There is some merit in learning the value of humility and making do with less at the start of one’s career. Not being jelly or sour grapes. The fall is harder to bear when one starts off with S$25-30k salaries so soon after graduation, and subsequently need to ‘downgrade’ along the course of one’s career because the top can only accommodate that many. By that time, one might likely have acquired penchant for finer things in life, including expensive commitments that become unsustainable to finance on a lower pay.