The SV wages I'm seeing seem to be concentrated in a few really wealthy companies who basically enjoy monopoly status in their domains.
It doesn't seem like smaller startups pay that well - though maybe that is fair due to the chance to hit it big.
What I will tell you is that software engineers in the rest of the country, especially in industries that have been decimated by offshoring and H1Bs (banking, insurance, and large companies in general) do not pay that well after about age 35 or so once you hit your ceiling (anywhere from $90K in the Midwest to $150k in high COL East Coast) no matter how talented you are.
I made way better money than most of my peers at 25 - they were still in grad school and paying off loans. By 30, I was still making more, but they were quickly catching up.
I'm imagining by 40, I won't be much ahead of anyone with a professional degree or even those who went into government and now have seniority, pensions, etc.
What I've seen so far with offshoring, H1Bs in my 20s was the first big warning sign for me. Then as I got into my 30's and started seeing how management treats older works, I'm beginning to realize that age discrimination in tech is for real - second warning sign.
And finally, if this whole war on white / asian males picks up steam in other companies, I'm probably going to attempt to pivot out of the industry completely. There is not much of a bright future.
"I made way better money than most of my peers at 25 - they were still in grad school and paying off loans. By 30, I was still making more, but they were quickly catching up.
I'm imagining by 40, I won't be much ahead of anyone with a professional degree or even those who went into government and now have seniority, pensions, etc"
I have seen that myself. I used to make more than people my age but over the years non tech friends have advanced steadily and have passed me. People in government often make around 150k too but they get a very nice pension in addition.
It doesn't seem like smaller startups pay that well - though maybe that is fair due to the chance to hit it big.
What I will tell you is that software engineers in the rest of the country, especially in industries that have been decimated by offshoring and H1Bs (banking, insurance, and large companies in general) do not pay that well after about age 35 or so once you hit your ceiling (anywhere from $90K in the Midwest to $150k in high COL East Coast) no matter how talented you are.
I made way better money than most of my peers at 25 - they were still in grad school and paying off loans. By 30, I was still making more, but they were quickly catching up.
I'm imagining by 40, I won't be much ahead of anyone with a professional degree or even those who went into government and now have seniority, pensions, etc.
What I've seen so far with offshoring, H1Bs in my 20s was the first big warning sign for me. Then as I got into my 30's and started seeing how management treats older works, I'm beginning to realize that age discrimination in tech is for real - second warning sign.
And finally, if this whole war on white / asian males picks up steam in other companies, I'm probably going to attempt to pivot out of the industry completely. There is not much of a bright future.