How do all of you make these $200k salaries???

[Anonymous]

I'm a director in the financial services industry, working in data. The pay & benefits are good but I don't love the work environment.

If you have the aptitude for it - beef up your programming skills in python/r and get a public github to showcase your skills. Good data scientists are always in short supply. Or beef up IT skills, getting AWS or other certificates (like through Coursera).

If that's not for you, I would go the PMP route and try to get into govt contract mgmt. I have friends who have done well in that space - but I can't advise on how to get into it. Setup a virtual coffee with folks in that space, network via linked in or friends of friends to learn more. In general, that's a great way to learn more about a field and figure out if it's right for you - and if/how you can get into it. You'd be surprised how many people are willing to talk and provide advice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DH makes $400K a year - Big Law
Sister makes $900K - IT saless
BIL makes $250K - IT sales management

I make $90K a year - grants management

But I help keep my family on track and together (3 kids) and also partially help my sister with organizing her household when things come up or help watch her kids (2 kids). Its a team effort.

900k in sales?!?!?!?!? That's insane.

[Anonymous]

900k in sales?!?!?!?!? That's insane.

It's probably commission based.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Move to project management in tech. FAANG companies.

I have applied nonstop to the FAANG, the only one I hear back from (and keep hearing from) is Amazon, but they have a $180k salary cap, and you are really dependent on the stock rising. And of course the 4 year cliff; should I get one of those "how to apply to google" books, which I am so skeptical of but I'm desperate. I mean, I have an Ivy league degree, but have been such an rube engineer from the sticks I've just never had my career take off.

I'm the 22:53 PP. Will the Amazon job give you the experience to get to a 200+K one? Your Ivy should have people working at Google, mine does. Work those connections.

Yeah, I know plenty of people there as friends, but they haven't worked with me in any meaningful way except college over a decade ago. Do people really network that way? They really have no idea about my work career?

Yes. You don't have to be BFFs for networking. I used to email, introduce myself, go out for a coffee and discuss how to get a job there, company culture, opportunities for promotions etc. My H got all his jobs from connections and networking, he's never applied the traditional way. His industry pays $10K/year for the next 3 years if his recommendation is hired and stays for over a year, so there's financial incentive as well.

Piggybacking on this post - it is definitely true. I have done cold reach outs to people from my Ivy law school (so not even acquaintances, just fellow alums) or people from my old gov't agency, and many people have responded and are willing to help. They won't always submit your resume for you (which is ideal), but at a minimum they are often willing to do an informational interview. Also, LinkedIn is great for identifying people who may know people you do. If you can even get an email intro to someone at a company you are interested in, that can go a long way. I try to pay it forward when more junior folks contact me as well.

[Anonymous]

Maybe your wife should find a new job since she is so miserable in hers? Many people who are earning $250k are older than you. But you are absolutely right that everything is so damn expensive and you are not the only one being squeezed. I would urge your wife to find work she loves. Having two incomes is the best way to boost HHI.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

900k in sales?!?!?!?!? That's insane.

It's probably commission based.

Probably, but still..... I guess color me impressed/jealous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Maybe your wife should find a new job since she is so miserable in hers? Many people who are earning $250k are older than you. But you are absolutely right that everything is so damn expensive and you are not the only one being squeezed. I would urge your wife to find work she loves. Having two incomes is the best way to boost HHI.

Well at my company there isn't much salary progression, in fact many contractors switch to civil service b/c the pay is the same but they don't have to worry about re-competes, have a pension, etc.

So I need to look outside my niche and build skills somewhere. But this is less daunting for me with some tech skills and project management experience, versus my DW who is in a very govt specific role and really has no good exits.

I'll look into building my skills in Cloud (so AWS, Azure, and GCP certs) and build a portfolio of Python, R, and Javascript on a githup profile, and then I think need to target financial services?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DW ($500K+) is in biglaw, and I ($230K) have an MBA and work in marketing.

A friend of mine makes 250K as marketing vise president. She has no MBA and started at her firm as a temp at $35/hr 4 years ago.

Good for her! Her path to that is not as common as mine, so was giving my background as OP asked about MBAs specifically in one of his posts.

[Anonymous]

DH and I each make around $300K, mid 30s.

He started his own company (now series C) so also a lot of equity potential. Otherwise his comp would be much higher at FAANG.

I am in biotech BD.

We also went to an Ivy and most our friends are in similar to better situations. Leveraging network for opportunities is key. I look to the companies attracting people in my network that I admire for ideas on where to go next. I also work really hard, make myself indispensable, and push for / negotiate comp increases every year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DH and I each make around $300K, mid 30s.

He started his own company (now series C) so also a lot of equity potential. Otherwise his comp would be much higher at FAANG.

I am in biotech BD.

We also went to an Ivy and most our friends are in similar to better situations. Leveraging network for opportunities is key. I look to the companies attracting people in my network that I admire for ideas on where to go next. I also work really hard, make myself indispensable, and push for / negotiate comp increases every year.

Well, I was the southern diversity element at my Ivy, I came in very ill prepared from my low scoring rural school and really never fit it. So my friends from college, while many are at FAANG and such, were not the deep friendships I would feel comfortable taking a flyer for me to get a job. Is that really an okay thing to do, it feels so.. fake. I mean, we send them christmas cards and stay in touch and maybe see each other every 5 years, but its not like we are close friends nor are are we work colleagues hence it feels weird to network that way.

Are you in the Bay Area or DC, as you mention your DH might work at a FAANG?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DW ($500K+) is in biglaw, and I ($230K) have an MBA and work in marketing.

A friend of mine makes 250K as marketing vise president. She has no MBA and started at her firm as a temp at $35/hr 4 years ago.

So who did she sleep with?

[Anonymous]

And to add to OP's question, with all the mergers in corporate America, that means even fewer higher level jobs to shoot for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:And to add to OP's question, with all the mergers in corporate America, that means even fewer higher level jobs to shoot for.

Are these even that higher level? Houses in Freaking Vienna are $1M, and the playgrounds there are full of SAHM. Someone is making $200k plus not just a handful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe your wife should find a new job since she is so miserable in hers? Many people who are earning $250k are older than you. But you are absolutely right that everything is so damn expensive and you are not the only one being squeezed. I would urge your wife to find work she loves. Having two incomes is the best way to boost HHI.

Well at my company there isn't much salary progression, in fact many contractors switch to civil service b/c the pay is the same but they don't have to worry about re-competes, have a pension, etc.

So I need to look outside my niche and build skills somewhere. But this is less daunting for me with some tech skills and project management experience, versus my DW who is in a very govt specific role and really has no good exits.

I'll look into building my skills in Cloud (so AWS, Azure, and GCP certs) and build a portfolio of Python, R, and Javascript on a githup profile, and then I think need to target financial services?

That's a good way to go. Fannie, Freddie, and Capital One are three of the biggies in DC metro. The pace at Fannie and Freddie is slower than Cap One, but at each you can find pockets that span the gamut. Beef up your LinkedIn profile with those buzz words, make sure you have 300+ contacts, join some related groups, and click the button to let recruiters you're open to work. Apply to jobs you can find, but it helps to enable recruiters to find you as well. Let people know you're looking for other opportunities, you never know where help will come from.

While the kids are young - it's honestly tough/overwhelming. As the kids get older (into elem school), it'll get easier to juggle it all.

[Anonymous]

DH sales, me trade association leadership