Originally Posted by Unregistered

I think the PhD switcher is doing well objectively and seems to be improving over time. Everyone only compares against FAANG SWEs (who honestly, have an overrepresented voice cos they like talking about how much they make) but it is a stupid comparison

Lots of FAANG people brag about how little they work vs how much they make. In the long term, no one building a good team will want to hire them. In the short term, only large firms with flawed and game-able HR / hiring processes, and when markets are good, will bring them in in big numbers.

But they won't go far in the next 10 years because aegism is real and more and more young SWEs are coming in and they are even more competitive. Good luck to the useless people in this generation keeping their jobs in their late 30s/40s and they have already levered up on big condos.

How you spend and what happiness you get from what you spend is also as important.