Stop TC chasing
As someone who was in this boat I don't think it's worth it. A lot of burnout, days spent staring at the screen. At 30 I regret spending my youth just working, fighting for promotions, preparing for interviews to switch jobs every 2 years. The return on investment is not that great. Move to a lcol area if you have to, work at a regular low work pressure company. Make connections, spend time with your loved ones, travel and be happy. Don’t be in the rat race. Plenty of people will troll me for this opinion but just wanted to put it out there for younger folks who are just starting their career.
How can you post a TC post without posting your TC?
That’s the point
We need to see the result of that burnout for this to hold any weight.
Jokes aside, what was the TC you reached by spending youth chasing?
Around 600k peak last year, dropped a little after the market crash
There are many, ex: fedex in Memphis, lot of gov jobs / consulting, mathworks you just need to go out and find them
True, I’ll never retire but also would never want to work 60 hour weeks, weekends, lose a minute of sleep for a company etc tc 62k
Username doesn’t checkout! Jackson man, you’re attitude is opposite of your username
Haha thank you. Username does check out if you look at my bank balance and debt to income ratio. But I’m relatively zen about it at all and trying to turn stuff around on my terms.
Isn’t Airbnb chill my dude?
Not since pandemic
One of my friends spent his 30s chasing girls. By the 40s, he had divorced and felt miserable. Choose your poison.
Just chase stability and a chill job. You will be better. That's what Op would say.
30s is way too old for that lol
As someone who was not in this boat when he should have, I can tell you totally do it. I had OP’s thoughts early in my career and now I am millions poorer that I could have been with minimal extra effort. High TC early in your career multiplies sevenfold. It is way easier to put the hours and handle change early in your life before the demands of your immediate family and declining health. You want to be fully financially independent while you can still enjoy it. The argument about moving to the country is equally ridiculous. If it worked that well, the urbanisation would not have happened worldwide. As someone else pointed on Blind, your disposable income from a high paying job is more than your total income from a low paying one. You do the math which of the two gives you the freedom. Worse, wealth is contagious and there is wealth escape velocity that propagates to your kids. Make smart choices and make them early. If you find that employer does not pay your worth, ditch them.
I feel like most people fall into the following 2 categories: 1) You don’t prioritize TC, then regret it later 2) You prioritize TC, then regret having lost time But tbh, unless you come from a wealthy family, almost always better to take the money. When shit pops up in life, it’s nice to have that buffer. It really shows privilege when people downplay the importance of $. Also what is up with people acting like life is over at 30? Over 30 now and I’m in the best shape of my life lol
Well, I am over 40. Blind did not exist when I started my career and even Glassdoor came later. This prevented me from making smart choices. Yes, you want to strike a balance, but as you pointed out, financial cushion helps. Worse, the compounding returns cannot be ignored. My wife and I focused on saving instead of earning more. One can only save as much as their disposable income, but compensation can increase well beyond that amount with smart career moves. Yes, it is important to be reasonable with expenses, but it is not sufficient.
On flip side, I struggled through my 20s and early 30s. Now 35 and in a creative non-tech role at 220k tc and previous FT job was 55k in New York City . . . Finished school late. Then nonprofits, serving, working for an artist, and one super crappy corp gig that got me my job at Amazon. Lived in 5 states, 7 cities. In pandemic wracked up credit card debt. At 34 I got current job. Now that my debts are paid off and I am saving, I feel like I have a lot of options and I am so much incredibly less anxious and stressed. Save money, get that MFA, get a promotion, jump jobs and make more money, freelance. So much better than the list I had when I was broke af. I wouldn’t change anything, BUT I am also lucky at this point to break into a much more lucrative market. I feel like it’s best to seek out about as much money as you can while also pursuing some self actualization a la Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Don’t necessarily need an easy job for that but I guess everyone is also different. I feel like 30 is a great time to quit your high paying corporate gig find a more fulfilling setup.
You give me hope my man. Struggled with mental health issues in my 20s, non tech humanities degree, make 62k now and up to my eyeballs in CC debt. From 27 to 33 I have doubled my salary every 2 years and it’s been life changing and great. I don’t need to achieve FIRE but getting to six figures would just be good to live the ideal life for myself
@LUsr08 given the general consensus about our liberal arts educations, I think mental health issues are basically a pre requisite for a humanities degree. Gotta hate yourself at least a tad to major in poetry and philosophy. Hope you make it to that 6 fig. Sure you will, clearly. You’re in IT? I’m Creative Marketing/UX
Or you can spend your youth chasing greater meaning only to realize there really isn't much out there. Grass always greener etc. Gimme your TC.
I will give you my TC if you can give me my time back
If I gave you what you wish for you would just spend it some other way and then feel regret over having gone down that new path but not the other one you're now so convinced is the best.
tc or gtfo
TC: not enough to justify lost years
what TC would’ve justified it?