Hi!
Imagine you were in your 30s earning an okay salary in IT or maybe another lucrative industry.
How would you plan your next decades, would you try to build a career in a company or as a skilled consultant, or would you at a certain age try to open a business?
If the latter, would it be an IT related business or something unrelated requiring some capital like sales of expensive goods or hospitality?
Have you been in this situation, or are you now, and what are your thoughts or ideas?
=)
Thanks!
2 Likes
I never had a masterplan, it all somehow worked out. Never had an idea good enough for starting own shop.
For proper steps in salary you need to change companies, or at least get steady promotions. Seen good careers where people left for a bigger job in a smaller company, then came back some years later to very high positions. In bigger corporates, the real career people rotate positions every three years roughly, and internationally. I used to have a boss who said you needed to have experience in three different countries and in three different functions to make senior management.
Not sure that helps, but these are my spontaneous thoughts.
2 Likes
visit r/wallstreetbets and yolo all your savings on an NVDA call option
1 Like
Aside from all the stuff building your career. Also make sure you are saving and investing to build up a financial base to become financially independent and/or for your eventual retirement.
2 Likes
My wife started buying lottery tickets this week because apparently there is a big jackpot …
She’s smarter than day traders
2 Likes
Very much this. If you don’t know much about investing, now is the time to learn.
Do you use IB? I tried SQ but then realized fees for transaction and quarterly fees weren’t a good fit for small regular investments
In general I agree with this but I am more curious for your plans to be staying active in one professional domain or another
Honestly, if you want this thread to have any use you need to be more specific what you actually want advise on. You started this very generically without describing your situation at all. And now you are asking folks about their plans to stay active in one domain or another? What is that supposed to mean?
I agree, it’s a fair remark, yet I am not sure myself where I want to go with it.
I.e. I’m in my 30s working in IT with a satisfiable income and I’m wondering if I will be as welcome in the job market in the next decades as I age and is it a good idea in principle to stay a salary men.
So, advises about investing are fair, I’ve tried a bit with SQ and I was a bit disappointed about fees, and I’ll be trying again with IB, in general I liked it.
I looked a bit into silver and gold stacking as well but for a short while, it was interesting too.
BUT assuming that I’d be doing the above and still wish to stay active, what activity would be a good objective, it’s a bit of an open question and I wonder which path you’ve gone or planning to go. Are you opening an IT related business or a non-IT related business, or are you trying to stay a good specialist on the job market until you retire. =) I know it’s still a very broad question.
Everybody takes a different strategy and also depends on your work life balance. I gave up a job with 50% pay rise because it meant more work and worse work life balance. Not sure that paid off as a year later, my existing job situation went a bit pear-shaped.
But if you are running a side-income or building up alternative income streams, then probably you don’t optimize for maximum salary, but rather maximum flexibility so you can run those outside-of-work projects with a less demanding job.
1 Like
I have no clue about the IT market, so not really sure what the career paths you guys have. However, whatever industry you’re in, eventually, you’ll be asked to lead people and this is when technical skill starts to matter less and less. Funnily, the toughest job I’ve ever had was when I was promoted from an Analyst and had to lead a team of Analysts. Leading task-oriented people is harder than leading managers of other people. Its a brutal check-point and honestly, if you pass through that, its not that things get easy, but get easier.
Lastly, invest in a “fuck you” fund. A pot that gives you the freedom to tell an asshole boss “fuck you” and leave without feeling like you’re screwed.
1 Like
After 20 years in Pharma I finally gave up on it last year to work for a public health non profit organisation. We target neglected diseases (mainly in Sub-Saharan Africa) and I’m definitely glad I made the move since this population is chronically underserved by conventional pharma. The downsides are that I took a significant drop in pay and due to the barebones nature of the organisation I have to do a lot more admin or hustle with consultants for their services. And as we’re beholden to donors for our funding, there is little job security as we exist from grant to grant.
As I reached my mid-40s I realised that doing something you are truly passionate about is really the most important thing, and that has nothing but positives for your mental health and well-being. In pharma I was just a number and the goal was profit, where I work now I’m appreciated by my colleagues and there is little competition, backstabbing or politics. We all just get on with the mission to develop safe, efficacious and affordable medicines for those who need it most.
I may end up back in pharma in a few years, but if so it will be with a completely different perspective and set of priorities i.e. career fulfilment as opposed to climbing a greasy pole.
6 Likes
After 20 years in Pharma, you can afford to retire! 
1 Like
I wish 
however I do agree that pharma salaries are usually very generous.
If your quest for a career change has somehow surfaced because of a persistent dissatisfaction with your current (or former) job, first thing I would do is to ask myself if that job or position within that specific company was the right place for me - to begin with. In case you weren’t in the wrong position at the wrong company, which obviously renders the logical solution to find another position at one of the companies in your field, then you might proceed to actually find your strengths and your passions. What interests you more? The entrepreneurial part, starting something new, or simply delivering technical solutions as a consultant? If the first, then you have to find like-minded people because you can’t do it all alone. Oh, and you have the perfect age (you could be a tad older too) for a startup, judging by the people I know.
When I was asking myself similar questions I worked through the book “what colour is your parachute” - did all the exercises etc and it was really helpful to gain clarity on a few things.
2 Likes
You literally meant the book of R. Bolles? Yes, could be a good exercise for gaining clarity.