"Value created by you" is not necessarily dependent on your skills alone. You might be the best Java programmer in the world, but if you get hired to write some boring CRM system for internal use in a bank, then the value you created is limited by how much money said bank wants to burn on internal development efforts.
On the other hand, if you get hired by FAANG and work on the "next big thing", like, say, new operating system for smartphones, then the amount of money that can be made from it is virtually unlimited.
The difference between the US and Europe is mostly that: cool, product-focused jobs are all in America, Europe only has the boring, low-risk, low-reward ones. Europe needs to innovate more, that's it.
> You might be the best Java programmer in the world
This is also true in the opposite sense. A mediocre programmer at a bank or a high-profit company could still create a lot of value because of the surroundings or simply the industry. And they're probably compensated for that, at least in part.
Even more interesting – the cafeteria workers, cleaning staff, etc at those companies also produce more value than their colleagues in less fortunate companies/industries. But they're probably not compensated for it, because markets.
I kind of agree, but it isn't just that europe doesn't innovate, there is a lack of VC infrastructure and it's kind of antithetical to the managerial culture.
On the other hand, if you get hired by FAANG and work on the "next big thing", like, say, new operating system for smartphones, then the amount of money that can be made from it is virtually unlimited.
The difference between the US and Europe is mostly that: cool, product-focused jobs are all in America, Europe only has the boring, low-risk, low-reward ones. Europe needs to innovate more, that's it.