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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I've been following this thread with some interest.  I'm a woman in biglaw and the main breadwinner.  Our pretax HHI is around 650K, with my DH bringing in around $130K of it as a non-lawyer fed.  Our financials are not super different; retirement is only $950K and 529 is only $300K total (I think OP had more on both counts), but we have about $1.8 in brokerage accounts so about the same total.  Our mortgage is higher and we have less equity, but also have some special circumstances that resulted in that -- i.e., parents who moved in with us so we can help with health issues but who happily contribute to mortgage/bills/etc -- and we left a very low mortgage ($2200) to accommodate them. We'd be happy to downsize house if my parents no longer needed the space.

My kids are 6 and 3 and I often think of leaving big law in the next 3-5 years.  I don't think I want to be a partner, but I'm fairly confident I could stay in my counsel position for a while if I wanted to do so. Part of me thinks I should just to save up, pay for life, keep doing it while it feels manageable.  Part of me would love to pursue other options (which have uncertain or certainly lower salaries) that I think I would enjoy more. The overwhelming majority of folks on this thread seem to think operating on fed salary and drawing down savings to fill the gap is insane, though, which would probably be our plan too. [/quote]

[b]This is insane.  You have SO much money[/b].  300k in 529s when your kids are 6 and under?  1.8 in brokerage and you are worried about living off 2 fed salaries?  Look with these numbers, you cannot complain about life work balance.  You are consciously making the decision to work your ass off in big law in order to support your lifestyle and be able to buy $900 shoes at whim (or whatever the example was people gave).  And that is a totally fine decision but you can't complain you are miserable.  It would be insanely easy to take a step back, live off 300k instead of 800k/year, and yes face a moderate change in your lifestyle but having the time to find joy in other things and maybe even enjoy your work. [/quote]

Perhaps relative to you.  Could you manage a 70% paycut?  I’m sure you’re doing plenty of things that someone earning minimum wage cannot do.  What’s the amount that someone is allowed to earn or require?  [/quote]

I'm not saying she isn't allowed to earn that or should take a pay cut.  I'm just saying that with those numbers, she has full choice and control over the future of her career.  She can explore whatever she wants within reason.  There was that other thread about how much people spend per month and the consensus was that regardless if you make 200k or 700k, most people spend around 10k-15k a month and everything above that is gravy.  So yes, she and and everyone else can manage a 70% pay cut at those numbers.  Will life be different?  Sure.  But not nearly as life altering than if you were early 200k and needed to take a 70% pay cut. [/quote]

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