a while and was getting paid under the table. My employer abused the situation. I started applying like a mad woman as soon as I got my greencard, didnât even bother to ask for a raise. Even then though I thought maximum I am going to make as a graphic designer is $80k, my interview went way too well for them to offer me anything less and the offer was beyond my expectations. I said yes in a heartbeat maybe should have joined blind sooner and asked to negotiate đ«Ł
I am in NYC
1) >150 iq type A personality gang is overrepresented on blind 2) we just came off a period of ATH equity valuations and a lot of folks are still avoiding doing the math and updating their numbers. denial phase is just before grief as far as design goes I think if youâre a better artist than DALLE-2 you should be fine đ
>150 is đ€Łđ€Łđ€Ł
I feel seen on an app designed for anonymity đŹđ
Most people on Blind are engineers. The majority of non-tech roles are paid a lot less for the same level of experience
In what world is UX not tech? UX design is very technical.
I thought OP was an artist đ (graphic designer)
Blind is not representative of real life. Itâs mostly people at the very top of the TC mountain talking and bragging about it. And a huge portion of their comp is in stocks, which most companies canât do - especially at that valuation. Them talking about their money doesnât bother me, but they live in a bubble totally detached from normal people and itâs really annoying to see them act like making less than 200k+ is being poor or unheard of.
OP - am wondering how often you have switched jobs as a designer? Every time Iâve switched jobs (Iâm a graphic designer in the Bay Area) I have earned more each time
Can I ask what your path into tech was like as a graphic designer? My boyfriend is a graphic designer/motion animator and is hoping to transition into tech for higher pay.
Heythereee - best answer is I didnât start out in tech. I worked as a jr graphic designer at a tiny little ad agency. Made very little money. Moved to another company after I was let go. Didnât make much money there. Then I moved into another ad agency, made more money but not like what tech makes. For a little while I was a contractor at a few different places, just getting more experience. Earned a little bit more compared to the second ad agency. Finally, I made the move into tech in 2018. In house graphic designer there for a year and a half. It does feel like having different jobs was good for my growth and confidence in myself as a designer. Been a graphic designer for about 6.5 full years after college
Where do you live? It depends son that and what kind of company. If itâs a a small company you wonât get paid as much. Not everyone is at >400k. Youâre talking about a nicque amount of people mainly in software.
OP, let's conduct a controlled experiment. Go to metacareers.com and see if there are any opening there for which you are more than qualified - yoe, etc. DM me, and I will refer you to Meta.
Ditto for AWS/Amazon
OP when you say graphic/digital design, can you please elaborate as to what you do? The inflated TC for digital design roles at FAANG companies are related to semiconductor chip design.
Itâs all location dependent. Most people who claim 400k TC live in VHCOL where $1.5 million gets you a little 2 bedroom shack and where 42% of their income goes to the IRS.
This is the truthful answer.
400k is an amazing TC anywhere, even bay area and NYC.