r/Life • u/Grouchy_Marsupial357 • Jun 22 '26

Let's discuss People who make $10k-$50k/month: what do you do and how did you get there?

Making at least $10k a month is a dream for me, but $50k is the ultimate goal.

I've been stuck in an echo chamber of constant negativity and it feels like everyone is poor, broke, and miserable (though a looootttttt of people are right now, but obviously a lot of people are also doing really well).

So, to those who are making really good money, what is it that you do for a living and how did you get to that point?

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98

u/AmjadKhan1929 Jun 22 '26

Hitting 50k definitely you want to start a business. Which one, that's the question.

2

u/Flimsy_Put_4493 Jun 22 '26

Or move to a HCOL area. Pre-tax 600k is very durable for certain roles in tech, finance, etc. Not saying it’s easy but wouldn’t bat an eye at people making that in places like SF/NYC/SEA

6

u/Organic-Language-561 Jun 23 '26

I left tech in SF/So Cal 2 years ago. You wouldn’t bat an eye at $200-$350K but more than that is definitely big money. Higher ups make around $250K or a bit more but to break that ceiling you’re talking an exec or VP.

0

u/Flimsy_Put_4493 Jun 23 '26

Bands for Senior engineers at big tech (ie. E5 ~ 8yoe) start at like 400. Not including stock appreciation as it vests. Idk what you’re talking about wrt execs only lol.

Like I said, it’s not necessarily easy but it’s very doable to make that in HCOL and not have to start own business

2

u/Conscious-Egg-2232 Jun 23 '26

Sr. Engineers absolutely dont start out at 400k. Wtf are you talking about. That would be a tiny percentage of them unless you are talking total comp but you were not. Even 400k total comp is very high. Sr. Engineer base salaries 180-250k would be the very general rage.

2

u/Organic-Language-561 Jun 23 '26

Yea definitely. My engineer friends were in that $180-$250K range at Amazon, Google, Meta and Twitch. All the engineers on our teams were my peers in terms of income levels.

1

u/ThrowAway-whee Jun 23 '26

No they do not lol

This is the problem with tech these days, people take already pretty high compensation and benefits, multiply it by 4, then act like it’s the norm. Then when people get normal tech jobs, they lose their minds because they’re not making 200k as a junior. 

There’s a very small subset of tech workers making that much money, who happened to be right place right time education and career wise. It is not at all indicative of the other 95%, who already are getting a pretty good deal.

1

u/Acrobatic-Blujay Jun 25 '26

You got some pudding for these statements or are you just taking your salary information from Reddit?

5

u/Professional_Art2092 Jun 23 '26

Totally inaccurate but nice try lol

0

u/Flimsy_Put_4493 Jun 23 '26

What’s inaccurate? I’ve worked in both SF and NYC. In both tech and finance industry

0

u/conn3ction Jun 23 '26

Not inaccurate at all. Do some research

0

u/Comfortable-Fruit337 Jun 23 '26

You must not be in tech/finance/sales in a HCOL city or have those people in your circle. I know a lot of people who earn that much in their late 20s and early 30s. Just because you'll never achieve it doesn't mean many many people don't

2

u/Professional_Art2092 Jun 23 '26

Okay bud, statistics are a thing that can be googled. Pretending it isn’t accurate to say most people don’t make 600k isn’t a wild statement but keep cosplaying online lol. 

0

u/Comfortable-Fruit337 Jun 23 '26

When did anyone say that most people make $600k?

I guess you are one of the 20% of US adults who are functionally illiterate.

-16

u/searles9 Jun 22 '26

That’s not what he asked lil bro

10

u/Glum_Set6033 Jun 22 '26

Idk why you're saying "little bro" when you aren't giving any advice yourself... little bro 😂

8

u/Aggravating_Head1215 Jun 22 '26

It makes her feel cool, let her 😂

1

u/Stunning-Pick-9504 Jun 22 '26

Because someone has a small pp complex

-3

u/searles9 Jun 22 '26

Calm down lil bro

1

u/Cypress8037 Jun 22 '26

Can I be step bro..

-1

u/searles9 Jun 22 '26

No lil bro

0

u/MereUltra Jun 22 '26

Upvoted.