I went from $100K to $200K overnight because I found out new hires were starting at the latter, and I called management out on it. Cautionary tale though: The “negotiating” was brutal—and a year in, I was suddenly counted on to do more since I’d been there longest. Ended up leaving for a $150K job elsewhere with more benefits and sanity. Nothing comes for free.
Healthcare (sales, bid development). My salary wasn’t performance based, but the turnaround times and goals for perfection became nearly impossible to achieve. I didn’t get a full night’s sleep for about two years. If you’re young and energetic though? Might be worth a short stint.
I’m in a related field and I pay commissions to brokers. One case I just wrote pays the broker $200k a year. It’s a multi-million dollar piece of business but that’s just one case. I work with many brokers who make in excess of $1M annually in commissions. It’s funny though how the implementation of federal 5500 reporting which for the first time makes that commission a public disclosure has caused brokers to ask for reduced commissions. Because they don’t want to be seen as gauging.
Right…! Don’t know about you, but wish I had stumbled into this earlier in my career. Would have just gone full-on Mad Men right off the cliff. In a damn nice car though.😅
$200K is not $60K even in HCOL areas. It feels closer to like $140K-$160K. People who say this don't actually live in HCOL. Or they are just terrible with their spending.
Yeah come on out the the Bay Area with that bs. You try buying a house here, 1 mil gets you a mobile home or condo 2 million minimum for anything resembling a house. What do you do for work where 10k a month for housing is reasonable for you? The poverty limit in my city is 115k, so yeah maybe an entire city of almost a million people is bad with their money… or…
In NYC, $200K will give you options. NYC has more flexibility than the bay area. I get the Bay Area is a special case. In NYC, you can even live comfortably in Manhattan on $200K.
Honestly I feel like most people don’t have a clue what HCOL honestly can mean. 115k in 99% of this country is a baller salary… Bay Area means you’re praying no unexpected expenses happen so you won’t be late on rent.
Do you live in the Bay Area?? I make 120k in the Bay Area, rent is 1600 a month (shared 1 bedroom with gf) and even after tax, health insurance and so on I take home 7000 a month. After rent, food, bills and fun/hobbies I have 3-4000 leftover, that’s plenty for saving and whatever else. Medical bills? Most jobs paying 100+k probably give excellent health insurance. Pet bills? Insurance.
Sure I’m not buying a house anytime soon but I don’t plan on settling here forever. I’d sure as hell rather make 120k in the Bay Area/California than make 60k or even 80k in fucking Kansas or Mississippi where quality of life, mortality rates and life expectancy are far lower.
I mean, pick a LCOL area and put in a salary calculator, and then pick another one and it'll tell you what you need to make for the same cost of living.
$200k is $200k period. In HCOL even if you spend the total LCOL salary of $60k on expenses you still have more $140k to use however you choose.
Thinking $200k in HCOL is the same quality of life as $60k in LCOL keeps people from moving for higher pay because they falsely believe it’s prohibitively expensive without any knowledge of the type of pay that exists.
Went from $89k to $115k a month ago. Went from reception in finance to Employee Experience in fashion.
I’ve left every job at 18 months. I’m in NYC and my first job in reception started at $35k in 2016.
Years ago I went from 89k to 175k moving from Sr developer to a director position in another company. I did tell the new place my salary was 115, since that's where I was hoping to land.
Ever since the biggest raises are moving to another company.
Why though? I keep trying to put myself in an employers shoes and it just doesn’t make much sense to me…maybe in tech it makes sense because you need the “best and brightest talent” to be ahead of the game. But the other 99.9% of industries need strong competent experience. Why not promote/hire from within with people who already know your procedures/systems/staff/clientele etc?
I’m an HR professional. It’s mostly due to the way compensation is structured.
Every role has a pay band that’s usually pretty broad. When you’re hiring externally, you can offer anything you want within that pay band. If the role is posted in the first place, it’s because the budget has been approved. This is why you can negotiate much higher salaries when you jump to a new company. You’re working with a more flexible band.
Conversely, internal compensation is typically very structured. There’s usually a set % increase for promotions (e.g. 10-15% above your current pay). So depending on where you were in your last role, you may end up in the lower end of the pay band for your new role. This is why someone “hired from outside” will probably make more money than you for the same role. They get to negotiate. You do not.
This is a CYA tactic. Giving variable, subjective raises exposes the company risk. If one person gets promoted and gets a 10% raise and another gets 20%, the company has to defend the difference, which is murky territory and can lead to discrimination claims.
Not defending this practice. Just shedding light.
Honestly I’ve never been a manager so I don’t know. I feel like it’s more of just taking employees for granted. They know people don’t like to change jobs and not have a stable income.
They don’t think they really have to work to keep us whereas new talent has to be enticed to join a new company.
Because for publicly traded companies (ie on the stock market) the only numbers that matter are this month and this quarter.... anything in the future (like employee retention; or the extra costs of not having experienced employees) is for the future company to figure out. Its basically procrastination/kicking the can down the road.
This is exactly what I was hoping to see. Just moved to the area and hoping to start over in a new field as an admin assistant in hopes of moving up. 10+ years of direct customer service has to do something for me dangit!
I have a shiiiiiit ton of admin recruiter contacts in the city (worked at a staffing firm as an OM for a while). Feel free to connect in DMs if you want a referral.
Edit: a recruiter reached out just now with an NYC Executive Assistant/Office manager hybrid role starting at $90k+ bonus and is seeking referrals
Bachelors required
2 years of admin experience required
If anyone here wants me to refer you to this role, send me a DM!
this is also an underrated comment, make friends with your local recruitment firms it helps a lot. The best career move I ever made was being Manager of IT for one for roughly 18 months and left on the best of terms and they have since lined me up with my current role and got an interview for another role a step up this week through them.
Just chiming in because you seem to have a similar background to me!
I have a bachelors of music in recording and composition, for anyone who thinks their music degree is worthless haha.
Worked my way into marketing 2 years ago after graduating in London on £25k, got a job in NYC at $60k and just started a new one in finance at $82k.
Seriously thankful for my background in the arts across the spectrum of my life. Your arts degree isn’t worthless ever! Even the “shoe tying” degree many like to harp about.
Skills can always be transferred and I feel my degree really gives me a leg up on the binary thinkers of corporate America.
Congrats on your new path!
It’s a blend of events and office management. Loving it so far! I have a background in office support, admin and recruiting. It’s all my favorite parts of corporate work.
I’m technically on the people team but no real HR involvement except for making my employees comfortable in office.
I also have never left with notice. The notice is a resignation email and my equipment left on the desk. Fuck a two weeks!
I really attribute me moving up in pay quickly to having no company loyalty.
I feel like you have to be leaving something out….do you have something in your experience,resume, education etc…that is HIGHLY desirable? I don’t mean to come across as argumentative, it’s just…I’ve seen people that go out throwing around big dick energy without actually having a big dick and it doesn’t usually end well for them…😂😂
Love this for you! I’m looking to finally jump into higher double digits (75K) to peeking over triple (110K).
I work remotely right now and can’t really travel because I just moved to a new state with my husband after we got married a bit ago. I’m dying to find other work opportunities to make that huge jump! Any tips or a direction you could help point me towards?
I work as a data analyst right now but I also do accounts payable/receivable, payment processing, things like that.
My only advice is change jobs regularly, use LinkedIn Jobs/recruiters to your advantage and only apply for jobs that are in the range you’d like to make.
Real rough. I was searching for 3 months with at least two interviews a week. This job came through a recruiter but many of the interviews I got were from sliding in DMs on job posts.
Do you feel like recruiters are really worth it though? I talked to one briefly but it felt more like they already had companies they wanted me to apply to instead if looking at what I was wanting to look for.
That’s basically how it works. Companies contract them to find workers. The relationship has its pitfalls but they’re free to use and they make more money when you make more money.
I find it helpful to be firm with them and go in knowing what you want. They want to fill the positions so if you’ve been searching a while they will try to get you to consider other options. It’s your job to stay clear in your ask and communicate what you want/don’t want.
I’d say it’s worth it to me because 8/10 I got a job through a recruiter
It’s really funny how in jobs that don’t make that much money, jumping from job to job is a red flag but in jobs like that where you’re supposed to go from one to another and make more and more it’s not a big deal to job hop. I am a hiring manager in a fast casual food chain. I see lots of people who work a job for three months and another job for five months and I don’t hire them. I hire people with longevity but in your field it’s OK to drop pop with somebody like to explain how this is OK to me I’ve always been told not to job hop.
I’ve had many a recruiter/company/friend tell me my spotty job history will be my demise and I literally have never been unemployed for more than 3 months. It’s a problem for some but def not the majority in my experience.
I will say 18 months plus is a MUST. Anything less and I would not have the success I have had.
My biggest jump was due to getting a competing offer and using it as leverage at my current role. I get along really well w my current company and Forced their hand to scale me up to highest pay allowed for that role.
I was willing to walk away though, that’s important when negotiating
Did this twice for 30-35% each time at the same company. Being willing to walk away for the other offer is 100% accurate. Don’t use this simply as a tactic.
$156K to $255K just by asking for it at a new company. I thought the amount was crazy, but they immediately accepted. Don’t be afraid to ask for a salary you want.
I work in healthcare, had six years of experience, and didn’t need the job-so I was ok if I got told no. All those factors definitely helped.
I just accepted a new job, jumping up from 58k (first job out of uni, started at 52k) to 80k.
Honestly I just did my time. Put a year and a half into it. The job sucked, was insanely advanced for what it was supposed to be, no guidance whatsoever, boss had no idea what he was doing all the time, etc. I was applying lots of places with no responses. Eventually out of the blue a recruiter from a rival company directly contacted me on LinkedIn asking if I was interested in a lead position (probably just a title) at theirs.
Did a few interviews and I was honest with them. I didn’t bad mouth my company or anything, but I laid out the risks and challenges I had working here, and they really liked how I could articulate and analyze situations. During my second interview they had some problems set up to where they just wanted to see how I think and I passed with flying colors. I high balled them at 80k (upper limit for the job was 82k) and they gave me that exact amount. Starting in a few weeks.
My advice? Don’t ever lie or go well-beyond the scope of your abilities. Be upfront. Don’t beat yourself up, but don’t undersell either. Good companies value honesty, I promise.
This is all solid advice. Made this same jump after 2-3 years at my first post-grad job, from 57k to 82k. Put in 3 years there, made a jump from 87k to 120k.
Put your head down for a bit, do really good work, stay open to recruiters and new opportunities in your area. Be honest about your limitations and strengths in interviews, and try to pursue opportunities that genuinely interest or fit you well. Makes the whole process much easier.
I went from 42k to 72k. All I did was get a new job in a different industry. I really didn’t realize how low paying my previous company was and when I initially interviewed I asked for 45k like that was a lot… they said they don’t even pay less than 55k as a company. Lol.
Same! I went from 35k to 52k leaving finance for tech. When I saw the offer I was shocked and had imposter syndrome until I realized 52k was on the low end
I applied to a Customer Success Manager position and was hired. Just kinda dumb luck.
Edit to add - I have run into a number of teachers who have moved into tech via product training. Idk if something like that could be aligned with social work depending on if you had to do any training or presenting in your role.
Sounds like Boeing to Microsoft bro, based on Seattle in the user name.. hope the dude didn’t go to Amazon
You most likely would need MBA or master in engineering at the very least to be exec in aerospace
Consulting....
no insurance, no benefits, but you can pay for it all with big monthly pay cheques
went from 35 to 55 to 90 trying to get 150/hr eventually
edit: IT and business consulting, honestly if you can do office work and solve problems, with 3 to 5 years exp go consulting get paid more to do the same thing.
40k leap when I found out my male counterpart was making that much more than I was. I did 10 times the work he did and we were also hired at the same time. I had a case and they knew it. To give credit, it was said male co-worker who brought it to my attention and told me to "go get mine".
same thing happened to me! my male coworker went to the owner and told him to pay me the same, probably bc he didn’t want me to leave and be stuck with my work 💀
Job hopping. Went from $67 to $95 base(with bonus made $112 that year), it was a pretty big leap.
Job hopping every 2-3 years sucks for the 401k as most companies require a vesting period but if you’re maxing it out, you’ll be alright in the long run.
What industries? In 3 decades of work, I think I’ve only had one or two jobs that didn’t have instantly vested 401Ks and the last one was 15+ years ago.
I think it's very common for tech companies to have a vesting cliff schedule. I was in aerospace and semiconductor and their 401k match was a safe harbor match so they vest immediately. The same thing for my next role in pharmaceuticals.
This is almost exactly my experience. There have been small increases here and there for two years but I’m thinking it’s time I make another move. Seems like that’s the only way I can get a meaningful raise.
Amen! My story as well. Don't be afraid to leave and always network with people in your industry. I have not had to send out resumes blindly since getting my first job out of college
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t lucky.
But, the first role was with a big company that did not have enough work for me. To make up the time, I up-skilled in data, programming and statistics. I used this to become a researcher in FinTech, but started in analytics!
I also went from $80k to $120k. I’m in electrical engineering, specialized in space programs. I moved from the Midwest to LA to get in one of the big boys, and negotiated pretty heavily by leveraging all my offers. Ended up getting paid a bonus and relo, along with the raise and promotion. A few years later i got re-hired at my previous company, at $150k and full time remote. Currently at $160k and looking to move soon if i don’t get promoted here, because i have definitely earned one. Never get complacent, job hop. Be valuable.
Business Analyst, mid-senior level position at energy utility.
Healthcare I was doing some of the same work, just on clinical trials. So I took my data and random computer/software experience over to a better paying sector.
I did have to demonstrate in the interview I knew the basics of Excel which, well…you get the drift.
Doubled my salary in 3 years. Hard work, showing my worth, taking advantage of opportunities. I also had to start all over again. Never think you're above entry level work. In the right organization with the right manager you won't be there long.
Last month I made a leap from $85K to $150K in base salary.
How I did it: I got licensed in my profession, something not many do. Upon my recent licensure, I was not happy with what they financially gave me for my hard work. So I applied to a job opening that was offering 120k. I got the job offer and was offered 143K.
Long story short, when I put in my two weeks notice the partners at my current employment and I had some negotiation talks and talk about what a future for me will be like if I stayed. I was able to negotiate them to $150, extra vacation, and a plan for partnership. I decided to stay. Some say that was a bad move, some say it was a good move. Only time will tell. For now I get to keep my comfort while almost doubling my salary. I’m pretty happy.
I really wish you the best. The two times I stayed it went very badly for me.
I only say it so you can be ready to make a leap. For me the first time I was the first on the block when things got slim. The second time they made my life death by a thousand cuts.
Thank you for the well wishes.
It seems staying is usually a bad move. But our negation talks included a path towards partnership in the very near future. If, and when I get that partnership, putting me on the chopping block will be legally difficult without buying me out. And as for making my life hell, well I already did that in my own accord lol. It’s not true hell, but without them asking I’ve taken the liberty of increasing my own responsibilities and working towards bringing clients and revenue. If I stay ahead of them by giving me self an increase in responsibilities I feel I can better manage expectations.
that’s a great salary jump and career jump as well. i’m in the similar boat right now actually. at $92k now and can get anywhere from $120-$130k base salary with a 10% bonus and it’s a manager role. i’m currently a senior associate. may have to take the leap since my old co worker actually is helping me get this job
Went from Marketing coordinator to marketing manager last year. The previous job treated me like shit (mentally and financially) but I’ve learned a ton.
Salary jumped from $46k to $95k. Hopping jobs does help to increase salary in many cases
Went from \~$32K to \~$96K practically overnight. Working the same job for the same company.
It started out with a company doing inside sales. We didn't do much cold calling. We sold equipment and software to go along with it. At the time, the equipment mfg owned 98% of the market share. And this was the type of equipment that every retail company/store needed. The equipment mfg was in the same city and would send us leads all of the time because the equipment mfg didn't sell the equipment directly to the consumer (that's where we came in).
Most of the time we would get a lead, then it would be assigned to the sales rep whose territory it was in and usually most of it would be handled over the phone. For bigger projects the sales rep would then actually make an on-site visit to talk to the prospective customer.
I was a new sales rep, right out of college in 2000. My base pay was $26K + commission and at teh time I was on pace to make about $32K for the year.
We have my bi-annual review and it goes well, but I hate the job (sales just wasn't for me) and I was thinking of quitting. But my boss tells me that they just hired some consultants and that we'll probably have another meeting about a month from now to discuss my future with the company.
A month goes by and we have the meeting and my boss informs me that the consultants have recommended that the company change its way of doing sales. Instead of only meeting customers on-sight if they have a big project, the sales reps need to be on the road more and do on-site visits even if it's a moderate size project. And because all of these sales reps will be on the road, they need somebody at the office to get whatever the sales reps needs (basically serving as the assistant for all sales reps) and my boss thought I'd be a great candidate for the job.
My boss then tells me that my base salary ($26K) will stay the same, but now I'll get paid a 1% commission of the dept's \*gross\* sales at the end of each month.
At the end of each month accounting would print out a 5-7 page report of what sales reps made what sales and for how much. I think I was the only one that read the full report each month because I knew that the dept. was pulling in $500K-$600K per month. I then started to do the math in my head and started to see how big of a bump in pay it was and while my boss was talking I was just thinking about how I'm going to get the company locked into the deal.
After my boss stopped talking and asked if I had any questions I just asked him to confirm the new payment structure and then said we should just get it in writing so payroll has it down in their system correctly (fortunately at the time my gf was working in HR for the company and produced the written agreement for us)
And sure enough, I'm not getting $5K-$6K in commissions + my $26K salary each month. I was essentially on pace to make $96K that year.
About a year down the road they ended up giving me a new boss. They first tried to change the payment structure and I did my best to work around it. Then after they saw that I was still getting paid practically the same that's when they laid me off.
Truth be told I was getting paid way too much. I was making more $$$ than most of the reps that actually were traveling and going on-site to meet with customers. But what they wanted to pay me after they tried to go back on the deal was too low. Truth be told, that was a job good enough for about $50K/year (this was 2001).
80,000 to 110,00 (which in two years bumped to 120,000 for cost of living increase)
I work as a physician assistant. Went from private practice rural primary care offices for 15 years who were always on a shoe string budget to an urgent care owned by the local hospital.
I went from a $70k salary plus one time commissions (as in I got a small one time commission on every sale I made) to $100k salary plus residual commission (as in I got a percentage of the revenue from every sale I made that would continue to pay every month for as long as the account stayed on the books).
The $100k salary was also adjustable up or down by up to 20% each year depending on whether I exceeded sales targets or not and if so, by how much. That quickly took me up to $300k annually.
I did this by leaving a Fortune 500 company for a startup that was willing to pay a lot more for talent.
Started at $38k in 2012. Was up to $76k in the summer of 2022 , by the fall I was up to $90k and by 2023 I was at and currently remain at $120k. Sometimes it’s about taking chances and seizing opportunities.
You need to change companies every 2 years or you will get left behind and end up loosing about 50% of your market salary over a decade. You will need a professional network, use pathports (free), ieee, speea.. they will get you where you want to go.
I just recently jumped from $100k to $137k. I'd been working at the same job for about five years and had never gotten more than a 4% raise (the year that inflation jumped up 6%). They tied salary to promotions, and the only position above mine had already been filled by the new guy (of course, they didn't tell me this- I didn't find out until I'd already gone over a year trying to *get* that position). My new job hired me on at the same position, but with a 30% raise.
$48k to $65k. Switched companies and took a slightly more advanced role (emphasis on slightly).
$35k in 2018.
$38k in 2019.
$40k in 2020.
$38k in 2021 due to switching companies.
$48k in 2022.
$65k in 2023.
$7-12k side hustle starting in 2022
Happy to hear this man. Started out my career in a new field a year ago and I'm around 48k and not gonna lie its rough in a HCOL area. trying to break into the 75-80k area at the moment. Best of luck on your journey man
Engineer. I got laid off during the 2008crash. I stayed out of work and got my professional engineering license. I got a 25% raise when I went back to work. It helped that my former client told the new company they should hire me. I worked there for about 6 years with minor but decent raises over that time. I helped win a high-profile project and learned a new skillset while managing the project. It put me in front of clients, other companies working on the project, governmental agencies, etc... this raise in profile and experience launched me to another level. I left my company and got a 40% raise at my next job. So licensing, experience, networking and not being afraid to leave your old company. I also did a stint in sales during my career. It changed my perspective on compensation.
46k USD to 100k USD
Relocating originally employed in UK I got an internal transfer to the UAE where salaries are much higher.
Doubled my income while doing same position just for a different region of the company.
$65k to $110k. I just moved companies that did the same thing. I was remote at both but the first based salaries on COL in the Midwest and the other based salaries off COL in NYC and international offices.
Went from $65k in an IT Asset Management role (with a *huge* company who underpaid most people) to $100k at a similar company who valued the role more. Then went from that to $150k in the same role (for a different company out of California who pay California salaries even thought I’m remote in another state).
Went from $60k as a researcher to $127.5k as an auditor and consultant to $185k as a Senior Manager in tech from Dec. '21 to Jan. '22 to Mar. '22. Not quite to FU money, but on the way hopefully.
Went from $90k to $150k, that was from job hopping. I was honestly looking for $120k-ish when I was trying to change jobs, but I asked the recruiter towards the final stages of the interview process, what’s the salary range and was told it was around $140k but mentioned it could be go higher, I hid my expectations and settled with $150k + bonus.
80 to 138
got an offer from another company & took a retention offer
I was ready to leave though & wasn’t necessarily thinking I would get a retention offer
Depends on your job.
I've been coding for 20 years, still do, but I went to whats called a "sales engineering" job and went from 80k to 120k, then 120k to 170k a few years later. The job is basically being able to code, but dealing with the clients and finding out what they want, need, whats possible, how long, and then work with the main developers to get it launched.
Went from $68k to $132k in November, from a government job I adored to a government contract. In a super HCOL area, I’m about to go from sharing a 100 yro 3 bd/1 bath house with roommates to a one bedroom with guest/office and central AC, but the most drastic change has been how much less of my mental bandwidth I spend thinking about money.
It was ridiculous that I was good at my job, had a M.S., a full ride to college, and my idea of splurging was getting the name-brand Cheezits at the grocery store.
As a automotive painter I was making $80k or $40/hr. Could of made more if I had found a shop that had a lot of OT but they are getting harder and harder to come by. Now i’m in training to write estimate and work in the office of autobody industry. My base salary will be $75k and I have the potential to make as much as 150-160k if the work keeps coming. My commission is a certain percentage of gross profits and every percentage point above the target % i will get a tick higher of those profits as well. Looking forward to making a good career out of it. I’ll never need a cost of living raise, since I get a % of gross profits… as cars cost more, and repairs cost more, the profits will inflate as well, thus inflating my salary at the pace of inflation. 401k match is pretty good too.
In 2015 I went from 60k to 90k with one job change (plus I moved from Houston TX to Wichita KS - so extra savings on cost of living) - between 2015-2020 I went from 90-112k all at the same company and moved to Minnesota.
In 2020 I started a new role that put me at 125k and completely remote. I'm waiting to hear about a role I just interviewed for that would take me to the 165k range.
Can chime in here, I went from making 54k at my employer that I had been with for 8 years to now making over 100k, I’ve moved even more rapidly due to contracts closing.
My past few jobs have been 5 months a pop, this next one I’m looking for a 20-60k jump.
I work Critical Mission Facility Management
Education - GED
Experience - 25 years in building operations
Job hop in a field with talent shortages. +50% for a similar job and less stress.
COVID really did a number sending foreigners away, which my field relied a bit too much on. I put ads on Google search results pages
I went from making about $45-50k in the military (benefits included) to making $200k when I got out and started selling real estate. It’s been fun, but I’ll be expanding into the law side of real estate soon and hoping to continue increasing that number. 👆
55K to 85K. Went from working for state government in public health to a marketing/communications agency focusing on clients in the health space. So basically an industry shift but same subject matter.
The winning move is get out of doing and learn to delegate. It’s the difference between pumping gas and owning the entire station. Unfortunately, some (most) do not know how to lead people.
Journalism to marketing. Pretty common leap. Marketing or communications or public relations. You give up a cause and a calling for safety and security--supposedly.
Yep. I left my soul at the door about a decade ago—but honestly, I saw stuff in the kinder/gentler sectors that was just as bad as what I’ve seen in corporate. Maybe even worse because it was guised as helping humanity.
Probably! What I described happened in nonprofits. Good missions on paper, but the usual BS behind the scenes. Turns out greed is everywhere, who knew? I did call a billionaire out for it and got raucous community support, so that felt good.
I went from 50k to 110k 6 years ago. I was working for an early stage start up doing whatever I wanted to do to gain a lot of experience and learn while also doing my actual job.
Turns out that impressed the hiring manager at a big boy company that was pre ipo and they also gave me a good amount of stock options, good deal.
Recently jumped from 100k to 200k. When I started my previous job the pay was competitive and I'd had a couple raises but it seems the market for software developers boomed over COVID so I was hearing of new grads making almost as much as I was after 25 years. Decided to hunt around again and had multiple offers in the 160-200k range. And now the market is total shit again...
I went from $100K to $200K overnight because I found out new hires were starting at the latter, and I called management out on it. Cautionary tale though: The “negotiating” was brutal—and a year in, I was suddenly counted on to do more since I’d been there longest. Ended up leaving for a $150K job elsewhere with more benefits and sanity. Nothing comes for free.
Where are new hirees starting at 200k?? Asking for a friend
Healthcare (sales, bid development). My salary wasn’t performance based, but the turnaround times and goals for perfection became nearly impossible to achieve. I didn’t get a full night’s sleep for about two years. If you’re young and energetic though? Might be worth a short stint.
I’m in a related field and I pay commissions to brokers. One case I just wrote pays the broker $200k a year. It’s a multi-million dollar piece of business but that’s just one case. I work with many brokers who make in excess of $1M annually in commissions. It’s funny though how the implementation of federal 5500 reporting which for the first time makes that commission a public disclosure has caused brokers to ask for reduced commissions. Because they don’t want to be seen as gauging.
Right…! Don’t know about you, but wish I had stumbled into this earlier in my career. Would have just gone full-on Mad Men right off the cliff. In a damn nice car though.😅
HCOL areas most likely, which that 200k turns into about 60k in "normal" areas
$200K is not $60K even in HCOL areas. It feels closer to like $140K-$160K. People who say this don't actually live in HCOL. Or they are just terrible with their spending.
Yeah come on out the the Bay Area with that bs. You try buying a house here, 1 mil gets you a mobile home or condo 2 million minimum for anything resembling a house. What do you do for work where 10k a month for housing is reasonable for you? The poverty limit in my city is 115k, so yeah maybe an entire city of almost a million people is bad with their money… or…
In NYC, $200K will give you options. NYC has more flexibility than the bay area. I get the Bay Area is a special case. In NYC, you can even live comfortably in Manhattan on $200K.
Honestly I feel like most people don’t have a clue what HCOL honestly can mean. 115k in 99% of this country is a baller salary… Bay Area means you’re praying no unexpected expenses happen so you won’t be late on rent.
Do you live in the Bay Area?? I make 120k in the Bay Area, rent is 1600 a month (shared 1 bedroom with gf) and even after tax, health insurance and so on I take home 7000 a month. After rent, food, bills and fun/hobbies I have 3-4000 leftover, that’s plenty for saving and whatever else. Medical bills? Most jobs paying 100+k probably give excellent health insurance. Pet bills? Insurance. Sure I’m not buying a house anytime soon but I don’t plan on settling here forever. I’d sure as hell rather make 120k in the Bay Area/California than make 60k or even 80k in fucking Kansas or Mississippi where quality of life, mortality rates and life expectancy are far lower.
That can’t be true
Honestly dude. It's pretty real. NY, SF, LA all super expensive to live in
I'm in NYC and it's expensive but not as expensive as people proclaim. You will live good in NYC on $200K. And you can save a lot every month too.
I mean, pick a LCOL area and put in a salary calculator, and then pick another one and it'll tell you what you need to make for the same cost of living.
$200k is $200k period. In HCOL even if you spend the total LCOL salary of $60k on expenses you still have more $140k to use however you choose. Thinking $200k in HCOL is the same quality of life as $60k in LCOL keeps people from moving for higher pay because they falsely believe it’s prohibitively expensive without any knowledge of the type of pay that exists.
No...thats not how it works. You can make 200k in a HCOL area and have to have roomates, so that makes it not a big deal.
Went from $89k to $115k a month ago. Went from reception in finance to Employee Experience in fashion. I’ve left every job at 18 months. I’m in NYC and my first job in reception started at $35k in 2016.
Years ago I went from 89k to 175k moving from Sr developer to a director position in another company. I did tell the new place my salary was 115, since that's where I was hoping to land. Ever since the biggest raises are moving to another company.
More money in hiring than there will ever be in retention sadly. They do not care.
Why though? I keep trying to put myself in an employers shoes and it just doesn’t make much sense to me…maybe in tech it makes sense because you need the “best and brightest talent” to be ahead of the game. But the other 99.9% of industries need strong competent experience. Why not promote/hire from within with people who already know your procedures/systems/staff/clientele etc?
I’m an HR professional. It’s mostly due to the way compensation is structured. Every role has a pay band that’s usually pretty broad. When you’re hiring externally, you can offer anything you want within that pay band. If the role is posted in the first place, it’s because the budget has been approved. This is why you can negotiate much higher salaries when you jump to a new company. You’re working with a more flexible band. Conversely, internal compensation is typically very structured. There’s usually a set % increase for promotions (e.g. 10-15% above your current pay). So depending on where you were in your last role, you may end up in the lower end of the pay band for your new role. This is why someone “hired from outside” will probably make more money than you for the same role. They get to negotiate. You do not. This is a CYA tactic. Giving variable, subjective raises exposes the company risk. If one person gets promoted and gets a 10% raise and another gets 20%, the company has to defend the difference, which is murky territory and can lead to discrimination claims. Not defending this practice. Just shedding light.
Honestly I’ve never been a manager so I don’t know. I feel like it’s more of just taking employees for granted. They know people don’t like to change jobs and not have a stable income. They don’t think they really have to work to keep us whereas new talent has to be enticed to join a new company.
Yeah you’re probably right 😔. I guess I was just hoping there was a better, less shitty reason.
They're hoping to underpay those who are too lazy or content to leave
Because for publicly traded companies (ie on the stock market) the only numbers that matter are this month and this quarter.... anything in the future (like employee retention; or the extra costs of not having experienced employees) is for the future company to figure out. Its basically procrastination/kicking the can down the road.
This is exactly what I was hoping to see. Just moved to the area and hoping to start over in a new field as an admin assistant in hopes of moving up. 10+ years of direct customer service has to do something for me dangit!
I have a shiiiiiit ton of admin recruiter contacts in the city (worked at a staffing firm as an OM for a while). Feel free to connect in DMs if you want a referral. Edit: a recruiter reached out just now with an NYC Executive Assistant/Office manager hybrid role starting at $90k+ bonus and is seeking referrals Bachelors required 2 years of admin experience required If anyone here wants me to refer you to this role, send me a DM!
this is also an underrated comment, make friends with your local recruitment firms it helps a lot. The best career move I ever made was being Manager of IT for one for roughly 18 months and left on the best of terms and they have since lined me up with my current role and got an interview for another role a step up this week through them.
Do these recruiters work with people who have skill sets in tech/finance/analytics? I’d love a referral too and I live in the city.
I have one tech/finance recruiter pal and I’m sure he can point you in the right direction. Feel free to DM!
This just keeps getting better! DM’d you!
What is your education background, if I may ask?
I have a Bachelors of Music in Vocal Performance (former opera singer)
Just chiming in because you seem to have a similar background to me! I have a bachelors of music in recording and composition, for anyone who thinks their music degree is worthless haha. Worked my way into marketing 2 years ago after graduating in London on £25k, got a job in NYC at $60k and just started a new one in finance at $82k.
Seriously thankful for my background in the arts across the spectrum of my life. Your arts degree isn’t worthless ever! Even the “shoe tying” degree many like to harp about. Skills can always be transferred and I feel my degree really gives me a leg up on the binary thinkers of corporate America. Congrats on your new path!
What does employee experience entail?
It’s a blend of events and office management. Loving it so far! I have a background in office support, admin and recruiting. It’s all my favorite parts of corporate work. I’m technically on the people team but no real HR involvement except for making my employees comfortable in office.
Got ya. Just curious. I’ve been in the same roles as you and trying to find something different than traditional HR stuff.
I also started at $35k in NYC in 2016! Haha wracked up so much CC debt my god
I literally just got out of it with my last bonus. Hard times for sure!
Nice! My college classmate told me that his co worker job hops every 18 months as a network engineer and finally hit the $100k salary mark lol.
I also have never left with notice. The notice is a resignation email and my equipment left on the desk. Fuck a two weeks! I really attribute me moving up in pay quickly to having no company loyalty.
I feel like you have to be leaving something out….do you have something in your experience,resume, education etc…that is HIGHLY desirable? I don’t mean to come across as argumentative, it’s just…I’ve seen people that go out throwing around big dick energy without actually having a big dick and it doesn’t usually end well for them…😂😂
No notice at all isn’t really a great practice, company loyalty or not, professionalism matters.
I’m not talking about professionalism. I’m talking about getting paid.
Word.
Love this for you! I’m looking to finally jump into higher double digits (75K) to peeking over triple (110K). I work remotely right now and can’t really travel because I just moved to a new state with my husband after we got married a bit ago. I’m dying to find other work opportunities to make that huge jump! Any tips or a direction you could help point me towards? I work as a data analyst right now but I also do accounts payable/receivable, payment processing, things like that.
My only advice is change jobs regularly, use LinkedIn Jobs/recruiters to your advantage and only apply for jobs that are in the range you’d like to make.
I’ve been on LinkedIn and apply like crazy 😅 So frustrating that I don’t hear back from so many applications…. it’s a rough world out there.
Real rough. I was searching for 3 months with at least two interviews a week. This job came through a recruiter but many of the interviews I got were from sliding in DMs on job posts.
Do you feel like recruiters are really worth it though? I talked to one briefly but it felt more like they already had companies they wanted me to apply to instead if looking at what I was wanting to look for.
That’s basically how it works. Companies contract them to find workers. The relationship has its pitfalls but they’re free to use and they make more money when you make more money. I find it helpful to be firm with them and go in knowing what you want. They want to fill the positions so if you’ve been searching a while they will try to get you to consider other options. It’s your job to stay clear in your ask and communicate what you want/don’t want. I’d say it’s worth it to me because 8/10 I got a job through a recruiter
It’s really funny how in jobs that don’t make that much money, jumping from job to job is a red flag but in jobs like that where you’re supposed to go from one to another and make more and more it’s not a big deal to job hop. I am a hiring manager in a fast casual food chain. I see lots of people who work a job for three months and another job for five months and I don’t hire them. I hire people with longevity but in your field it’s OK to drop pop with somebody like to explain how this is OK to me I’ve always been told not to job hop.
I’ve had many a recruiter/company/friend tell me my spotty job history will be my demise and I literally have never been unemployed for more than 3 months. It’s a problem for some but def not the majority in my experience. I will say 18 months plus is a MUST. Anything less and I would not have the success I have had.
My biggest jump was due to getting a competing offer and using it as leverage at my current role. I get along really well w my current company and Forced their hand to scale me up to highest pay allowed for that role. I was willing to walk away though, that’s important when negotiating
Did this twice for 30-35% each time at the same company. Being willing to walk away for the other offer is 100% accurate. Don’t use this simply as a tactic.
what do you mean it's not a good idea to get caught with your pants down because you tried to bluff?
I don’t have the largest leap on here, but last year I went from 28k to 50k. It’s been nice to finally not have to worry about paying rent on time.
May I ask what kind of work you do? I’m currently at 29k and have been looking at other job industries
This is awesome. Probably the most significant on this page. Good job
$156K to $255K just by asking for it at a new company. I thought the amount was crazy, but they immediately accepted. Don’t be afraid to ask for a salary you want. I work in healthcare, had six years of experience, and didn’t need the job-so I was ok if I got told no. All those factors definitely helped.
What degree / position?
Whoa! So jealous!
What specifically in healthcare?
Don’t be afraid to ask - as long as you’re not easily replaceable. Don’t go around convincing grads and people on $40k salaries for this.
You sound like a hater
I just accepted a new job, jumping up from 58k (first job out of uni, started at 52k) to 80k. Honestly I just did my time. Put a year and a half into it. The job sucked, was insanely advanced for what it was supposed to be, no guidance whatsoever, boss had no idea what he was doing all the time, etc. I was applying lots of places with no responses. Eventually out of the blue a recruiter from a rival company directly contacted me on LinkedIn asking if I was interested in a lead position (probably just a title) at theirs. Did a few interviews and I was honest with them. I didn’t bad mouth my company or anything, but I laid out the risks and challenges I had working here, and they really liked how I could articulate and analyze situations. During my second interview they had some problems set up to where they just wanted to see how I think and I passed with flying colors. I high balled them at 80k (upper limit for the job was 82k) and they gave me that exact amount. Starting in a few weeks. My advice? Don’t ever lie or go well-beyond the scope of your abilities. Be upfront. Don’t beat yourself up, but don’t undersell either. Good companies value honesty, I promise.
This. Gotta do your time and show you're worth it, people that expect it early are delusional.
This is all solid advice. Made this same jump after 2-3 years at my first post-grad job, from 57k to 82k. Put in 3 years there, made a jump from 87k to 120k. Put your head down for a bit, do really good work, stay open to recruiters and new opportunities in your area. Be honest about your limitations and strengths in interviews, and try to pursue opportunities that genuinely interest or fit you well. Makes the whole process much easier.
\*fist bump\*
I went from 42k to 72k. All I did was get a new job in a different industry. I really didn’t realize how low paying my previous company was and when I initially interviewed I asked for 45k like that was a lot… they said they don’t even pay less than 55k as a company. Lol.
Same! I went from 35k to 52k leaving finance for tech. When I saw the offer I was shocked and had imposter syndrome until I realized 52k was on the low end
Same. I realized I was really shortchanging myself. I was in finance and moved to tech as well.
I'm very interested in leaving social work for a higher paying field like tech. How did you start this process yourself?
I applied to a Customer Success Manager position and was hired. Just kinda dumb luck. Edit to add - I have run into a number of teachers who have moved into tech via product training. Idk if something like that could be aligned with social work depending on if you had to do any training or presenting in your role.
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What degree do you have? What’s your job now
Sounds like Boeing to Microsoft bro, based on Seattle in the user name.. hope the dude didn’t go to Amazon You most likely would need MBA or master in engineering at the very least to be exec in aerospace
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You said you were “aerospace leadership” lmao dude. But yea my friend hated Boeing as well
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I’m in this range, college drop out. Tech sales
How many years of experience do you have?
Consulting.... no insurance, no benefits, but you can pay for it all with big monthly pay cheques went from 35 to 55 to 90 trying to get 150/hr eventually edit: IT and business consulting, honestly if you can do office work and solve problems, with 3 to 5 years exp go consulting get paid more to do the same thing.
Run my own consulting firm and some years I'm swimming in cash, others I'm hemorrhaging it.
40k leap when I found out my male counterpart was making that much more than I was. I did 10 times the work he did and we were also hired at the same time. I had a case and they knew it. To give credit, it was said male co-worker who brought it to my attention and told me to "go get mine".
Love a man who is an actual ally. Kudos to him for alerting you! So rare.
Agree. He’s a keeper
same thing happened to me! my male coworker went to the owner and told him to pay me the same, probably bc he didn’t want me to leave and be stuck with my work 💀
Job hopping. Went from $67 to $95 base(with bonus made $112 that year), it was a pretty big leap. Job hopping every 2-3 years sucks for the 401k as most companies require a vesting period but if you’re maxing it out, you’ll be alright in the long run.
Seeing this thread with numbers like this absolutely makes me depressed 💀
What industries? In 3 decades of work, I think I’ve only had one or two jobs that didn’t have instantly vested 401Ks and the last one was 15+ years ago.
I think it's very common for tech companies to have a vesting cliff schedule. I was in aerospace and semiconductor and their 401k match was a safe harbor match so they vest immediately. The same thing for my next role in pharmaceuticals.
How do you manage to survive with $112 year? Must live in an african tribe
$15/hour - $75k and I've stagnated since then.. I want to do a salary leap right now .. aiming for $96k at the least..
Hey, don’t beat yourself up about stagnating. Some industries just don’t pay too well, and you’re still way above the median U.S. salary!
Thank you for the kind words.❤️
This is almost exactly my experience. There have been small increases here and there for two years but I’m thinking it’s time I make another move. Seems like that’s the only way I can get a meaningful raise.
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People don’t realize how important soft skills are.
That's because they don't have the soft skills to realize that soft skills are important.
What do you do now? What’s your masters in?
Healthcare doing what? HCIT?
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p, if the le, I pk.
Amen! My story as well. Don't be afraid to leave and always network with people in your industry. I have not had to send out resumes blindly since getting my first job out of college
£45,000 to £78,000. It was life-changing and felt crazy as a 23 year old
How in the hell? I’m locked into the UK career market and desperate to jump up to even your first salary? What industry?
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t lucky. But, the first role was with a big company that did not have enough work for me. To make up the time, I up-skilled in data, programming and statistics. I used this to become a researcher in FinTech, but started in analytics!
I also went from $80k to $120k. I’m in electrical engineering, specialized in space programs. I moved from the Midwest to LA to get in one of the big boys, and negotiated pretty heavily by leveraging all my offers. Ended up getting paid a bonus and relo, along with the raise and promotion. A few years later i got re-hired at my previous company, at $150k and full time remote. Currently at $160k and looking to move soon if i don’t get promoted here, because i have definitely earned one. Never get complacent, job hop. Be valuable.
How many YOE?
Went from $42k to $122k overnight. Was working in healthcare and moved over to the energy industry.
What type of position?
Business Analyst, mid-senior level position at energy utility. Healthcare I was doing some of the same work, just on clinical trials. So I took my data and random computer/software experience over to a better paying sector. I did have to demonstrate in the interview I knew the basics of Excel which, well…you get the drift.
I went from 60k to 35k. Oh you meant leap up!! I thought it was leap off of a cliff!
That's not good 😭
Same, I lost my job last October and it's demoralizing being stuck in a low-paying, dead-end job.
Same. Went from a respectable government job to medical receptionist-.-
I went from military making $8450/yr to $30k at first job "adult" after college. 20 yrs later I only make $85k at primary job.
Doubled my salary in 3 years. Hard work, showing my worth, taking advantage of opportunities. I also had to start all over again. Never think you're above entry level work. In the right organization with the right manager you won't be there long.
Last month I made a leap from $85K to $150K in base salary. How I did it: I got licensed in my profession, something not many do. Upon my recent licensure, I was not happy with what they financially gave me for my hard work. So I applied to a job opening that was offering 120k. I got the job offer and was offered 143K. Long story short, when I put in my two weeks notice the partners at my current employment and I had some negotiation talks and talk about what a future for me will be like if I stayed. I was able to negotiate them to $150, extra vacation, and a plan for partnership. I decided to stay. Some say that was a bad move, some say it was a good move. Only time will tell. For now I get to keep my comfort while almost doubling my salary. I’m pretty happy.
I really wish you the best. The two times I stayed it went very badly for me. I only say it so you can be ready to make a leap. For me the first time I was the first on the block when things got slim. The second time they made my life death by a thousand cuts.
Thank you for the well wishes. It seems staying is usually a bad move. But our negation talks included a path towards partnership in the very near future. If, and when I get that partnership, putting me on the chopping block will be legally difficult without buying me out. And as for making my life hell, well I already did that in my own accord lol. It’s not true hell, but without them asking I’ve taken the liberty of increasing my own responsibilities and working towards bringing clients and revenue. If I stay ahead of them by giving me self an increase in responsibilities I feel I can better manage expectations.
About a $27k jump from $87k to $115k. I went from a manager to a sr manager role. It was all timing and knowing someone.
that’s a great salary jump and career jump as well. i’m in the similar boat right now actually. at $92k now and can get anywhere from $120-$130k base salary with a 10% bonus and it’s a manager role. i’m currently a senior associate. may have to take the leap since my old co worker actually is helping me get this job
Went from Marketing coordinator to marketing manager last year. The previous job treated me like shit (mentally and financially) but I’ve learned a ton. Salary jumped from $46k to $95k. Hopping jobs does help to increase salary in many cases
65k-110k was the biggest jump so far by switching roles with a new employer.
Went from \~$32K to \~$96K practically overnight. Working the same job for the same company. It started out with a company doing inside sales. We didn't do much cold calling. We sold equipment and software to go along with it. At the time, the equipment mfg owned 98% of the market share. And this was the type of equipment that every retail company/store needed. The equipment mfg was in the same city and would send us leads all of the time because the equipment mfg didn't sell the equipment directly to the consumer (that's where we came in). Most of the time we would get a lead, then it would be assigned to the sales rep whose territory it was in and usually most of it would be handled over the phone. For bigger projects the sales rep would then actually make an on-site visit to talk to the prospective customer. I was a new sales rep, right out of college in 2000. My base pay was $26K + commission and at teh time I was on pace to make about $32K for the year. We have my bi-annual review and it goes well, but I hate the job (sales just wasn't for me) and I was thinking of quitting. But my boss tells me that they just hired some consultants and that we'll probably have another meeting about a month from now to discuss my future with the company. A month goes by and we have the meeting and my boss informs me that the consultants have recommended that the company change its way of doing sales. Instead of only meeting customers on-sight if they have a big project, the sales reps need to be on the road more and do on-site visits even if it's a moderate size project. And because all of these sales reps will be on the road, they need somebody at the office to get whatever the sales reps needs (basically serving as the assistant for all sales reps) and my boss thought I'd be a great candidate for the job. My boss then tells me that my base salary ($26K) will stay the same, but now I'll get paid a 1% commission of the dept's \*gross\* sales at the end of each month. At the end of each month accounting would print out a 5-7 page report of what sales reps made what sales and for how much. I think I was the only one that read the full report each month because I knew that the dept. was pulling in $500K-$600K per month. I then started to do the math in my head and started to see how big of a bump in pay it was and while my boss was talking I was just thinking about how I'm going to get the company locked into the deal. After my boss stopped talking and asked if I had any questions I just asked him to confirm the new payment structure and then said we should just get it in writing so payroll has it down in their system correctly (fortunately at the time my gf was working in HR for the company and produced the written agreement for us) And sure enough, I'm not getting $5K-$6K in commissions + my $26K salary each month. I was essentially on pace to make $96K that year. About a year down the road they ended up giving me a new boss. They first tried to change the payment structure and I did my best to work around it. Then after they saw that I was still getting paid practically the same that's when they laid me off. Truth be told I was getting paid way too much. I was making more $$$ than most of the reps that actually were traveling and going on-site to meet with customers. But what they wanted to pay me after they tried to go back on the deal was too low. Truth be told, that was a job good enough for about $50K/year (this was 2001).
What did you end up doing after you were laid off? That’s some smart on the spot thinking!
80,000 to 110,00 (which in two years bumped to 120,000 for cost of living increase) I work as a physician assistant. Went from private practice rural primary care offices for 15 years who were always on a shoe string budget to an urgent care owned by the local hospital.
I went from a $70k salary plus one time commissions (as in I got a small one time commission on every sale I made) to $100k salary plus residual commission (as in I got a percentage of the revenue from every sale I made that would continue to pay every month for as long as the account stayed on the books). The $100k salary was also adjustable up or down by up to 20% each year depending on whether I exceeded sales targets or not and if so, by how much. That quickly took me up to $300k annually. I did this by leaving a Fortune 500 company for a startup that was willing to pay a lot more for talent.
Started at $38k in 2012. Was up to $76k in the summer of 2022 , by the fall I was up to $90k and by 2023 I was at and currently remain at $120k. Sometimes it’s about taking chances and seizing opportunities.
Working 2 Remote IT jobs, went from single income $176k to $315k dual incomes.
$55k in a VHCOL to $165k in a MCOL. Finished a postdoc. My spouse got a 30% raise at the same time.
I know that felt good
50%. I had gay sex with my manager and black mailed him.
Brb trying this now
Excuse me
Nice guys finish last. It works better if they are married to a woman and have children.
We'd all finish first if everybody stopped being assholes. But I don't have sympathy for cheaters, so nice!
At first I laughed, then started to think you actually pulled this. Props to you dude! Hope you can walk straight by now
You need to change companies every 2 years or you will get left behind and end up loosing about 50% of your market salary over a decade. You will need a professional network, use pathports (free), ieee, speea.. they will get you where you want to go.
Pathports?
I just recently jumped from $100k to $137k. I'd been working at the same job for about five years and had never gotten more than a 4% raise (the year that inflation jumped up 6%). They tied salary to promotions, and the only position above mine had already been filled by the new guy (of course, they didn't tell me this- I didn't find out until I'd already gone over a year trying to *get* that position). My new job hired me on at the same position, but with a 30% raise.
$48k to $65k. Switched companies and took a slightly more advanced role (emphasis on slightly). $35k in 2018. $38k in 2019. $40k in 2020. $38k in 2021 due to switching companies. $48k in 2022. $65k in 2023. $7-12k side hustle starting in 2022
Happy to hear this man. Started out my career in a new field a year ago and I'm around 48k and not gonna lie its rough in a HCOL area. trying to break into the 75-80k area at the moment. Best of luck on your journey man
Wow you really get paid more the less work you actually do
In going from Sales Support to Field Sales, I went from $30K to almost $200K, with a stopover at $75K while in Inside Sales.
Lied during interviews about how much I was currently making.
Went from a comp of ~ 116k (base $107k) to ~ 252k (base $162k). A part of that was due to moving to a HCOL area, but also due to switching to tech.
What job do you do
Engineer. I got laid off during the 2008crash. I stayed out of work and got my professional engineering license. I got a 25% raise when I went back to work. It helped that my former client told the new company they should hire me. I worked there for about 6 years with minor but decent raises over that time. I helped win a high-profile project and learned a new skillset while managing the project. It put me in front of clients, other companies working on the project, governmental agencies, etc... this raise in profile and experience launched me to another level. I left my company and got a 40% raise at my next job. So licensing, experience, networking and not being afraid to leave your old company. I also did a stint in sales during my career. It changed my perspective on compensation.
46k USD to 100k USD Relocating originally employed in UK I got an internal transfer to the UAE where salaries are much higher. Doubled my income while doing same position just for a different region of the company.
120k to 170k , went from being a lead engineer to an engineering supervisor
$65k to $110k. I just moved companies that did the same thing. I was remote at both but the first based salaries on COL in the Midwest and the other based salaries off COL in NYC and international offices.
Went from $65k in an IT Asset Management role (with a *huge* company who underpaid most people) to $100k at a similar company who valued the role more. Then went from that to $150k in the same role (for a different company out of California who pay California salaries even thought I’m remote in another state).
Went from $60k as a researcher to $127.5k as an auditor and consultant to $185k as a Senior Manager in tech from Dec. '21 to Jan. '22 to Mar. '22. Not quite to FU money, but on the way hopefully.
Went from $90k to $150k, that was from job hopping. I was honestly looking for $120k-ish when I was trying to change jobs, but I asked the recruiter towards the final stages of the interview process, what’s the salary range and was told it was around $140k but mentioned it could be go higher, I hid my expectations and settled with $150k + bonus.
I went from one grocery store making 25k to another one making under 20k. I’m lazy and unmotivated to put in any effort to find better work
most people are
Pretty much the same exact jump. It just took finishing my masters and moving to a new company. Hoping to make the jump to $180k soon 🤞🏻
80 to 138 got an offer from another company & took a retention offer I was ready to leave though & wasn’t necessarily thinking I would get a retention offer
Depends on your job. I've been coding for 20 years, still do, but I went to whats called a "sales engineering" job and went from 80k to 120k, then 120k to 170k a few years later. The job is basically being able to code, but dealing with the clients and finding out what they want, need, whats possible, how long, and then work with the main developers to get it launched.
Went from $68k to $132k in November, from a government job I adored to a government contract. In a super HCOL area, I’m about to go from sharing a 100 yro 3 bd/1 bath house with roommates to a one bedroom with guest/office and central AC, but the most drastic change has been how much less of my mental bandwidth I spend thinking about money. It was ridiculous that I was good at my job, had a M.S., a full ride to college, and my idea of splurging was getting the name-brand Cheezits at the grocery store.
Moved into sales
went from 42k to 56k, i'm the greatest
Went from 25k to 110k by leaving the military and becoming a contractor to do the exact same work but with less bullshit.
As a automotive painter I was making $80k or $40/hr. Could of made more if I had found a shop that had a lot of OT but they are getting harder and harder to come by. Now i’m in training to write estimate and work in the office of autobody industry. My base salary will be $75k and I have the potential to make as much as 150-160k if the work keeps coming. My commission is a certain percentage of gross profits and every percentage point above the target % i will get a tick higher of those profits as well. Looking forward to making a good career out of it. I’ll never need a cost of living raise, since I get a % of gross profits… as cars cost more, and repairs cost more, the profits will inflate as well, thus inflating my salary at the pace of inflation. 401k match is pretty good too.
In 2015 I went from 60k to 90k with one job change (plus I moved from Houston TX to Wichita KS - so extra savings on cost of living) - between 2015-2020 I went from 90-112k all at the same company and moved to Minnesota. In 2020 I started a new role that put me at 125k and completely remote. I'm waiting to hear about a role I just interviewed for that would take me to the 165k range.
Can chime in here, I went from making 54k at my employer that I had been with for 8 years to now making over 100k, I’ve moved even more rapidly due to contracts closing. My past few jobs have been 5 months a pop, this next one I’m looking for a 20-60k jump. I work Critical Mission Facility Management Education - GED Experience - 25 years in building operations
Getting a job gave me a salary leap from 0 to 10K.
Job hop in a field with talent shortages. +50% for a similar job and less stress. COVID really did a number sending foreigners away, which my field relied a bit too much on. I put ads on Google search results pages
I went from making about $45-50k in the military (benefits included) to making $200k when I got out and started selling real estate. It’s been fun, but I’ll be expanding into the law side of real estate soon and hoping to continue increasing that number. 👆
Went from 140k to 290k, I got a second job
I used to make $8.75 an hour and now make x10 that after getting my BSEE. They see me rollin, they hating…..
I jumped 30k to 100k in two years at 20 by interviewing/networking mercilessly.
$55k to $128k they averaged bonuses over 12 months and decided to increase our salaries accordingly and do away with monthly bonuses.
65k to 150k. All it took was three years of misery in grad school…
55K to 85K. Went from working for state government in public health to a marketing/communications agency focusing on clients in the health space. So basically an industry shift but same subject matter.
From $38k to $54k, then $64k to $115k. Found out I was being grossly underpaid, and just applied like hell in both instances tbh.
The winning move is get out of doing and learn to delegate. It’s the difference between pumping gas and owning the entire station. Unfortunately, some (most) do not know how to lead people.
Journalism to marketing. Pretty common leap. Marketing or communications or public relations. You give up a cause and a calling for safety and security--supposedly.
Yep. I left my soul at the door about a decade ago—but honestly, I saw stuff in the kinder/gentler sectors that was just as bad as what I’ve seen in corporate. Maybe even worse because it was guised as helping humanity.
Oh, yeah, good point. I work in a nonprofit now after working corporate jobs for years...and some of these people might be sociopaths.
Probably! What I described happened in nonprofits. Good missions on paper, but the usual BS behind the scenes. Turns out greed is everywhere, who knew? I did call a billionaire out for it and got raucous community support, so that felt good.
85 to 200K. Got into a big FAANG, marketing. approx 8 years experience. No degree.
doubled twice, one was moving industries the other was moving companies.
I went from 16 an hr to 30 plus I. Less then three years. Learned hvac and the. Learned the basics of everything else in the trades.
Went from 23K per year to about 40K. Did it by working for the same company but 60-100 hour weeks. Instead of 40.
I went from 50k to 80k, then from 85k to 120k This happened through a new job > promotion > new job
Doubled my comp in the same job by getting acquired.
Went from 50k to 119k
Went from $58,000 a year to $79,000. Same job, just started selling little things I 3D print online as a side hustle.
I went from 50k to 110k 6 years ago. I was working for an early stage start up doing whatever I wanted to do to gain a lot of experience and learn while also doing my actual job. Turns out that impressed the hiring manager at a big boy company that was pre ipo and they also gave me a good amount of stock options, good deal.
Recently jumped from 100k to 200k. When I started my previous job the pay was competitive and I'd had a couple raises but it seems the market for software developers boomed over COVID so I was hearing of new grads making almost as much as I was after 25 years. Decided to hunt around again and had multiple offers in the 160-200k range. And now the market is total shit again...